Read Online Behind the Palace Walls by Lynn Raye Harris - Free Book Online Page A

ridiculously, her eyes filled with tears. When was the last time she’d gotten a gift for no reason whatsoever? Not since before her mother died. Mama had loved surprising her daughters with small trinkets—until she had the accident and every penny they had went toward her care.
    Paige couldn’t accept such an extravagant gift from this man. It wasn’t right. “I’ll give everything back when you return me to the hotel.”
    Alexei swore in Russian. Or so she assumed by the expression on his face. “Very well,” he said, stony-faced. “Whatever pleases you, Paige Barnes.”
    And now she felt ungrateful. She’d hurt his feelings, and it bothered her. She was Southern—and like all Southern women, she’d been inculcated with graciousness and sensitivity to others’ feelings from birth. She’d failed miserably just now.
    Paige touched his sleeve. “Thank you for the coat, Alexei. It was kind of you.”
    He swung around to look at her, his brows drawn down over his remarkable eyes. Why did he have to be so breathtaking?
    “I do not understand you, Paige.”
    She blew out a breath. The air in the car was warm, and she was feeling toasty and comfortable. “I’m not sure I understand myself,” she said with a shaky smile. “But I’m sorry I was rude.”
    He waved a hand, as if dismissing the last few minutes from his mind. “And I am sorry if I made you uncomfortable. It was not my intention.”
    Paige’s gaze dropped. She twisted her fingers together in her lap. “I have to admit I’m uncomfortable simply being with you,” she said. “I don’t want to cause any trouble.”
    “There will be no trouble.”
    “If I were your employee, and you saw me with Chad, would you be angry?”
    “Truthfully? Yes. But,” he said before she could interject anything, “I would not fire you simply because of that. Far better to keep you close.”
    She frowned. “Really? Why?”
    He leaned in as if he were imparting a secret. “Because you might know things that could be valuable to my enemies.”
    Her stomach bottomed out. “You’d be mistaken,” she said softly. “I don’t know anything. And even if I did, I wouldn’t tell you. If that’s why you’ve gone to all this trouble, you’re wasting your time.”
    Alexei grinned, and her insides melted in spite of her wish not to react. “Such a little teegr, Paige. This is why I like you. You are loyal, even when he has hurt you deeply.”
    She twisted her fingers together in her lap. “I’m not hurt. I was simply surprised. And concerned for my sister.”
    “Your sister is old enough to take care of herself, don’t you think?”
    Paige frowned. He didn’t understand, and she couldn’t really explain it. “That’s not the point. I feel responsible for her, and I love her. I won’t let anyone hurt her.”
    “Of course you love her,” he said. “But you are not responsible for her.”
    “You don’t know anything about us,” she protested. “It’s easy for you to sit there and pronounce judgment, but until you’ve walked a mile in my shoes, you have no right to tell me how to feel.”
    He took one of her hands in his, rubbed stomach-flipping circles in her palm. “I am not telling you how to feel. But a twenty-one-year-old makes her own decisions. You are not responsible for what she chooses.”
    Her breath left her on a long sigh. “I know. But you don’t stop worrying about someone just because they become an adult. I raised Emma. In some ways, she’s like my child.”
    She’d never said that aloud to anyone, she realized. It was shocking to voice it to this man she barely knew. Of course people back in Atkinsville knew she’d raised Emma after their mother’s death, but Paige had never told anyone how truly hard it had been. To open up would have been to admit she needed help—which might have led to Child Services intervening.
    “Ah, Paige, this makes so much sense now.”
    “What makes sense?” The circles in her palm continued.