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“Get to the point.” I drop the pills back to the drawer and slam it shut.
“The point is that nothing has changed. I’m still convinced. And I still think this is the only way to take him down.”
“And your mistake last night? What does that have to do with all this?”
She remains silent for a moment, her forehead creased with concern. “The mistake is that I became a distraction. I’ve complicated things.”
I trek my attention over her body, down along the expanse of thigh exposed beneath the jacket. “If that’s your concern, maybe you should think about putting more clothes on.”
“Stop it. I’m not messing around.” Her eyes plead with me. “I was worried for you before your father turned up last night, and that was when I thought you were prepared and ready for what had to be done. Now, your head isn’t in the game. You’re too angry with me to possibly think straight, and that’s scaring the hell out of me.”
She doesn’t look scared. After all this time I’ve spent craving her fear, she doesn’t look anything other than a little anxious.
“Is this another tactic?” I lean against the kitchen counter, relaxed, hiding all the anger she’s created. “Is there a strategy to this pity party?”
“No. This is me trying to tell you I care.” Her voice grows in strength. “I’m fucking worried about you.”
She attempts to stare me down, to illicit a reaction I won’t give.
Eventually, she gives up, wiping her hands down her face, letting the jacket sweep open and expose a wealth of creamy skin.
My dick instantly grows hard.
A smart man would think the erotic show was right on cue for another perfect distraction. And I’m definitely a smart man. Most days.
“You don’t need to worry, little fox. I’m not going to make a move. It’s too dangerous to take action on his turf. I’m meeting up with Luther for nothing more than information.”
I turn away and grab a mug from the cupboard to place it under the automatic coffee machine.
“Cole?”
I hear her approach. The soft pad of footfalls heightens my senses.
I don’t look at her. I can’t anymore.
She’s too stu
“I need you to believe last night wasn’t a strategy.”
I shake my head. I refuse to have this conversation. Not again. With every word she undoes me, turning me into a pathetic slave. But the question leaves me anyway. “Then what was it?”
“I don’t know,” she murmurs. “I guess it was a result of the intense situation. Or the alcohol. Or chemistry. Maybe it was a combination of all three. But it wasn’t a trick or a betrayal. I’d sooner slit my wrists than fake an orgasm for you, or any man.”
“I never said you faked it. I fucking felt your pussy melt for me.” I tilt my head, glancing at her from the corner of my eye.
“Well, I don’t whore myself out either. I slept with you because, at the time, I wanted to.”
At the time.
I scoff, hating her need to insert the u
I want to demand she revoke the defensive part of her admission. I itch to make her admit she fucked me because she needed to—had to—because she couldn’t get through the fucking night without my dick.
But continuing this conversation will only send me into a tailspin. I’m already fucking nosediving.
Instead, I start the coffee machine and detour to the pantry, pulling the door wide to retrieve a box from the highest shelf. I remove one of the burner phones stashed there and shove the box back in place before shutting the door. “Here.”
I walk toward her and lob the cell in her direction.
She catches it in both hands, then stares at the device in confusion. “What’s this?”
“A phone. People use it to communicate.”
She scowls. “I meant, why are you giving it to me?”
I shrug, downplaying how monumental this mistake could be. “You’ll need it in case of an emergency.”
If Luca and I run into trouble and don’t make it back, she’ll be stuck here. At least temporarily, until my father remembers the toy he can play with. Leaving her open to that situation isn’t an option, even with the risk of her stabbing me in the back.
“But what if I call home?”
“Then I guess we all pay the price. You included.”
Her brows pull tight as she runs her fingers over the cell. “Is this another game? Are you testing me?”
“No,” I growl. “No more fucking games, Nissa. Okay? I’m done. And you are, too.”
She straightens, seeming to gain some sort of strength from my animosity. “Then I don’t want it.” She storms forward and shoves the cell against my chest. “You need to take it back because I’ll be tempted to use it.”
“Then that’s a battle you’re going to have to fight.” I push her wrist down, moving her arm away. “If you’re as invested in this as you say you are, you shouldn’t have a problem keeping your mouth shut. I’m only giving it to you in case I don’t come back.”
Her eyes widen. “Is that a possibility?”
I breathe in her concern. It sinks under my fucking skin.
No woman has ever looked at me like that. Like every blink is etched in the phantom pain of never seeing me again.
“It’s unlikely. The cell is only a precaution. The last thing I want to do is die today and have your abduction stain my reputation for eternity.”
She shakes her head. “I’d never admit that’s what happened.”
Fuck. She’s killing me.
Fucking. Killing. Me.
“But I appreciate the safety net.” She lowers her head and shoves the device into the jacket pocket. “Thank you.”
Fuck the coffee.
Fuck waiting here within reach of her.
“I need to go.” I sidestep, slapping a hand against the coffee machine to turn it off. “I’ll see you later.”
Her head snaps up. “You’re leaving? The boat’s not even here.”
“Yeah, but you were right.” I soften my voice, trying to bite back all the frustration. “You’ve become a distraction.”
She cringes, her face filling with apology. “I’m—”
“Don’t.” I wrap my arm around her neck, pulling her into me. “Be ready to leave when I get back.” I place a kiss at her temple, holding the co