Page 122 of The Last Promise You Made

“You’re beautiful, Ms. Kent, and the pure Americanness of your lineage is tempting. It would be like making Captain America’s daughter mine. But I’m not convinced of your honesty, nor am I sure you could be loyal. After all, you came with Hatley and are here offering yourself to me. Perhaps I would do better to bequeath the permanent spot at my side to one of the socialites who have actual blue blood running through their veins and knowledge of what it takes to follow their husband’s commands.”

“None of those boring little socialites have Natalia’s code, and they’d be a cardboard cutout standing next to you. While I”—I flicked a look toward the jaguar at our feet and back to him—“would always require a bit of taming.”

His eyes narrowed ever so slightly, and his mouth parted. I was confident I’d set that icy heartbeat pulsing just a bit. If I could keep him off-kilter, it might just save us.

“You will dance with me,” he commanded. “Then, we will go somewhere quiet, and you can convince me of just how deeply you want this bargain to work.”

He rose from his seat, and the jaguar sat up. Laredo grabbed the leash and held out his other hand for me. I took it, forcing myself to not jerk out of his hold the minute our skin touched, barely holding back the shudder of revulsion that threatened to spin through me. I’d never felt such extreme dislike for someone in my life.

We made our way down the back of the dais and out onto the marble dance floor gleaming with a nearly blinding ferocity. Once we’d made our way to the middle and the room turned hushed, he drew me close. Our hips collided, and he wrapped the leash of the jaguar around me at my lower back. The big cat’s fur brushed along the thin satin of the dress, but I was less afraid of the animal than the man whose eyes were glittering at me.

I was scared Laredo knew everything. Not just the truth of my job and what I intended to do with Natalia’s code, but the love I felt for Ryder that escaped with every breath and heartbeat. What would it take to convince this coldhearted villain that I was willing to give up everything for him? How could I prove I wanted a place in his evil empire?

The music started, and we were moving. The music was violent and yet sensual. What should have been an elegant glide, an opening dance befitting the image Laredo had created in the ballroom, instead showed an ugly underbelly. The song was almost lewd, adding to the statement he’d already made. He’d taken Ryder’s woman, and he’d do whatever the hell he wanted with her. With all of them.

We weren’t alone for more than a minute before a tall body showed up beside us—a cowboy with a glower on his face, anger radiating from every pore. Instead of having a guest accompany him, Ryder had dragged one of the women in the diaphanous dresses.

“Jaime, I think it’s time we switched partners.”

Laredo laughed. He didn’t even respond. He just whirled so he had his back to Ryder. My eyes met tortured, brilliant blue ones over Laredo’s shoulder. I silently begged Ryder to continue to trust me, to stop what he was doing before he got himself hauled away.

More people slowly joined us, and the dance floor quickly became crowded. I risked looking at some of the people’s faces. Shock was the predominate one followed by an attempt not to watch as Laredo pressed himself to me, hands lingering in places that weren’t appropriate for an audience.

When the song ended, relief flew through me because it allowed me to take a minuscule step back, only to collide with the jaguar. I froze. Laredo laughed. It was cruel—a predator having caught his prey.

Without a word, he led me away from the dance floor toward a door at the back of the room. There, he handed off the jaguar to a man standing in a suit that didn’t quite fit while I felt Ryder’s eyes burning into my shoulders.

He’d known this would happen. It was what we needed.

And yet, I could almost feel Ryder’s panic join mine, crawling through my veins as Laredo used his eyes and a ten-digit code to open the locked door. When he pulled me through and the door shut with a formidable click, I almost lost the little bit of food I’d put in my stomach.

I thought of all the things I hadn’t said to Ryder. The I love you I hadn’t given him. The tomorrow I’d offered but not figured out.

I thought of Addy and my parents and Holden. All the people I loved and might not see again. Was it worth the risk? Was the trauma and grief I’d add to their life if I died tonight doing a job I thought I’d loved really worth it?

It was too late. I’d already offered up not only myself but all of them.

I squeezed my clutch with the flash drive tucked inside it and rubbed my knees together, allowing the cold metal of my gun to reassure me. I inhaled slowly, holding my breath for several seconds before letting it out.

I had to keep the panic at bay.

I had to believe it was worth it, because it wasn’t just my fate or my loved ones’ fate on the line, but the entire world we lived in.

Chapter Forty

Ryder

MAN OF STEEL

Performed by Brantley Gilbert

Just before the door shut behind Gia and Jaime, he sent a cold look in my direction. A smile that radiated evil. How had I never seen it before? How had I only seen friendliness and confidence and not the demon underneath?

It wasn’t just his look that had me wanting to break through the door and chase after them. It had been the hungry, brutal gaze he’d given Gia and the way he’d all but fucked her on the dance floor. My body burned with hatred and jealousy.

This man had ruined my life once by destroying his sister’s.

I wouldn’t let him ruin it again.

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