Read Obession by Design for Free Online Page B

a facility
underground near me. In exchange, though, I had to sleep with him.”
    He
stopped stroking her arm and looked at her like he wasn’t sure what she’d just
said. “Are you kidding me?”
    “I
wish I was. I only did it because I was desperate. It was a stupid thing to do,
but I literally was out of options and out of time. I had called close to one
hundred attorneys, and he was the only one who even gave me an appointment. The
agencies that had been set up to help people were swamped, and I was told by
most of them to leave my father and grandmother above ground, and simply go.”
    “But
you couldn’t do that.”
    She
shook her head and wiped away the tears that trickled down her cheeks. “No. I
couldn’t do it. Would you have been able to do that?”
    “No,
and that’s the truth. I couldn’t have done it either.”
    She
let out the breath she’d been holding. To know that even one other person
understood made all the difference in the world. “Connor said it would only be
one time he wanted me in bed, but of course that turned out not to be true.”
Her skin still crawled with the memory. “Each time a new obstacle came up where
he had to intervene and wade through the legal mess, I found myself back in his
bed for an hour or two.”
    Emmett’s
eyes blazed, dark and threatening. A muscle twitched in his jaw.
    “When
I finally moved underground and found a facility to take my father and
grandmother, I reported Connor to the bar, but nothing came of it. I don’t even
know where he’s practicing now.”
    He
took his phone out of his pocket. “We’ll see about that. Spell his name for
me.”
    The
image of a knight on a white horse raced through her mind as she spelled
Connor’s name for Emmett. “I don’t know if you can do anything, but thank you.”
    “Oh,
I can do something. I assure you of that.”
    They
locked gazes, and Liane felt as though she were
falling into a pool of clear blue water. Those eyes drew her right in. The
spell was broken by a sound from the hallway. She cleared her throat. “And so,
they’re still there, in that facility. For the past six months, neither one
knew who I was when I went to visit, so I was okay leaving them because I know
they’re being well cared for.”
    “You
can return anytime you want to see them.”
    “Thank
you. It helps knowing that.” She cut her gaze toward their plates. “I hate to
waste this food.”
    Emmett
brushed a finger along her face, and her sigh almost sounded like a moan.
“You’ve been through more than any one person should have had to endure. I’m
going to look into this scumbag attorney. I promise you that, but for tonight …
just for one night … let’s both put aside the past and focus on each other.”
    “I’m
ready to put it all aside.”
    “What
that bastard did to you was wrong, but I don’t blame you for giving in. You
were so young, and had no resources to help you deal with everything. I want
you to know that’s not what I’m out to do. I’m not out to take advantage of you
or hurt you.”
    “I
know that.”
    He
looked relieved. “Thank you. You’re an intelligent, straightforward woman, Liane . I’m not going to play games with you. I hired you
for your skills, and even if you won’t have sex with me, you’re not going to
lose your job.”
    Her
heart raced. “Thank you,” she whispered.
    “I
hope you will, because I think you’re beautiful.” He moved his hand to her hair
and stroked it gently, the way one would do to a child. “This color reminds me
of the sunsets I remember from above ground, and I’ve never seen eyes so
pretty.”
    He
smelled great, he looked great, and he said all the right things. It wasn’t
only surface attraction. She knew that. Underneath the slick business owner
exterior was a compassionate man, and she was lonely. So very
lonely. The last man she’d had sex with had been Connor. She’d avoided
relationships like the plague since then. Wasn’t it time to enjoy a