Page 61 of Forbidden Confessions: Vol. 2
When I turn to leave the room, he pulls me back. “That’s not true. I love you.”
My stupid heart wants to believe that, but I can’t be swayed. I may not understand exactly how and why the game is played, but I know enough to know I’m in dangerous water.
And Rush is the shark circling me, smelling blood.
“No. You’re a spy. Which also makes you a liar, a player, and an unreliable prick.” Overcome, I struggle past tears. “Was any of it real? The way you looked at me? The things you said? Or am I just another mark you had to seduce for the mission?”
“Every fucking word was real. Everything I felt, everything I said—that was me, not the job.”
Do I dare believe him? He’s trained to lie, to make people trust him, to say exactly what they need to hear. If I let him stay, how would I ever know the difference between Rush the man and Rush the operative? “Get out.”
“Vanessa…” He rushes toward me. “Little girl. Don’t?—”
“Now.” I snatch up the burner phone and throw it at his chest, but of course it bounces off his solid flesh the way a quarter would bounce off those tight, tempting abs. “Or I’m calling the police.”
I don’t know if that threat will actually do anything, but the big boys usually leave the locals in the dark, and at the very least, the officers of the SAPD will put a monkey wrench in whatever Rush and Daddy have schemed.
“All right.” He suddenly sounds very reasonable. I don’t trust it. “I’ll be out of your hair in two minutes.”
Just like that, he’s giving up on me. On us.
Of course he is. There was never any “us” to start with. The worst part? I gave him everything. My virginity, my heart, my trust. And he took it all while knowing exactly who I was and why he was really there.
“Good.” I try not to cry.
I’ll probably love Rush forever. Or the idea of him, anyway. The man I thought he was. It will take me a while to mourn his loss. But this sex god in a skimpy white towel—no, I mean this asshole—in front of me? I’ll forget him in no time. Like, I’ve already forgotten him. He’s just a memory. I’m ready for the next man.
And you called him a liar?
Telling the voice in my head to shut up, I disappear into the powder bath with my clothes, toss them on, and emerge in time to find Rush completely dressed, keys in hand, looking both pissed and determined.
But his dark eyes are still pleading with me. “This is a bad idea. Whatever you think is going on between us?—”
“Nothing.”
“You’re wrong, but besides that, someone broke into your place yesterday. I need to figure out what’s happening, secure your cottage, and keep you safe.”
“Do your job, you mean. You can do it outside.” I stomp down the hall and straight to the front door, pulling it wide open for Rush.
He sighs as he walks out. “You’re making a mistake. It’s still dangerous?—”
“If something happens, I’ll call the police. They won’t work their way inside my panties in the name of ‘protecting’ me. Besides, if you’ve been watching me every moment of every day for the last seven months, then I doubt you’ll go far. Just forget what I look like naked.”
Rush grabs me by the nape and pulls me so close I can smell the scent of soap on his skin and see his long, black lashes spiked from the shower spray. I get weak-kneed. “That is never going to happen. I’m going to fix this clusterfuck of a misunderstanding. By tonight, I’ll be back in your bed, deep inside your body, little girl. You’re not getting rid of me.”
The low taunt of his voice twists my heart on its way down to my pussy and claws me with need. God, even knowing he deceived me, why can’t I stop wanting him?
Stubbornly, I press my mouth into a militant line, then give his chest a good shove. He stumbles onto the porch, giving me just enough time to lock the front door.
And next time he comes knocking, I swear I’ll have whipped up plenty of anger and fortitude so that I won’t be the least bit tempted to let him in.
As I stare through the peephole at him marching down my walkway, his brawny arms swinging and his long legs eating up the ground—as his fine ass moves with confidence—I’m not convinced this is a promise I can keep.
10
Rush
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