His Pawn: A Twisted Psychological Romantic Thriller by Mara Morgan

Author:Mara Morgan [Morgan, Mara]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-02-05T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 19

CADENCE

I ride the elevator up to the thirteenth floor, lost in thought. There’s a bellman again, someone new. After I tell him which floor, he ignores me, and I’m fine with that.

When the bell dings and the elevator door slides open, I step out. My gaze lands on Cruze’s room and all that could have been. Holding in a sigh, I turn toward Zane’s room, but John Cruze’s door opens, and he steps out in all his totally gorgeous glory.

As soon as he sees me his face lights up.

“Hey Cadence.” Cruze raises a hand in a wave.

I freeze, undecided about what to do. Finally, I respond. “Hey…” Several words run through my mind at the same time: his actual name—John. Hottie. Sexy. I end up sounding like a total idiot. “Jottie,” I finish, and my face burns.

He chuckles. “Jottie, huh?”

I shake my head and laugh. “John.” The name rolls off my tongue like liquid and I wonder why the fuck that couldn’t have been what I said in the first place.

The bellman steps from the elevator. “You going down, sir?” He gives me a once over and sniffs, like he’s better than me. I turn away.

“Not now. Thanks, Steve.”

The elevator door shuts, leaving John and me alone in the hallway. That makes me a little nervous.

“So, John Zane, huh?” Cruze says, going right for the metaphorical elephant in the room.

“Yeah,” I respond.

He suddenly looks uncomfortable, and I wonder if he’s embarrassed to be talking to me. Maybe he was just being nice the other night, trying to make sure the tabloids couldn’t report anything negative on him.

“Did you and your publicist work everything out?”

He seems surprised that I remember. “We did. Like I said, it’s just how we are. Nothing to worry about.”

I nod. “And your reputation? Is it beyond fixable?” I think about all the tabloids and wonder if I’m in any of them or if they got a shot of John and me together.

He lets out a huge laugh. “Yeah, that wasn’t fixable a long time before I met you.”

“Ah. So no permanent damage?” I know I’m stalling, but I’m not sure how to talk about Mr. Zane.

“No.” Cruze steps closer. He even smells gorgeous, like sandalwood and exotic spices.

“Well,” I begin, unsure what to say next.

“How did you and Zane meet?” Cruze gives me a strange look, and I get the feeling he probably already knows. He takes another step toward me. Our bodies are only inches apart.

“Remember the other night? You and me?” I clear my throat.

He nods and I watch several emotions run over his face. Then it dawns on him. “Were you supposed to meet him instead of me?”

“Yes,” I say quietly, afraid to say more.

“Holy fuck,” he whispers, taking one of my hands in his.

I can’t help but notice how warm and firm it is. I know I should pull away, but my fingers refuse to listen to reason.

“Yeah,” is all I can say.

“So?” He lets the simple word hang between us. One syllable, but it says a whole lot.

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