I don’t answer her right away, letting the tension crackle through the cooling night air. The faint flicker of unease flashes through her eyes, darting to the door, wondering if she’s fast enough to escapeme. Not that I plan to chase her, not tonight anyway. But the idea of that makes my cock swell. “If you knew what I wanted, little viper, you’d never stop running—not that I’d mind the chase, but I want to make sure we both enjoy it when you do.”
Her body stiffens and she takes a step back toward the door. Her hand hovers near her pocket before realizing that she doesn’t have anything, not even her phone. I watch her swallow slowly, weighing her options. Something keeps her rooted though, curiosity maybe, or the instinct to confront rather than flee. Smart girl, I know who taught her that. “I asked you a question. What do you want?” The uncertainty flows through her voice, even though I can see the fight to keep it steady.
I take another step forward, careful not to move too fast. The dim glow from the lights is still not enough to expose my full silhouette. It highlights the outline of my mask perfectly. I’m not ready to stop the fun yet. “To talk,” I say, my tone softer now, almost coaxing. “You, my little viper, play the prey so well, acting like you’re ensnared in a trap when it’s you who has ensnared me. I couldn’t ignore you now if I tried.”
Her breath catches once more and I can see the recognition in her eyes—my voice, my presence, there’s something familiar about me. Good. That’s what I’ve been wanting. To keep her on the edge, piecing together the truth. “You know my name?” she whispers, her hand lowering slightly, though her guard is still up.
“You once asked what kind of stalker I was. What kind of predator wouldn’t know the name of his prey? You didn’t think I’d let you go that easily when you moved, did you? It only made me want you more.” I smile, just enough to be visible in the shadows.
Her lips part, a quiet exhale slipping out as she glances toward the breaker box, then back at me. “You shut off the power.” There’s no question in her voice, she already knows the answer.
I tilt my head, the gesture deliberate. “I wanted a moment alone with you. Away from the noise, the distractions,him. I wanted tomake it clear that you’re mine, Dylan.” Another growl unintentionally escapes my throat.
Her jaw tightens and for a second, I think she might bolt. But she doesn’t. Not yet. “You’re crazy,” she breathes, disbelief coating her tongue.
I chuckle softly, the sound low and warm. “Crazy? Maybe. In more ways than you can possibly count. But also in the way that keeps me awake at night thinking of you. Of all the ways I can claim you, make you scream my name. You don’t know what it’s like, Dylan. You think I’ve been haunting you, but the way you haunt me like a ghost—it’s like walking through a fog you can’t see but always feel. You slip into my thoughts uninvited, weaving through my every waking moment, settling in my chest, refusing to leave. You haunt me in the quiet, in the silence between breaths, in the space where I should have peace. But all I feel is the apparition of you. It’s vexing. You don’t understand. Not yet. But I intend to make sure that you do.
“You’re mine, little viper, and I’ll make sure you realize it, whether you want to or not. You think you’re free, but freedom is an illusion. You’ve been mine since I laid eyes on you. I’m going to claim you, and when I do, I’m never letting you go,” I murmur.
“I don’t belong to anyone,” she says, her voice hard. “You need to leave… now.”
A smile plays at the corners of my lips, amused by her response. She thinks she’s in control. I’ll let her hold onto that feeling a little bit longer. I take a step back, giving her the space she thinks she needs, retreating into the shadows. But I can tell by the look in her eyes that she knows this is just the beginning. She can run, she can try to hide from me, but in the end I’ll always be one step ahead, and soon enough, she’ll realize that being caught is exactly what she desires.
I go backinto the bar, ordering another beer, now in a much better mood but making sure I stay out of sight of Dylan. She had powered the breaker box back on, and everything inside had resumed as before. Except this time, Dylan seemed to get the message. She keeps scanning the bar, expecting her shadow to pop out at her. Only, I just want to enjoy the show, delight in the way I make her skin crawl. I made sure to leave no doubt in her mind that her instincts had been right. She wasn’t taking me seriously enough, but she will now. The bartender who was very obviously flirting with her earlier is at her side as they go back to preparing drinks and handing them out to paying patrons, but she won’t meet his eyes. I smirk to myself, knowing that her attention is diverted away from that prick. That is, until it fades a few moments later when he puts his hands on her shoulders, turning her toward him. They exchange several words before he shouts something at the other bartender and leads Dylan once again by the hand to the back. This time when I squeeze my glass, it shatters, garnering the attention of several people surrounding me as they ask if I’m okay.
I ignore their concern and stand abruptly, walking to the back where they went before pausing, remembering that I want to keep this game going. I’m not worried that Dylan is going to do anything with him tonight, but I certainly don’t trust him—I saw the way he was looking at her. Taking several grounding breaths, I choose to leave the bar and dial Nathan. We’re supposed to be meeting the traffickers for the procedures soon—midnight.
“Fletcher,” he answers on the fourth ring.
“Nathan,” I respond bluntly.
“What is it?” he asks, his tone sharp, still irritated over my move with the sellers.
“We’re still on for midnight, right?” I press, glancing back toward the bar’s entrance, ignoring the itch to go after Dylan and claim what’s rightfully mine.
“Nothing’s changed that I’ve been notified of,” he replies.
“Okay good,” I mutter, running a hand through my hair.
There’s a pause, the faint sound of tools shuffling about on his end as he sets up his ruse for tonight. “You sound distracted, Fletch.”
Exhaling sharply through my nose, I let my hand drop. “I’m not. Just keeping an eye on… it doesn’t matter.”
Nathan chuckles. “A distraction?”
My grip on my phone tightens and I snap, “I don’t get distracted.” Nathan doesn’t know of my infatuation with Dylan, I haven’t told him despite how much time we spend together, working or otherwise. There’s a part of me that’s not ready to share her yet…
“Sure you don’t. Just make sure that your mind is in the right place for tonight. You lose focus and we all pay the price,” he warns.
“As long as we get to take down some crooks by the end of the night, my mind will be right where it needs to be.” I decided to not agree to the deal I was offered by the ringleader several days ago. As badly as I wanted to, Nathan was right. And after that ominous text I received, we need to play it safer now than ever. Someone is watching us, and we can’t afford to bring the whole operation down on our heads.
Nathan doesn’t respond right away, but when he does, his voice is softer than it was before. “We always do. Just don’t let whatever—or whoever—get in the way. Midnight. Don’t be late.”
I’m about to tell him to shut the fuck up but the line clicks dead before I can say anything. I slip my phone back into my pocket and look at the bar one more time. Dylan hasn’t left yet, and as much as I’d love to trail her home, I have a job to do. I can’t afford to let her distract me any further. I have about two hours until midnight, which gives me plenty of time to go back to my Airbnb and prepare for the job. I need to consider getting a place closer to Dylan. Now that I’ve committed to our game of cat and mouse, I can’t leave anytime soon unless the job absolutely demands it. But I’m fairly positive Nathan and I can continue to find work in the city as well, so it shouldn’t be a problem. I find my way back to my car,hopping behind the driver's seat when my phone buzzes. I pull my phone back out of my pocket. Another anonymous message to my burner.
She’s awfully pretty.
The color drains from my face. How do they know about Dylan? I stare at the screen, the words blurring as rage pulses through me. I’m tempted to respond, my fingers hovering over the keys, but I don’t. Whoever they are, they’ve just made this personal. There’s a lot on the line, but even more so now that they’ve brought Dylan into this. The last thing I want to do is fuck this up and put her in danger. Putanyoneelse in danger. But what they don’t realize is that if they harm a hair on my little viper’s head, I won’t hesitate to burn the world down and watch it crumble at their feet. I’d bring down the heavens and become their living hell until there was nothing left but ash around me. Another buzz has me hesitating to read the next message that comes through. When I read it, I know they’re trying to get me off kilter, trying to see if I’ll make a mistake.