Chapter 298

But since he had given the order, Latisha could only turn to leave with the box.

The next second, a large hand shot out, pulled her back, and snatched the box from her. With a casual toss, he threw it into a large cardboard carton nearby. The carton was already filled with a chaotic mess of old files and binders.

Latisha stood before him, at a complete loss. *What... what should I do?* she signed.

The man watched her, his expression unreadable. After a moment, he said, "You don't have to do anything. You just need to follow me. At all times."

Latisha's lips parted in confusion. It made no sense. He clearly despised her, yet now he wanted her by his side constantly. She raised her hands. *But...*

Clifford raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to finish. Latisha hesitated, then continued. *Don't you hate me?*

"What does one have to do with the other?" he shot back.

She had no answer. He was right; there was no conflict. He adored Yesenia, but he hadn't married her either.

Still, his words were a tacit admission that he did, in fact, hate her. A heavy weight settled in her chest. She looked up at him. *I'm sorry,* she signed.

He leaned in, bracing a hand on the bookshelf next to her head. "Sorry again? Tell me, what are you sorry for this time?"

*For making you hate me.*

He narrowed his eyes. Suddenly, he grabbed her chin, pinning her against the bookshelf. "Don't you think your apologies are a little cheap?"

Latisha bit her lip. *What should I do then?* she asked.

Clifford's fingers traced the line of her cheek, his touch sending a chill through her skin. He moved closer, as if to kiss her, but stopped just a fraction of an inch from her lips.

"Aren't you an expert at seducing men?"

Latisha's eyes flickered, another wave of suffocation washing over her. The proximity was intoxicatingly intimate yet filled with a chilling distance. He was so close, yet so far away.

"Look at Santino," he continued, his warm breath ghosting across her face. "He rushed to save you even with a crippled leg Teleme, how did you wrap him around your finger?"

His voice was flat, but it was that very calmness that made his sarcasm feel like a needle wrapped in cotton a dull, insidious prickle that made her skin crawl. Latisha, shook her head

UM

didn't seduce him.* sŵnovels

Clifford caught her signing hands, stopping her mid-explanation. It seemed he was

only interested in mocking her, not in hearing her defense.

Latisha's gaze wavered. Her lips moved, but no sound came out. She still wasn't used to speaking, unable to form a complete sentence.

"You didn't?"

Swallowing the humiliation, Latisha shook her head. "No..."

"Did he touch you? Tell the truth."

Latisha froze. Her mind flashed back to her time with Santino. She didn't know what kind of touch he meant.

Clifford's thumb pressed against her lips. "Here? Did he?"

Latisha shook her head. His hand slid down to her waist, then slipped under the hem of her shirt. The coldness of his skin against hers made her body go rigid.

"What about here?"

Her shoulders began to tremble. She fought against the chilling sensation, shaking her head again. "Here?"

Latisha felt her legs give way, and she sagged against the bookshelf to stay upright.