Page 78 of One Secret

Heat surges from the soles of my feet up through my body and into my cheeks. The rush is foreign but easy to identify: riotous and untainted joy.

I try to smother the reaction but it's too quick to catch. One moment I have equilibrium. The next, I'm basking in sunny warmth.

Being possessive is not the same as being jealous, I remind myself stubbornly. This could be a red flag, soldier, not a love confession.

I lift my chin.

'Exclusivity has never been a part of our arrangement.' I try to sound defiant but, with his weight against me and my lungs crushed, my protests just sound breathy and feminine.

'Then I'm changing the deal,' Cyrus growls, eyes burning and lips parted in arousal. The darks of his eyes have almost entirely swallowed their surrounding color. They've almost swallowed me.

I gulp. Then try to laugh.

'You want me to yourself?' I challenge. The idea is thrilling, even as it makes little difference to me. I've not been with anyone since Cyrus came into my life. 'For the whole eight hours that we have left?'

The smile that stretches across Cyrus's face is one of smug triumph.

'Weren't you listening, baby? We have a whole two days more than we planned...'

Right... Friday.

The truth is, I could leave. I could just hop on the ferry down at the docks and arrange for my own flight back to Italy. It would be a pain in the ass and the ticket would wipe out my savings... but I would still have a job when I got back to Rome.

A job you're quitting, anyway.

Remaining at The Blue Star, where Cyrus might continue to meet his clients, won't be possible once I start to show.

Go back now and save a few weeks of a job I'm not keeping?

Or stay and savor a few days with the man I can't have?

Neither is healthy in the long run. But I know which gives me the greatest pleasure in the here and now.

'Fine,' I agree, leaning up against the hard planes of Cyrus's chest and hooking a heel around his leg. 'I'm yours.'

'What?'

My surrender seems to have knocked some of the violence from Cyrus's face. He blinks at me, surprised.

'I'm yours,' I repeat. 'For two days. Claim me however you want. Exclusively if you like. But, beyond that, nothing has changed.'

'You're still leaving...?'

'Yes.'

'With the bartender,' he snarls.

Whoa, what?

He's lost me.

'With who?' I ask, thrown for a loop.

Frowning, I bring my hands to his face and turn him to meet me in the eye. I feel his jaw clicking against my palm. He shaved before dinner, so his skin is smooth to the touch.

'The guy behind the bar,' Cyrus says. 'The tall one. Brown hair. I saw him last time at The Blue Star.'

Tall guy... brown hair...?

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