“Why?”
“Because of how close you two looked. Because you told me you don’t mix business with pleasure, and yet…” He motioned toward the kitchen.
“It wasnothing. A fling. Itmeantnothing.”
Alex stalked toward her, stopping just in front of her. “And therein lies the problem,Sutton.”
Her eyes narrowed further into little slits. “Why,Arroyo? I can have sex with whomever I choose.”
“Correct.”
Her jaw tightened. “But it pissed you off.”
“Correct,” he agreed again.
“Because you thought you peed on my leg last night.”
He raised his eyebrows. Well, that took a turn. “Wrong.”
She pursed her lips, shaking her head. “Admit it. You thought that because I let you get your hands all over me, you had some sick, machismo claim to my body.”
He shook his head.Machismo claim?
“You hate that Jean-Luc had his hands on me first.”
His jaw clenched. “I do.”
“Becauseyouweren’t the first?” Kelsey scoffed. “Honey, you’re not even in the firsthundred.”
He swallowed hard. Who she’d been with… how many people she’d been with… none of that was his business, but hearing that there’d been so many before him wasn’t a pleasant feeling. But he pushed it aside, because nothing changed how he felt about this frustrating woman standing before him.Nothingchanged how he felt about Kelsey. Not her past, not her anger, not some ponytailed French fucker she met before she’d even startedacknowledgingthis thing they had between them.
Softening just a little as she watched him sort his thoughts, Kelsey said, “It was a fling, Alex. Because that’s what I do.” She sighed. “I’m sorry it didn’t fit in line with your little idea of who I am.”
“I know exactly who you are. I’ve always seen you.”
Her eyes softened briefly, then she rolled them. “No, you don’t.”
“We can discuss that another day.” He waved his finger between them. “But you having sex with that douchebag out there is none of my business and it has nothing to do with who I think you are or what‘little idea’of you I have.”
“No?” She scoffed. “Coulda fooled me. Look how pissed off you are.”
“Not about that.”
“You’re not pissed off because I fucked him two weeks ago?”
Jaw clenched, Alex shook his head.
“Oh?” Her eyes widened maniacally. “Thenwhat, Alex? Why are you so pissed off? Why are you so angry with me over something that happened before you and I even started—”
“Because you scared me,” he growled. The words were out of his mouth before he could think better of them.
Kelsey took a step backwards. “What did you say?”
Alex breathed heavily. “Nothing.” Maybe she hadn’t really heard him.
Her eyes tightened, that spark of fire reigniting. “Tell me what you said.”
He stood straighter and crossed his arms over his chest.