Page 27 of The Sinner’s Touch (Manwhore #2)

Why was she sitting here debating going to check on him instead of getting the hell out?

It would be easy to sneak down the stairs and run for the door, only a few feet away.

She opened the door and looked down the hallway.

Clear. She inched her way out of the bedroom, hugging the wall as she made her way to the top of the stairs. The main room below looked empty.

Where had the crash come from? Her eyes scanned the room, but she didn’t see any furniture knocked over, no lamps on the floor, and no Kade.

Where the hell was he?

She walked down the stairs, careful to be as quiet as she could.

The front door was right there. She could go out right now and make a run for the elevator.

But what if the serial killer had gotten in somehow and hurt Kade?

She’d told him yesterday she wished he’d died instead of Peter.

It wasn’t true. She didn’t want him to die. She couldn’t just leave him here.

Damn it.

She let out a sigh and moved into the living room, looking around.

The only thing out of place was a large piece of lasagna on the couch, the plate in the floor.

Nikoli would freak. That was exactly why she hadn’t wanted to eat on the couch.

Maybe Kade had been sitting down to eat and got surprised?

There was a hallway behind the stairs with more rooms. She headed in that direction and saw three more doors.

One of them was open, the light on. No murmur of voices reached her.

Probably empty. Still, she kept as quiet as she could as she snuck down the dimly lit corridor.

She peeked into the room and found it empty.

It looked like an office, bookshelves, a desk with three computer monitors, several chairs.

Where was Kade?

She turned around and ran right into a wall of muscle. She stumbled back, her scream loud and clear. She ran straight into the office looking for a weapon. She spied the letter opener on the desk and snatched it up, ready to defend herself.

“Easy.” The deep voice matched the smiling man taking up the doorway, blocking her exit. He looked Eastern European, maybe Greek or Italian. His brown eyes were amused. “I’m Jasper Watkins with Kincaid Security. Agent Kincaid sent me up while he gets the rest of my team registered with security.”

“Viktor’s company?” Angel clutched the letter opener like a lifeline. This guy was not the serial killer, but he was still someone she didn’t know.

“Yes, ma’am. Viktor sent us to protect you.”

“How did you get in?” Angel sank down in the desk chair.

“Agent Kincaid brought me up and let me in.” He moved farther into the room.

Good God, but he was a big man. Taller than Kade and wider.

Handsome wasn’t quite the word. He was as sexy as Kade, but she saw nothing but lighthearted mirth in his expression.

He reminded her of a big old teddy bear.

Truthfully, her first thoughts were of Johnny Depp’s pirate character in Pirates of the Caribbean when she looked at him.

Could he even be brutal enough to be a bodyguard? She doubted it.

“I heard a crash?”

He laughed. “That was me. I was in the bathroom and knocked a glass off the counter. I had just finished cleaning it up when I came out and saw you go in here. Thought I would introduce myself.”

They both heard the front door open and Kade call out. “Watkins?”

He turned and stepped outside the door. “We’re back here.”

When Kade joined them, he looked tired. Had he slept at all? Angel bit her lip. Stop worrying about him. It’s not your job to do that anymore.

“Angel?” Kade stared at her questioningly. She looked down to see she was still clutching the letter opener like weapon. “Everything okay?”

“I startled her.” Jasper shot her an apologetic grin. “If you don’t need anything else, I’m going to go get my men stationed then find a delivery place. I’m starved. I’ll be Miss Lemoraux’s shadow, but while she’s in the apartment with you, sir, I’ll be outside.”

“Thank you, Watkins.” Kade nodded and turned back to her once Jasper had left. He arched a brow. “Planning to use that on me?”

“What?” Oh, the letter opener. She let it fall back to the desk, the clatter loud in the silence. “No, of course not.”

“Are you hungry? Lily left lasagna in the fridge.”

Her stomach did the talking for her when it rumbled loudly. Kade laughed and came over to the desk, holding out his hand. “Come on, let’s get you fed.”

She let him pull her up. He squeezed her hand and led her back to the kitchen, only letting go when he turned to the fridge. She took a seat at the island, watching him. Something was different.

“Would you like a glass of wine with your dinner?” He popped a plate in the microwave.

“No, thank you.” No drinking around Kade. It always ended up with her in his bed. “Did you make the mess on the couch?”

He made a face, and she smiled slightly at his aggravated expression. “Yeah. Nik’s going to murder me. That thing probably costs more than I make in a year.”

“He owns his own company?”

Kade’s expression turned guarded. “Yeah. He doesn’t advertise that, though, so I’d appreciate it if you didn’t, either.”

“Of course not.”

The microwave beeped, and he collected the plate and some silverware. “Here you are, my lady.” He set the plate in front of her with some flourish, his dimple winking at her when he smiled.

“What are you doing?”

Kade fetched her a bottle of water. He tried his best to adopt the most innocent expression he could. “Being civil?”

“No, you’re not.”

“I’m not?”

She shook her head. “You’re being charming.”

“Am I?” He leaned against the counter.

“Yes, so stop it.”

“Stop being charming?” He laughed at the absurdity of the conversation. The flush on her cheeks testified to how much he still affected her, and it gave Kade hope that maybe he could win her back.

“Yes, stop being charming. It’s not working, anyway.”

“It isn’t?” He leaned farther across the counter until he was only a few inches away from her. Her eyes widened, and he heard the hitch in her breath.

“No,” she whispered.

He couldn’t take this too fast or he’d lose her again. He had to be sly and sneak up on her.

“Then you don’t need to worry about my being charming.” He kissed the tip of her nose then pushed away from the counter. “I spoke to Nik earlier, and he said we could put up a tree. I thought we could go shopping either tomorrow or the next day.”

“Christmas is two weeks away. Surely, I won’t be here that long…”

Her panicked expression gave him even more hope.

“Angel, this guy has been operating in the city for months. He made a mistake, yes, he left a witness. Mistakes are how we find these guys, but it still takes time. You’re going to be here as long as it takes to catch him and eliminate the threat to you. ”

Her shoulders slumped, and Kade silently cheered. She wasn’t going to argue about staying here.

“Now that your brother’s guards are here, does that mean you’ll be leaving?”

He scowled at the hope in her voice. “No. In fact, you’ll get to meet Dimitri soon. He said he’d be on the next flight out.”

“Which one is he?”

“He’s the next oldest out of the six of us, and a writer.”

“A writer?” She stopped eating and looked up. “What does he write?”

“Romance.”

“Romance?”

He couldn’t help but chuckle at the dumbfounded look on her face. When it came to Dimitri’s chosen profession, it was how most of his family felt.

“Why’s he coming here?” She took another bite of her food.

“It’s been a long time since so many of us have been in the same city. We thought it might be nice to spend some time together, it being Christmas and all. And he wants to meet you.”

“Me? Why?”

“Because you’re my wife. The how or the why of it doesn’t matter to any of my brothers. They just see the word ‘wife’ flashing in neon pink, and they can’t wait to start pestering their new sister.”

“But none of that is real, Kade. You were undercover, and…”

“And what?” His eyes narrowed.

“And the nugget and I were just collateral damage.” Her voice had gone quiet, small. “That’s what you told me. We were just collateral damage.”

“I lied.” His own voice went soft.

He lied? A hollow laugh escaped her. “When didn’t you lie to me, Kincaid?”

“When I told you I loved you. How I felt about you was never a lie.”

Why would he say this to her now? Why? After everything he’d done, this…this was cruel.

“Neither of you was collateral damage to me.” He reached into his back pocket and took out his wallet. Inside, he removed the one picture he carried with him and handed it to her.

She looked down and saw a sonogram image of their son.

The technician had printed off two copies.

The last she’d seen of them, they’d been hanging on the fridge, courtesy of a magnet.

When she came home, she’d found one on the floor among the mess that had been made when the police searched the house.

She’d assumed the other one had been destroyed.

Her eyes shot to his. He’d kept their baby’s only photo?

“We need to talk, Angel. I’ve thought about this since I saw you sitting in the bar. I told myself that bringing all that up would only cause us both more pain, but you need to know what really happened that day. You deserve to know the truth.”

“I don’t want to hear this, Kade.” She couldn’t go back to that day. She couldn’t. It hurt too much. She might as well have died herself. Going back there wasn’t a good idea. She barely coped as it was. Bringing all that back…she shook her head. Only pain waited in those memories.

“You need to hear this, moye serdtse .” He came around the island and took her face in his hands. “I need you to hear this. Please.”

She shook her head, a tear sliding down her face. “Don’t make me remember that day. Please.”

“I survived by not remembering it too.” He stroked her cheek with his thumb. “I know how much those memories hurt, but you don’t know the whole truth. You might not even believe me after all these years, but let me tell you the truth.”

Truth? What could he possibly say that would erase all the pain he’d caused her? Her gaze flicked down to the worn and tattered sonogram photo. It looked like he’d taken it out many times. There were even a few tear stains on it.

Maybe she owed it to their son to listen to him. Maybe she owed it to the ghost of the memory of what they once were. Maybe she just wanted to hear any truth other than the one she’d lived with for six years.

“Okay.”