Laughing bitterly, it finally made sense. “You saw me down here, and you couldn’t resist the temptation to have me under your command, obeying your every order. Is that it?”
“It wasn’t like that, please Lu—”
I cut him off, not done with my tirade. “How long were you going to let this continue?”
Preston’s body sagged, and he dropped back onto the padded bench. “I was going to tell you tonight.”
“Before or after you fucked me?” I shot back.
Those hazel eyes snapped to mine so fast, and it was satisfying to see I’d finally struck a nerve. I could handle a pissed-off Preston better than the version fumbling over a half-assed apology.
Clenching his fists next to his thighs where he sat, he finally engaged in the argument. “Are we going to sit here and pretend that you weren’t the one to initiate contact beyond our initial meeting?”
I saw red, charging at him, stopping just short of where he sat, putting my finger in his face. “Oh, no. You’re not going to turn this around on me. Don’t. You. Dare.”
Preston unclenched his fists and took a deep breath. “You’re right.”
“Say that again.” I wanted to savor watching him eat crow.
“You got it once, Lucy. Don’t push it. I know what I did was wrong. I came down here tonight with the intention of coming clean. Why would I have voluntarily removed my mask if thatwasn’t the case? And for clarification, I had no plans to have sex with you tonight, but are you really going to say that what we’ve shared in this room wasn’t special? I know you felt it too.”
Fuck him. Fuck him for playing these games and messing with my head. “It doesn’t matter what I felt. It was built on a lie. Your lie.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Sorry isn’t going to cut it. You broke my trust in the worst possible way. The second you realized who I was down here, you should have walked the other way, not engaged in play with me. You crossed a major line.”
“I know.” At least he had the good sense to look ashamed for what he’d done. “And I promise I will spend the rest of my life making it up to you.”
Those words hit me like a slap to the face. “I’m sorry. Are you on crack right now? In what universe do you think I’m going to marry you after what you just pulled? No fucking way.”
Standing, he wrapped his arms around me, and I fought against him like my life was on the line, but they held me like twin steel bands, unyielding. I used every ounce of energy I possessed to try and free myself, but it was no use, and eventually, the dam broke, allowing tears to stream down my face as my body went limp.
Preston’s voice was soft in my ear. “Lucy, I’ve seen how much your career means to you. Breaking off our engagement would only see all your hard work go down the drain. As much as you’d love to see me walk away, there’s something here between us, and I’m willing to find out exactly what that is.”
“I hate you,” I whimpered into his chest, defeated, giving up the fight.
“I hate me, too,” he replied. Realizing I was no longer a flight risk, he lifted a hand to smooth the hair away from my dampcheeks. “Let me take you home. It’s been a long day, and we can talk more in the morning.”
Twisting my lips in thought, I debated declining out of spite, but damn if the offer to avoid a second trek through the freezing cold tunnels didn’t sound good.
Tilting my chin up, he asked, “How did you get here anyway? I have a hell of a time making it past security myself.” My body tensed, and he felt my reluctance to give up more of my private life. “Lucy, I already hold two of your secrets locked firmly within the vault. What’s one more?” There wasn’t a hint of mockery in his tone. He was being sincere, but he’d already effectively destroyed any scrap of trust we ever had.
Shaking my head, I declined to divulge my secret path to the club. It wasn’t my secret to tell. Until he was an official member of our family, sharing that information would be deemed a security risk.
“Take me home,” I whispered, too tired to talk any more.
My mind was numb as he led me from the club and into a car he had parked down the street. I was non-responsive as he tried to speak to me on the drive up the mountainside, and I refused to answer the questions the security team had for us at the gate about where we had been and why I was without Myles. I knew I would catch hell from my parents, but I didn’t care.
The fact that I was about to marry a man I hated with every fiber of my being—who was also the man who pushed my body to the highest peaks of pleasure I had ever known—took up every available brain cell I possessed. I didn’t have the capacity to think beyond that crushing reality.
The news that Tony was Preston changed everything.
The talk Preston wanted to have the morning following his shocking revelation hadn’t happened. Six days later, I was still holed up in my room. I didn’t want to talk to him. I didn’t want to even look at him.
Beyond my blinding rage at his deception, I was mad at myself. He was able to see right through the protection aimed at creating anonymity at the club, so why hadn’t I? Instead, I was utterly ignorant, allowing a man I hated—a man I would never trust with that kind of power in a million years—to work his way into my brain. So much so, that I hadn’t gotten off once since that fateful night in October unless it was by his hand, and I no longer owned a single pair of panties.
His revelation added another layer to the confusion swirling around me before learning he was my mystery man at the club. Now, every interaction we had, every word he said, could be brought into question. He had cast a permanent shadow of doubt over the future of our relationship.
