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Damien seems stunned for a moment, but shakes his head without hesitation. “No.”
His absolute refusal to even consider that idea bothers me, but he keeps talking as if I hadn’t interrupted him. “He's tried to hack into my system, steal my ideas, and even tried to steal my big clients. But beyond that, he hates me.”
“And he seems to want to step into your life in every way. He seems downright obsessed with you.” My mind is working a million miles a second, trying to figure out what I’m missing. “Is he the reason you're so bad at taking vacations? The reason you felt like you had to run your company even when you were on the cruise?” I can't imagine how stressful life must be if every second you're worried about someone trying to steal everything you've worked for right out from under you.
“None of that matters. He's dangerous and they worry what he might do to you. I should have dragged you into the middle of this.”
“But I did give him a lot of sass,” I say, and a smile crosses his lips.
“Yes, you did.”
“Did you see the look on his face?” I am proud of myself for the way I controlled that conversation and interaction. “I've never shut somebody down like that. It felt good.”
Damien nods his head. “I have officially turned you into a monster and feel horrible.”
I roll my eyes and wave a dismissive hand at him. “I did this all on my own, thank you very much.” I'm not about to let him take credit for my incredible sass. “On a serious note, why does Cameron hate you so much? What did you do to him?”
Damien suddenly seems very busy on the computer. “I've only ever tried to be civil and professional with him.”
Despite his strange actions, I feel like he's telling the truth. “So maybe he's just jealous of you, your success, and your happiness?”
“And my relationship with you,” he says, his gaze meeting mine.
I lift my shoulders.
“Don't dismiss what I'm saying. Cameron is the kind of man who wants what he can't have. And you just told him in no uncertain terms that he can't have you.” He suddenly seems very serious and a cold pang of fear buzzes in my gut. As a chill runs down my spine, I wonder if I'm truly in danger.
“I'm sorry that he's doing this to you. You should be able to live your life in peace without being harassed by him.” But there's another question floating around my brain. “Who let him in?”
“Felicity.”
As he says the woman's name, I feel a sudden jolt of surprise. There's an odd familiarity there that I don't want to think about.
“Why did she let him in?”
“Because I told her to.”
I don't understand his line of thinking, but I want to. “Why let him in?”
He hesitates for a moment and studies me as if he’s not sure he wants to share. “Because every time he speaks to me, he gives himself away. If I didn't speak to him, I wouldn't have any idea what he's planning to do next, and I'd much rather face the devil I know.”
There's something so cold and calculating in his tone I take a step back, feeling goosebumps rise across my skin. This is the Damien that answered the phone that first day I called. The one that left me worried our vacation selves and our real selves could never truly connect.
And for the first time, I wonder if I truly made a mistake.
Chapter Fourteen
Damien
I’m at Zoe's house to pick her up like we’d agreed.
I'm feeling on edge since our run in with Cameron yesterday, and now as I pull up in front of her house and park, I catch sight of them standing outside her front door. Immediately, the hairs on the back of my neck rise.
Why is Cameron at her house? How does he know where she lives? Why is she entertaining him?
Everything about this situation feels wrong, and I want to get out to walk over and put him down like the dog he is. I can feel my blood boiling as I recognize his body language. He's flirting with her. I park my car next to the curb, sitting with my fury. He thinks he can just waltz in and take her away from me. He doesn't know anything about her or how much she means to me. He doesn't care about her feelings, her dreams, her safety. He only wants to use her for his own selfish purposes, just like he wants to use everyone in his life to further his own ends.
There's absolutely no way I'm going to let him hurt her the way he hurts everyone else. I protected her from Jake. I will protect her from Cameron before he gets the opportunity to hurt her.
