Page 13 of His Dark Pact

She stared at the remaining champagne in her flute. She liked what little she knew about him. He was kind, generous, and gorgeous, but she didn’t recall when there had been any agreement. So far as she knew, she’d only assented to meet him there and for him to treat her to a meal.

“I’ve not been dishonest.” She shrugged. “I just didn’t come here to talk about my dead husband.” The thought of Graham amidst the tug of attraction she felt for Kyle was confusing.

“I’m sorry.” His brow furrowed as he reached across the table for her free hand. “I didn’t want to upset you, only to understand you a little better.”

“I’m not upset,” she insisted, watching as his huge palm encased hers. His skin was warm, elevating her already rising temperature, though she couldn’t be sure if the genesis was the intriguing man sitting opposite her or the champagne. “Maybe just puzzled. I thought we were having dinner.”

“We will have dinner.” He motioned to the menu that had been left by the server. “I’d just like to know you, that’s all.”

Know me?

The man was a virtual stranger, but for some reason, the idea of him knowing her was unreasonably enticing. She longed for them to spend more time together and liked the idea of their scintillating interaction extending beyond that one night, but she had to be realistic. A man like him was not going to stick around, especially once he figured out she was homeless and broke.

The least Kyle would expect was for her to be solvent and live in her own place. She was almost fifty, for God’s sake!

She’d struggled on after Graham’s death and thought she’d been doing all right, but the taste of the high life Kyle had lavished her with—with their isolated table at such a plush dining establishment and one hundred percent of his focus—had made her rethink.

She wasn’t all right. How could she be? She was lonely, and she wasn’t coping with the family’s bills. Her debts had risen to a boiling point—a place where robbing Peter to pay Paul was no longer sufficient—and those same bills were about to erupt and consume her.

It’s been so long since I’ve had any male attention that interest from a man like Kyle is downright overwhelming.She lifted her glass to her lips.Especially when the wolf is at my door.

“Would you like that?” he pressed.

“I thought this was a one-night thing?” Her heart rate sped up as she asked, the potential ramifications of the answer bubbling at the back of her mind.

“It is.” His hand withdrew, his fingertips skimming over the tablecloth as she watched them retreat. “That’s what we said, but it could be more...ifwe wanted?”

“More?”

Emotion simmered inside her, her excitement at the prospect of getting to know the mysterious Kyle mingling with the rising sense of desolation at what awaited her once the spell was broken and she found herself on the streets.

Why was she indulging in the fairytale when reality demanded so much of her attention? She should be out there looking for somewhere to stay. She should be—

“I like you, Amy, and I think you might want someone to take care of you.”

I do want that.

Her anxious thoughts were immediately extinguished by his interjection, but she bit down on what she wanted to say, what remained of her pride preventing her from speaking.

How could she ever reveal who she was to a man like Kyle? What would he think if he knew how hard-up she truly was?

She closed her eyes, feeling the burgeoning dread escalating in the pit of her stomach. Maybe she shouldn’t have come. She’d thought it would be good to have one night of fun before reality bit, but she’d been wrong.

Spending time with him and knowing what life was like for those who had the funds available had only served to make her feel worse. She was used to being comparatively poor, but seeing the evidence of a lifestyle she could never have made turning away all the more painful.

“Amy.” His voice softened, pervading her misery. “Are you okay?”

She shook her head as her emotions peaked, tears burning in her eyes.

Damn. Her toes crunched in her cheap shoes. Don’t cry!

But try as she might, she failed to suppress the tsunami of woe.

Nothing was okay.

As her tears started to fall, she wondered if she would ever be okay again.