Sweet Deception

by Angel Nicholas

  “Lucky me. You were also in the neighborhood a week ago, and the week before that, and…oh, hey! The week before that.”

  He grinned.

  She rolled her eyes. “I’m going to have to upgrade my security staff, I see.”

  “That’s cute. About the time a Rent-A-Cop can catch me, it’s well past time I hang up my hat, darlin’.” His gaze slid down over her legs, his perusal far more leisurely this time.

  Swallowing and tugging on her hemline, Ally edged toward the hall. “I’ll just run on down to my bedroom and slip into something more comfortable.”

  She honestly didn’t mind his visits. He was fun to chat with, incredibly smart, witty as hell, and knew something about just about everything. Even so, it’d be nice if he just knocked once in a while. She’d just set foot in her bedroom when someone started banging on her front door. In a heartbeat Daniel was at her side, shadowing her to the door.

  “This time of night,” he said in a low voice, “people at the door are never a good thing.”

  “Funny, I’ve been thinking the same thing.” She glared at him, still irked over how badly he’d scared her.

  She reached for the knob, but Daniel brushed her aside and yanked the door open. Peering around him, her eyes rounded. Greg stood on the other side, disheveled and furious and so incredibly handsome her heart lodged in her throat.

  “Detective Marsing.” Daniel leaned a forearm against the doorframe above his head, filling the frame and effectively blocking the entrance. “What a fascinating coincidence, running into you here. And at this time of night. What brings you to our neck of the woods?”

  Her heart abandoned her throat and plunged to her feet. Daniel had implied so much, she didn’t even know where to start. What would Greg think? Then again, he had eloquently displayed how thoroughly he didn’t care. Why should she?

  Regardless, she slipped under Daniel’s arm, coming to her full height in front of him. With Daniel behind her and Greg in front, neither giving an inch, she became the filling of a very intoxicating sandwich. Their heat surrounded her. A dangerous brew of testosterone and hard muscle went straight to her head.

  Ally straightened her spine. Greg’s gaze dropped to her breasts. She cleared her throat. His eyes met hers, his expression going all Detective Marsing—about as readable as the brick wall behind him.

  “Detective. What can I do for you?”

  “I thought you hadn’t seen St. James.”

  “Like it’s any of your business?” Ally scowled.

  Greg’s eyes narrowed and his lips thinned.

  She rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Your intimidation tactics aren’t going to work on me.”

  “Do you always answer your door dressed in lingerie?”

  “I didn’t…” Ally bit off the explanation and bared her teeth, uhm…smiled. “Why are you here, Greg?”

  “I was driving by and saw your light on, so I thought I’d check and make sure everything was okay.” He glanced at his wristwatch. “It is after 2:00 am.”

  Detective Marsing, ever on the job. “Well, thank you for checking. As you can see, I’m fine.”

  His gaze skated over her, from the tips of her fire-engine-red toenails to the top of her bed-mussed hair, leaving her burned in its wake. Then he looked over her shoulder. Daniel and all he had so helpfully implied still loomed close enough to feather her hair with each breath. Determined to end this before Greg did, she spoke.

  “Thank you again, Detective. Now, if you’ll excuse me, it’s late.”

  Ally tried to back inside, but Daniel didn’t move. She debated elbowing him, hard, but Greg was far too close. His spicy cologne was doing things to her hormones and clouding her ability to reason.

  Fighting her body, she locked gazes with him. She would not do something foolish like fling herself into his arms. Desperation was unappealing. To her. She was a pretty, desirable woman. No need to reduce her self-image to sludge because of this man.

  Pep talk finished, Ally managed to dredge up a smile. “Was there something else?”

  “Could I have a word? Alone?”

  Hope flared in her chest, but she ruthlessly squashed it. The absence of heat at her back told her Daniel had finally given ground and retreated inside, leaving her facing the man who’d broken her heart. Swallowing, she waited.

  “I realize I’ve given up my right to ask, but are you okay?”

  She barely swallowed a snort. “I’m fine.”

  “Why is Agent St. James here?”

  “I don’t see how that’s any of your business, Detective. As you said, you’ve given up any claim to me or my time.”

  Greg stiffened and his eyes flickered.

  She raised her eyebrows.

  “I just…” He paused. Cleared his throat. “I don’t want to see you get hurt, Ally.”

  Hearing him say her name hurt. Seeing him, smelling him hurt. She just plain ol’ hurt. “You won’t be around to see it if I do get hurt, will you?” Time to go lick her wounds in private. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.”

  She turned, but he caught her arm. Ally contemplated his hand caging her wrist before meeting his stormy sea gaze. “You don’t seem to understand, Detective.” She enunciated her words carefully. “I live alone. I work alone. I shop alone. I drive alone. That’s my life. I don’t see it changing anytime soon. I’m not your responsibility. I haven’t been for some time. So, what I do with my time, or who I spend it with, is none of your business. I can manage my life just fine.”

  Expression unreadable, Greg stared at her.

  She didn’t see the relief she would have expected. After all, she wasn’t going to cling or cry or demand anything. With crystal clarity, she knew he’d never offer anything more than sex.

  When he didn’t move, she tried again. “I’m well aware our little…” She waved a hand, searching for the right word. “…affair is no longer convenient. I’m no longer convenient.”

  “Ally, I didn’t sleep with you because you were convenient.”

  “You don’t understand.” She smiled, the crack in her heart deepening with each word. She didn’t have a choice. She had to let him go. “I’m no longer available. A long-term affair doesn’t interest me. Casual sex isn’t my thing.”

  “It wasn’t casual sex, sweetheart.” He shoved a hand into his hair and stared at the floor. “I want to…I want more. With you. I’ve never felt this way about a woman before, and I don’t have the first clue what to do about it.” Greg flung his arms out. “I’m not capable of more, Ally.”

  If she lived to be a hundred, she’d never understand men. Why wouldn’t he just go away already? He was killing her, one word at a time.

  “Whatever. I get it. I just wanted you to know I get it.” Dredging courage from her toes, she took a deep breath and met his eyes. “The truth is…” She closed her eyes and gritted her teeth. Sometimes, the truth really did hurt. She met his gaze, determined to see the moment through to the end. “The truth is, I love you, but I want more than you’re willing to offer. I need more, and I deserve it.”

  Greg gave a jerky nod, at odds with his natural grace. His eyes were brilliant, cutting her heart into a million shards. “You do deserve more, Ally. You deserve a man who’ll put you on a pedestal and worship at your feet. You deserve a man who’ll give you his whole heart and hold nothing back. You deserve the world, sweetheart.”

  Then he walked away.

  She couldn’t believe he’d say all those lovely things and then just walk away.

  He turned the corner, disappearing from her sight, her life, and still she stood frozen in place.

  A warm arm stole around her waist and pulled her inside. “Come on, darlin’.”

  Daniel led her inside and into her bedroom, pushing her down to sit on the bed. He left, returning minutes later with her crystal goblet and wrapped her cold fingers around it. “Drink this. You’ll feel better.”

  She drained the glass in one gulp. Her throat went up in flames, her stomach im
ploded and she started coughing. “What was that?” she gasped between wheezing breaths.

  Daniel rubbed the back of his neck and grinned sheepishly. “Vodka.”

  “What?” The inferno in her belly reduced to hot coals. “I don’t have any vodka.”

  “It’s mine.”

  “You carry a bottle of vodka?”

  He pulled a silver flask from his jacket pocket. “I thought we could celebrate the new place.”

  “You broke into my home in the middle of the night to toast my new condo? That’s…oddly sweet. Creepy, but sweet.” Ally smiled and pressed a hand to her gradually cooling throat. Heat and warmth stole outward from her belly. She admired Daniel, pushing aside the fresh pain of broken dreams. He was a remarkably handsome man.

  A handsome man who had seen her in really humiliating positions but didn’t seem to care. He was standing in her home, wanting to celebrate with her. He’d dropped by to chat every single week, despite what must surely be a hectic schedule. Most importantly, he was still there. Unlike Greg. She tilted her head to the side, gaze skimming the length of his body, lingering on the growing bulge in his pants. Maybe it was time to move on with every area of her life and create a new future. One where she wasn’t alone.

  Ignoring the twist of pain in her chest and uncertainty burning a hole in her stomach, she met his eyes. They had darkened to gunmetal gray. He knew what she was thinking. In another lifetime she would have been embarrassed. But that girl was gone, and she wasn’t quite sure who had taken the place of that shy, withdrawn woman. Neither did she particularly care.

  She stood and moved toward Daniel, a seductive little sway to her hips. At least, she hoped the sway was seductive. Unsure of her welcome, she rested her hand on his chest. This man had saved her from being raped, badly hurt or killed. And he was gorgeous.

  Shoring up her courage, Ally walked her fingertips up his chest, over his shoulder and around his neck. She pulled his head down and pressed her lips to his. For a terrifying moment, he didn’t move. Then his arms came around her, pressing her soft curves into his hard muscles, and he took control of the kiss. He devoured her mouth. His hand moved down her black silk nightie and under the short hem to cup her bare bottom.

  Desire warmed her and she sucked his tongue into her mouth. His fingers bit into the tender skin of her bottom and she jumped, startled. His other hand moved to her breast, squeezing and plumping. So, he was a little rough. She could deal. Tilting her pelvis, she rubbed against his erection. Groaning, he pinched her nipple. Ally yelped.

  Without missing a beat, Daniel tumbled her onto the bed and followed her down. His mouth moved to her neck, sucking and nipping. The desire that had fled returned, flaring hotter. The delicate fabric of her nightie shredded beneath his hands and he tossed the torn material over the side of the bed. Pulling back, he zeroed-in on her still-smooth pelvis.

  “I’m glad you kept it this way.” His voice was husky with arousal. “You have such a pretty pussy.”

  Ice solidified the blood in her veins. He kissed a trail down her body, oblivious. His words were a harsh slap in the face; a glaring reminder of her time trapped in Victor’s basement.

  Daniel licked the sensitive skin at the junction of her thighs and forced two thick fingers inside her. Her back arched, her head pressing into the bed. She gulped air and tried to relax. The pain of his invasion rippled through her body.

  “You’re a little dry, darlin’. We’ll have to see what we can do about that.”

  With little regard to the extremely delicate way nature crafted the female body, he sucked her sensitive bud into his mouth. Ally fisted the comforter and whimpered.

  “You like that, baby?”

  Daniel shoved a third finger inside her and her control snapped. She scurried backward, biting her lower lip to keep in the cry of pain as his fingers came free, doing an excellent imitation of a crab in her desperation.

  “I’m sorry.” She curled naked against the headboard, panting, reaching blindly for the robe hanging beside her bed. She didn’t dare take her gaze off him. “I’m so sorry, Daniel. I can’t. I’m sorry. I can’t. Please.”

  Daniel knelt at the edge of her bed, dark eyes gleaming in the light shining into her bedroom. She had no idea what he was thinking. There was no doubt he’d been aroused and no way of knowing how he’d react to her abrupt withdrawal.

  Seconds ticked by. He remained still and silent. Watching her.

  Panic unfurled. She didn’t know this man. Fingers closing at last on her robe, she yanked it down and draped it over herself. His silence eroded the last of her self-control. Tears she’d held at bay for what felt like days spilled down her cheeks.

  “I’m sorry,” she wailed, trying to become one with the headboard.

  In agonizing increments, he moved to sit on the end of the bed. “It’s fine, Ally.”

  “I didn’t mean to lead you on. I swear. I just thought…It’s just…” She stumbled to a stop. Nothing she could say would be very flattering to him.

  “Ally, breathe.” Wry humor crept into his voice. “It’s fine. I’ll be uncomfortable for a while, but I understand.”

  “I’m sorry. It’s just…” Good night, Ally. Shut up already.

  “It’s just I’m not Greg, and you can’t have sex with a man when your heart isn’t involved.”

  The breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding released. Daniel wasn’t going to lash out or force her. She shuddered to put words to her biggest fear and realized anew that she didn’t know this man.

  “At first, I thought I wouldn’t mind being your consolation prize, but in the end, I guess I do.” On silent feet, he circled the bed to where she huddled against the headboard. “You’re a remarkable woman, Ally. Everything Greg said to you was true.” Ally stared up at him, outlined in the gray light of her room. He’d heard her conversation with Greg? “You deserve everything your heart desires.”

  Daniel leaned down and pressed a soft, gentle kiss to her trembling lips. So unlike the others he’d given her. His hand exerted gentle, tender pressure to tilt her face to his. A hairsbreadth from her lips, he spoke. “When he comes back to you…and he will…make him work for it.”

  Ally nodded, dazed. Daniel dropped one last lingering, achingly sweet kiss on her lips before releasing her. Then he turned on his heel and strode out of her room. Confused and shivering, she heard the quiet click of her front door closing and the locks engaging.

  Automatically, she placed her robe on the hook and wriggled beneath the comforter.

  Had Daniel been rough with her on purpose, knowing she was using him? Had he intentionally pushed her out of lust and into reality with his harsh words? Studying people was part of his job. He would know exactly what to say and do to get a certain reaction out of people. From the little he’d told her, his life often depended on that ability.

  She pressed her fingers to her lips, remembering the gentleness of his last kiss. A different person than the man who’d been so rough had kissed her good-bye. And she’d felt…cared for. Treasured.

  At least the disaster with Daniel had kept her from thinking about the sight of Greg’s broad back walking away from her. Until now.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Ally slammed the front door behind her, hurried down the hall, tossed her purse on the island, spun, and tripped over her sandals. Grumbling, she snatched them from the kitchen floor. Her mind had been going a mile-a-minute all day. Unpleasant exchanges with two different men, plus a serious shortage of sleep, followed by a painfully long day at work equaled an irritable Ally. The sound of someone clearing their throat stopped her in her tracks.

  Her belly tightened painfully and she spun, eyes widening. The owner of the company she used to work for sat in her favorite wingback chair. What the freak? Beams of sunshine spilled through her big windows and across his perfectly styled salt-and-pepper hair, accentuating his distinguished appearance. During her five years with the company, Ally had only met him twice. He’d
been perfectly polite, even charming.

  Breaking into her condo wasn’t especially polite, however.

  “Uhm…Mr. Chesterfield.” She glanced around for a clue to his presence. “What’s up?”

  He smiled and smoothed his pant leg. It wasn’t a particularly charming smile. Which did nothing to soothe the panic growing like a mushroom cloud. “I thought I’d drop by for a visit.”

  “How…kind.” She sidled behind the kitchen island and grabbed the tea kettle. “I’ll put on some tea, shall I?”

  “Aren’t you a polite little hostess?”

  Somehow, that didn’t sound like a compliment. Had she left her door unlocked? Even if she had, how had he gotten past security? She filled the kettle with water and set it on the stove to boil. Carl was on tonight, and he was very thorough.

  “Why don’t you stop fidgeting and come sit down, dear?”

  Dear? Eww. She started toward the couch, only to pause halfway there. Now that she thought about it, she didn’t recall seeing Carl downstairs. A nasty suspicion bloomed. If her boss was behind everything that happened—timing, events, too-convenient coincidences clicked into place. Her gaze flicked to Mr, Chesterfield, the contents of her stomach congealing.

  His elegant pin-stripe suit was totally out of place in her industrial-style condo. A brilliant-red tie stood out in stark contrast to the dark-blue shirt he wore under the black suit. He crossed one slim leg over the other, the high shine of designer shoes catching the light and breaking her trance.

  “Your coworkers have been very concerned about you, Miss Thompson. I heard you quit after a serious injury. How are you feeling?”

  He was sitting in her condo, uninvited, because he was worried about her health? Right, and she was the Easter Bunny. The long hair hid her floppy ears. Ally edged toward the island. Where did I put my cell phone? Or a really sharp knife? “Good.”

  “Excellent. I’ve been waiting for you to return home for some time, you know.”

  He was admonishing her, like a fond grandparent disappointed in his favorite grandchild. Revulsion crawled along her spine. Pretty sure her granddad had never behaved this way. “Umm…sorry?”