“I said acquaintance, cara. Your father didn’t have any friends.”
“It doesn’t matter. I don’t want to find him anymore.”
“Unfortunately, I do.”
“Why?”
“Old business.”
His face was cold, implacable. She tried a different approach. “Anyway, I can’t go with you. I’ve got my little brother to take care of.”
He appeared unimpressed. “You also have a live-in housekeeper.”
“How do you know?”
“Come on, Lia. I had you investigated.”
Lia stared at him. “You’re unreal, you know that, don’t you? And in serious danger of becoming paranoid.” When he didn’t answer, she continued. “I can’t believe you had me investigated. Why?”
“Look at it from my point of view,” Luc said. “You arranged a meeting, you seduced me, then waited until I was asleep and searched my office. Of course I had you investigated.”
Lia examined his face for some sign that he was joking. This was so bizarre. He was crazy. She took a deep breath. Just stay calm.
“I did not arrange a meeting with you. I arranged a meeting with Mr. Watson. I’d never even heard of you before that night.”
Luc looked skeptical. “So you say.”
Lia wanted to scream. She took another deep breath, and then one more, closed her eyes and counted to ten.
“So, you had me investigated. You already knew all about me. You knew all the time that I was lying and that my mother was dead.”
“Not when you came to see Harley, no. But soon after that.”
She stood for a moment, nibbling on her lower lip. Would he go through with his threat and post those pictures on the Internet, leak them to the local press? The thought sent shivers of panic rippling through her. She couldn’t risk it; this was her career on the line. She had no choice but to go along with him. As she admitted it to herself, an entirely inappropriate wave of excitement washed over her, and she hugged her arms around her middle. Why did he have such an effect on her? All these years she had thought herself immune to men. Why did he have to be the one to prove her wrong?
He lounged against the wall, arms folded, but while his position was casual, his whole body radiated masculine power. With his scar and his dark good looks, his beautiful emerald eyes, he also appeared vaguely menacing and immensely sexy. It was a bizarre and powerful combination.
Her body tightened at the memory of all that leashed power focused on her. The way he had controlled her, overwhelmed her, made her feel in that moment as though she were the most desirable woman in the world—the most important person in his world. And it had all been a lie, an act.
“Well?”
His question brought her out of her thoughts. She was going to have to go with him, she knew that, but it was imperative she make one thing clear at the start. “I’ll come, but I’m not going to sleep with you. This is just to find my father.”
“Wait until you’re asked, cara.”
She ignored the comment. “And I can’t come with you if I think you’re going to hold those pictures over my head and threaten me every step of the way.”
“Lia, you will come with me because I’m holding those pictures over you.”
“That’s immoral.”
He smiled, but it did nothing to alleviate the sense of panic threatening to overtake her. “I have to admit to a certain level of moral flexibility when it comes to getting what I want,” he said. “It’s probably best you know that right from the start.
Lia sighed. “I’ll go pack. Wait here.” She shut the door in his face and hurried up the stairs.
…
The door to the apartment swung open, and Luc stood to one side to let her pass. He seemed more relaxed now that he’d gotten his own way. On the drive into London, he’d been silent, but at least the tension appeared to have left him. She’d been expecting him to take her to the apartment in the office block, where they’d been that first night. But they’d headed not for the business district, but into an upmarket residential area in the west end of the city. Finally, Luc had pulled into an underground parking area beneath a modern apartment building, and they’d taken the elevator up to the penthouse.
Luc put her bag down on the floor and held out a hand.
“I’ll show you around.”
She ignored the hand and stood staring around her, eyes widening as she took in the sheer luxury of her surroundings. The place was huge, light, and airy with vast expanses of polished wooden floors and floor-to-ceiling windows. The furniture was sparse but beautiful, elegant and modern, uncluttered. Lia kicked off her shoes, and some of her own anger and bitterness drained from her. It was no good being angry. She never did anything sensible when she was angry, and she needed to be sensible now. But without the anger, she felt a little lost, with nothing to replace it.