Page 25 of Spark

“That’s why mine is the only one we’ll be relying on,” I said.

“Shocker,” she replied and leaned back against her chair, looking out the window. I expected that to be the end of the conversation, but I should have known better.

“What happens when I no longer remain valuable to you?” she asked.

That, I flat out laughed at.

“It’d probably be the best thing to ever happen to me,” I said honestly while taking a sip of my wine. Jaden’s eyes went wide, and I couldn’t help but chuckle. “Though I doubt it will ever happen. You are quite simply the biggest pain-in-the-ass liability I have ever risked, but for some fucking unexplainable reason, you are worth it to me.”

She was silent before she replied again. “I’ll grow old someday,” she said blankly as if I had no idea of the sort.

“As will I.”

“And you’re going to tell me my value will remain the same when I’m old? I’d bet my left hand that your future youthful mistress will have more value to you than I will by then.”

I rolled my eyes at the ridiculous idea. I doubted I’d even live long enough to see Jaden grow old. Most men in my position didn’t simply just die of old age. Our deaths were met by the bullets that bore our names and called us home. Another reason I made sure to keep my body in perfect fighting condition at all times. Even in my sixties, I planned to deliver as much hell and chaos to my enemies as I did now. Nothing would slow me down until I was dead and in the ground.

Jaden would be no different. She would follow my philosophy, and in return, her body would reward her and, eventually, me as well. She was kidding herself if she thought I was so trivial that I would just fuck anything with a pretty face after her. I’d had enough women in my life to the point where I couldn’t even see their faces anymore. They were meaningless, dull in comparison. She didn’t know it, but she had officially ruined me for anyone else, and the idea of having anyone else but her had my blood boiling. There was no one but her. Always and forever. But still, her comment disappointed me. I furrowed my brows as I answered her question.

“Have I really led you to believe the only thing I value in you is your beautiful face?” I said sincerely.

Now that threw her for a whirl. She furrowed her brows in confusion, almost looking dumbfounded. After chewing on her tongue for a moment, she finally met my gaze.

“Don’t pretend that men like you don’t exactly appreciate age in their wives,” she said cautiously.

“And what do you know of men like me?”

Her eyes narrowed again in challenge. “I’m not stupid, Darren. Don’t think I’m so quick to presume my value will not diminish in time. You may one day grow bored with me and seek amusement elsewhere.”

I fucking laughed. “The same way a child gets bored building their blocks only to knock them down so they can build them back up again?”

Jaden didn’t miss my subtle hint, the realization of it written all over her face. And then she scowled.

“So you admit that I am just a toy to you?” she said incredulously. I rolled my eyes again, tiring of the subject matter.

“You are not just a toy to me, Jaden. You already know your future with me, so I don’t know why you’re making this argument.”

“Because I am having difficulty trying to understand why I am so valuable to you, yet you treat me like total shit!”

I slammed my palm onto the table, grabbing her attention in full force and finding joy in watching her body jolt in response.

“That’s enough, Jaden,” I roared at her, her body physically retreating in her chair. “You know the rules. Break them, and I will punish you. I will not be blamed when you reap the consequences of your actions.”

“That’s bullshit, and you know it! You can’t deny the fact that you love to punish me like the sick and twisted asshole that you are!” she nearly shouted at me.

Bolting up from my chair, my hand gripped Jaden’s throat and hauled her up from her seat, her small hands gripping my wrist while her nails dug into my skin. I loved that feeling.

“And you can’t deny the fact that you love it when I punish you, princess. I bet that pussy of mine is on fire right now just thinking about all the ways I could fuck this sudden defiance out of you.”

And fuck if I didn’t want to right there in front of Jaden’s bodyguards. I couldn’t deny the fact that most days I loved it when she pushed me, when she challenged me, when I got to punish her. I thrived on it. But she was fucking lying to herself if she didn’t love it when I took charge of her. When I forced her to submit to me, she’d gotten off on it, just like I taught her to.

Jaden’s mouth formed a tight line, her jaw clenched while she stood on her toes from the height I was holding her. She hadn’t said a word in response, probably because she knew I’d prove her wrong if I decided to reach into her panties and find them soaking wet. But I wasn’t planning to leave this argument empty-handed.

“Now, you can apologize for your smart mouth with a damn good kiss or you can spend the rest of the evening with Holly. What’s it going to be?”

She crinkled her nose and pursed her lips with a cute little scowl. I knew Holly would be the seller.

“Well, aren’t you the negotiator from hell,” she growled and then tilted her head up for me. On a smirk, I met her the rest of the way, pressing my lips into hers, delving into the softness of her mouth and tasting the sweetness of her tongue. Fuck, I loved the taste of her. Missed it like a goddamn drug addict. My blood was on fire with heated anticipation. It’d been so long since my mouth had claimed hers; the feeling of her lips competing for turf, her tongue losing ground as I took what was mine.

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