out to the kitchen, outwardly calm as my mind raced, trying to figure out my next step.
“So, the same as his main phone. Shocker.”
“Christ, woman, what counts as good information to you?” Dane smirked, watching me open random drawers. “Babe, stop stalling and give me something to look at.”
“Tell me the name of the guy you referred to Jackson.”
“Can’t do it.”
I smirked at him from across the counter. “You won’t rat on Jackson but you’re happy to fuck his fiancée.”
Dane’s eyes dipped to my cleavage. “Not about saving Jax, more about saving me. You can probably guess that I’ve used our favorite ex-con’s not-so-lawful services before.”
“And I can also guess that you’re much more of a seasoned vet when it comes to covering your tracks. Even if this guy gets arrested for breaking into my house, you’d never let his client list ever trace back to you – would you?”
Dane pushed off the other side of the counter, his dark eyes fixed on me as he rounded the corner. “No. I wouldn’t.”
I backed up a step. “And you’re generally happy to throw people under the bus, so why not just tell me his name?”
“Because you still have your towel on.”
My heart thumped. Maybe I didn’t need this information that badly. Maybe I could still play nice and get it from Jackson once he wasn’t plastered. “You know what, never mind,” I said breezily, eyeing my trench coat ten yards away, draped over the back of the couch.
“Really. You’re backing out?”
“You’ve known me for years, Dane. You’re well aware of what kind of girl I am.”
“It’s meaningless sex, Lara, and you’re in a position you’ve never been in before. Pretend I’m Jackson if you must. Or fuck, pretend I’m Sawyer.”
“Dane, it would take a lot of time for me to even think about sleeping with one of Jackson’s good friends,” I said, though my own words made me inwardly laugh as I thought about Jake. Circling the counter, Dane continued at me like a wolf stalking prey.
“Fine. We’ll take it a step at a time. Today, I get to look. Tomorrow, I get to touch.” He smiled as I backed my way toward the door. Still stalking me, his eyes roamed down my body, his tongue lolling behind his parted lips when I slipped in a puddle of shower water. I lost grip of my towel for less than a second but whatever peek I’d given Dane set him off. With a groan, he was muttering a mile a minute. “I’ll tell you his name right now, Lara, and after, you’re going to drop that towel, no questions asked.”
“That’s not how it works, I didn’t agreed to – ”
“Nick Seaver.”
I stared.
Holy shit .
Nick Seaver. That was the name of the man who had broken into my apartment this summer, who had attacked me and then tried to suffocate me with my own pillow when I caught a glimpse of his face. He had stabbed Jackson – surely not part of the plan – and then he’d gotten away – definitely part of the plan.
And if my guess was right, he had also been the man in the security footage. The one to murder Gabrielle.
Drowning in my own thoughts, I tried to think of how I could use this information. How to make sure it would trace back to Jackson. It wasn’t till I felt Dane’s hands on me that I broke from my trance. “ Don’t ,” I snapped, swatting his hand off my waist.
“Then don’t play with me, Lara.”
“You didn’t have to say what you just did and I owe you nothing,” I said, jabbing my finger at the elevator button.
“I disagree,” Dane said, his perma-smirk finally fading into a dark expression that actually made me want to cower. But I refused, even as he took another step closer, his hands in his pockets but his head tilted down low enough that his lips nearly grazed my forehead. “If you leave without giving me what I want, I’m going to tell Jackson everything.”
Fuck. I tried to jog my memory
“So, the same as his main phone. Shocker.”
“Christ, woman, what counts as good information to you?” Dane smirked, watching me open random drawers. “Babe, stop stalling and give me something to look at.”
“Tell me the name of the guy you referred to Jackson.”
“Can’t do it.”
I smirked at him from across the counter. “You won’t rat on Jackson but you’re happy to fuck his fiancée.”
Dane’s eyes dipped to my cleavage. “Not about saving Jax, more about saving me. You can probably guess that I’ve used our favorite ex-con’s not-so-lawful services before.”
“And I can also guess that you’re much more of a seasoned vet when it comes to covering your tracks. Even if this guy gets arrested for breaking into my house, you’d never let his client list ever trace back to you – would you?”
Dane pushed off the other side of the counter, his dark eyes fixed on me as he rounded the corner. “No. I wouldn’t.”
I backed up a step. “And you’re generally happy to throw people under the bus, so why not just tell me his name?”
“Because you still have your towel on.”
My heart thumped. Maybe I didn’t need this information that badly. Maybe I could still play nice and get it from Jackson once he wasn’t plastered. “You know what, never mind,” I said breezily, eyeing my trench coat ten yards away, draped over the back of the couch.
“Really. You’re backing out?”
“You’ve known me for years, Dane. You’re well aware of what kind of girl I am.”
“It’s meaningless sex, Lara, and you’re in a position you’ve never been in before. Pretend I’m Jackson if you must. Or fuck, pretend I’m Sawyer.”
“Dane, it would take a lot of time for me to even think about sleeping with one of Jackson’s good friends,” I said, though my own words made me inwardly laugh as I thought about Jake. Circling the counter, Dane continued at me like a wolf stalking prey.
“Fine. We’ll take it a step at a time. Today, I get to look. Tomorrow, I get to touch.” He smiled as I backed my way toward the door. Still stalking me, his eyes roamed down my body, his tongue lolling behind his parted lips when I slipped in a puddle of shower water. I lost grip of my towel for less than a second but whatever peek I’d given Dane set him off. With a groan, he was muttering a mile a minute. “I’ll tell you his name right now, Lara, and after, you’re going to drop that towel, no questions asked.”
“That’s not how it works, I didn’t agreed to – ”
“Nick Seaver.”
I stared.
Holy shit .
Nick Seaver. That was the name of the man who had broken into my apartment this summer, who had attacked me and then tried to suffocate me with my own pillow when I caught a glimpse of his face. He had stabbed Jackson – surely not part of the plan – and then he’d gotten away – definitely part of the plan.
And if my guess was right, he had also been the man in the security footage. The one to murder Gabrielle.
Drowning in my own thoughts, I tried to think of how I could use this information. How to make sure it would trace back to Jackson. It wasn’t till I felt Dane’s hands on me that I broke from my trance. “ Don’t ,” I snapped, swatting his hand off my waist.
“Then don’t play with me, Lara.”
“You didn’t have to say what you just did and I owe you nothing,” I said, jabbing my finger at the elevator button.
“I disagree,” Dane said, his perma-smirk finally fading into a dark expression that actually made me want to cower. But I refused, even as he took another step closer, his hands in his pockets but his head tilted down low enough that his lips nearly grazed my forehead. “If you leave without giving me what I want, I’m going to tell Jackson everything.”
Fuck. I tried to jog my memory
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