“I averted my eyes. I’m not here to disturb you. I’m just here for your signature.” He raised his arms over his head, holding on to the door frame. Candlelight flickered over his golden skin, dancing in his green eyes. Despite his beauty, there was something predatory in the way he stared at her, like he was about to devour her.

“Signature? What are you on about?” Any fast movements, and she’d fling the knife at him. “If you don’t leave now, I’ll call the police.” She couldn’t call the police, since she’d just chucked her phone across the room, but he didn’t need to know that.

His gaze slid over her, as if he were memorizing her. “I won’t linger any longer than you want. I just need you to sign the contract. You must have been expecting me.”

“What contract?” Slowly, she lifted the knife in front of her. Only instead of looking at the tip of a blade, she was staring at the soft silicone paddle of a spatula. Bloody hell.

He smiled, and white teeth gleamed in the candlelight. “If you want to make me pancakes first, I won’t object.”

“I don’t have the ingredients,” she said lamely.

Where are the kitchen knives? They must be dirty. If she could inch over to the sink, she could get a proper blade, one with an edge that could slash his throat.

“Look, I can see you’re having a bad night. And I’d truly love to help you.” Dropping his arms from the doorframe, he widened his eyes, all sincerity. “But you committed yourself years ago, and it’s your eighteenth birthday. All you need to do is sign the contract, and I’ll be on my way.”

There it was again. How did he know it was her birthday? She didn’t know him. Hell, she didn’t know anyone remotely like him. There was a strange edge to his plummy voice, one that reeked of old money and private clubs with three-hundred-year-old mahogany bars. Not exactly Ursula’s sort of crowd.

She eyed the stove to her right. A dirty cast-iron pan rested on the nearest burner. Perfect for frying sausages, or for smashing skulls, depending on the occasion.

“Ursula. You don’t need to be scared,” he soothed, his emerald eyes drinking her in. “I’m not here to hurt you.”