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It was too much. Claire wanted to teach Haley a lesson

about life, one she was sorely lacking, having been sheltered

by well-meaning grandparents, and then her obnoxious father,

but she bit down on the harsh words and kept her hands to

herself. She’d very much like to tangle them in Haley’s soft,

dark tresses, tilt her head back, and ravish her mouth in a

punishing kiss.

You’re out of control. Get the hell back in line right now.

Regulate your breathing. Get oxygen to your brain. Stop using

the lizard parts. She might be beautiful, but she’s not worth it.

She’s the enemy.

Instead of flying off the handle, which Haley clearly

expected, Claire got her shit together and gave her nothing.

Haley’s hand flew up and self-consciously tucked a strand of

hair behind her ear, not sure what to make of the change in

attitude. She was still poised for fight, but Claire wasn’t going

to give her that. She was going to give her calm until she saw

the error of her ways and corrected her behavior.

“Sit down, please. We need to talk.”

The only place to sit was the bed. Haley glanced at it

nervously before she walked to it and sat down, back rigid,

hands in her lap, on the very edge.

Claire sat down a few feet away. She still couldn’t shake the

heat that permeated her body. The damn bed. Of course it was

the only legit sitting space in the room. “I need you to

understand,” she said softly, “that you are here because you

agreed to my terms. You and your father. I expect you to take

that responsibility seriously. I thought it was understood that

telling people about the agreement isn’t in your best interest.

While it’s not a secret, it would damage your father’s