Page 74 of Secrets (The Sins Trilogy 2)
“Liar.” Byron sneers, somehow holding on to his temper despite the frustration and anger etched in every taut line of his face. Then abruptly, he walks away.
I turn to the waiting Cullinan. TJ opens the door and I get inside, still tense. I wanted Byron to lose his temper. Make a total spectacle of himself, even if he wasn’t going to punch me first.
My mood is in the toilet now. The fucker doesn’t know shit. He’s lashing out blindly, hoping something will penetrate.
The thing is, he struck much closer to the heart of the matter than I’d like. There is a part of me that hopes Iris will remain just a tad dependent, so she’ll never leave me. I can’t even deny that I hope she won’t regain all her memories. The things that happened between us…
I close my eyes, pressing a thumb and forefinger against my eyebrows.
Iris’s recollection of Yuna is all positive. She could barely stay still while waiting for her to come up to our place. But with me… She recalls nothing. Not only that, when we first ran into each other at Hammers and Strings, she cried.
That was all that I was to her in the deepest recesses of her memory—the guy who made her sad, not even worth a conscious recollection. When we were together in Tempérane, I thought I could protect her by pushing her away and rejecting her love. I wouldn’t let her tell me she loved me. When she got a tattoo to show me she loved me, I rejected it coldly, telling her she was being rash and she’d regret it. All the while, I craved her love like a thirsty man lost in a desert, hallucinating an oasis. By the time I figured it out, it was too late.
So this time I’m not pushing her away. I’m going to tie her to me, even if she ends up hating me. I’d rather die by her hand than go through what I went through nine years ago.
My phone buzzes. A text from Iris.
Hey, are you doing anything tonight? I thought it’d be fun to go clubbing with Yuna and Julie. Want to come?
I thought Julie went incommunicado, I respond.
That’s why I want to lure her out. Give her a few drinks, get her talking. And to make it extra special, I want to take them to Z. I’ve never been, and I think it’ll be fun. And I want to get the Owner’s Girlfriend treatment. :)
It’s true; she hasn’t had a chance to go yet. Suddenly, I want to show her my first club, the place where my fortune was built. Male birds display colorful feathers or a newly built nest to entice a female they want. Why shouldn’t I do the same to convince Iris I’m not a total screwup? That if she stays with me, I’ll always have the means to take care of her?
Of course. You’re the VVVVVIP.
Awesome. Thank you!
Everything I have is yours, I reply. And I’m going to show her what everything means.
