Dark Alpha (ALPHA 2) by Carole Mortimer Read Free Book Online

Dair in charge of security there was no way anyone would get in here if the other man didn’t want them to. And for that, read if Lucien didn’t want them to.
    But the moment Dair had phoned and informed him that Nicky McKenzie was downstairs, asking to see him, Lucien had known he was going to agree to see her again.
    If only to know if she still had the same effect on him.
    She did.
    His jaw tightened. “So, Nicky, are you going to tell me what really happened between you and Lionel Jenkins, or are you just going to run away again?”
    No matter what Lucien might think to the contrary, Nicky knew she had only ever run away once in her life, and he didn’t scare her half as much as the people who had been chasing her then. The same people who she had no doubts were still looking for Felicity Bennett...
    She gave a dismissive shake of her head. “You really aren’t that scary, Mr. Wynter.”
    “No?” He arched mocking brows.
    “No,” Nicky assured him. Lucien might be able to seduce her at a glance, but the man her father had double-crossed was capable of burying her body where no one would ever find it. At least, his paid thugs were: she very much doubted that Jack Montgomery ever bothered dirtying his own hands with such tasks. Why should he, when he paid people to do it for him?
    “I would have thought Lionel Jenkins would be a perfect fit for that ‘rich old man’, your friend once referred to, in regard to your becoming his mistress just so he could keep you and pay off all your debts?” Lucien arched one dark brow.
    Nicky gave a pained wince as she realized how accurately Lionel Jenkins’ might fit in with that conversation Lucien had overheard. “Chrissie was only joking that day in the coffee shop,” she dismissed irritably. “And Lionel Jenkins’ claim that I tried to blackmail him is a complete fabrication—”  
    “You tried to blackmail him?”
    “I just said that I didn’t,” she held on to her temper with difficulty. “Whatever lies he told you, I didn’t, nor would I ever, try to blackmail anyone. He was the one who threatened me, not the other way around!”
    “Nicky, I haven’t spoken to Lionel Jenkins, nor do I intend to do so,” Lucien sounded bored now.
    “Then one of your minions spoke to him, possibly the cool blonde outside—”  
    “I don’t allow my ‘minions’ to talk to men like Lionel Jenkins either.”
    “My God...” Nicky gave an incredulous laugh as she stared at him. “You really do consider yourself to be king of all you survey, don’t you?”
    “If I did then I’d have you on your knees in front of me right now,” he drawled derisively. “But the truth is,” he continued over Nicky’s outraged gasp, “all of my employees sign a contract that contains a confidentiality clause. It prohibits them from discussing me, and this company, or associating with any and all of my competitors. Jenkins believes himself to be of the latter category.” His top lip curled back to show that he didn’t agree with that assessment.
    Nicky could almost—almost—have liked Lucien at that moment. If he hadn’t been quite so outrageous just seconds before.
    “So, what really happened, Nicky?” Lucien leaned back against the black leather seat as he studied her through narrowed lids.
    She eyed him uncertainly. “You’re willing to believe my version of what happened and not his?”
    He shrugged. “I don’t believe you’ve ever lied to me. On the contrary, you’ve always been brutally honest,” he added derisively.
    It was true, Nicky hadn’t lied to Lucien. Not directly. Except that her whole life was a lie. Including the name he knew her by...
    But her past had no bearing on this present conversation.
    “Whereas Lionel Jenkins has something of a reputation where his female employees are concerned.” Lucien’s top lip curled back again with disgust. “He’s just too powerful in the city for most people to challenge him on it.”
    “But not