“I don’t have your number,” I retorted — and instantly wanted to insert my foot into my own mouth. I didnotwanthis number.
“You do,” he informed me. “I programmed it into your phone the other day.”
“You did?”
He nodded. “Gwen. Hear me when I say this: Mickey O'Banion is not a nice guy. He’s got a violent streak. All the O’Banion boys do — his older brothers are so wild, they make Mickey look like a fucking monk. And right now, those boys are seriously pissed off that someone’s been taking advantage of their senile mother. They’re the type to swing first, ask questions later. No matter who gets in their way.” He paused. “You are not going to get in their way. You hear me?”
“I hear you.”
“You’ll call me the moment Zelda comes into the shop,” he reiterated.
“I said I hear you.”
“You’ll steer clear if Mickey O'Banion — if any of the O’Banions — tries to contact you.”
“For the last time,I hear you!Jeeze. Lay off.”
He eyed me severely, his gaze sharp as ever. “You really have no idea where Zelda might be?”
“I have no clue where she lives or where she goes when she’s not telling fortunes in the back room,” I told him truthfully. “Now, if that’s all, I need to get back to The Gallows.”
“It’s six thirty. You’re closed for the day.”
My chin jerked up in surprise at his familiarity with my schedule. I suppose I shouldn’t have been so shocked. He was a private detective, after all. Knowing things was sort of his whole business model.
“Right,” I murmured. “We’re closed to customers, but I still have a shedload of uncompleted items on my end-of-week cleaning checklist, including about six straight years worth of Windexing, so if you don’t mind…”
Trying to breathe deeply, I avoided his gaze as I rounded the table and beelined for the exit, my boots rapping audibly against his polished marble flooring. I was nearly at the door when Graham cut me off at the pass, stepping into my path and blocking my escape with his large form. His large hands settled on my biceps, effective as shackles. His face tilted down to stare into mine, those piercing green eyes inescapable.
“You’re not lying to me again, are you Gwendolyn?” he whispered, his words a velvet blade between two ribs.
“Again?” I bleated, heart pounding. “What do you meanagain?”
He didn’t answer right away. After a few long seconds, I realized he wasn’t going to answer at all. He was just going to let me suffer, wondering which one of my fabrications he’d seen through.
Bending forward, his mouth brushed my ear. “You’ve got a bad habit of underestimating my ability to see through your bullshit.”
Hellfire!
“Or…” I whispered back. “Maybe you don’t know me as well as you think you do.”
This was the wrong thing to say. I knew it the moment the words left my mouth. I’d thrown down a challenge and, alpha male that he was, Graham couldn’t resist the urge to best it. His fingers flexed against my arms, his eyes flared with unchecked intensity. A rough sound moved in his throat.
“More likely, I know you twice as well as you want me to. Which freaks you out, gives you the urge to bolt even more than normal.” He moved closer, his hands leaving my biceps to circle around to my upper back, sliding featherlight across the fabric of my dress. His voice dropped to a low whisper. “But the thing is, I’m not letting you do that anymore.”
“W-what?” I stuttered.
“This dance we’ve been dancing, these past few months? I’m done with it. I’ve waited for the ice to thaw on its own. I’ve waited for you to admit how you feel. I’ve waited for you to get over your trust issues and come to me. I’m not waiting anymore. I’m done with your boundaries and your bullshit excuses.”
My mouth fell open in shock. I didn’t know what to say, so I simply blurted, “My excuses are not bullshit!”
“They are, babe.”
“If that’s how you feel, why are you holding me here?”
I couldn’t see his smile, but I felt it against the skin of my neck. And it feltgreat. So great, my knees nearly buckled.
“Because,” he said lowly. “God help me, I happen to think your bullshit is pretty fucking cute most of the time. I like watching you panic when I manage to work my way under your defensive perimeters. I like watching you squirm when you realize you’ve forgotten to hold me at arm’s length.”