“Yeah. You did. And I read the kiss-and-tells about you from men and women, and I found them such a turn-on, and I thought about you a lot. Had these fantasies in my head about you, what you’d be like, what you’d do to me, and what I wanted to do to you.”
“You didn’t happen to fantasise about riding me, did you?”
Quinn scrunched up his face. “I did…”
“Did it live up to the fantasy?”
“It did.”
Zane’s smile was pure smugness. “That’s what I like to hear.”
“I went to university, moved into halls there, went out, met people, eventually met Damon.” He hesitated. “I’ll be honest, I forgot all about celebrity Zane Black. I was busy. It barely even registered when you got arrested or what for, and years later, I got the go-ahead for this study. I didn’t even know you were at Greenwood.”
“Why didn’t you want me on your study?” Zane murmured.
“It was uncomfortable knowing what I used to do with your picture, what I used to fantasise about, and meeting you as a killer.” Quinn took a deep breath. “It left me feeling uneasy, and that first day when we met, I still thought you were one of the best-looking men I’d ever seen, even though I know I shouldn’t.”
“One of them?”
Quinn shoved him. “Trust you to fixate on that.”
“I can’t help it.”
“I wanted to stay professional, I really did, but you…you got under my skin, and what happened with Mackie, afterwards when we were in the segregation unit, I couldn’t help myself.”
“I couldn’t help myself either,” Zane said. He closed his eyes. “You were vulnerable at that moment, and I took advantage.”
“You didn’t.”
“I did, Quinn. It was me who pushed this into more than it should’ve been.”
“Do you regret it?”
“No,” Zane said firmly. “I don’t regret you. I might one day.”
Quinn’s brow twitched. “One day?”
“In a few weeks, I might, when memories won’t be enough. I might wish I’d never signed up for your study…or kissed you that day in the cell. You might have the same wish.”
“I won’t.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“I let myself be drawn to you knowing you were a killer, knowing my research suggested you might have been even worse than that. I still fell for you.”
Zane raised his eyebrows. “And what did your research suggest?”
“You’re a psychopath.”
“Psychopath.” Zane nodded. “That’s the label you’ve given to me.”
“That’s the label you gave to yourself.”
“It’s your study, Quinn.”
“I don’t believe in my study, not when it comes to you.”
Zane widened his eyes. “If all your tests say I’m a psychopath, then—”