Page 24 of Mistletoe Masquerade
Dean.
He’s here.
I freeze.
In my shock, I have a second to take in the feel of his large frame behind me. I’m pulled flush against his front, one of his strong arms wrapped around my torso to keep me in place. I should be terrified, and for a moment, I was. But now that I know who’s behind me, an odd sense of relief washes over me until Dean finally speaks, and his words chill me to the bone.
“Wouldn’t try anything crazy, huh? Apparently, Sante doesn’t know me as well as he thinks he does.”
CHAPTER 12
DEAN
I was goingto claw Sachi from my memory. That’s what I decided on my ride in the elevator after leaving Amelie’s apartment. Because as much as her actions felt like a betrayal, there was nothing to betray. Sachi never owed me anything. It’s Sante who deserves my wrath.
With each step I take toward the building exit, I try to convince myself that Sachi means nothing to me, and thus, I shouldn’t spend another minute thinking of her.
I try really damn hard.
Turns out, I’m even more persistent than I gavemyself credit for being. I know I need to walk away from Sachi, but I can’t do it. I need to know why. I need to understand how she could have been so fucking convincing when it was all a fucking act. If I don’t get to the bottom of it, doubts about my intuition will haunt me forever.
Therefore, instead of taking a long walk to cool off before going home, I never make it past the building’s lobby. I use my credentials to get Sachi’s full name from building security, then locate her apartment using an official police database.
Next thing I know, I’m breaking into the damn place.
I had sensed from the moment I laid eyes on Sachi that she had the potential to inspire great and terrible things in me. It’s good to know my instincts haven’t totally failed me.
I haven’t done anything irreversible yet, but that may change when she walks through this door. I’m not certain what I’ll do. I just know I never would have thought myself capable of any of this before Sachi.
I’ve sat here in her apartment for the last thirty minutes looking at her ridiculous abundance of Christmas decorations while I consider just how far I’m willing to take this. Her place is tiny, as are most Manhattan apartments, but she has every square inch decked out in festive decorations. She even has a six-foot tree halved from the top to the bottom so it sits flush against the wall. Nothing else would have fit in here, but she made it work. She has fake snow sprayed on her windows, additional lights liningthe ceiling edge, and every other bit of red and green decor imaginable.
The woman really goes all out for the holidays—not exactly what I’d expect from someone willing to fuck me for information, but clearly, I’m no longer a decent judge of character.
When she finally arrives home, I hear multiple voices in the hallway. Her studio apartment doesn’t offer a wide array of hiding places, so I stand flush against the wall next to the door.
I register Sante’s voice.
A renewed fury has my fists balling.
This could get really fucking ugly if he comes in here because despite what he thinks, I’m not above beating the shit out of him. Not anymore. The minute Sachi stormed into my life, the rules changed, whether I wanted them to or not. I’m not even sure I know what the rules are where she’s concerned. I just know I’m pissed, and she’s going to answer for what she’s done.
I don’t waste any time. The second Sachi is within reach, I grab her and shut the door.
She stiffens with panic.
She should.
I’m three times her size in mass. Subduing her takes no effort at all. I’m not even worried when she sucks in air to scream, except the sound never comes. Time stretches thin before she releases the breath, and her body softens in my hold.
She knows who has her, and the knowledge innately relaxed her.
Fuck, I hate how good that feels.
Not that she should feel safe right now.Idon’t even know what I might do next.
“Wouldn’t try anything crazy, huh?” I mull over what I heard. “Apparently, Sante doesn’t know me as well as he thinks he does.”
Not that I’ll actually hurt her. I might put a fist through the wall, but I’d never lay a hand on her. I’m just so damn frustrated. I thought she and I had truly connected. That we had a magnetic chemistry neither of us could resist.
