Thus, the minute Beck North confirmed for me the reason why I was snubbed this evening, I figured out that unless I’m willing to pull my gun out right here, right now, and murder Townsend with a few hundred witnesses, I need to take a step back and recalculate. Figure out a different way to go about this.

Besides, I can’t go in for the quick kill. I need information from him first, which means I have to get close to him.

And perhaps Beck North is exactly what I need. Maybe an in with him will get me close to JT, but not so close as to risk exposure. Maybe I could even work something out that is less messy that the “bullet between the eye” plan, which makes my stomach turn a bit. I’m not good with blood.

Maybe poison.

That’s so much more stealthy and something I had actually considered before. Maybe I can get close to Townsend through Beck and then poison JT at an opportune moment. Of course, that would mean I’d have to give up my quest for the identity of my other rapists, so that might not work out after all. Besides…I’ve been really looking forward to the instant gratification of watching fear overwhelm JT when I hold a gun to his head and then listen to him plead for his life. I won’t get that with the poisoning option, but I’ve got a far better chance of getting away with murder that way.

This will take a bit more thought.

Maybe having Beck intervene is a godsend. Maybe it was a signal to me that I need to take a step back, cool down a bit, and go forth with a plan that is less rash and driven by emotion. I should be a bit more calculating and give up on the satisfaction I’d get from brains blowing out of his skull.

Yes…the gorgeous cofounder of The Sugar Bowl is probably exactly what I need.

I’m led out of the ballroom with a gentle hand on my elbow. Beck doesn’t make small talk, but then why would he? My offer was clear, and it wasn’t for a drink.

When we reach the elevators, he pushes the button and merely says, “I booked a room here tonight.”

“That’s convenient,” I say with a laugh.

It’s an easy laugh, and one I’m able to give with no qualms.

If you think I should be feeling uncertain or weirded out by the prospect of having sex with a complete stranger I met less than five minutes ago, you’d be wrong, because there is nothing I wouldn’t do to carry out my plans.

Infiltrate.

Murder.

Repeat.

I will never be deterred in my revenge, and Beck North, with his good looks and brainy charm, is not going to be a chore for me at all.

The elevator door opens and Beck’s hand drops from my elbow and takes hold of mine, lacing his fingers throughout. It’s an intimate act and my first reaction is to pull away, because intimacy has no place within my framework of deception. I need to remain cold and distanced, my mind focused on the ultimate goal.

And yet, his warm hand engulfing mine sends a tiny pulse of security through me.

Almost as if I have a partner in crime?

Or perhaps it’s just a feeling of being grounded at this moment?

Let’s face it, not but five minutes ago, my plan was to have this evening end in murder. Now it looks like it’s going to end in sex with a very gorgeous man and a restructuring of my agenda.

As soon as the doors whisper closed and Beck hits the button for the thirteenth floor, he steps into me. With one hand still holding my own, and another pushed up under my chin to ensure my eyes lock with his, he tells me, “I’m not a Sugar Daddy, just so you know.”

I blink at him in surprise, my mind spinning over the implications. “What do you mean?”

His voice is soft but firm. “What I mean is that while I’m one of the owners of The Sugar Bowl, and while you are a Sugar Baby, I am not a Sugar Daddy. I am not looking to commit my time to one woman, nor my resources to any woman. So if you’re going up with me right now with the expectation that this will result in a lucrative contract, I’m going to have to disappoint you.”

Well, fuck.

I was sort of banking on that being a definite possibility. I mean, the whole point of these mixers is to hook up and form relationships. I assumed that’s why Beck was here. I thought it was sort of implied when he approached me. I mean, I didn’t think it was a given that would occur, but I figured maybe a night of wild and freaky sex would make him inclined to want to keep me around for a bit. Even if it was for a short contract period like a month. That would have certainly given me the time to come up with a new plan to kill JT.

“Want me to take you back down?” Beck murmurs, and I blink again, trying to put my head in the game. The elevator comes to a stop and the doors slide open.

Time for another command decision and I go with my gut instinct. I’ve already figured out Beck likes a challenge, so I’m going to go with that.

“I didn’t come tonight hoping to find a Sugar Daddy,” I say truthfully. Because I didn’t. I came to kill JT.

And then I tell him another truth, because when I decided that becoming a Sugar Baby was going to be my cover, I went all in and started talking to various men in case someone got suspicious of me. “I really came to try to meet Mr. Townsend for my paper. I’m actually in talks with a potential Sugar Daddy in Santa Clara and we’re hoping to meet soon. He’s looking for a long-term commitment, and I’m looking for something stable enough to carry me all the way through my master’s degree.”

This surprises him and his hand drops from my face. “Then why are you coming to my room with me?”

“Because until I do enter into a ‘sugarship’—which is a stupid name, by the way—I’m a free agent. And I very much enjoy sex. Even more so with an intelligent, witty, and gorgeous man. So why not?”

Okay, so that was a lie about the enjoying sex part. My rapists ensured I’d never be comfortable with the act of sex, and so I only view it as a necessary function that serves some other purpose for me.

Beck’s lips curve up and his eyes crinkle in silent amusement. “I like that answer very much, Miss Halstead.”

“Good,” I say with a wink, a little surprised with how well I’ve got my confident seductress act going. “Then let’s get going.”

His hand takes mine again and we walk from the elevator side by side. His room is at the end of the hallway, and when we enter, I see why. It’s a corner suite with sweeping views of the Golden Gate Bridge and an outdoor balcony.