Page 10 of Dare to Surrender (NY Dares 1)
He grinned. “There is one. But now that you’ve reminded me, I’ll have it removed.” He folded the paper and set it down on the table beside him.
“This arrangement isn’t going to work out.” I mistakenly shifted, sitting up higher in the bed, revealing the tank top that barely covered my breasts and pulled too tight where it did.
“Calm down,” he said, still clearly amused. “We need to talk.”
“And it couldn’t wait until I was decent?” My voice rose again. Modulate, I muttered under my breath.
“No. It’s something that needs to happen now, and I want you here when I teach Daltry a much-needed lesson.”
I gulped in air. “Why in God’s name would you do that?”
“Any man who lets a woman leave his home in the dead of night with nothing but the clothes on her back, a small stack of bills, and no cell phone deserves it.” He cocked an eyebrow my way, that possessiveness there in his blue-black gaze. “That he did it to you merely compounds his error.”
I bolted upright in bed, forgetting all about modesty and coverage. “You really need to explain this.” I gestured back and forth between us, ending with a clean sweep around his sister’s bedroom. “You don’t know me well enough to care that much about what Lance did. You can’t expect me to believe you’d have taken in just any … stray,” I said, pulling his brother’s word out for good use. “But you took me into your home. Isn’t that enough without teaching Lance a lesson?” I asked in disbelief.
His gaze darkened into an unreadable hue. “Not even close. And we can talk about the whys another time. Now tell me. Did you contribute to the relationship?” he asked.
I nodded.
“You obviously don’t have a bank account, so was yours joint?”
I glanced over at Central Park behind the gauzy curtains, unable to face him while I, again, managed a nod.
“And you’re not the type to sit around and eat bonbons while your man works his fingers to the bone to provide for you.”
I swallowed hard. “I used to work. But later in the relationship … I think I was brainwashed,” I muttered, embarrassed.
He burst out laughing. “Considering the you I’ve known for less than twenty-four hours, I’d have to agree with you. What brought you out of the fog and into the light?”
I set my jaw. “I don’t want to talk about that right now.”
He studied me through narrowed eyes. “Eventually you will,” he stated.
I blinked. “What kind of lesson?” I asked, changing the subject. “I mean, no blood or broken bones, right?”
He grinned. “No, I like my bones intact.”
I rolled my eyes. “You know what I mean.”
“I’ll be utterly civilized. I can’t promise Garrett will behave the same way, but he’ll only act if provoked. Ex-Navy SEAL and all that.”
“Who is Garrett?” I asked.
“Our bodyguard.”
There it was again. That possessiveness in his words and tone. Just like my room, our bodyguard presumed we were in a relationship of some kind. We barely knew one another. What I did know was that he unequivocally turned me on in a way no man ever had. He also made me feel safe, wanted, and cared for.
But I was starting over, I reminded myself, and that included being smarter. What that entailed, I hadn’t yet decided.
“All done with the questions?” he asked.
I managed to nod.
He hit one button. “Daltry? Gabriel Dare.”
I ran my tongue over my dry lips. “You have him on autodial?” I asked loudly, then snapped my mouth shut as Gabe continued, his eyes on me as he spoke to Lance.
“I’m not so hot, and I’m not your buddy. Not anymore. Just giving you a heads-up. I’m cancelling all my accounts with you effective immediately. Just to be clear, do not make any more trades in my name. All my stocks and finances will be transferred by end of business today.”
