Page 51 of Hexed
Now she looks, and my eyes lock on hers immediately and don’t let go.
I sit down and roll up the sleeve of my shirt until it’s just above the elbow, my ink making its full appearance from beneath the fabric.
Her gaze drops to watch the movement, skimming along my body and resting on where my gun is on display, holstered at myside. I repeat the motion of rolling up my other shirtsleeve until both my forearms are exposed, and then I lean forward, resting my elbows on my knees. A lock of my hair falls on my forehead with the motion, and I run my fingers through the strands, pushing it back into place. Then I quirk a brow at her.
She licks her lips, and then, just like that, her attention is back on whoever the guy is next to her. But I see through her mask, and I know she’s rattled because I’m down here, the same wayI’mrattled whenever I see her.
I can’t remember a single time Aria’s looked at me with that kind of heat. Or maybe she has and I’ve just never felt it.
My chest twists with self-condemnation, and I tear my gaze away from Venesa, pulling out my phone to text Scotty that he can go wait in the car.
Venesa leans in and whispers something into the guy’s ear, and he reaches out to grip her thigh possessively. A spark of irritation ignites in my stomach.
Still, I sit and wait patiently while they continue the hand of poker.
The longer I watch them interact, the more I’m sure she’s playing him. It isn’t the woman I’ve been with all day. This is someone else entirely.
She’s just as striking to watch, though. Like I’m seeing another layer of her, uninterrupted.
Truthfully, I could stare at her all night in all her forms and never get sick of it.
The man she’s with wins the poker hand, and as soon as he does, Venesa pulls him from the table, linking her fingers with his and dragging him from the room. She looks back once, flashing me a warning glare before she returns her attention to the guy. She stumbles in her heels like she’s drunk, and that confirms it to me, because I may have only known her for twodays, but every time there’s been alcohol for everyone else, she hasn’t taken a sip.
Definitely playing him.
And even though I know that, even though I can logically rationalize that I’ve walked into something she’s probably trying to handle without me, it doesn’t stop me from standing and following them out of the room.
Because fuck her if she thinks I’ll allow her to disappear with another man on her arm when she came here with me.
TWELVE
VENESA
Enzo Marino isthe worst kind of distraction.
His presence down here isn’t a surprise. It’s just…more of a disturbance than I expected.
Luckily, I had already hooked the card-counting thief Fisher told me about—Sean—with a bit of cleavage and dirty, slurred words whispered in his ear.
The number one reason I have Fisher be the face of so many things for me here is because anonymity is a superpower, especially when you’re a woman in a male-dominated world. Every weapon in your arsenal is important.
And everyone in Atlantic Cove already knows Fisher as the town fuckup. Emancipated from his folks when he was fifteen, he’s been on his own since then, running the streets and making a general mess of things until I started having him work for my family.
“What are you gonna do with me?” Sean asks, his voice thick with lust as I lead him down the dark hallway.
Fisher’s right; he isn’t from around here.
I giggle, stumbling into him. “Oh, honey, what am Inotgonna do with you?”
He groans, his disgusting hand gripping my ass, and I let out a whimper, pretending I like the feel of his meaty paw on me.
“My car’s out front.” He grunts.
I shake my head and run my fingers up his chest. “I don’t think I can wait.”
Looking around, I feign ignorance to the layout of the basement, widening my eyes as I point at the door on his left. “You think it’s unlocked?”
He follows my gaze and grins, pulling me behind him. “Only one way to find out.”
