Page 120 of Scandalous Contract
I forced a grin, though it didn't reach my eyes.
"I'm the man who's cherishing her. The man in love with her. The man who’s protecting her. Say something negative toward her again, and I will..."
I glanced up at the security cameras mounted on the building.Shit. I returned my gaze to his.
"You don’t want to anger me, Hudson Howard."
He chuckled, trying to mask his unease. "Listen, young man, Stefanie is too complicated for you. Why don't you find a nice young girl to play with and stop toying with older women?"
"I'm in love with Stefanie Adams. If anything, she's toying with me, not the other way around."
Hudson's jaw tightened. "Look, she's not what she seems..."
"Neither am I," I interrupted.
"She has a dark side."
I took a step closer, my gaze cold as ice. "You're staring darkness in the face right now."
He scoffed, taking a step back. "You've got a response for everything, don't you? Who are you, anyway?"
"I'm Julian Cattaneo."
His eyes widened slightly at the name.
“Cattaneo?” he whispered.
"Stay away from my woman, Hudson. I'm the jealous type. And I'm also a Cattaneo. I'll leave it at that."
With that, I turned and walked to my car, leaving him standing there, a combination of fear and confusion etched on his face. I drummed my fingers against the steering wheel as I drove home, the rhythmic tapping doing little to quell the storm brewing inside me.
The drive home was a blur, my mind replaying every second of that encounter with Hudson. The smugness in his voice when he said Stefanie's name, the insinuation that she had a dark side, as if that was something to be ashamed of.
So what if she had a dark side? She’d done what she had to do to survive, to protect her daughter. That didn't make her any less deserving of love. It made her more deserving, if you asked me.
I really wished I’d punched him in his fucking face. I gripped the steering wheel tighter, my fingers turning red. The urge to turn the car around, to follow Hudson home and end this once and for all, was almost overpowering.
But I couldn't. Not yet. The gym's security cameras had likely captured our interaction. If something happened to him now, it would lead back to me. And I couldn't risk involving Stefanie in any of this.
She'd been through enough. I had to be patient and finish investigating this bitch. By the time I pulled into my driveway, the tension in my shoulders was unbearable. I needed to cool off. A hot shower seemed like the best option.
I entered my home, activated the security system, and stripped out of my clothes. In the shower, the water cascaded over me, easing the tension in my muscles, but not the anger. That lingered, festering just beneath the surface.
After drying off, I grabbed my phone and pulled up the feed from the Messenger Bear. I knew I wouldn’t be able to see anything. But just hearing her move around the house would let me know she was okay, and that would help calm me down a little.
With my towel wrapped around my waist, I sat on the edge of my bed and stared down at the live feed. To my surprise, the bear was no longer facing the wall. The camera now showed Stefanie's bedroom.
And there she was, lying on the bed, robe parted, her fingers trailing over her skin, eyes closed. My breath caught in my throat. Desire surged through me, fully eclipsing my anger.
I brought the phone closer to my mouth and said, “Stefanie Adams, what the hell are you doing?”
She didn’t stop touching herself.
Instead, her eyes opened, she looked straight at the red dot, and said, “You’re late, Julian Cattaneo.”
My mouth went dry and my dick woke the fuck up. It seemed I was right on time.
***
