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"A surprise I arranged today"

Extra curious now, I’ht be We enter the bedroouidesto see whatever it is"

He opens the door and I walk inside while he flips on this light as well I gape then, at the rows of wo the closet "Ohyou want back and I’ll get you a credit card tomorrow"

I whirl on him "No No, I don’t need a credit card and Shane, this is too much I don’t need all of this"

"But I want you to have it I want to take care of you" He snags my hips and walks o, but tell et home"

"Shane--"

He kisses one, leaving ht ball of e as a pebble in rows and expands I squeeze my eyes shut and replay the past I was fourteen and one for several days without a call He’d greetedher a blue Tiffany box Flash forward, to the moment he’d put the necklace on her neck, and then cupped her face and said, "You’re beautiful"

My eyes snap open and I face the row of clothes, tags fro from several sleeves This would be the fantasy for many women, but it is not mine Shane has secrets Shane has money and power and I am enthralled I am in love Have I become my mother?

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

SHANE

With Seth by my side, I pull on my suit jacket as we exit into the public portion of the Four Seasons garage, where no one expects us to depart One of Nick’s men waits for us there, and we quickly exit the hotel facilities and hit the highway Our destination is Nick’s private facility, which I readily agree to visit if it et Martina out ofquestions I can’t answer We make a fast exit to don, but it turns out Nick’s facility is on the other side of town, so we get stuck in one of Denver’s many traffic jams; a twenty- I don’t know the driver froers onvisitor I’ cartel to fear on top of the Geo away and she never has to know about it

When finally we pull into the parking lot at our destination, the sight of an old warehouse does little to instill my confidence in Nick and his teains to swayhouses a half-dozen , and a s into his suit jacket that he’d abandoned so the way, and steps toand lethal," I say "Let’s hope that proves true in what he has to say tonight"