Villainess (9 page)

Leila

I had him right where I wanted him, and I’d somehow managed to do it in record time. Jonah’s lips pressed against mine, firm, and yet not demanding. I opened my mouth, inviting him into me, needing more from the almost chaste kiss he was currently delivering me. The moment our tongues collided, a surge of what could only be called adrenaline, rocketed through my system, heating my body. A moan caught in my throat as I eagerly jumped up, wrapping my legs around his waist.

Jonah stilled, as if hovering in indecision, and with a groan of need, I found myself slammed back against the window, the blinds smashing against the glass with an odd pinging sound. I undulated my hips, grinding myself against him. His taste was heady—his scent tantalizing—the way his hands slid confidently over my curves made me want nothing more than for him to fuck me right there against the window.

As if I’d electrocuted him, Jonah suddenly let me go, and I scrambled to stay in an upright position, using the glass behind me for support. “Fuck, fuck, fuck!” Jonah’s wild eyes darted around the room in denial. “I’ll lose my job! There are cameras in here.”

As I struggled to compose myself, I lifted my gaze to meet Jonah’s. I was relieved he seemed to be focusing on the getting caught part as opposed to the rest. Of course he didn’t want to get caught with his hand in my cookie jar, but as long as that was the only problem then I was sitting pretty. Or would be soon at least.

“The fact that your little girlfriend isn’t in here already means she hasn’t seen anything yet.”

“She’ll watch the footage—she’ll—I’ll be ruined.”

I closed the small distance between us, pressing my index finger to his swollen lips. “Get there first. Go. Now.” I watched the indecision and anger roll through his dark eyes.

He backed away from me, running his hand over his head. “Fuck! What the fuck is wrong with me?” He paced back and forth as he tugged at his tie.

“If you’re going to hide what just happened, then you better act now,” I pressed.

Jonah lifted his gaze, his nostrils flaring. “You’re the fucking devil.”

Oh, so Jonah has a bit of a temper. I can definitely use that in the future.
I grinned. “A lot of people might agree. But you better get going unless…” I let my voice trail off as I quirked an eyebrow.

He stalked to the door, throwing it open. “Matt, Mike, get her back to her room—I have—an emergency to deal with.”

My grin widened.
Ah, checkmate.

Matt stepped into the room, his expression curious and wary. “Come on, Leila, let’s get you back now.”

I could tell he wanted to ask me what was going on, and I was sure he would later.

“All right.”

“If I would have known you weren’t serious about this, then I would never have done it,” Theo growled, his fingers fumbling with his lighter.

“I just met you. I don’t know anything about you—except that you’re a killer.”

“I killed her for you.”

“No.” I shook my head so hard my brain practically rattled against my skull. “No, I told you to stop.”

“It was too late. Once the mother saw us, we were already in too far.” Theo’s long legged strides ate up the pavement and I struggled to keep up with him.

“Where are you going? You can’t just do that and then walk away from me.” How was I supposed to just…go home? I needed answers. Like who the hell was Theo? Why was he claiming to have killed that woman for me, someone he’d just met? My eyes narrowed as I studied his profile. “Hold up.” I snatched at his arm causing him to drop his cigarette.

“Fuck,” he muttered. “I should’ve known you’d be more trouble than you’re worth, a chick that looks like you.”

“You knew that house, knew where to find her. You were in the backyard, same as me… Tell me the truth, Theo. You didn’t just do that for me. You had a gun on you. Just tell me.”

His nose ring glowed orange from the reflected light from his new cigarette. He inhaled a long drag before speaking, “Ah, so you’re not clueless, after all.” He took another drag, the smoke curling around his ears when he exhaled. “I might’ve had the same thoughts on my mind as you, but for a different reason.”

“Tell me.”

“Not here. Come on.” He slid his hand around mine, intertwining our fingers, the touch shooting an electrical current through my system. God help me, I liked his touch. And I knew what that meant. It spelled nothing but disaster for me.

“Leila, wake up.” I sucked in a sharp breath as Matt’s voice jarred me from my dream.
At least it wasn’t a nightmare this time.
I wouldn’t have minded reliving some of the good times between Theo and me. They were far and few in between, but when they’d been good, they’d been fucking unbelievable.

“Hey.” I opened my eyes to see Matt’s large frame looming over me. “I missed you last night. I’m sorry I couldn’t make it to see you—the regular security guy who watches the cameras was sick and—

“I don’t care. You’re here now.” I opened my arms to Matt, silently urging him to come to me.

Our teeth and lips mashed together, the need for him to be inside me urgent for both of us. I needed the release, the escape his body offered me. The problem was: While he fucked me hard and fast, just like I needed, instead of seeing him above me—I saw Jonah’s masculine face and dark glittering eyes.

Jonah was who I wanted—who I needed. And although I’d planned on using him for my own ends, that fact complicated things enormously. I was potentially in over my head with a man like him.

“Harder, Matt—harder. Oh God, yes! Yes!”

But even as my first orgasm of the night ripped through me, burning through my veins, I couldn’t get the image of Jonah out of my head.
Shit.
I knew myself, what I wanted I’d go after. And in that moment, even as another man was balls deep inside of me, I made up my mind that Jonah would be mine—utterly and completely.

No more games. Or rather… I would be playing for keeps.

Jonah

I’m so fucked. So completely fucked.
I’d kissed Leila and then I’d gone to Ella’s office to erase the footage from our session. I’d gotten away with my indiscretion but that didn’t fix the real problem. The issue was my attraction to Leila. I could still taste her on my lips, her flowery scent lingering on my skin—I wanted her—all of her—despite who she was.

Now that I’d gotten a taste, I only wanted more. She was like heroine… I knew she was bad for me but I was addicted after just one hit. And the worst part was wanting Leila felt so…right somehow. Not taboo like I would have thought.

What would happen during tomorrow’s session? I couldn’t keep erasing the footage from our time together, Ella would get suspicious and eventually she’d see it live. I’d been lucky with her being out of her office earlier, extremely so. I wasn’t going to count on that happening again.

“Fuck,” I muttered. I should have gone home by now. Running over everything in my head again and again while I paced the confines of my office wasn’t doing me any good. I kept trying to dissect where exactly I’d gone wrong—when I’d stepped over that metaphorical line.
It was her tears
. She’d been so vulnerable in that moment, and all I’d wanted to do was comfort her. I hadn’t hesitated, and it’d all gone downhill from there.

I stopped pacing, deciding I needed to put as much distance between Leila and myself as possible. It somehow seemed dangerous simply being in the same building as her. It was as if I could feel her presence calling to me, tugging on me.
Yeah, she definitely has you by the balls and if you’re not careful she’s going to do more than tug.

I stuffed a few things in my briefcase, and hurried out of my office. The narrow hallways of Pembrook State Hospital were dimly lit, since only a skeleton crew was required at night, and my footsteps echoed loudly as I broke into a sprint.

I was so eager to get out of there that I nearly didn’t see him—Matt. I pulled myself up short, ducking back around the corner, out of sight. It would be normal for Matt to be here at night, but not carrying a half-gallon of ice cream and a can of whip cream, at least not towards the patients’ wing. Curiosity overtook me and I tailed him, which was pretty easy since Matt seemed completely oblivious. I peeked my head around the last corner that separated me from his destination just in time to see him disappear into a room—a patient’s room.
Leila.

I crept down the hallway slowly, careful not to make any noise. I stopped outside the door, unsure of what to do next.
Do I really want to know what’s going on inside that room?
I ground my teeth together.
Am I jealous?
Maybe they’re just making ice cream Sundays. I bit my cheek to keep from snorting.
Yeah, right
.

It took everything I had in me to turn around and walk back the way I came, especially when I heard Leila’s throaty moan through the door.

Leila shifted under my scrutiny. She’d been uncharacteristically quiet since she entered my office. Irrational anger boiled underneath my skin.
Was she tired because she’d been up all night fucking Matt?
And even if she had been, why did I care, beyond the part where I’d make sure Matt lost his job? My discovery from last night should have served as a wakeup call about Leila.
She’s a killer, and a manipulator. Who knows if anything she says or does is real?
Of course it was my job to find out what the truth was, which meant I was failing horribly.

I cleared my throat and drummed my fingers against the top of my desk. “Aren’t you going to ask me about the butterfly paintings today?”

“I thought they weren’t butterflies.”

“You know what I mean,” I growled.

Leila sat up straighter, he eyes roaming over me as if looking for something in particular. A satisfied smirk settled onto her face. “Why, Doc, what’s got you so riled up today?”

“Do you like ice cream, Leila?”

She visibly paled. “Ice cream?”

“Yeah. Ice cream.”

She crossed and uncrossed her legs, finally settling on lying across the couch, her gaze fixated on the ceiling. “I mean, yeah, it’s good. Why?”

“I think you know why, Leila. Let’s not play games.”

She threw her head back and laughed, the sound abrupt and jarring. “No games, huh? Okay, so I’m guessing you somehow found out about Matt’s dessert last night?”

“Matt’s?”

She sat up, leaning her elbows on her knees. “Yes, Matt’s. I had to abstain, otherwise I might lose my girlish figure. No one lets me out of my little prison to work out, you know. And I’m not about to go all Sara Conner and break down my room just so I can.” She had the audacity to wink. “Matt quite enjoyed the…ice cream though.”

Am image ripped its way into my mind of Leila splayed out on my desk, naked, melted ice cream dripping down the contours of her body as she arched up in ecstasy while I— I shook my head forcefully. “He’s going to lose his job over this—over you. I hope he thinks you were worth it.”