“And where exactly are you going to go, Jacey?” he said in a cold voice. “Should I just let you pack your bag and drop you off at the closest shelter?”
Jacey looked at Derrick in shock. He knew? How the hell did he know?
“How long have you known?”
“Since the day I returned from my trip and found out that you’d been fired from the diner. I can’t believe you wouldn’t tell me, Jacey.”
He ran his hand through his hair, sending strands off at crazy angles.
“Oh, and what did you expect me to say? Thanks for the sex, Derrick. By the way, I’m homeless.”
“You should have told me,” he said, his eyes haunted as he stared at her. “Do you think I would have just dropped you off the next morning if I’d known? You think I wouldn’t have done everything I could to help you?”
“You’re a good guy, Derrick. Probably the best guy I’ve ever met. But you can’t solve everyone’s problems.”
“I don’t want to solve everyone’s problems. I’m not the good guy you think I am, Jacey. I can be ruthless when I need to be. I don’t take in strays. I don’t invite just anyone to live under my roof. I told you this before, but it obviously didn’t get through to you. I care about you, Jacey. When I’m not with you I can’t stop thinking about you. Those days when I couldn’t find you, were some of the worst in my life. I imagined all sorts of horrible things, like you lying in a pool of blood in a dark alley with your throat slit.”
He stared at her, his eyes haunted, his face pale. She felt a stab of guilt, which was crazy. There no commitment between them. She hadn’t lied. And yet, she could see the torture he’d been through. How would she have felt if the tables were reversed?
“I need to keep you safe and healthy. And that most definitely means that you are not going out to live on the streets again.”
“Derrick, listen to me. You can’t just keep me like a pet. I’m a grown woman with my own mind. I can make my own decisions.”
“And you think going back out to live on the streets is a good decision? Particularly when you’re barely recovered from bronchitis and pregnant? Just where are you planning on having this baby, Jacey? In an alley between two dumpsters?”
Jacey gasped, standing to glare down at him. “How dare you! Don’t you think I’ve been saving every possible penny I can for this baby? I just need to find another job, start saving again and by the time the baby comes I’ll be set to pay for the hospital bill and rent us a small place for a while.” Maybe. Sometimes the stress of worrying about her future was just too much, if she thought about it all the time she’d go mad. She just had to keep putting one foot in front of the other.
Hopefully by the time the baby came Stephan would have given up on finding her. Surely he knew by now that she wasn’t going to tell anyone.
“You were seriously saving money on the peanuts you got paid at the diner?” he asked incredulously. “What were you doing working there anyway? You’re obviously smart and educated, why weren’t you working somewhere where you could make more money, maybe even get some health insurance?”
“None of your business. This child isn’t yours, Derrick and neither am I. I’m grateful for everything you’ve done for us, but it’s time I left now.”
Ignoring her guilt at the flash of hurt in his eyes, Jacey turned away to walk from the room.
“Stop, Jacey,” his deep voice commanded.
She paused, cursing herself for her instinctive reaction. Turning, she glared at him.
“Come here, Jacey.”
“Screw you!” She couldn’t even insult someone properly. Cady would give her a swift kick in the ass.
He walked toward her, like a predator cornering his prey. Jacey bit her lip as he stepped behind her, unable to stop the surge of excitement that ran through her. There was something so tantalizing about him. Irresistible.
His scent surrounded her as he gathered her hair up in one hand. He tugged her hair, making her gasp at the sting of pain which quickly morphed into a deep pleasure.
Derrick pulled her head over to one side, exposing her neck. Jacey closed her eyes as he laid soft kisses down her neck and over the exposed skin of her shoulder.
How did he do this to her? A few touches and she melted in his hands.
“Open your eyes,” he demanded as he let go of her hair and moved around to face her. “Look at me.”
Jacey gazed up into his face.
Cupping her cheeks, he tilted her head back and took her mouth in a deep kiss that soon had her knees weakening. She swayed when he drew back.
“I want you to watch me, to know who is touching you.”