Page 10 of Together We Burn
She spun on her heels and stormed to the elevator doors, frantically pressing the down button. I watched with a smirk as the delay in the elevator car arriving at the top floor curbed her whole storming-out routine. The doors opened, and she stepped inside, the light from the top shining down on her like an Angel of Death.
I watched as the metal doors started to close, but before they hid Stefany from view, she raised her middle finger, and all I could do was laugh.
She will come around; I’d make sure she did. She just needed a little time to process all this. Then she’d come back to me.
Chapter four
Stevie
WhatthefuckwasI thinking, breaking into his apartment? Waiting in the dark until Jake came home and not expecting in one way or another, he’d still be under my skin like he’d never left. Two months of replaying the betrayal. Two months of replacing the gentle caresses and the quiet moments with anger and pain were obliterated as soon as I breathed the same air as him.
And why did I think he wouldn’t be as beautiful as he’d always been? Was I expecting that now I’d seen who he really was, horns and a tail would have suddenly appeared? But no, he was still this personified man-god, with strong arms I’d kill to have wrapped around me. His piercing blue eyes that knew every part of me, his mouth…fuck,his perfect mouth, and when he kissed me, and I could taste his blood…
The distinct crunch of bone was satisfying, though, and I knew his nose had to have broken, or at the very least, he’d have two black eyes that would take a while to fully heal.
Adrenaline pumped through my veins, making my body tingle as I leaned against the elevator mirror, watching the red-light flicker on and off each floor as I descended to the underground parking.
“I never touched your disgusting whore of a mother.”
My stomach twisted, tightening painfully as his words circled my head repeatedly in some sort of sadistic loop. I had tried to forget when I asked him if he had been with Emilia, to forget his non-answer. I had tried to push down the taunting stories and sick anecdotes of how he made love to her after stabbing me in the back. How he never actually said the words confirming or denying anything; he just looked away, and in some ways, that was worse than not knowing for sure.
Tonight, he did answer my question. He didn’t touch her,nevertouched her.
I sucked in a deep breath, silently begging my stomach to settle. The metal doors to the elevator opened, and the cold, crisp air rushed in, giving me a much-needed slap back to reality. I fished my keys out of my jacket pocket and clicked the unlock button to my McLaren. Silence surrounded me as I slid into the car and gripped the steering wheel, looking into the dimness of the garage.
“I called Will... I work for him.”
Rage built to a dangerous magnitude as my breathing became ragged, nearing frantic.
Will.
This was because ofWill.
I slammed my back hard into my seat and released an enraged scream as my head tipped back to the ceiling of the car.
“For someone who lies as their profession, you aren’t very clever at seeing when others do the same to you.”
My father’s words were the next to haunt me, like someGhost of Christmas Pastshit, whispering and taunting the indiscretions of my life. Was that what he meant before that fucking bastard put a bullet through his skull? That where I thought I was the master manipulator, the one in control; the Devil himself was controlling me the whole time? The fucking devil in a nice suit and expensive shoes.
Starting the car, the engine roared to life, growling with the same anger pulsating through my body as I drove into the night.
“Ms. Matthews, he’s in a meeting. Please don’t—” Monica tried to stop me as I stormed through the top floor to Will’s office without invitation. Ignoring her, I kicked the door open, and all three Jones brothers’ heads snapped in my direction.
Will's lips turned down in confusion as he glanced at his computer and then back to me.
No, motherfucker, we don't have a meeting this morning.
“Stevie, I didn’t think you were coming back until next week?”
Completely disregarding the other men who occupied the space, I stalked around Will's desk and jumped on him with such force we both crashed to the floor. I threw my fists into the side of his face over and over.
“You son-of-a-fucking-bitch,” I spat, pulling my fist back and connecting it to the centre of his jaw, unleashing my frustration down on him. But before I could land another hit, a muscled arm banded around my middle and pulled me off him. The limb I intuitively knew belonged to Mac.
“Get the fuck off me,” I growled, kicking and flailing my arms and legs as I fought against the strong hold that kept me pressed against Mac’s chest. Clawing my nails against his skin, I desperately tried to break away from him. “I'm going to fucking kill you. I'm going to rid this world of your pathetic little life.”
“Stevie.” My name was harsh when it left Will’s split lip as he stood. Righting his chair, he then grabbed a couple of tissues from the box of Kleenex kept in one of those stupid box covers, and dabbed at the small cut at the edge of his lip.
Damn it. I wanted to make him bleed more.
