Unmasked

I lurch back, overwhelmed. “I, umm, think I need some air.” I gulp, my head spinning.

Ash blinks. “Uh, sure. That sounds… Yeah.”

For a moment, he looks as unravelled as I feel: his eyes dark with lust, his breath coming fast. Then, in an instant, he’s pulled it together: smoothing down his shirt and getting out of the booth. He offers me his hand, every inch the gentleman.

I accept it, following him outside. The cool night air is a welcome chill against my hot skin. We walk in silence for a couple of blocks, hand in hand; we’re heading downtown, but I barely notice the streets around us. The lights and noise of New York pale in comparison to the heat right here between us.

Ash is walking slowly beside me, perfectly collected again. You would never guess from looking at him that he’d been caught up in the moment with me, back in the bar; his body pressed against me, his hands sliding hotly over my skin. I wonder what it would take to make him come undone for real. Push him past the brink of this careful facade, until he can’t simply brush it off; until that dark fire in his eyes is burning out of control.

Wild and unleashed.

I snap out of my thoughts and look around. We’re in the financial district now, surrounded by empty buildings and quiet parks. “Where are we going?” I ask.

“Right here.” Ash stops in front of a construction site. I look up, confused. The shell of the building is standing, but there are no windows—just concrete, steel girders and scaffolding. It’s totally silent and dark. Deserted.

I look back at Ash and raise my eyebrows. “I maybe should have asked earlier, but you’re not a serial killer, right?”

He chuckles. “No. This is my building,” he explains. “I’m in real estate, we’re midway through the project. I wanted to show you, it has the most spectacular views in the city.”

“Hmm.” I pretend to think about it. “I don’t know. Are you a stalker?” I test. “Part-time creepy guy?”

“No, and no. I promise, I’m safe. Not even a parking ticket to my name,” he adds with a grin.

“That just means you haven’t gotten caught,” I tease.

His smile slips. “Hey, if you’re not comfortable, we don’t need to go up. Whatever you want.”

“I was kidding,” I laugh, slipping my hand through his arm. “I know you’re a good guy.”

“But you don’t even know me.” Ash looks puzzled, and I understand why. I don’t go around following strange men into abandoned buildings, but this is different. I may only have met him a few hours ago, but already I know that I’m safe with him.

He’ll protect me.

“I know enough,” I shrug, unable to explain. “And just in case, I’ve got mace in my purse.” I tap the jeweled clutch hanging from my shoulder by its metal chain.

Ash laughs. “You’re kidding.”

“Deadly serious,” I grin. “You’re forgetting, my mom has a thing about safety. There’s an alarm in there too, it’ll blow out your eardrums if you get too close.”

“I’ll consider myself warned.” Ash leads me around to a side door, then taps in a code on the security panel. The door opens, and he ushers me inside and flips on a string of temporary lights.

I look around. We’re in a huge, empty concrete space. “This will be the lobby,” Ash explains, gesturing around. “Imagine marble floors, amazing chandeliers, artwork…”

It’s still unfinished, but I can tell, the place is going to look amazing. “And the rest is condos?” I ask.

He nods. “Over a hundred units, top of the line. We’re already sold out,” he adds, with a note of pride in his voice.

Now I know why he carries himself with such confidence. New York real estate is a serious business, and if he’s working at this level, he must be a big success. I’m not surprised. Everything about this man is self-assured and controlled. If he had a goal, he would work until he achieved it, whether it was a single house or a massive luxury development in the heart of the city.

The main elevator area is nothing but steel and cables, but there’s a rickety cage set running up the side of the building. Ash pulls the grate aside. “Come on up,” he grins.

“Up?”

I stop, my heart falling. Nobody said anything about “up.”

“It’s safe, don’t worry,” Ash reassures me. “I’ve been up and down in this thing for months.”

“No, it’s not that.” I swallow, all my earlier carefree bravery deserting me in an instant. “I just have, um, a little thing about heights.”

Little is an understatement. I hate them. I even turned down a prize internship at a law firm after graduating because their offices were on the thirtieth floor, and I couldn’t imagine being up there every day.

And now Ash is holding out his hand to me, inviting me into that tiny cage and expecting me to swoop fearlessly up the side of a twenty-story building.

Panic clenches in my chest. Anyone else, I would have told them a flat-out “no,” but this isn’t just anyone.

It’s him.

And if anyone can make me face my fear, it’s the man who’s made me throw caution to the wind all night long. I could turn around now—or I could see what else this night has in store.

I take a deep breath and step inside with him.

5.

Ash

Noelle looks as if she’s going to be sick. She grips my arm tightly, scooting in close as I pull the grate shut and hit a button on the control panel. The elevator lurches a few feet in the air, and Noelle lets out a shriek.