Chapter Twelve

Thomas Wentworth may have grown up in the lap of luxury and good breeding, but it didn’t negate the fact that he had a predatory nature. You can’t grow up with serial killers for parents and not be in tune with the world around you. Though his parents had unwittingly helped him hone his abilities, much of what Thomas possessed was innate. It wasn’t the adrenaline rush he got from following his prey that motivated him; it was the power and control.

In the past his urge to hunt had been a game. Teegan had changed everything. There was something about her that compelled him to keep her. He knew he wouldn’t be able to let her go, regardless of how much persuasion it would take to keep her.

Every potential victim was motivated differently. Some were motivated by fear, some were infatuated by the idea of someone wanting to possess them, and others were stirred by the discovery of their own inner darkness. He hadn’t figured out what it was going to take to keep his hands on Teegan, but he knew he was facing the biggest challenge of his life. Luckily, Thomas Wentworth loved a challenge.

He willed himself to remain seated when the doorbell rang. Of course the guard at the gate had called him when Teegan pulled up to the gated entrance. She wasn’t like the women he occasionally hooked up with, who usually arrived in a Lexus or a Mercedes so he figured that had raised a red flag for the security officer.

He frowned as his heartbeat accelerated at the prospect of seeing her again. There was definitely something different about this woman. He stood when she entered the room.

“Always the gentleman,” she drawled with a hint of sarcasm.

“May I offer you a drink, Teegan?” Her name slid off his lips with sensual ease. She liked the sound of it.

“A Bloody Mary,” she replied, not backing down from the intensity of his icy blue eyes.

He waited to speak until the butler, who looked more like a bodyguard, left the room. “Oh, the irony. A Bloody Mary? Really.” He smirked as his gaze roamed over her scarlet-clad curves. “Well, it’s refreshing to see that you have a bit of an edge, Miss Crugar. Of course, I’d expect no less from a voyeuristic little stalker such as yourself.”

His words were cold and biting and a ripple of fear wound its way around her spine. She was relieved when the butler/bodyguard returned with her drink. She willed her hand to remain steady as she reached for the glass. A celery stick. Nice. She hoped like hell the drink was strong.

She took a huge sip as she watched Thomas approach her in several long, easy strides. He leaned down and whispered in her ear, “Why, if I didn’t know any better I’d swear your hand was shaking. Do I make you nervous?”

“No, of course not,” she lied before taking another huge gulp of the drink. She was grateful for the warmth of the vodka as it entered her bloodstream.

“Liar,” he whispered. “Please, sit.” His eyes gleamed with amusement as she lowered herself onto the sofa, as if he knew every deep dark secret she was trying so hard to keep hidden from him.

Don’t let him get in your head, girl.

He sat down at the end of the sofa and she turned in his direction, a little braver now after the drink. She took another swallow and settled her eyes on him. “I can understand your being upset with me, Mr. Wentworth.”

“Thomas,” he insisted, staring into her eyes. “Say it. I want to hear my name rolling off those beautiful, full lips of yours.

“Thomas,” she whispered.

He shifted his weight, subtly moving closer to her. He leaned in toward her, his jaw clenched with need. “One day soon, I’ll hear you crying out my name in ecstasy, begging me to let you come.”

“Excuse me!?”

“You heard me.” He leaned back and draped his arm along the back of the sofa so he could stroke a leisurely fingertip along the silky skin of her shoulder. “We’re both adults here. A woman who is bold enough to stalk a man online surely isn’t shy when it comes to matters of sex. Or is that too personal for you, I wonder? No matter. You do understand that there is a close connection between the darkness of the hunt and sex, don’t you?”

“Mr. Wentworth, I’m not sure where you’ve gotten the idea that I would ever sleep with you, but’’—

He leaned in, clenching the upholstery as he coldly surveyed her stiff form next to him. “You have no choice, or don’t you remember that I could charge you with stealing business secrets from my computer? This isn’t a date, you know. There will be no ‘making love’ when I’m rutting between your legs, or when you’re grinding against my face and your greedy pussy is tugging at my tongue. No, this is quite simple. This is me blackmailing you.”

She slammed the drink down on the coffee table and leapt to her feet. Before she could step away, he was on her.

He grabbed a fistful of her hair and twisted it around his hand, hard, making her wince in pain. “I have a nasty side,” he declared in a voice thick with desire, “and I wouldn’t recommend you doing anything to get acquainted with it.”

“Are you crazy?”

He smirked but relaxed at the question. His lip tilted up in a slight smile. “Who knows? Perhaps I am. Now, my dear Miss Crugar, would you do me the honor of allowing me to escort you to dinner?”

“Do I have a choice?”

He tucked her hand beneath his arm and couldn’t quite stifle a laugh. “No. You do not. How good of you to notice.”

He leaned in and kissed her on the forehead, then escorted her into the formal dining room. She was relieved to see another drink waiting for her. He pulled her chair out and she sat as he nudged the chair into place beneath her. The sublime aroma of lobster and steak was heavy in the air. Her stomach growled, prompting him to chuckle indulgently.

“How did you know this was my favorite?”

“I know a lot about you. In fact, I know some very intimate details.” He leaned in to whisper, “Would you like to know how intimate?”

The color rose in her cheeks but she said nothing. He watched her pierce a forkful of lobster and lift it from the plate. His breathing became ragged as she dipped the chunk of flesh in the butter and slid it between her lips. Then she licked her glistening lips in an innocently sensual act that made his cock thicken and strain against his pants.

She was just so fucking beautiful. Her ebony hair cascaded down her back like a glossy raven’s wing. Her emerald green eyes gleamed with trepidation as she looked up at him. She was different than other women he’d been with.

Growing up rich, he’d always wondered if people only wanted to connect with him because of his money. There was none of that with Teegan. Teegan had connected to his primitive, masculine core and she didn’t even know it. It was the first time a woman had glimpsed the darkness he kept hidden beneath an urbane façade. She was a strong woman who could hold her own. That alone was enough to intrigue a man like Thomas Wentworth. It didn’t hurt that she had an air of innocence that he wanted to defile and keep for his own. The plan he had been pondering suddenly crystallized in his mind.

“Teegan, I think now is as good a time as any to let you know that you won’t be going home tonight, or ever…”