“Why did you do that?” she asks quietly.
“Because he could have software that can monitor your phone.”
“Oh my God, really?”
I’m not sure how I’m having a coherent conversation because my fingers are still resting against warm, creamy smooth skin. The static charge of touching her is gluing my hand in place.
“Yeah. All that shit you see on Netflix, that’s more real than you know.”
Expression falling, she swallows nervously, her shoulders shuddering in a shiver. “I didn’t know. But I’m worried, I don’t want you to get in trouble. You should go.”
Reaching into my pocket, I find my key fob. “Keep this on you. I’ve got a spare.”
“What’s this to?”
“My truck. It’s out back every day. You need to get out of here, you take it.”
Forming a little ‘o’ with her mouth, she stares at the black plastic fob. “What man gives a girl like me the key to their truck?”
“Someone that cares that you’ve got a way out any time you need it.”
Looking me in the eyes, she tucks the fob into her cleavage. “I’ll hide it here.”
Oh. Fuck.
I nod, but don’t move. I’m already in trouble, and it doesn’t have anything to do with her father yet.
Eagle McKenna, innocent, beautiful, young Eagle, is temptation incarnate and I’m caught in the woman’s snare.
If I get close to her again, she’s going to be on her back and beneath me before she can blink those goddamned long lashes.
“Be good, Mischief. I’ll be back.”
Rocked, I shove off the wall, folding my other hand to keep the heat from her skin, and stride away.
I need to stay AWAY. Or I’ll defile something too sweet for a fucked up man like me.
Now I just need to figure out how to arrange to get her away from this hellhole so she can have the life she deserves.
TWO
Eagle
It takes a long time before I can unglue myself from the wall because I don’t trust my knees. Or any part of my body, for that matter. All my joints feel disconnected.
Pressing my fingers to my lips, I realize I’m trembling too. Kane Mathews is…
A force of nature.
“Girl,” I chastise myself, “he can’t really be into you.”
But a thrill races through me. He gave me his number.Andtrusted me with his truck key.
Now I sound like a teenager. But God, Kane represents everything I crave. A protector. A man who walks to his own drum. The air around him crackles with confidence. Not the kind that comes from his bank account.
Everything my father and the people in his lane aren’t.
Voices—obnoxious and loud—carry to me from the east end of the mansion. Some of my father’s associates, lurking. Hanging out in his billiards room. Probably talking about women and theway they only see them as arm candy, something to be paraded around, not really loved.
