there’d be no going back. I wasn’t a fool. Javier didn’t want to see me dance. He wanted to possess me. And not just for the night.
Am I willing to put my life on the line and sell what little is left of my soul?
Javier stroked his thumb over my wrist with way too much familiarity. “I’d pay double if you stayed through Sunday.”
Double? Forty thousand dollars? My heart pounded faster than the beat of Havana’s music. How can I turn that down?
“I would never ask you to do anything you didn’t want to do.” His voice deepened. “Look at me, cariño.”
I lifted my gaze and was snared by his amber eyes.
“I know you’re untouched.”
I blinked in surprise. How can he possibly know that?
“But you’re filled with desire. You need to be touched and pleasured.” His voice rang with a strange tone that reverberated inside my head.
Inexplicably heat pooled between my legs.
Javier continued. “You’re attracted to me. You want me. Don’t you?”
Suddenly, I did want Javier.
“Answer me, cariño,” he ordered in that strange voice.
Something made me blurt out, “Yes.”
“Good. Very good.” His silky voice was almost a purr. “Come close—”
He was interrupted by Max grabbing the mic and announcing the end of Havana’s set.
I shook my head, feeling dazed and weirdly turned on. What time is it? Uncle Duncan is probably freezing to death in the parking lot.
I yanked my hand away from Javier. “I’ll have to think your offer over.” Before he could grab me again, I slid out of the booth.
The flash of anger in his gaze told me he wasn’t used to being put off. He pushed something across the table. “Call me.”
Blinking, I stared down at the shimmering black metal card.
Are those genuine diamonds embedded around the phone number?
“Thank you for your time.” He reached into his wallet, pulled out several hundred-dollar bills and placed them on top of the card.
Part of me wanted to turn my back and walk away, sending the message I couldn’t be bought. But the other part of me that was suddenly aching for his touch and desperate to keep my family afloat had me stuttering, “Th-thank you,” while I grabbed the card and cash.
As if telepathically summoned, Javier’s men left the bar and headed in our direction.
“Lee, don’t keep me waiting. I’m not a patient man.” Javier’s tone held a note of warning.
It was suddenly hard to breathe.
He knows my real name. What else does he know about me?
Answering my unspoken question, he said, “Even though you live just down the street, I want Nero to drive you home.” He motioned to a dangerous-looking man wearing a black suit.
Nero flashed me a dazzling smile.
It took me a second to realize that every single tooth in his mouth was gold plated.
I backed away on shaky legs. “No. I’ve got a ride, thank you.”
“As you wish. I’ll be looking forward to your call tomorrow, and to our date Saturday night.”
I inwardly shuddered at the possessive gleam in his eyes. Clearly, in his mind, me agreeing to Saturday night was already a forgone conclusion. Turning my back on him, I sprinted toward the safety of the dressing room.
5
Hunter
Rage blurred my vision. My claws extended and dug into the underside of the wood table.
Javier just sealed his fate. I’d slay him as painfully as possible, feasting on his entrails while he begged for mercy.
Venom dripped from my fangs as I battled the overpowering urge to charge across the strip club and attack.
The only thing keeping me in my seat was the fucking chip in my head and the knowledge that my dancer had escaped Javier’s attempts at mind control.
Although Alpha shifters possessed the ability to compel humans and weaker shifters, only the most craven would use it to seduce a female.
I gnashed my teeth together, wishing I was grinding Javier’s bones to dust.
After compelling the club owner to bring Lee to see him, Javier had made her an offer most wouldn’t refuse.
I was proud of my dancer for not taking the bait. From my weeks of stalking her, I knew she was hard up for cash.
Javier, on the other hand, had loads of money. Drugs, human trafficking, and extortion had made him obscenely wealthy. But when dollar bills didn’t get him what he wanted, he resorted to the same tactics he’d used to take over the Latin American cartels—mind control and intimidation.
Lee hadn’t stood a chance.
The moment the fucker compelled her to want sex, she’d grown wet for him. I could still smell the