Page 189 of The Company

“What?” I just stare at him like an idiot.

“Come. It’s a directive, right? Come see my daughter. Come see her contribute to the society. Come see me put my allegiance above my family. Come see my sacrifice.”

“You made that up.”

He shrugs as he stands. “Some of it. I don’t recall the exact words on the invitation.”

“What?” I have to put a hand to my heart.

Vincent crosses the few steps between us and takes my hand. “The party invitation last year. It was on the directive. I mean, I had no idea it was your code, so take this for what it’s worth. But I did receive an invitation that night. But I was told to wait until the next day. Good thing, huh?” He laughs. “I’d be dead right now if I had gone.”

And then my words flash back to me. When I told James if I had known he was my promise I’d have done it all differently. Not killed anyone.

I look up at Vincent and wonder… would I have been so desperate to leave if I had seen him that day? If I had known I’d be leaving that night with him, going back to his home, or yacht, or wherever? “I would not have gone through with it if I saw you there, Vincent.”

“No?” He smiles big and takes my hand. “That’s good to know.”

And then we walk in silence down the path that leads to the beach.

But I can’t help thinking about what James said. That my father used me to kill all those important people that day. That Nick gave me that Visine idea to kill them, and yet my father never drank the water.

James said Nick warned him.

And I thought that was absurd, since the Admiral was our enemy at the time. We were trying to get away from him.

Weren’t we?

I’m still thinking about this when we make it to the stairs that lead down to the beach.

I scan the horizon, but it’s obscured on both sides by the cliffs. It’s like we’re inside a little cove that shelters this beach and the marina from the strong current of the Pacific a quarter mile out. “Where’s your yacht?”

“Anchored just out of sight that way,” he replies, pointing south. “This marina is only for small boats.”

“Oh. Maybe we can take the tender out there and hang out?”

“Not today, darling. We’ll have to settle for a picnic on the beach, if that’s OK.”

Darling? I frown. We continue down the stairs until we finally reach the sand.

I take my sandals off immediately and strip off my clothes, the wild girl of my younger years taking over as I relish the sand between my toes. When I look up at Vincent, he’s smiling.

“I’ve heard the rumors.”

“What rumors?” I ask, dropping to the ground and stretching my legs out in the late day sun.

“About your wild nature on the beach.”

I chuckle at that characterization as Vincent takes off his shirt.

Holy God. I can’t stop staring at him. He’s exactly like James in the muscular chest department. He catches me staring but I don’t look away and neither does he. “I’m not bad, eh? You’re not so hard to look at yourself. But”—he eyes my body in the one-piece suit—“I’d rather you wore the bikinis when we’re on our private beach.”

“Our beach?” I smirk at him. “You’re getting ahead of yourself, don’t you think?”

And then he’s on top of me, forcing my body back into the hot sand, his chest pushing against my breasts, his mouth dipping closer and closer to mine as each second passes. “This is your beach, Harper. This is your home. I am your future, not James. And all you’d need to see this is to allow me one night. Tonight. Just give me one night to show you I’m the perfect man for you.”

I can only stare at him. He’s not pressing down hard enough to affect my breathing, but he’s affecting my breathing all the same. “I can’t,” I finally manage.

“You can,” he whispers back. His legs part so he can straddle my thighs. “You can, Harper. All you have to do is give me permission.”