Page 28 of The Devil After Dark

twenty-seven

LIANA

The morning after the fundraiser I woke up feeling exhausted.

It was not the normal exhaustion of not sleeping or being emotionally overwhelmed or having too much good sex the night before—all of which were true.

No, it was the exhaustion of stress leaving my body.

There had been a lot of pressure for this event to go well and it had.

It was as if I had an event hangover. Thank the gods it was the weekend and I could just lie on my couch and read all day if I wanted to.

A bath sounded like the perfect way to start the day.

The eucalyptus bath salts filled my bathroom with a relaxing aroma.

Steam rose from my tub as I slipped into the water, hissing and cursing at the heat.

I knew once I got in, it would feel wonderful, but that didn’t stop the burning my feet currently felt.

I settled into the water and leaned my head back against the edge of the tub.

I could not help but run through the entire event in my head again.

Merrick Delacourt, the man from the club, had been at the event and he had recognized me.

I had been able to slip away and avoid him the rest of the evening, but the way he looked at me made me think this was not the last time I was going to see him.

Maybe I should ask Cassio more about it.

He had told me Merrick was a bad man. Should I be worried about him coming after me now that he knew who I was?

I dunked my head under the warm water. This was just silly.

One stalker and I was already thinking I was special enough for more men to pursue me.

Where have all these interested men been the last few years?

It was like they were all coming out of the woodwork at once.

Daren continually asked me out. Merrick at the club—I could not even tell you the last time a stranger had approached me with interest at a bar or club.

Cassio breaking into my home and then hiring my firm.

I still hated that he hired us a little bit.

It felt like a charity case, not like he actually needed us.

I sighed and pulled the plug on my bath.

Here I was trying to relax and instead I was all up in my own head.

I held my towel around me as I stepped into my closet to find something to wear.

My eyes snagged on a single bra sitting on top of my dresser.

I was sure I had not left a bra out. My hand shook as I slid open my drawer.

Things being out of place really only meant one thing at this point: that Cassio had been in my condo.

Reaching into the drawer I picked up a shredded piece of lace.

Then another and another. Every single pair of my underwear was cut into pieces.

I turned my eyes to my bras. The cups were cut into ribbons and the straps were cut as well.

What the fuck was I supposed to wear? I slammed my drawer closed and spun to look at the rest of my clothes in the closet.

Everything else seemed to be untouched. I pulled on a pair of sweats and a t-shirt and stormed out of my room.

Four rectangular boxes were laid out on my couch.

I stood staring at them. All of them were black with golden trim.

Cautiously I lifted the lid from one of the boxes.

Cream tissue paper met me and I gently folded it open.

Beautiful lace bras and matching panties were arranged in front of me.

The lace was expensive. Each set would have cost hundreds of dollars.

My hands moved to the next box and lifted the lid.

Lingerie sets of equally expensive lace and mesh lay beneath the cream paper.

In the next box, the softest cotton underwear sets were nestled together.

I let out a small laugh. At least he had the foresight to offer some genuinely comfortable and practical options.

The fourth and final box contained athletic bras and underwear.

Total it was more than what was lying shredded in my drawer.

Cassio must have spent thousands on the replacements.

But why the hell had he shredded my underwear to begin with?

And he left one bra. Why? I left the new underwear in their boxes and hurried back to my closet.

Picking up the single bra left intact and on top of my dresser I retreated to my bed and sat down, staring at it.

Why this bra? Finally it hit me, this was the bra I was wearing the night of the shooting.

It was the bra I was wearing when I tore my shirt off to stop Jason’s bleeding.

The first time Cassio saw me I was wearing this bra.

Slowly I made my way back to my living room and stared into the boxes of underwear.

I selected a pair of matching lace to wear.

Maybe he just wanted me to wear something he had purchased?

I still was so confused. Eventually, I decided I would just ask.

Grabbing my phone I shot of a quick message to Cassio.

What did my underwear do to you?

I was pulling the shredded underwear from my drawer and stuffing it in a garbage bag when my phone buzzed with his response.

No thank you?

Really? I groaned internally and furiously typed a response.

Thank you for the beautiful underwear. What was wrong with every other pair I owned?

I shoved the last of the fabric into the bag and walked down the hall to retrieve the boxes. When I got back to my closet, my phone had a new message.

I hated the idea that other men may have seen you wearing them.

His response made my eyes widen. Who would even think about that?

He hated the idea that another man had seen my underwear so much he shredded every single pair I owned.

I must be absolutely color blind. This was obviously another massive red flag and at the same time there was a little tingle of pure satisfaction in my core knowing he was this crazy about me.

He was so possessive and obsessed that he had done something completely unhinged.