I throw him a nasty look from over my shoulder. “You’re the one who wouldn’t stop sticking your finger in my mouth.”
“What the fuck?” Doorway Guy exclaims.
Steel ignores him, keeping his gaze welded on me. “And you’re the one who decided to fuck my finger with your mouth.”
I turn around to face him, fuming mad, my cheeks warming from embarrassment. “I didn’t fuck your finger with my mouth.”
“You sucked on it,” he says simply. “That’s pretty much the same thing.”
“I bit it,” I annunciate.
Steels eyes glimmer wickedly. “Bit. Suck. What’s the difference?”
“A lot. Biting is usually more of a violent act while sucking is…” I trail off as more warmth rushes to my cheeks.
Wonderful. Now I’m getting embarrassed.
He totally notices too, his lips tugging into a cocky smirk. “Sucking is what? Kinky? Sexy? Is solely for the purpose of getting someone off?” He leans in toward me, lowering his voice. “Biting can be all of that too, sweetheart. And maybe if you’re lucky, I’ll show you.”
I refuse to let my jaw drop, but seriously, who is this guy?
“No thanks,” I manage to get out evenly while giving him a bored look. Then for added emphasis, I yawn.
Instead of getting annoyed, his amusement doubles. “You know what. I think I’m going to have a lot of fun with you.”
“Steel,” the guy in the doorway warns. “You’re crossing a line.”
Steel rolls his eyes. “Lines only exist to be crossed.”
“That’s the most twisted logic ever,” Doorway Guy says, shaking his head.
“Yeah? So? I’m a twisted guy.” Steel shrugs, his gaze never wavering from me.
Now I’m the one to sigh. “Would someone please tell me what the hell is going on? Because right now I feel like I’ve gone mad. Like I’m Alice but instead of being in Wonderland, I’m in Wonderhell and you two are about to pull an ‘off with her head’ on me.”
Steel’s eyes dance with amusement. The other guy appears more rational, shifting his weight uneasily.
“We’re not going to hurt you,” Doorway Guy tells me. “We’re going to help you.”
“Help me how?” My eyes drop to a bruise on my arm, the same spot where the needle pierced my skin. My lips curl with irritation. “By doping me up again?”
Doorway Guy tracks my gaze and then his mouth curves to a frown. “We didn’t do that to you.”
I suspiciously glance back and forth between the two of them. “And how do I know that for sure? I don’t know you guys at all and from what I’ve seen so far, I’m not impressed. So how do I know you’re not going to hurt me?”
“Because I’m here.”
The voice comes out of nowhere, but I don’t need to see a face to know who the person is.
West.
Truths
Alexis
A moment after I hear West’s voice, he steps up beside Doorway Guy. He’s wearing the same black pants and shirt he had on the last time I saw him, his blonde, chin length hair is a bit messy, and if he opened his mouth, a glint of metal would shine on his tongue. He’s the same West I grew up with, in terms of looks. But two things are different now. For one, he has a crazy intensity to him now, as if he’s suddenly become an alpha male. But that might be from this situation we’re in—whatever that is. And the other thing that’s different has more to do with me. Or I should say has to do with the way my body is reacting to him. My heart is fluttering in my chest and the spot on my neck where he sucked and bit me earlier in the car feels all tingly. I’ve never reacted this way toward West before. It’s weird and kind of freaking me out. But not as much as this situation. And I don’t even know what this situation is yet!
“What’s going on?” My tone is a mixture of caution and nervousness.
West looks from doorway guy to Steel. “Didn’t either of you two explain anything to her?”
Doorway Dude looks at West and shakes his head. “I was trying to but Steel wouldn’t shut up.”
West’s gaze lands on Steel and he raises his brows.
“I don’t know why you put me in charge of keeping an eye on her,” Steel says with a lazy shrug. “You know I’m not good at that sort of shit.”
“So neither of you have told her anything?” West shakes his head, seeming frustrated. “Nice, guys. Real fucking nice.”
“Oh, get your panties out of a bunch. We were planning on telling her. I just wanted to play with her for a little bit.” Steel braces his hands on the doorway and slants closer to me.
Even with my back to him, I feel crowded by his presence. I want to step forward but Doorway Guy is right in front of me. Suddenly, I’m way too aware that I’m completely surrounded by three guys who could very well do anything they wanted to me. And while I want to trust West, I can’t. Not until I get some answers.
“She’s really fun to play with,” Steel adds, his chest pressing against my back.
Wests eyes narrow into slits. Then he reaches around Doorway Dude, snags hold of the hem of my black tank top, and pulls me to him.
“You two go to the cage room and check on him, “ he says as he steers me down a narrow hallway. “And Ellis is in charge.”
Doorway Guy—Ellis, I’m assuming—nods and then turns in the opposite direction. Annoyance flickers across Steel’s expression, but he doesn’t utter a word as he follows after Ellis.
“He doesn’t take orders very well,” West explains to me as he guides me into the living room at the end of the hallway. “Steel, I mean.”
“Why were you giving him orders at all?” I ask as West lets go of my shirt and closes the blinds, which seems super strange for several different reasons.
Then again, everything seems strange at the moment, from the cautious way West moves, to the way my body won’t cool down, as if a permanent fire is scorching under my flesh.
“Because he works with me.” He sinks down on the leather sofa and pats the cushion beside him.
I don’t budge. “So, you’re like his boss… Wait? I thought you worked at the bank.”
West hesitates. “I used to.”
“But you don’t anymore?”
He shakes his head with a drop of remorse in his eyes. “I haven’t since I was sixteen.”
“But you started working there when you were sixteen.” The heat in my body increases and my head becomes a bit foggy. “Or at least that’s what you told me.”
He gives a long pause while studying me with hesitancy. “I did work there for about two weeks until I got this job.”
“And what’s this job exactly?” I ask, although I’m not sure I want to hear the answer. “Because the last thing I can remember was I was in the car with you and we were…” My cheeks glow with heat as images of him rubbing me while biting my neck flood my thoughts. “But anyway, yeah, one minute I was in the car with you and the next I was falling to the ground and being stabbed with a needle. Then I blacked out and woke up here in your room with some random guy—who, FYI, is kind of an asshole. Now you’re telling me you’ve been lying to me and working at some unknown job for over two years. And I’m really trying not to freak out, because I thought I knew you, but now I’m worried I don’t and that maybe you work for some sort of trafficking operation and you’re about to sell me off to some creep.” I let out an exhale as I run out of breath.
West stares at me with an impassive expression. Then he slowly shakes his head. “You think I’m going to sell you to someone? That that’s my job?”
I lift my shoulders, shrugging. “I really don’t know what to think at this point.”
He pats the cushion again. “Sit down and I’ll explain everything to you.”
My gaze flickers in the direction of the front door, which isn’t too far away. “I’d rather stay here for now.”
“You need to be sitting down for what I’m about to tell you.”
“Why? How bad is it?”
&
nbsp; “Well, I’d say pretty damn bad, but considering that theory you just told me… It might not seem so bad to you.”
I fidget nervously, casting another quick glance at the front door. “So, it’s not as bad as what I’m thinking?”
He dithers. “Well, I’m not as bad as what you’re thinking.”
“But the situation is bad?”
“Yeah, it is.”
The truth of his words hit me square in the chest, making breathing complicated.
“Does this have anything to do with my car getting stolen?” I ask in a shaky voice.
“It does, but that’s just a tiny part of it.” He rakes his fingers through his hair. “Look, I get you have trust issues and considering everything that’s happened over the last twenty four hours, you should. But I really need you to trust me right now because I’m the good guy, Alexis, and I’m hoping you already know this.” His eyes plead for me to believe him.
While I haven’t always gotten along with West—well, minus the time we spent in his car where we seemed to get along a little too well—I’ve never thought of him as a bad guy. And he was there for me when Masie and Blaine stabbed me in the back with a jagged, rusty, agonizingly sharp knife.
Still, I don’t have a damn clue how I got to West’s apartment or why I’m even here. And since the last thing I can recall is being tranquilized, I’m having a difficult time deciphering who’s bad and who’s good.
“You promise no one in this house was the person who doped me up?” I ask, cupping my hand over the bruise on my arm.
When West hesitates, I spin around and run for the door.
Screw this. I’m so out of here.
I make it a whole three steps before his arms circle my waist. Then he yanks me back and pins me against his solid chest. The scent of his cologne overloads my senses and I become even dizzier. But through the confusion and heat blazing through my body, frustration rumbles in my chest. This is the second time in ten minutes I’ve found myself trapped against a guy. I don’t like being controlled. At all.
“Calm down,” West whispers in my ear while holding me tightly against him.
“Calm down?” A hollow, wounded laugh slips from my lips. I hate how hurt I sound. Hate that he knows he has the power to hurt me. “You pretty much just told me the person who doped me up is in your house, which means it was either you or one of those two guys that work with you. Neither option is calm down worthy.”
“There’s a fourth person in the house,” he explains. “And the fourth person is the one that doped you up.”
I don’t know whether to cry, scream, or be relieved. “Why the hell is he in your house?”
“Because he’s locked up in the cage room while we interrogate him.”
I blink. What? “Come again?”
He hugs me tighter and rests his head against the back of mine, breathing in deeply. “I know it sounds crazy, but this will all make more sense after I explain everything.” He traces a finger back and forth along the hem of my shirt and it takes all of my willpower not to shiver. “But in order to explain everything, I need you to calm down and listen to me. And I need you to promise you won’t run out of the house. It’s too dangerous for you to go anywhere. Not until we get some answers and find out more about what’s going on.”
I tense. “Wait? I’m in danger?”
“Relax.” His lips brush along my earlobe. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you, baby.”
Baby? What the hell.
I’m about to ask him when we started giving each other sweet, little, vomit inducing worthy nicknames for each other when he kisses my earlobe again. His fingers drift back and forth along the bottom of my shirt. He’s not even really touching me, yet my skin tingles everywhere. What the heck is wrong with me? One minute I think Blaine is the love of my life and then suddenly West’s touch nearly makes me have an orgasm. No, scratch that. Not nearly since he already gave me an orgasm while we were in his car. Twice.
I mentally shake my head at myself. That doesn’t even matter right now. The truth does.
“Okay, I won’t try to leave again.” Unless I find out you’re bad, I mentally add.
“Good.” He kisses my earlobe again, which blows my mind.
It’s the third time he’s done that in the last minute. I know we messed around in the car, but considering West and I have never gotten along…
I’m so lost.
With his kisses and his touching.
His calling me baby?
Lost. Lost. Lost.
So lost.
About everything.
He lets his lips briefly linger against my ear before he steps away and lets his arms fall to his sides.
I turn around to face him, the heat in my body intensifying to a simmering hot temperature. I wonder if I’m nervous or if the drugs in my system are fucking with my body temperature.
“So, do you work as an undercover cop or something?” I ask. “Because that’s what it sounds like.”
“No, but we do help the police sometimes. And I kind of do work undercover.” When he notes the confusion on my face, he sighs. “All right, I’m going to give you a brief summarization and then let you ask questions because I’m sure you’re going to have a lot of them.” He laces his fingers through mine and sinks down on the sofa, pulling me down with him. “Me, Steel, and Ellis—those two guys you just met—work for a secret undercover program. We’re each assigned groups to work with and Steel and Ellis are my group. We usually work on jobs together, although we have done some jobs solo.”
“What sort of jobs?” I’m completely confounded. Undercover programs? Those things actually exist? And West—West—is part of one.
WTF.
“There’s a lot of different kinds of jobs.” He twists to face me, still holding onto my hand. “But very recently we were assigned a job to watch over a girl who needs protection.”
Wait. What?
“You mean, me?” I ask and he nods. My head spins even more with dizziness. “But why do I need protection?”
He summons a deep breath. “You remember how your car was stolen and then you found that card?” He waits for me to nod before continuing. “Well, the person who stole your car and left you the card works for an organization called Hacker Hearts Anonymous, one of the most infamous hacker groups in the country.” He traces the folds of my fingers with his fingertip. “He’s also the same person who jumped us in the car and tranquilized you, which more than likely means Hacker Hearts Anonymous gave him an order to go after you. Although, we can’t be sure until we can get the guy to talk.”
My heart pounds like a lunatic and my skin begins to dampen from the heat scorching through my veins. This can’t be real. It just can’t be.
But then why does it feel so real?
“But why would a bunch of hackers go after me?” I ask. “And aren’t hackers supposed to go after people through computers, not tranquilize them in the middle of the burbs?”
“Usually, yes. But we don’t think they went after you to hack you.”
“Then why did they go after me?”
“We don’t know yet, but we’ll find out no matter what it takes.” He stares down at my hand as he sketches the folds between my fingers with his fingertip. “I don’t want to scare you, but I don’t want to lie to you either, so I’m going to tell you the truth. Just try not to freak out.” He releases an exhale. “They weren’t going after you. They are going after you. At least according to the guy in there.” He nods his head in the direction of the doorway. “The whole tranquilizing thing is just the start to something bigger. But we don’t know what yet.” He lifts his gaze to mine and the intensity pouring from his eyes freaks the crap out of me. “But I’m going to find out what they’re planning. And nothing is going to happen to you. I can fucking promise you that.” He lightly brushes his fingers over the bruise on my arm. “I fucked up when I let this happen. I should’ve noticed the watermark on the card you got, but I was too dis
tracted by… other stuff. That won’t happen again. You’re safe with me, Steel, and Ellis.”
My heart thrashes in my chest. “Wait… Are you trying to say I can’t go home?”
“You can’t,” he says with a hint of remorse. “I’m sorry, but until we know more about what’s going on, you need to stay here.”
I shake my head. “No. There’s no way I’m going to just sit around in an apartment all day and wait for something to happen. I’ll go crazy.”
“Alexis, if you leave, you’ll either end up getting tranquilized again or something worse,” he says in a firm tone. “I’m not going to let that happen.”
My lip twitches in annoyance. “Since when did you become so alpha male? Because FYI, it’s kind of a turn off.”
His lips quirk. “Just kind of, huh?”
I glare at him. “Nope, completely.”
“So you’re saying I turn you off. Because what happened in my car—” he smirks, “Twice—suggests otherwise.”
My cheeks warm, but I refuse to back down. “That was just because of you biting me. Anyone could’ve done it and I probably would’ve reacted the same way.”
“No, you wouldn’t have.” The smug look on his face makes me want to slap him. “And you want to know why?”
I grind my teeth. “Nope, not really.”
He ignores my answer. “Because you’re attracted to me.”
I want to say that I’m not, but West is hot and he knows it—everyone knows it.
I give a nonchalant shrug. “Yeah, so. Almost everyone we know is attracted to you, both guys and girls.”
His smirk grows. “Which includes you.”
My fingers curl into fists. “Why does it even matter? So I’m attracted to you. So what? I was also attracted to Blaine and look where that got me. Attraction doesn’t mean anything.” And anything more means getting hurt.
My chest simmers with anger and hurt as I remember everything Masie told me. How she betrayed me. How Blaine and her have been together for a while. How she told Blaine I liked him.
“Hey.” West cups my cheek, forcing me to look at him. “I’m sorry.”