It was too much. Claire wanted to teach Haley a lesson
about life, one she was sorely lacking, having been sheltered
by well-meaning grandparents, and then her obnoxious father,
but she bit down on the harsh words and kept her hands to
herself. She’d very much like to tangle them in Haley’s soft,
dark tresses, tilt her head back, and ravish her mouth in a
punishing kiss.
You’re out of control. Get the hell back in line right now.
Regulate your breathing. Get oxygen to your brain. Stop using
the lizard parts. She might be beautiful, but she’s not worth it.
She’s the enemy.
Instead of flying off the handle, which Haley clearly
expected, Claire got her shit together and gave her nothing.
Haley’s hand flew up and self-consciously tucked a strand of
hair behind her ear, not sure what to make of the change in
attitude. She was still poised for fight, but Claire wasn’t going
to give her that. She was going to give her calm until she saw
the error of her ways and corrected her behavior.
“Sit down, please. We need to talk.”
The only place to sit was the bed. Haley glanced at it
nervously before she walked to it and sat down, back rigid,
hands in her lap, on the very edge.
Claire sat down a few feet away. She still couldn’t shake the
heat that permeated her body. The damn bed. Of course it was
the only legit sitting space in the room. “I need you to
understand,” she said softly, “that you are here because you
agreed to my terms. You and your father. I expect you to take
that responsibility seriously. I thought it was understood that
telling people about the agreement isn’t in your best interest.
While it’s not a secret, it would damage your father’s