Page 17 of Bellini Bound

Either he was too dense to pick up on it or simply didn’t care, because when he spoke next, his voice sounded even closer than before, indicating he’d followed me inside the room.

“I’ll have dinner brought up to you later.”

My stomach soured at the mere idea of food after what I’d just done, and I pressed a palm to my belly, willing myself not to get sick.

“Seems I’ve lost my appetite. Can’t imagine why.” Sarcasm colored every word.

“Suit yourself.”

I busied myself running my fingertips over the gold-threaded upholstery of the larger of the two couches. “If that’ll be all, I’d like some privacy.”

Enzo cleared his throat. “Actually, there is one more thing.”

Lifting my eyes to the ceiling, I muttered, “What now?”

“I need your cellphone. Laptop, too, if you have one.”

Alarm bells went off in my brain, and I shouted, “No! Absolutely not.”

His hazel eyes narrowed. “It wasn’t a request. I can’t allow unsecured electronics on the premises.”

“Unsecured . . .” I drew the word out slowly, trying to make sense of what he meant by that. Then it hit me, and I all but snarled, “Oh, you mean ones you haven’t hijacked with cloning software so you can fucking spy on me?”

Shoving both hands into his pants pockets, he casually remarked, “Trust must be earned, sweetheart.”

I snorted. “Funny thing about trust. It’s usually a two-way street. And if you think I willeverlet my guard down around you, I’ll go ahead and make sure to add ‘delusional’ to the growing list of your negative attributes.”

“So we’re in agreement then.”

“What?” I shook my head in confusion.

“You’ll never trust me, and I’ll never trust you. Now, hand over all your tech.”

A frustrated scream clawed its way up my throat. He was beyond infuriating, and I’d reached a point where I would do just about anything to make him leave, including relinquishing my only lifeline to the outside world.

Trudging across the suite, I found my luggage exactly where he said it would be. I wrenched the zipper on my overnight bag so forcefully that the metal slider ripped clean off. Whatever. Not like I would have the freedom to travel anytime soon, or ever again, for that matter.

With my tablet and phone in hand, I returned to where Enzo stood and practically threw the devices at him. “Happy now?”

A corner of his lips twitched, and he reached out to pluck at my dress. My gaze followed his and saw he was rubbing a thumb over the speckles of blood marring the fabric, which had once been pristine and white.

“Not quite the bloodshed you were probably expecting on your wedding night, but I like your style.”

I sucked in a sharp breath like I’d been slapped.

When I finally recovered from the shock of his statement and the implication that he was aware of my status as a virgin, I lifted my chin defiantly. “Don’t pretend to knowanythingabout me.”

He gripped my chin, getting right up in my face so that he took up my entire field of vision. This close, I could see the green and gold flecks in his mostly brown irises.

“I know enough,” he rasped huskily. Then, almost like he realized what he was doing, he stepped back suddenly, and I shivered when cool air swirled around me without his body nearly pressed to mine. “Let’s leave it at that.”

Then he was gone, the door slamming behind him.

I didn’t waste a single second, clawing at the fastenings at the back of my dress. The longer it took, the more it felt like material was suffocating me. I needed it off. Now.

Finally, I worked enough of the buttons through their loops that the dress pooled around my ankles, and I sucked in gasping breaths while scrambling to get as far away from the offending garment as possible. However, the relief was short-lived because those bloodstains taunted me from across the room as my guilty conscience screamed inside my head,Killer! Murderer!

I needed to get rid of the evidence, which went against everything I believed in, having been raised in the home of a law enforcement officer. But being locked inside a room with the proof of my heinous actions had the power to drive me insane.