“Uh, thank you, I guess. Jared, you need to get some sleep. Can you let me go?” It was pointless to try and reason with him. He was under the influence, after all. She was going to kill Lance for bailing on her. You’ll be safe, he said. Jared would never do anything, he said. What a load of bull!
“No, no more sleep.” He mumbled against her neck. “I want to hold you. You’re so nice to me.” He snuggled in closer. “Did I tell you, I love the way you smell?”
She was nice to him? Oh God, he was higher than a kite. “Yes, Jared, you said it already. I need to go check on something, let me up, please?”
“Oh, I did? Well, I do.” Jared lifted his head. His eyes cast an eerie glow over her. He drunkenly stroked her cheek with his fingertips. “Your skin is like silk. How do you get your skin so soft? Mine is all…well not soft like yours. I like your skin. It’s nice.” He frowned at his hand. “I’m not like you at all. I’m not like anyone. Why don’t I fit in?”
“Jared, please let me up. I don’t want to hurt you.” She had to get out of there. With every touch of his hand, she felt her resolve start to crumble.
Jared snorted and shook his head. “You could never hurt me, Alex. You’re too good to hurt anyone. Me, on the other hand…hell, I don’t know who I am. Who am I, Alex? Do you know?” He sounded sincere.
Alex’s heart ached for him.
“What are you talking about? What do you mean you don’t know who you are? Jared you’re confused, it’s the sedative. Now, let me up. We can talk more about it in the morning.” She pushed at him, but he wouldn’t budge.
“No, not confused, just really lost.” He caressed her cheek with his, closing his eyes. “Could you love me, Alex? No one else seems to. There must be something wrong with me.”
Alex swallowed hard around the lump in her throat. What had happened for him to feel this way? She knew the drug was most likely making him emotional, but these feelings still had to stem from something. She brushed the hair out of his eyes. “I don’t see anything wrong with you. You just need to sleep this off, Jared. Please.”
“No.” He shook his head at her like a defiant child.
Rolling over on top of her, Jared laced his hands with hers. His body was a solid mass of muscle above her. He was hard against the apex of her thighs; it made her ache deep inside, wanting him. She opened her mouth to protest and his lips covered hers, devouring any words she intended to say. She closed her eyes and hesitantly kissed back, her head spinning. One of his hands released from hers and cupped her cheek. Alex sighed against his lips and savored the taste of him. Their tongues danced slowly together, even though her mind screamed for her to get out of there.
Her free hand slipped between them, and she gave him a weak push. Jared broke the kiss and pulled back a fraction of an inch, gazing down at her. The glow in his eyes dimmed.
“Jared, we shouldn’t be doing this. It’s the drug. We have to stop.” She pleaded against his lips.
He rubbed his nose against hers, mouth lightly brushing her lips. “It’s not the drug. I need you, Alex.” His hand came to rest over her heart. “I can feel what’s in here; your heart wants me to stay right where I am. Are you willing to deny it?”
She stared into the blue depths of his eyes and knew no matter how many times she tried to deny it; this was exactly what she wanted. Since Gene had given her the assignment, Jared had been slowly wedging his way into her life and heart. Every waking moment had been consumed by him. Damn Gene and his story. She should push Jared away. She should keep their relationship on the professional level. When the time came, and the article was published, he would hate her. She couldn’t bear to see the loathing in his eyes.
“Jared…” Her voice held a weak warning.
“Tell me, Alex. Tell me to leave.” He nipped at her bottom lip.
Damn it, she couldn’t. She framed his face with her hands and kissed him hard. God forgive her, but they both deserved a fraction of happiness in their lives, even if only for tonight. “Don’t go, Jared. I want you to stay with me.”
A heartbeat passed between them. Jared kissed her again. He was starving, and she was the only thing to satisfy his hunger. He settled his body between her legs and trailed kisses and nips down the column of her neck. Jared paused, his mouth above her pulsating jugular. He felt something stir in his gut and a dull throbbing in his gums but pushed both away.
His fingers went to work on the small buttons of her silk blouse. When the last one slid free, he smoothed the blouse away, murmuring, “You’re so beautiful and all mine.”
Alex grabbed the hem of his t-shirt and pulled it over his head, tossing it across the room. He continued his trail of kisses down the center of her chest, cupping her breast and sliding his thumb over the sensitive pearl hidden behind the lace of her bra. Her nails dug into his shoulders and she arched into his touch. He pushed the lace aside and replaced his thumb with his mouth. Alex sucked in a sharp breath. Jared closed his teeth around the taut peak and rolled it between them, flicking his tongue over the tip. A small cry of pleasure escaped her lips.
Alex laced the fingers of one hand through his golden locks, and the other dug into the pillow under her head. She gasped as his hands roamed over her flushed skin. He had every one of her nerves standing on end, crying out for release. No one had made her feel this way. His mouth left her breast with one last lave, and she opened her eyes to find Jared gazing at her drunkenly.
Her hand slipped from his hair to cup his cheek. “What? What’s wrong?”
Jared kissed her palm. “Would you believe for the first time, nothing? Everything is right.” His breath was warm against her abdomen. It sent a shiver through her. He kissed her navel. “Where did you come from, Alex? You just can’t be real?” He yawned, rested his cheek against her belly. “No, you can’t be real. I have to be dreaming.”
Alex ran her fingers through his hair, sighing. “No, Jared, I’m not a dream.” She continued to run her fingers through his hair. Jared relaxed and grew quiet.
She shook him. “Jared?” When the only response he gave her was a soft snore, her head fell back on the pillow. She stared at the ceiling and blinked. A small bubble of laughter worked its way free of her chest and out her mouth. She couldn’t believe he passed out. This was just too much.
Alex made no attempt to move him. She pulled the cover over both of them as best she could. There was no telling how much longer he would be out, so she might as well catch a few Z’s, herself. It wasn’t like she was strong enough to move the relaxed bulk of him off her right now. She continued to toy with the hair at the nape of his neck. Her body and mind begin to surrender to sleep and she yawned.
“I could love you, Jared. I’m just too scared to let that happen.”
Fourteen
JARED ROLLED ONTO HIS BACK AND REALIZED, FOR the first time in years, he felt a sense of peace. There was no nightmare, no anxiety attack, not even the slightest hint of trembling hands to wake up to. Sure, he felt like there was a freight train running through the middle of his head, but he could deal with it. Everything else he typically woke up with, he could do without. By some miracle this morning, he had.
He cracked open one eye and immediately regretted it. Jared made a grab for the nearest thing in reach and covered his face with a…nightgown? He paused, inhaling the sweet feminine scent. He lowered the silky material from his cheek. Pushing up to sit on the edge of the bed, he laid the nightgown beside him and tossed back a few Tylenol from the bottle left for him on the side table. He then downed a half a bottle of water. Running his hands over his face, he cringed when his fingers ran over his temple.
Fragmented images from the previous evening began to piece themselves together in his mind. He scanned the bedroom. This was definitely not his house. Where the hell was he? His jeans were still on, but his shirt was across the room.
What happened last night?
He remembered running after a woman who appeared to be Giovanna. G was alive? No, it cou
ldn’t have been her. He touched a tender spot on his neck. What the hell? The gash on his temple he remembered, but his neck?
Pushing out of bed, Jared stumbled across the room on rubbery legs. He leaned forward and examined the sore on the side of his neck in the mirror above the dresser. What the hell is that? He vaguely remembered a gun being shot. After a stabbing pain in his neck, everything went black. It had to have been some kind of tranquilizer. At some point Lance woke him by tossing him into bed. But where was he? More to the point, why did he have a nagging feeling he hadn’t spent the night alone?
Bright and cheery, cosmetics on the dresser and flowers on the comforter, he was obviously in a woman’s room. Alex’s? There wasn’t a chance in hell she let him into her house. She didn’t even like him. She just needed a story. He had figured her out at the Gala.
But still, they had been getting along, until he left her in the middle of the club last night. I’m a fucking idiot.
He pinched the bridge of his nose, hoping to relieve the pressure building in his head. Jared picked up his t-shirt before heading out the bedroom door. The wonderful aroma of fresh coffee greeted him in the hall. He followed it into the small eat-in kitchen where he found Alex in pajama pants and a cut off t-shirt. Her chestnut hair was pulled up into a palm tree ponytail on top of her head, and she was typing nonstop on her laptop, periodically stopping to push her glasses up her nose. He leaned against the wall and watched her in silence, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. He couldn’t get enough of watching her. It was refreshing to see someone this comfortable with him around. Normally, people were guarded, on edge when they knew he was lurking, but not her.
Alex reached over and lifted her mug, taking a sip. Her eyes met his over the rim and beamed. “Morning, sunshine. How long have you been standing there?” She got up and headed to the coffee maker, poured a cup, and handed it off to him.
Jared took a sip and was immediately in heaven. The warmth from the liquid filled him and took the edge off the pounding in his head. “Not long. I’ve been trying to figure out what went wrong last night and how I ended up here.” He followed her back to the table and sat across from her. Jared stared at his mug, trying to find the best way to ask her the question weighing heavily on his mind. “Can I ask you something?”
Alex clicked her mouse, shutting down the laptop and reached for her mug again. “Sure you can ask me anything, especially after last night.” She winked and closed her laptop, pushing it to the side. Curling her legs under her on the chair, Alex framed the mug between her hands.
“Speaking of, I don’t want this to come out the wrong way, but did we…have we?” He shifted in his seat. This wasn’t working. She was more likely to dump her coffee over his head than answer. Especially since he couldn’t remember something as significant as sleeping with her. She’s got to think I’m a total asshole by now.
Alex tried to hide her amusement. He was incredibly uncomfortable. Jared was completely out of it last night. Thank God he had enough sense to avoid calling her by Giovanna’s name in bed. She thoroughly enjoyed watching him squirm in his chair.
She decided to save him from any further embarrassment. “I should make you sweat it out, you know, just because you can’t remember anything. But I’m not heartless. No. Nothing happened between us.” It was a small white lie, one she’d happily keep to herself.
Even though she said nothing happened, Jared couldn’t get over the feeling something did. He sat back and relaxed, staring at his coffee. “My next question is what exactly did happen, then? The last thing I remember was running after someone who resembled…a person I once knew. Then everything is a blank; until I found my face buried in your pillow. How the hell did I get here?”
“It’s okay, Jared, you can tell me that you thought you were chasing Giovanna. I heard you call her that name. I also know who Giovanna was.” He raised a brow at her. “My boss filled me in on what happened to you in Central Park.”
“Your boss? Why in the world would he know anything about it?” Jared frowned.
“I, ah, I’ve been assigned to expose you.”
“Expose me?”
“Yes. Though for the life of me I don’t understand why it is so important I do so.”
“So this whole thing was a lie? You wanted to get close to me for a story?” He let out a short laugh, pushing away from the table and stalking off to glare out the window onto the fire escape. “Let me tell you something, Alex,” He glanced at her over his shoulder, shrugging. “I knew all along.”
Her jaw dropped open. She shut it quickly. “You knew, yet you still called? Why?”
Jared came up behind her chair and leaned over her shoulder, bracing his hands on the table, his arms surrounding her. His lips were a mere fraction of an inch from her ear when he whispered, “I called because I wanted to see how far you’d take it. I was going to feed you a line of bull and make you the laughing stock of the news world. It’s what I am sworn to do.”
She pivoted in her seat to glare at him. “How dare you! I’ve worked my ass off to earn the respect I have.”
“And what a lovely ass it is.” He winked.
Alex pushed her chair away from the table, relishing the sound of his curse when the chair hit him in the groin. She spun on him. “You arrogant bastard! I knew I had you pegged all along. You were playing with my emotions. I can’t believe I actually felt sorry for you. I can’t believe I almost…” She pulled a shaking fist back and punched him square in the face.
“Ow! What did you hit me for?” Jared covered his nose. Blood oozed between his fingers, and he groped for the kitchen towel on the counter. “You almost what? You said nothing happened last night. Damn it, Alex. I think you broke my nose.”
“Never mind. I lied, Jared. You’re just like all the others, out for one thing, and then toss her to the curb. I know your type, Bonatelli. You may think you had me fooled with the hurt looks and boyish charm, but it didn’t work. You probably weren’t even drugged last night. I bet it was something you planned out with that idiot friend of yours. He played his part well, dumping you off in my care, and then taking off like a bat out of hell. Absolutely priceless. Thank you for making me your latest amusement.” She grabbed the towel. Jared yanked back, refusing to let go. With one more pull, Alex freed it from his grasp. Disgusted, she threw it at him square in his injured nose before stalking toward her bedroom.
“God damn it!” Jared picked the towel back up and covered his swollen nose. Blood continued to gush. He couldn’t believe she’d punched him. He wasn’t serious about ruining her; he said it out of reflex. It caught him off guard when she confessed her boss knew about him and Giovanna. Pulling the towel away, Jared touched his nose gingerly. Great, this should go well with the gash on my head. I must look like I went a few rounds with Tyson by now.
The bedroom door slammed shut.
He followed the direction Alex had gone and stood outside the door. Tucking the towel in his back pocket, Jared knocked quietly on the door. “Alex, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it, I swear.” The muffled sound of a sniffle greeted him, but she said nothing. “Alex? Can you please open the door so we can talk?”
There was a rustle of fabric on the other side of the door and the soft padding of footsteps across the floor. A click came from the lock on the door. “Get out, Jared. There’s nothing left for us to discuss. It will probably be better if we never see each other again.”
“Come on, Alex.” Jared slammed his fist on the door. “Alex, don’t do this.” He leaned his head on the doorframe and his hand on the door. “Alex, I don’t know what your boss told you, but I’m sure he didn’t get it right. I lived it. I’ll tell you anything you want to know. I never wanted to hurt you.” His voice was quiet. He meant every last word. Who better to learn the truth from?
Alex leaned her head against the door. Silent tears slid down her cheeks. She didn’t know what to do. Should she believe him or reach for the phone and call the police to have him
removed? The former option seemed to be what her heart wanted her to do. “Jared, please, I need some time. I want to trust you, but this whole thing scares me to death. I saw things last night that shouldn’t exist. I just need time, can you give me some?”
Jared traced the wood grain with his fingertip. “I’ll give you anything you want. Promise me you will not hand in your story until we talk. You need to hear what I have to say.”
She swallowed back her tears and closed her eyes. “I will. I’ll call you when I’m ready, not before. Now, please…go.”
“Fair enough.” He pushed away from the door.
She heard him walk down the hall and pause, most likely retrieving his coat and shoes before the front door clicked shut.
Alex ran out of her bedroom and threw open her front door. The elevator closed, preventing her from chasing him.
What have you done, Toscano?
“I think I just made the biggest mistake of my life.” She closed the door, locked it and went to curl up on the couch for a good long cry.
Fifteen
TONY SAUNTERED THROUGH THE FRONT DOOR of Absinthe’s estate and headed straight for the liquor cabinet. He pulled out a bottle of whisky. Dropping onto the couch, he propped the heel of one combat boot on the corner of the coffee table. He was dressed in his “working” clothes; pitch black army fatigues and grease paint on his face. Lucky for him, the paint disguised his injuries. His brother, correction, the bastard they let live with them would pay in spades for each bruise and cut. Taking the top off the bottle, Tony flipped it into an ashtray and proceeded to down the contents.
Giovanna stood by the window in the moonlight and glared at Jared’s brother. He had been the one to deliver her to the monster who dwelled here; she never forgave him for it. She would have been better off dead. She crossed the floor and snatched the bottle out of his hand, throwing it across the room. It shattered against the wall.
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