Page 55 of Ruthless

Giving her one last, luscious caress right where she needed him most, he pulled away from her. “I’ll go shower.”

“I don’t mind if they know you’re here.”

“I know that, but if it’s your father, I’d rather not have that conversation yet.”

“And what conversation would that be?”

The chime sounded again, letting her know that whoever was at the door was getting impatient.

Not answering her question, Gideon rolled away from her and rose from the bed. She took half a second to appreciate his sublimely naked body as he strode to the bathroom. With a frustrated sigh, Eve stood, shrugged into her robe, and went to the door.

Checking the camera quickly, she was surprised to see her uncle Jacques. Though she loved him dearly, he rarely came to see her without her father at his side.

She opened the door, a smile of greeting on her face. “Bonjour, Uncle. To what do I owe this pleasure?”

His wrinkled face set to grim, he asked, “Is your friend Gideon Wright with you?”

Backing up so he could walk inside, she frowned and said, “Why?”

“Because I just received word that the former palace commander, Jeremy Clement, has been found dead. Monsieur Wright is a person of interest in his murder.”

* * *

Standing beneath the hot blast of the shower, Gideon reviewed the night before with Eve, barely believing it had actually happened. When he’d come to her apartment, his only hope had been that she was willing to put his deception behind them, and they could try to move forward. Instead, they’d gone warp speed into the hottest night of his life. Every fantasy he’d had over the past few years had played out, along with a few he’d never imagined. What made it even better was the knowledge that it wouldn’t end as a one-night stand, as it had years ago. He and Eve were on the same page now. They could finally move forward, all lies, all deception in the past. The future was theirs.

A sound caught his attention. He turned to see Eve headed his way. Even through the steam, he could see something in her expression that wasn’t quite right.

Pressing the button to turn off the water flow, he stuck his head out and said, “What’s wrong?”

“When’s the last time you saw Jeremy Clement?”

“Couple days ago. Why? Did he complain to someone that I was harassing him?”

“No. He’s been murdered.”

“Can’t say I’m surprised. Guy likely had plenty of people who’d like to see him dead.”

“Yes, well… According to the police, you’re one of them.”

“What do you mean?”

“That was my uncle at the door. He said the police are looking for you as a person of interest in Clement’s murder.”

A bad feeling tightened his gut. “Do you think I killed him?”

Her eyes flashing blue fire, she snapped, “Of course not.”

Grabbing a towel, Gideon quickly dried off. “Then I guess I’d better head to the station and see why the police might think that.”

“Anything weird happen while you were there? He give you any kind of an odd vibe?”

“Yeah. Like I mentioned yesterday, he seemed too damn smug. Acted like he had a secret.”

“Anything else?”

“No, not really.” He tilted his head toward the living room. “Your uncle still here?”

She shook her head. “I told him we’d head down to the police station in a few minutes and find out what’s going on.”