Chapter 18 Angel #2
“Such violence for someone so slight,” he murmured as he leaned past me again and picked up another cup, his body pressing in close, and I was already leaning back, eager to feel him behind me.
I caught myself in time before he realized.
His fingers flew over the panel, and then he was once again caging me in with an arm on either side of me.
“Do you need to be so close?” I asked him as I moved slightly away from him, even though my ass seemed to be desperate to rub against him.
His hot breath was at my ear, causing my flesh to erupt in goose bumps. “No.”
“This isn’t appropriate workplace behavior,” I told him, trying to keep my voice steady. I would not let him affect me. Who was I kidding? I could feel my pulse racing as my stomach churned in anticipation.
“I’ve never been appropriate.”
I snorted out a laugh at his deadpan humor and quickly controlled myself. “Very true.” His second cup was ready. It was exactly the same as the first. “Your coffee is ready,” I pointed out.
“Our coffee,” he said softly as he pressed forward slightly.
He stood back and reached for his coffee.
“No need to thank me.” I turned as he lifted the cup to his lips and took a drink, his dark brown eyes glittering as he watched me.
When he lowered the cup, I noticed a small upward curl of his lip. “Have a good day, vampire.”
“You bit me, remember?” I blurted out and watched with a mix of glee and trepidation as he stalled in his exit. Onyx turned and looked me up and down. My hands felt shaky as I pressed them to the counter behind me.
Onyx walked back to me, and I moved back, but there was nowhere to go.
He set his cup down, and he stooped slightly so we were almost eye level.
“Is that what you want? You want to sink your teeth into me, little vampire?” Reaching out, his hand caught the end of my ponytail as he slipped my hair through his fingers.
Yes.
What? No!
“Of course not,” I spluttered. “That’s just not even appropriate.” I tried not to look at him, but it was very difficult when he was right there and his hand was gently tugging on my hair.
“You keep using the word appropriate. It’s like you forget who I am,” he mused. “Have I ever been appropriate?”
“No.”
“Then why the fuck would you expect me to be?”
“I keep thinking you may one day surprise me,” I told him with a half-hearted shrug.
Onyx barked out a laugh as he straightened, giving me space. “No, that won’t ever happen. I’m exactly who you know me to be.”
“Pity,” I said before I could stop myself. His eyebrow arched, but he picked up his coffee and turned to walk away again.
“Don’t let your coffee get cold, Angel. It’s not every day I make someone a coffee; don’t waste it.”
As he glided through the door, I turned to look at the innocent cup of coffee, cooling exactly where he left it. He made me coffee? My tummy flipped. Jesus, I needed to get a grip. I could not and would not get excited about the fact that the Devil made me a drink.
As I took a sip, I closed my eyes as the smooth, silky blackness coated my tongue and excited my taste buds.
I think I may have moaned. Wetting my lips as I savored the flavor, I gave a smile of appreciation as I got ready to head back to my office.
Onyx was watching me from outside, his face closed off as he saw that I caught him looking.
He raised his cup slightly and then walked back to his office.
This time, when my smile slipped free, I couldn’t hide it; had we made progress? Was the ice thawing between us? Fighting with him was exhausting, especially right now. If this was his offer of a truce, I was willing to negotiate.
If he made me this every day, I was willing to agree to terms, I thought, as I took another drink. Heading back to my office, I unlocked the door and settled in my chair to get some work done.
After a very long conversation with a center who wanted an off-season trade to the West Coast, I had so much work to do to make that happen. I called a break and headed out for lunch. When I came back, Sally was coming out of my office.
“You got mail,” she told me with a bright smile. “Also, Clark Fitzpatrick called. Twice.”
“Ugh, awkward. Okay.”
I needed to avoid Clark, but then I thought that wasn’t fair.
I didn’t actually blame him for having a crazy wife.
Sasha was the kind of woman who you knew was the mean girl in high school; she would also be the most sought after for her looks.
High school boys were all about the packaging, and if I were objective, she and Clark deserved each other.
They obviously thrived on the misery they caused each other.
Delaying having to call him, I opted to open the mail first. Who even got mail anymore? Flicking through the subscriptions, my fingers paused as I saw the plain, unmarked envelope. My name and my office address were on it, but there was no postmark. It had been hand-delivered?
Dread pooled in the pit of my stomach as I deliberated as to whether I should open it.
I took a drink of water, wishing it were something stronger, and then I carefully opened the letter. Pulling out a folded piece of paper, I unfolded it and saw the pictures first.
Three black-and-white, grainy pictures of me sleeping in my bed at home. I knew I was shaking, but to know they had been in my home when I was there threw me. They had to have been standing right over me, or else there was a camera in my room.
Oh my God, why hadn’t I thought that there was the possibility of a camera in my room?
The paper dropped to the desk, and I noticed the words written on it. I hadn’t even looked for a note.
Only the weak run.
You ran.
You didn’t run far enough.
What the hell did that mean? Did he know I was not at my house? He thought he had chased me away, but did he know I was still here?
A knock on the door jerked my head up, and I saw Glenn waiting. “Hey, you okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
“I’m fine.” My throat was dry and my voice croaky. Clearing my throat, I forced a smile. “How can I help you?”
“Do you have time to look at a contract for me, Angel? I need your brilliance.”
“Sure.” Picking up the photos and the paper, I scrunched them into my lap, and as Glenn took a seat, I saw Onyx walk past my office. I saw his frown as he looked between us and then down at my lap as I hastily shoved the papers into my desk.
Running my hand over my ponytail, I tried to give Glenn my attention. “What do you need?” I asked. I needed the distraction, and a contract was exactly what I needed to give me that.
Did I need to tell Onyx about my mail? No. The photos were from my house. If anything, it just proved how much safer I was at the hotel.