Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 109562 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 548(@200wpm)___ 438(@250wpm)___ 365(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109562 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 548(@200wpm)___ 438(@250wpm)___ 365(@300wpm)
This line of questioning is crossing a line. “I don’t understand where you’re going with this.”
“It’s simple.” His statement is toneless yet loaded at the same time. “If the answer is yes, I’ll kill him.”
My breath catches. I don’t doubt for a minute that he would. “I didn’t. I don’t.”
He leans closer still, so close that if he lowers his head another fraction, his lips will brush over mine. “Are you sure about that?”
“I don’t fool around with married men,” I say with my heart beating in my throat.
He dips his gaze to my stomach. “Yet you did.” Tracing the seam of my lips with a fingertip, he continues with a cruel smile. “Which makes me wonder. What made him so special to be your exception?”
“I didn’t know he was married,” I say, clenching my jaw. “He didn’t wear a ring, and he gave me a false name.”
Surprise washes over his features, eradicating the frosty violence in his eyes. Letting me go, he puts a small measure of space between us. “How did you find out who he was?”
“I happened to see a photo of him in a newspaper.”
He tilts his head. “What did he say when you confronted him?”
“He told me to get rid of the problem and to never contact him again.”
His gaze turns stony. “That son of a bitch.” He searches my face as if he can’t figure me out. “How did it happen? You don’t strike me as a one-night stand type of girl.”
My hackles rise. “What’s that supposed to mean? That I’m uptight?”
His lips quirk. “You come across as…” He pauses as he seemingly reflects for a moment before declaring, “Prim and proper.”
“Go to hell,” I say, not caring about the consequences of swearing at him even though he warned me about it not a few minutes ago.
“I’m not insulting you.” He appears amused. “On the contrary, it’s a compliment.”
“That I’m so gullible?”
Yes, I should’ve known better than trusting a man I’d just met. It was a terrible mistake, one I’ll never repeat. At the time, I reckoned single women did it all the time. Why not me? Why not allow myself one night to forget everything in the arms of a handsome man? I guess I was both unlucky and unwise. I’ve been stupid. That doesn’t give Saverio the right to rub my faults in my face.
“Not gullible,” he says. “Innocent.”
I’m not even sure that’s a compliment.
“Where did you meet him?” he asks.
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“I want to know.”
I huff. “Why?”
“I don’t need a reason. Tell me, or I’ll ask him myself.”
“Why are you being so sadistic? Do you enjoy my humiliation?”
“Not at all. I just want to understand.”
“Why is it so imperative that you understand?”
“It’s part of figuring you out.”
“Why do you need to figure me out?”
Sighing, he takes his phone from his pocket. “Fine.”
“What are you doing?” I ask with alarm.
“Sending a man to get my answers from the honorable justice.”
I catch his wrist. “Wait.”
He pauses, watching me with expectation.
Reluctantly, I say, “I was having a really bad day. My mom… Something happened.”
“She stole your money, spent it on booze, got herself attacked, and ended up in hospital.”
I look at him quickly. “How do you know?”
“How do you think?”
Livy told him. Kudos to him for winning her trust so fast. Not that I blame her. He’s a great actor, and she’s a romantic soul who looks at the world through rose-colored glasses.
“Carry on,” he says in a commanding manner.
He really has a way of wearing me down. Too tired to argue or fight any longer, I blow out a sigh. “I went to a bar for a drink. He seemed kind and caring. He bought me a drink, and one thing led to another.” I look at my hands. “We were careful but obviously not enough. I wasn’t surprised that he ghosted me.” Shrugging, I face Saverio again. “It happens. What floored me was finding out he lied about his identity and about being single.”
“That piece of scum,” Saverio says, his upper lip curling. “You’ll burn every dollar he gave you, understand? I don’t want anything that belonged to him anywhere near you, and I’ll be damned before I let you buy a damn thing with his cash.”
“Don’t worry.” I laugh to hide my discomfort. “I didn’t take his money.”
“Why not?”
“He was unhappy about giving it.”
The car comes to a stop.
“You did the right thing, Anya. If you want him to pay—”
“No,” I say quickly. “It’s in the past. I can’t change what happened. I just want to move on.”
“All right.” He nods. “I’ll respect your wish. But…”
I stare at him, my mouth going dry. “But what?”
His tone is clipped. “From now on, I never want to hear you speak his name again.”
Before I can reply, he pushes a button to lower the partition.