Page 28 of Hypnotized By Love

There were so many things wrong with this scenario, the first being that he was a total slimeball, but just as big of an issue was that he was a client. I couldn’t step out of line and give the Board a reason to rescind my certification. Behaving inappropriately with a client was their biggest no-no.

But probably most importantly, he was literally here to go on a date with another woman.

He closed the gap between us but thankfully didn’t get as close to me again. I wasn’t sure I would have been able to handle the way he overloaded my senses a second time. I was turned away from him, looking into the enclosure, although it was a bit too dark to make out much.

“Do you know how to tell the difference between an alligator and a crocodile?” he asked, and I was grateful for the distraction. For anything that would make it so I wouldn’t have to acknowledge what had just happened between us.

“It’s the snouts, right? Something about the way they’re shaped?” I turned my head over my shoulder to look at him, and that was a big mistake.

Because he was sporting the most mischievous, charming grin I’d ever seen, and I had to lean forward against the railing for support. “No. You can tell the difference because one you’ll see later and the other you’ll see in a while.”

It took me a second, but his joke registered, and I couldn’t help myself. I laughed.

His grin grew wider as he laughed with me, and I had forgotten how much I’d once adored that sound. It was deep and hearty and fun.

“I made Savannah Sinclair laugh. I feel like someone should give me a gold medal.”

That set off a warning signal. This was wrong. All wrong. None of it was okay. “Mason, when I mentioned why I got here early, it’s because I needed to talk to you. I came here tonight because you’re under the influence.”

“Under the influence of what?”

“Of my exceptional skills and your high suggestibility. Like I mentioned after our session, you went into a really deep state of hypnosis called somnambulism, and I didn’t get to end it properly with theawakening stage and bring you out. You were really groggy and disoriented when I had to wake you up due to the fire alarm. I was telling your subconscious to say yes to things, and now you’re out here saying yes to everyone and everything and possibly putting your life in danger if you try to hold an alligator and it’s all my fault.”

He looked more amused than concerned. “So you’re saying I don’t have free will and my mind’s playing tricks on me.”

“I know how it sounds, but maybe a little bit.”

“Well, thanks for the warning. Do you do this sort of thing often? Put people into really deep trances and then follow them around?”

“Never. I don’t have any personal experience with it. I’ve heard about it. I mean, there are people who are so receptive and have so much practice slipping into deeper states that they can have surgery performed on them without any anesthesia.”

He shot me a half smile. “So you could have stabbed me and I wouldn’t have known.”

“Well, we all have our regrets.”

That got me a laugh, and he sounded like I delighted him. “So I’m under your spell?”

“It’s not a spell. It’s not magic. It’s more like an open loop that either needs to be closed or to let the suggestion wear off. I could do another quick session with you and close that loop.” Why hadn’t it occurred to me before to offer this to him? It was perfect. I could get him back to his normal terrible self and then go on my merry way and let him enjoy whatever gross things he and Bridget were going to do to each other.

“No thanks,” he said. “No more hypnosis for me. I’ve got a hot date tonight.”

I’d tried a general warning, but he needed to know the specific threat that Bridget might pose. If he wasn’t going to let me undo it, he at least needed to know what was going on. “Bridget is not like you remember from high school. She’s a ... manizer.”

“What is a manizer?”

“A man who is a player is a womanizer, and so the opposite of that ... Bridget is a manizer.”

He crossed his arms and leaned against the railing, that amused smile growing bigger. “Isn’t she supposed to be one of your best friends?”

“That’s how I know! I love her, but she is going to chew you up and spit you out, and you ...” How was I supposed to tell him that I wanted to protect him from being used without sounding like I was betraying what he’d confided in me and promptly forgotten about?

“I what?” he prompted. Like he knew what I was thinking. “Are you worried about me, Sinclair?”

“I’m not ... that’s not even ... you don’t ...” I let out a big breath. “You’re the one who decided to surround yourself with man-eaters tonight, and I might be the only thing keeping you safe.”

“Are you going to protect me?” His voice was low, sexy, and it made my toes curl. “How are you planning on doing that?”

It was a little comical to imagine that I could keep him safe. Even with all my murderous thoughts today, I knew it wouldn’t take much for him to fend me off. Like, he could so easily disarm me and then just grab me up in his big, strong arms, crush me against him, twirl me back against a wall, and then savage my mouth, and I ...

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