Page 36 of Temptation
He cups my cheeks and gives me a quick kiss that makes my heart beat faster.
We walk to the door, and I follow him down the stairs to the front room where two of Lorenzo’s men flank the door.
I haven’t been in here before, and it’s tastefully decorated with plush furnishings and a fireplace. Hans paces the room like a caged polar bear, his fists bunched and a scowl that could freeze fire. I can see why Lorenzo put two men by the door.
When he sees me, his face lights up and he runs to embrace me, pulling me into a tight hug that almost crushes my bones.
“Greta, what happened? I thought you were camping.”
He pulls me away from the hug but keeps his hands on my shoulders, looking me up and down for signs of harm.
“When I heard you were here…” His sentence breaks off, and his gaze turns to Lorenzo. Anger flares in his eyes but Lorenzo stays still, observing with quiet calmness.
“I suppose Axel told you Greta was here.”
“He was concerned for my sister’s virtue,” Hans spits out.
Lorenzo raises an eyebrow. “Does everyone at The Lodge think so badly of me?”
Hans drops his arms from mine and strides across the room to Lorenzo.
“The Lodge's best kept secret is that we recruit clients for your sex den.” He spits out the word. “I didn’t know you were recruiting my sister.”
Lorenzo holds up his hands, trying to placate my angry brother. My heart’s in my throat as I watch the two men I love most in the world, hoping like hell they don’t start throwing punches.
“He didn’t recruit me,” I say quickly, trying to take the heat off Lorenzo.
Hans turns to face me. “This isn’t a place for a girl like you, Greta.”
“And what kind of girl am I, Hans?” I can’t hide the anger in my words. I’ve done something this weekend for myself. I found who I truly am. I found myself with Lorenzo, and he awakened the sexuality inside of my that’s been longing to come out. But not just that. she’s awakened love.
“You’re a good girl, Greta. Not the type of girl who goes to sex clubs.”
“You don’t know anything about me, Hans. You keep me caged in, and I understand why. You’ve felt the responsibility for me ever since Mamma and Pappa passed. But I’m twenty-one years old. I need to live my own life.”
The hurt in Hans’s eyes makes my chest hurt, but I have to keep going. I have to make him understand.
“I’m a grown woman, Hans. I can make my own decisions.”
“This is your decision? To frequent a place like this?”
“No,” I say.
Lorenzo snaps his eyes to me, but I keep my gaze locked with Hans, needing him to understand. “My decision is to be with Lorenzo, wherever that may be.”
Hans turns toward Lorenzo, and the fire is back in his eyes.
“What have you done to my sister?”
“I have given her a choice, that’s all. Greta has a choice of how she wants to live, who she wants to be, and who she wants to share her light with. I hope she chooses to do that with me.”
Lorenzo has kept looking at me as he says it, and I meet his eyes. Everything that’s passed between us over the last few days is communicated in that look.
I cross the room to stand with Lorenzo and take his hand in mine, our gaze never wavering.
“I choose to stay here of my own free will, Hans. The sex club is closed. That’s not what this is about. I love Lorenzo.”
Hans looks confused, but the anger is draining out of him.
