Lacybourne Manor (Ghosts and Reincarnation #3)(82)
Author: Kristen Ashley

They didn’t suit.

She had to guard her heart, or, at the very least, she had to know what this all meant to him.

“What am I to you?” she asked in response to his question.

“Don’t change the subject, Sibyl,” he warned, his voice dangerously smooth.

“You want an answer then you answer my question. I deserve that and you know it. What am I to you now?”

“Why did you take the fifty thousand pounds?”

“Goddess!” she exploded, throwing out her arms. “Can’t you answer a single question?”

He glared at her.

She glared back.

Then she gave up.

“I’m going home,” she declared and turned to leave, tired, sick at heart and wanting nothing but a nice mug of hot cocoa and her mother’s shoulder to cry on. She didn’t even care how pathetic that seemed for a thirty-two year old woman. Luckily, fortune smiled on her (belatedly) and made it so that her mother wasn’t over a thousand miles away but was right downstairs.

She had forgotten, briefly and absentmindedly, how ruthless Colin could be when he wanted something.

And three steps away from the door, she was swung up in his arms. She emitted a stunned cry as he swiftly strode back across the room and then she was thrown on the bed. Before she could get her arms and legs under control and scramble off the other side, his weight settled on her, pinning her to the bed.

“Do I have your attention?” His voice was calm, his eyes were not. His chest was against hers, his heavy, muscled thigh was thrown across both of hers and he was up on one elbow, his other arm stretched across her and he was scowling down at her with blazing eyes.

She gritted her teeth and stared at him. It was futile to struggle. He had twice her strength, maybe more. When he lifted his brows arrogantly, silently demanding a response, she snapped, “Yes!”

“Good, now you’re going to answer some questions.”

She pulled both her lips between her teeth to stop herself from saying something foolish.

“Why did you take the fifty thousand pounds?”

“I can’t tell you.”

“Why can’t you tell me? Is it illegal?”

“No!”

“Are you in trouble?”

“No.”

“In debt?”

“No.”

She was losing her patience but unfortunately so was he and his lost patience was a tad bit more scary than hers.

“Sibyl.”

“I just can’t tell you, you’ll think I’m…” she hesitated.

“What?”

“Crazy!” she cried.

“Crazier than you thinking you turned me into Royce Morgan with your magical powers?”

She groaned, horrified and humiliated.

Then she replied what she thought was relatively logically, considering they were discussing a real life, magical potion, “Well, it’s hardly crazier than how you actually did turn into Royce Morgan or any of the other things that I’ve learned tonight.”

He decided to ignore that and persevered with his interrogation. “Why did you kiss him?”

She bit her lips again.

“Am I going to have to make you talk?” he threatened silkily.

Her eyes rounded. She had no idea how he would do that but she doubted, seriously, that it would include physical violence. However, she did not doubt that it would include something physical.

Then, for some reason, the words flew out of her mouth, almost against her volition, and she said something truly stupid, “It was between him and me.”

His eyes darkened dangerously and a muscle leaped in his jaw and she knew in that moment that she was really in trouble.

Before he could say anything, or worse, do anything, there came another knock on the door.

Colin closed his eyes in angry frustration.

When he opened them, they were blazing and Sibyl held her breath at the sight of them.

“Do… not… bloody well… move,” he bit out, shoved away from her and stalked to the door.

She thought it best to do as he said. The caged lion had definitely been freed.

He pulled the door open and, luckily, it swung in such a way as to hide Sibyl from whoever was on the other side. Sibyl closed her eyes as she heard the conversation.

“If anyone else comes up here –” Colin’s voice was barely controlled.

“Your mother, Claire and I are going to Walton Park Hotel. I’m going to take the Godwin’s home first.” Sibyl heard his father’s voice speaking, his tone indicating solemn understanding at Colin’s plight.

“Fine,” Colin gritted out.

Sibyl sat up and looked across the room at the back of the door, her face flaming.

“Is Sibyl all right?” Mike asked quietly, his voice now filled with concern.

“She is right now,” Colin answered his father, his words filled with foreboding.

There was a hesitation and then muttered good-byes.

Colin closed the door with a finality that rocked Sibyl and caused her to scramble to her knees as Colin angrily moved toward the bed.

And, in an extreme act of self-defence, she blurted out a semi-fib that was part truth and part lie, “I’m not telling you about what happened between Royce and me because…”

He stopped at the side of the bed and stared down at her, his face a mask of fury. “Yes?” he prompted.

“Because of Royce, he wasn’t even kissing me. He was kissing her.” She wasn’t entirely certain that was exactly true, but she thought it sounded good. “It was his moment to say good-bye and it seemed…” She stopped, not able to find the word as Colin’s angry face didn’t change one iota. She finally found it. “Private.”

“Sibyl.” He voiced her name quietly.

“Yes?” she asked hopefully, wishing very much to get in the car with Mike and her family and go home to her bed, her thoughts and figure out what was to become of her future.

“You’re a very bad liar.” His voice was lethal.

Gone was her dream of escape.

Especially when his arm shot out and dragged her forward.

“Colin.”

He didn’t answer. To her disbelief, he’d located the zipper at her back and, expertly, slid it down.

“Colin!” She pushed against the arm that was still around her waist as his other hand pulled her dress up. She could just not believe he was undressing her. They were arguing, for goddess’s sake!

His eyes locked on hers. “If you fight me Sibyl, I swear to God –” he started.