This fucker is challenging me. Taunting me. Pissing me off. And I like it. Well, that’s just nuts. I can’t like him. He’s a man. All men are scum. Sure, this one helped me, but everything he does is predatory, like the wolf he reminds me of. His every movement is deliberate, controlled, and dangerous.

I dress the salad and pour a glass of wine. Settling in one of his huge armchairs, I tuck my feet under my butt. I might as well get nice and comfy for the interrogation. Jaden sits across from me.

“So what happened to your mother?” He’s taunting me. I know it, and still, I take the bait before I can snatch a breath.

“She shot ES right in front of me when I was eleven.”

“She shot him?”

Shit! Lie? Truth? Lie? “Welllll . . . she didn’t exactly shoot him.” I risk a glance at Jaden’s face. His mask has dropped into place. Fuck. I rush on, trying to make up the lost ground.

“I thought she was going to shoot him. She was holding a shotgun to his head. At least I think it was a shotgun. It was long and big. See, ES hunted a lot and had a gun collection and—”

“Rayne, for fuck’s sake, would you get to the point? I could grow wrinkles waiting for you to say anything relevant.”

This guy sure knows how to make me pissy. I much prefer to tell stories the way I want, which usually involves giving as few relevant details as possible. I suck in air through my teeth.

“Fine. You want to know? Okay, I’ll tell you. My mother went nuts, okay? She started hearing things that weren’t there and believing things that weren’t real. She got it into her head that ES was fucking around on her. He probably was. He . . .”

Jaden gives me a look that could cause frostbite. Geez.

I continue. “She loaded the gun and held it to his head. He begged me to call the cops. She said she’d pull the trigger if I did. I ran up the street and called the police. End of story.”

I’m not going to let him know I almost peed my pants I was so scared. Not going to let him know how mortified I was when the cops dragged my mom down the steps by her arms while she kicked and screamed and her wig went crooked. I’m not going to let him know my shame.

I’m not going to let him know I cared more about how things would look to the neighbors than I did about what was happening to my mother. I can’t care. If I start to care, I’ll fall apart. Then who will look after Summer?

I’m not going to let him know how ES fell to his knees, sobbing, begging me to take care of him and Summer. That that was the last time I cried. I’m not going to tell him—ever—that was when my training as substitute wife started. I rush on.

“You want to know why ES sold me, right? All the sordid details. Like I said, my evil stepfather gave me to some big gambling guy to pay his debts. That guy sold us to Viper. All I know is they came and took us away one night. They told us we were going to a party. They lied.”

Tears, long buried, seep toward the surface along with forbidden memories. While I talk, I take a few tokes and pour a glass of wine. Not a chance I’m going to show weakness in front of this man. I busy myself and look everywhere but at him.

“All the usual sordid stuff happened as I’m sure you’re aware.”

That damned eyebrow goes up again. “Why don’t you tell me.” It isn’t a request. He leans forward putting his forearms on his thighs. I read nothing but curiosity in those glittering golden eyes. I shiver, take another gulp and another toke. Memories, swimming in pools, threaten to burst from my eyes. I imprison them behind closed lids. I lean my head back against the soft back of the easy chair and look at the stucco washed ceilings and limestone walls.

“It was a long car ride. There was another girl in the car. Nobody said anything. I’d say we drove for a couple of hours. They made us get out in some warehouse type place. The two guys who picked us drove us to Viper’s warehouse. I watched while Whippo paid the bastards. They herded us into a room where they made us strip. The other girl and Summer did as they were told. I resisted. They threw me into a cell.”

I wouldn’t get into the beatings, the drugs, the liquor, the depravity.

“I had to sleep without my clothes or food. They gave me water, that’s all.”

“How did it feel?”

I glance his way. He sits in exactly the same position as before, eyes riveted on my face. His care and concern annoy me. I can’t want this. I can’t have this. Caring is related to love. Love doesn’t exist. Love is just something people use to manipulate you and get what they want.

“How the fuck do you think it felt? Exposed, that’s how.” Wretched. Demeaned, Filthy. Cheap.

What I don’t want is to be talking about this stuff. What I do want confuses me. Every time I let my guard down, I end up regretting it. You would think I’d know better by now, but noooooo. I want this man to want me. Desire me. Only me. Something that would never happen. With this kind of guy, every head in the room turns. He’s just that magnetic, that beautiful. In a strong, rugged, devil-may-care kind of way. You don’t want him. Repeat after me.

He flexes those magnificent shoulder muscles. I itch to run my hands over them but sit on them instead, trying to figure out what the hell has possessed me. Jaden patiently waits me out. I take a deep breath.

“I don’t really remember how I felt. I guess I was scared. Trying to figure out what was happening. Viper’s goons started with the drugs right away. I’m not even sure what they gave me, but it gave me a rush when they injected it. I finally find a drug that makes me high, and I have no idea what it is.”

Jaden looks doubtful.

“I know it sounds weird, but that’s what I remember.”

“When did the sex start?”

“Pretty much the next day. It started with them. The pimps. They took me to a room to teach me. It was a disaster.”

“How so?”

I’ve had enough. I don’t want to remember the details, the pain. “Look, that’s all I can remember. Drug fog. It’s all a blur.”

He studies me, then stands and stretches. “How about some more of that pizza? Then we’d better get some sleep. We’ll be leaving first thing in the morning.”

We warm up some pizza in an awkward silence. Jaden takes a couple of pieces over to his computer station, occupying himself with whatever the hell he finds so fascinating. It’s as if I’m no longer here. I bring the laptop to the butcher’s block and surf the Net while I eat. Suddenly, the thought of Jaden watching me have sex with one of the scum pops into my head. Just thinking about it mortifies me—and makes me hot between my legs. Would he want to screw me? I get all hot and bothered, and then shame floods through me. Here I am, thinking about the despicable. Maybe ES was right, and I’m good for nothing but spreading my legs like a whore. You’re no better than a dog copulating in the streets. One of his favorite reminders of just how worthless I am.

I sidle up alongside Jaden and grab his empty plate. My arm brushes his arm, by accident. Yeah, right. And if you believe that . . . I stand stock-still, waiting for his reaction. Nothing. The only things that move are his fingers. I might as well not exist.

Pissed off, I tidy up the kitchen, slamming every door I can find. Still nothing from the wee prick. I occupy myself looking around his Hole. I much prefer calling it the Batcave. The Hole is actually a collection of caves strung together. Jaden rushed me through a quick tour earlier, intent on showing me the facilities and not much else. A faint light shines down the hall, and I wander toward it. Following the curve in the long hallway, I go back to Jaden’s bedroom to take a closer look. It’s a large cave covered in some pinkish pebbly stuff etched to make it look like bricks. A huge bed with an ornately carved headboard dwarfs the room. A fireplace taller than me stands at the foot of the bed. A beautiful ornamental rug framed in glass takes up a large part of the ceiling above the bed. Fine needlework in browns, golds, and burgundies depicts dancing women in various stages of undress. I go in search of another bedroom only to discover there isn’t one.

I return and stand near Jaden. I’ll be damned if I’m going to be spurned twice. So I stand there and hum and tap and move things around on the desk until I hear a huge sigh.

“What?”

“Um, sorry to disturb you.” I’m not, but my mother taught me manners if precious little else. He says nothing. I bumble on. “Um, where will I be sleeping?”

Jaden points toward the hall I’ve just explored. “The bedroom’s down there.”

No. No. No. I don’t want to sleep in the same bed as a man. Nope, not ever. You are never safe from their lecherous paws.

I keep my voice small. “Where will you be sleeping?”

“In the bed.” Filled with challenge, his golden eyes lock on mine. “Where will you be sleeping?”

“On the couch.”

“Suit yourself.”

Everything about Jaden radiates displeasure. More like dislike. Clearly, he’s annoyed by my existence. Well, he was the one who brought me here. I waffle between righteous indignation and self-pity. Strangely enough, I’m not afraid. Maybe for the first time in years.

Without warning, Jaden towers over me. His chest a wall of well-defined muscle I itch to touch.

“What do you want from me?” Hostility and aggression drip from him.

Every instinct in me screams, “cringe.” My hands curve into tight fists, ready to take on Goliath. I’m right out of my fucking mind, but therein lies one of my many problems—I can’t back down.

“Nothing. Absolutely. Nothing.” I turn and set off down the hall with more swagger than I feel. I’m not going to be controlled by a man again. Ever. If I say it enough, I might believe it.