Page 120 of Carnal Games

She says it’s not my fault, but that’s because she has no clue about the predator roaming loose around my company, hiding like a chameleon. Why was she a target? That’s a mystery. She has nothing in common with the previous victims.

So why come after her?

I can’t share the truth with her for two reasons. One is that it’ll tamper with the ongoing investigation by the private detective I hired, in case she accidentally lets it slip out. Second, it’ll only make her panic, which is the last thing I want.

Firing her isn’t an option since I don’t have a justified reason. Moreover, the demanding little diva wouldn’t leave me alone for backing out of our deal. It also has another disadvantage. I can’t protect her if I don’t know where she is at all times. The perpetrator can still come after her. Keeping her by my side is the only solution.

Her hair tumbles in luxurious waves down her chest. Tilting her head, she lets the shorter strand spill over the blackeye. I hate that she’s feeling conscious when she has no reason to.

Serving in the army, I’ve seen men in worse shape and with injuries. Scars are never ugly. They are a reminder of resilience and the hell one survives.

If she were mine, I’d kiss each bruise so she didn’t feel the need to hide.

I remind myself she isn’t mine by glancing at her left hand, where Nathan’s ring sits on her finger. I loathe the sight of it as much as the bracelet she wore at my club.

Yeah, even fucking her out of my system will fail. It won’t work because one taste of her will make me a slave of hers for life. I’d be a junkie, crawling back to her again and again until she’s as addicted to me as I am to her.

“No,” she says as I move to place the tray on her lap.

I arch a brow.

“I don’t eat on the bed.”

It intrigues me. “Why?”

“Ill people eat on the bed. I’ll get sicker if I have breakfast here,” she explains, and it’s the strangest thing I’ve ever heard. “I’ll have it over the couch.”

I abide by her wish while replying, “You believe in superstitions?”

“It’s a known fact.”

“Really?” I drawl, turning around to go back to her side. Bending, I lift her into my arms before she can try walking on her own. Her small gasp tickles my throat as she ropes an arm around my neck, drowning me in her scent. “Where did you read that?”

“My mom told me.”

I drop her gently onto the couch. “That doesn’t make it a fact.”

“Well, I had an uncle who had a habit of always having food on the bed. He used to get sick all the time and eventually died of kidney failure. What do you call that?”

“An unfortunate coincidence.”

“Whatever,” she huffs, grabbing the glass of juice. “Don’t believe me.”

I sit down on the opposite end and watch her leisurely eat the sandwich with even bites in between sips of the juice. The soft hum after each swallow lets me know she likes the taste. A second before finishing, she abruptly pauses and meets my gaze. “Oh, sorry! I never asked. Did you want some?”

I almost smile. “No, I had breakfast earlier.”

“Salad?” Her nose scrunches.

“Yeah.”

“Don’t you get bored eating it every day?”

“Not yet.” I follow the trail of her thumb as she catches the crumb against the corner of her mouth and licks it off. The tip of her tongue tasting a part of me flashes in my mind. I clear my throat to bury the filthy image. “I need you to tell me everything you remember from yesterday, Iris.”

The sound of her name from my mouth brings her soft eyes to mine. Twisting her body in my direction, she lifts both legs onto the couch and sits sideways with her knees bent. “I went downstairs to the copier room. Nobody was on the floor when I reached it and went down the hallway. I ran into the janitor as he was leaving. Inside the room, I was trying to get the machine to work when I heard someone enter. All I saw was their fist after I turned. I don’t even remember whether it was a woman or a man. I… I just froze as they kept kicking me, and then I passed out.”

As she recounts what happened, fury courses through my veins. It’s a miracle how I’m containing it. I was hoping she could give me any details that would point me in the direction ofthe attacker. Not every floor has cameras and unfortunately, the floor where she was assaulted happens to be one of them.