“Do you have a couple of mill lying around the house?”
“No.”
“Then I would do it free of charge.”
“I actually think you’re serious. You are serious?”
“I don’t joke around about money. Or killing. Never have, never will.”
She was amazed. “Someone would actually pay you that kind of money?”
“And more.”
Scarlett didn’t know what to say, so she followed him into the sitting room. He collapsed down on the sofa, and she sat down beside him. “Why do you do it?” she asked. So many questions were whirling around her head.
“I’ve always been good at killing. I told you that.”
“Do you think you’ll ever do anything else besides killing?”
“No. I’ll probably be dead. The thing about being a killer, there’s always someone willing to take your place, even take you out.”
She bit her lip and leaned back. “Thank you. For defending me today. You didn’t have to do that.”
“You were with me. I wanted you to have fun, but those assholes ruined it. That guy, is he going to be a problem?”
“Neil? Nah, he shouldn’t be.”
“He was talking about a guy named Michael.”
“The ex I’ve got a restraining order against. He’s not a very nice man, and he was the final straw. I don’t trust men. I don’t want anything to do with them.” She laughed. “I should just learn to stick with what I know. I thought I was making a fresh start. Becoming a reporter.” She blew out a breath. “Have you ever felt so out of your depth before?”
“Not for a long time, but I’ve felt it. Sometimes it’s hard to let go of that kind of feeling.” He placed his hand on her knee, and she stared at it. His hand was so large as it rested on her body. The heat from his palm was doing something to her, and she had never felt this hard rush of desire before.
“You said you knew how to seduce a woman. Did it ever mean anything to you?” she asked. “Being with that many women.”
“They all blended together, Scarlett. They meant nothing and were simply a means to an end.” He began to stroke her knee.
Resting her head in her hands, she tried to think of anything to say to distract herself. “You know, all I’ve wanted my entire life was for someone to love me, to want to be with me, and to never let me go.”
His cold eyes stared back at her. Tears filled her own, and she gazed back down on that tattooed hand on her knee.
“Is it crazy that right now I feel closer to you than I’ve felt to anyone else in my life?” She returned his gaze once again. The hand made her gasp as it slowly slid up. She couldn’t look away from Bain, nor did she want to.
His eyes dropped down to her lips and then back up again.
Was he going to kiss her?
She wanted his lips on hers. The fire burned brighter than anything else in her life.
“You’ve never had a man devote his time to your pleasure?”
“No. I’ve always been a means of them getting what they want. You know, being the fat girl all of my life, it’s what I should expect. I’ve been told that if I lose weight, they may have given me pleasure.”
His hand was moving farther up her thigh, and with each inch, she was struggling to think coherent thoughts. He was a killer, a machine, and yet it didn’t matter to her. There was something about Bain that called to her. Even as she should be frightened at what they had already shared, she wanted more. She wanted his lips on her, and his hands on her body, consuming her with pleasure.
“You’re not fat. I don’t think so.”
She smiled. “You’re being sweet.”