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8
Torian
She keeps staring out the window, the increasing rise and fall of her chest the only indication of her unease.
Manipulating her is a beautiful thing. Molding and shaping this woman’s perception is growing beyond an addiction. It’s an obsession.
Only this time, there’s some truth beneath the deception.
She surprised me with the news of the missing women. I hadn’t been aware of the problem. Nobody had fucking told me. Which meant I initially thought it was a provocation.
Unfortunately, I learned otherwise when my informants corroborated the news.
The tally of abductions continues to climb, along with the suspicion my father is responsible. Which only makes me fucking furious because the stigma always attaches itself to me.
“This information will help us both.” I speak softly, not wanting to spook her any more than necessary. “If I’m not mistaken, you need something to get back in the good books with your boss.”
Her eyes narrow into spiteful slits as she loses her hold on this playful act we’ve got going.
“I’m not trying to bait you.” Not right now, anyway. “I’m only laying out the facts before you attempt to shut me down. For once, we have to work together.” I murmur the admission because saying it with conviction is a struggle.
I’ve never turned to the authorities for help.
Never wanted to. Or needed to.
Even now, it sickens me.
But the truth is, I do need her. The necessity has gone beyond entertainment.
“No.” She shakes her head, the refusal barely audible. “I’m not getting on that thing with you.”
My optimism takes a hit, the injury striking hard.
I hadn’t expected her to skip across the tarmac and rush up the stairs to enter the aircraft. I’d anticipated rejection. I’d predicted it. But my confidence in convincing her had been stronger when she wasn’t sitting across from me, her shoulders straight with conviction.
“It’s a safe environment.” I don’t move an inch. I’m not going to scare her into ru
I pause, waiting for a response that doesn’t come. She just keeps staring out the window, while her expression turns stoic.
“If I’m going to give you incriminating information, I’m going to do it in a controlled environment, with all my bases covered.”
“How incriminating?” she murmurs.
“Incriminating enough to go to the expense and effort of hiring a private jet.”
She nibbles her lower lip, raking those teeth deep enough I’m sure I’ll see blood.
I’m fully aware her companionable attitude tonight is all for show. She’s a tight bundle of aggression under the friendly act. Nothing has changed between us, at least not from her side of the battlefield.
“It’s not my jet.” I’ll keep gently prodding until I get the response I need. “I don’t know the pilot, and he doesn’t have any loyalty to me.”
“It’s neutral ground,” she drawls. “Just without the ground part.”
“You’ll be safe, Anissa. I promise.”
“It’s not about safety.”
Like hell it isn’t.
She’s on the cusp of fear, yet not quite close enough to sate my hunger. She refuses to show weakness, and I can relate to the aversion. I rarely allow anyone access to my underbelly.
Her strength is admirable though. Or it would be if I wasn’t so fucking eager to witness her crumple.
“Then why are you stalling?” I ask.
She winces and sinks those teeth farther into her lip.
“Nissa?” I keep waiting for an answer, my patience waning. “If you’re not scared of me, what’s stopping this from happening?”
Her gaze snaps to mine. “You like thinking I’m scared of you, don’t you? It’s a thrill. Taunting me is your favorite game.”
“Was my favorite game,” I correct. “We’re moving on, remember?”
“Yeah,” she mutters. “I remember.”
“I’ll be clear and admit this is an exercise where we’re using each other. Pure and simple. I have information to help those women, and you have the ability to steer evidence away from me and my sisters. That’s all this is. Don’t make it out to be anything sinister.”
Her tongue swipes over the flesh she’s been torturing and it drives me to madness. “Where would we go?”
“Wherever you like, as long as it’s not here—Seattle, LA, San Fran. I can arrange a driver to meet us at the airport when—”
“No. We don’t land.” She sits up straight. “We take off, discuss whatever needs to be discussed, then we return.”
I incline my head, the heat of adrenaline spurring to life inside my veins. “We can do that.”
She narrows her gaze and seems to attempt to siphon my trickery with the sheer force of her evil eye. She’s looking for an excuse to deny me. Any excuse.
But I can see now that her stubborn determination will get her on the tarmac. She’ll climb aboard the aircraft thanks to her sheer dedication to the task of taking down my father. And yes, me as well.
“If you fuck with—”
“What is your obsession with us fucking?” I give a lazy smirk. “It’s crazy how often sex is on your mind.”
“Don’t. Even.” She snarls the words with vehemence. It’s incredibly provocative even though I’m sure she’s completely unaware.
The constant ferocity of her denials makes my dick twitch.
“I won’t.” I vow an end to the flirtation with a definitive cross of a finger over my chest. “We’ve both had our fun and made our hostility clear. Now it’s time to set that aside and move on.”
She sighs and focuses back out the window. “I can’t believe I’m even contemplating this.”
Contemplate, little vixen. Then hurry up and make a fucking decision.
“I assure you, I want these women found as much as you do.” I slide along the bench seat and open the door. “I can step outside to give you privacy if you’d like to call someone and let them know where you’re going to be.”
There’s another huff of laughter. “Don’t bother.”
I guess she suspects the limo is bugged. And she’s right. I’m curious to know who she would contact. I’d love to find out who her go-to person is—the one soul she relies upon now her mother is dead and her father is in hiding.
That nugget of information hadn’t been something Decker could source with his expensive surveillance equipment. Not when she’s such a solitary person.
She doesn’t go out with friends, makes little to no personal calls, and doesn’t live it up on her days off.
“Are you sure? This will be your last opportunity to contact someone. I want to make sure all devices are locked in the cockpit while we’re onboard.”
She meets my gaze with a forced smile. “It’s fine. I’ll make sure I speak to company staff, along with the pilot before we leave. I won’t agree to take off unless I feel comfortable.”
I incline my head and climb outside, holding the door wide for her to follow. “That sounds like a good idea.”
She keeps those shoulders tight and her back stiff as we enter the small charter building to go through the security process. She hands over her gun, our belongings are sca
I wait patiently as she grills staff on their association with me.