Page 11 of Tempt My Heart

She knew she was imagining it, but the space between her shoulder blades itched as they walked away, almost like Rose's eyes were burning an accusatory hole there. Ali didn’t look back. She could only hope that some remainder of the man she’d cared for remained deep down and she could persuade Jared to call off this madness. For all their sakes.

* * *

She'd beenon edge for the rest of the day. All the efforts of the spa session had been completely wasted on her, because she felt more tightly wound than ever. She hadn't heard a peep from Jared all day and it felt like she was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Her phone lit up and she scrambled to check it, relaxing when she realized it was just an email with some kind of sale alert.

Biting her lip, Ali flicked onto the messages tab and stilled as she re-read her last text to her ex.

Ali:Meet me tomorrow. Need to talk.

She'd sent the message as soon as she’d got back fromSanctumand hadn't had a reply yet, but now there was a notification under her message—read. Motherfucker. Why hadn't he answered her?

She wasn’t sure if she was making a mistake by asking to meet him face-to-face again. Maybe a small part of her still hoped this was all a bluff and their entire relationship hadn’t been a lie, but she couldn’t think of anything else to do but lay out the facts for him.

Fact one: Ali was a terrible liar. She stuttered, turned red, got sweaty, and was generally a disaster at it.

Fact two: Christopher was her friend and her boss. He had no romantic interest in her, and he wouldn’t be susceptible to any ‘seduction’ Ali attempted. While he was her friend, she couldn’t go to him with the truth, it wouldn’t be fair to put him in that position.

Fact three… Actually, the first two had really covered everything. Jared’s plan wouldn’t work, even if shewantedto help him. Surely he couldn’t refute the truth just because it was inconvenient? Hehadto listen to her.

With a groan, she decided to prod at him a little in the hopes of a response and an agreement. She just needed to look into his eyes now that she was actually prepared, and make her case.

Ali:Please, Jared?

This time he replied almost instantly and her stomach dropped at the still he'd sent from the video he'd been taunting her with. Her eyes were closed, her head thrown back and her hair was a red spill across his dark sheets.

Jared:Tomorrow. 8AM.

She exhaled a shaky breath before replying with a simplethank youand wanted to punch herself. Who thanked the person threatening them?Someone who's trying to keep that person on their side, she reasoned and felt slightly better.

What she really needed to do was some self-care. The spa had been a nice idea but seeing Rose harassed had reminded her of everything still at play and had undone any relaxation she'd been able to find.

She padded across the soft carpet in her room to the mirror on top of her drawers, reaching for the small silver jar in the basket next to it. This was her favorite face mask, and was one of the only luxuries she allowed herself—it was ungodly expensive for such a small jar. But Ali preferred to save her money for the house she dreamed of buying one day rather than splurging on temporary indulgences. Usually she was successful, but there was just something about this little pot of magic that she couldn't resist.

She massaged a small amount onto her face and neck after securing her hair into a messy bun on top of her head, and felt herself relax as she took in the cool sensation and the light chamomile scent.

Tomorrow was going to be a lot. She wouldn't let herself think about what would happen if she couldn't convince Jared to see the truth—she would never be able toseduceChristopher. And not least because she'd never seduced anyone in her life. She took a calming breath and repeated the motion a few more times as the trembling in her hands threatened to overwhelm her entire frame.

Her mom had sent her several texts throughout the day and each one had made her smile. Some people might have found her overbearing, but Ali knew her mom only worried because she cared.

After twentyish minutes, she headed to the bathroom to wipe away the mask still left on her face, and paused on her way back out when she found Jesse and Freya waiting for her. Their faces wore almost identical expressions of pity and Ali sighed.

"It's going to be okay."

They nodded, unconvinced, before shuffling forward to wrap her in a hug so tight it was hard to breathe.

"No matter what, we'll be here okay?" Jesse mumbled and Ali felt warm at the words, knowing they would both move heaven and earth for her—and she would do the same for them.

"If you decide to murder Jared we'll help you hide the body," Freya affirmed and a laugh shook its way free from the cocoon of their arms before they let go.

"Noted." Ali smiled, surprisingly feeling a little better even if she knew it was only temporary. "I'm going to try and get some sleep."

They nodded and she blew them a quick kiss as she retreated into her room and climbed into the sheets. All she could do now was hope that tomorrow wasn't a complete disaster, and then deal with it if it was.

Maybe she was a fool to hope this could all go away with a civilized conversation, but it was all she had to cling to when the alternative was either having her privacy violated or having to betray Christopher’s trust. Plus, having seen Rose’s reaction at the spa, it was clear that the events of last fall had left a mark on her and likely David too.

Ali closed her eyes, and was still worrying when she managed to fall asleep.

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