Page 10 of Vicious Kingdom

He glanced down.

Something…something real passed through his eyes.

It was quickly swiped off. “This isn’t a fucking game, Annaliese.”

“No, it never was,” I countered planting my hands on my hips. “Now, the rest of the town. I have certain restaurants I like and if you don’t want to see me there or at the music clubs, I suggest you turn into a hermit, Mr. CEO, because I sure as hell won’t be.”

Scoffing, tired of my incessant rambling, he made to move past me.

My hand shot out of its own accord, and I grabbed his forearm. Electricity crackled under my palm.

We froze.

For a split second, it all came rushing back. The long nights wrapped in those arms, the way he’d held me…it was too much.

I dropped my hand, shaking the burn from my fingertips.

“We’re going to see each other,” I said bluntly. “How we handle that…. I can’t be your enemy in public.”

“Stay out of my way,” he growled.

“I plan to.” And I did. There was no chance of me gettinginhis way. I only planned to haunt him.

“But we move in the same social circles,” I added. “You go to some of the events, so when we’re in the same room, I would prefer that we don’t run into each other.”

A muscle in his jaw feathered.

That was it. The iron was hot, and it was time to strike at his ego. If he thought he couldn’t have me, if I made myself untouchable but always around, sooner or later, he would take the bait. Reverse psychology never failed, right?

It wasn’t the best plan, which was why I created the backup scheme to involve my father in his business.

“I’m just here to warnyou:Leave me alone, Baldwin.” With that, I moved back to my seat.

He didn’t leave immediately. Were his thoughts as conflicted as my own? Was his blood running hot after the brief contact? I resisted the urge to look and read the verdict in his inky black eyes.

“That is exactly what I’m going to do, little girl. I have no intention of being anywhere near you.” He gripped the back of the opposite chair with white knuckles. “But if you think for anysecond that I’m going to let you march back intomycity and tell me where I can and cannot go, you have another thing coming.”

“Anotherthinkcoming,” I muttered before I could stop myself.

Leo scowled at me. “Grow up.”

That one hit hard. I had.

There was still part of me that was the fun-loving girl he met years ago. But he wasn’t ready to embrace that teasing, lighthearted side.

The moment he was gone, I slumped in my seat. This was harder than I ever imagined. The man I loved was my enemy. Recovering from those fatal missteps….

I shook my head.

From the corner of my eye, a man in a black hoodie caught my attention. The high of the chase crashed. Ice flooded my veins.

You’ve got to be shitting me.It was broad daylight, and yet the Tormentor was here, watching me from across the street. As I stared, he lifted his hand. In his fucked-up head, the Tormentor probably thought this was the most normal interaction.

I gave him the bird.

Closing my laptop, and leaving my heroine in peril, I gathered my things. A quick glance to the street showed my own stalker hadn’t moved. Good. I slipped outside and only when I was safely in traffic did I let out a snarl of frustration.

And then a darker thought popped into my head. Had he seen me with Leo?