Page 63 of Blaire

“I realize now I went too far with you, all right?” He lifts both his hands in a shrug. “What else can I say, Blaire? You tell me and I'll say it.”

“There's nothing for you to say,” my voice comes out in a whisper, as I stare down at the ground.

“Well,” he whispers back at me, dropping his hands to his sides, “if it's any consolation, I'm not normally so soft with girls,” he looks very honest saying this, like it matters. “You pulled a gun on me and I let you get away with it. Believe me, I've killed others for less.”

I scoff. Is that his silver lining?

“As for The Cayman Islands,” he narrows a firm finger at me, “you can forget that. I'll lend you the money so you can pay Robert—I'll pay him within the month. You can give it back to me when your time here is up.”

“You're just going to lend me half a million pounds?” I say with a gawp, my voice higher than it's ever been. “Just like that?”

“Yeah.” He nods, his eyes glittering with some strange emotion. “I want us to get along. I don't want you loathing me for three months.”

I twist up my face. “Why do you care if I like you or not?”

He shrugs. “I dunno. I just do.”

The reality of the situation really starts to sink in. “You're not going to tire of me, are you?”

He doesn't answer me right away, just looks at me with... I don't know. I've never seen that expression on his face.

“Probably not, no,” he says eventually, his tone softer now. “How could I?”

This is just fucking great.

I want to scream.

“In spite of how you feel about me right now,” he says, “you're better off with me than with Maksim. I wouldn't dare let you take a bullet for me.”

“That's good then, because I wouldn't.”

He rolls his eyes. “I’m not gonna keep arguing with you, Blaire, so why don't you lose that stinking redhead attitude for one damn night and let's go have something to eat and drink; overlook all this bullshit.”

I give him my hardest stare yet, knowing my eyes are balls of blue fire. As if I'm just going to forget about all of what's happened since he bought me from Maksim?

“Will you give me a break?” he waves out a hand in frustration. “I'm trying to level with you here.”

I don't believe him. He's playing me—I know it. He has to be. He's being nice to get me on side. It's classic emotional bonding. Maksim used it on me, I know because I've researched it.

Charlie sighs, then he steps up to me. I instinctively step back, holding out my hands to defend myself. I can't tell what he's thinking. He doesn't have that dark alluring thing going on, but... I just can't tell what he's thinking.

“I'm not gonna hurt you.” Taking one of my hands in his, he strokes over my knuckles with his thumb, turning my bones to jelly. “Just kiss you.”

Heat spreads across my cheeks.

I look down and pull my hand free, holding it to my chest.

“Blaire-”

“We should go have that dinner you're so hungry for,” I say, and I don't hang around for his kiss. I walk past him, half expecting him to stop me and force his tongue down my throat.

He doesn't. He lets me leave.

He is seriously doing my head in. One minute he's arrogant and dominating, then twisted and sexually infringing, and then he's... he's... well, he's like this.

I'm still not sure of his agenda with me—I've never met a man like him before. I can't figure him out. I'm not even sure if I hate him or if I'm taking a liking to him. I fancy him for sure, but I... I just don't know.

I don't know anything anymore.