Page 30 of Cruel Revenge

I drag the tip of the blade against her skin, just beneath her jaw, watching the droplets of blood pool. “Remember who the fuck you belong to.”

I slam the knife into the wall beside her head, smiling down at her while she scowls.

She says nothing, her mouth pressing into a thin line.

After a moment, I let her go, allowing that fire to keep blazing in her eyes.

It might be wrong, but the constant push and pull between us is exciting.

And eventually, she’ll learn when she’s expected to submit.

Skyla stepsthrough her front door the next day.

I smirk. “I’ve been waiting for you.”

She grabs the vase on the table just inside the door, throwing it at me without a second thought.

I dive to the side, and the vase collides with the wall behind me, dirt smearing on the dark floral wallpaper.

Standing straight, I grin. “You know, that’s twice in the last week that a vase has been thrown at me. I’m starting to get a complex.”

“Well, maybe if you didn’t break into my house, I wouldn’t throw a fucking vase at you.” Skyla tosses her keys into the bowl on the entryway table before kicking off her shoes.

The tight dress she wears climbs a little higher up her toned thighs. The slit on her right one shows off even more of her sun-kissed skin, and all I want to do is run my tongue through it.

She looks dressed to kill as she pads into the room and straight through to the kitchen.

She comes back with a broom. “What are you doing here, and why didn’t you just call me like a normal person? You have my number.”

“This is feeling verythis conversation could’ve been an emailof you.” I reach for the broom, taking it from her and sweeping up the dirt and the shattered ceramics. “I thought it would be a good idea to have this conversation in person. You’re hot when you’re pissed, and how could I pass up the chance to see that?”

The corner of her mouth twitches. “You’re ridiculous.”

I sweep the debris into the pan. “You’re right. You’re beautiful all the time.”

Even more so when you were pinned to my wall with a knife to your throat yesterday.

She snorts and goes to the desk in the corner, pulling open the bottle drawer and taking out a thick file. “I don’t know what this is, but I do know that I don’t have time for it right now. I have a million other things on the go.”

“Money laundering does take a toll on people.” I finish cleaning the mess and dump it into the trash.

Skyla gives me an exasperated look before opening the folder and searching through some of the papers. “Since the laundromat is still shut down, I have millions of dollars in dirty money that I need to run through the construction company instead. Which presents an entirely new challenge of cleaning the money without screwing over the people who work for us or the contractors who give us supplies.”

“You’re going to figure it out. You’re a smart woman.”

“Flattery is going to get you nowhere with me. I hope you know that.”

Smirking, I put the broom away and sit down on the forest-green couch. “I didn’t think it would, but I still had to try. Can’t blame me for that.”

“I can.” She takes a couple of papers out of the folder before stashing it back in the drawer. “Now, are you going to tell me what you’re doing here?”

“We’re married. We should be living together. I don’t know if Grady is going to have me followed or not, but I think it’s a rather safe assumption that he is.”

She stiffens. “I’m not moving in with you. I work hard to keep a life that’s my own. It’s not going to come to an end because you think it’s a good idea to live together. Plenty of married couples don’t.”

“Not ones who are being watched by a sadistic bastard. He’s dangerous, Skyla. And I don’t want to think about what could happen to either of us if he figures out that we’re lying.”

“Yeah, and I don’t want to kill you because we live together.”

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