Page 45 of Ruthless Love

I say nothing, like he didn’t just see me hobble in here, having lost the shot glass of dignity I still had left.

“Go away,” I shout out of pure reaction, now realizing I can’t cover by saying I didn’t hear him because I was in the shower.

Another second later, my cell rings. Where I left it after work. On the entry table. Next to the front door.

Clanking in these damn shoes that bite into my feet with each step, I’m seconds from cutting the straps away. Mad at the world, I answer the phone and lean my forehead against the door.

“Please, Austin. Just leave me in my quicksand of misery.”

“Not a chance. Come on, open the door.”

“No. You need to go home and make sure those adorable boys aren’t smoking cigars and watching porn.”

“The house is cigar free, and their only shot at porn was the girl next door bolting away,” he says, and I cringe with an audible whimper. “Their dad picked them up as you arrived. Come on. It can’t get worse.”

I take a long, regretful look at the stack of cash, sitting pretty where I dropped it. “You want to bet?”

Chapter Twenty-Four

AUSTIN

Fleeting thoughts of Evie have hit me here and there all day, but when a woman shows up at your door with dangerous curves and a double-dare of a pout, what can I do?

And I don’t know what the boys saw when she tumbled to the grass, but that glimpse of black lace against her soft skin was all the invitation I needed to pick her up, just in time to watch that adorably innocent blush overtake her pink lips and soft cheeks. Had she not wriggled her way out of my arms, she’d still be in them.

I don’t know if this is some game by Dimitri, sending Evie over as a cynical test or a demented enticement, but my cock’s thick and throbbing, and calling all the shots.

I’m damn near about to kick the door down but knock first. When she hollers back, demanding I go away, I relax. As her voice squeaks and her deep Texan accent bursts from her normal restrained state, I know she’s no more calculating or conniving than a bunny. I give her a call, surprised at my excitement when she answers.

Of course, I’ve already checked the door. In her haste, locking it was the last thing on her mind. Probably beat out by ripping those shoes from her feet. It doesn’t take much to convince her to open the door, though I was two seconds from letting myself in.

When she does, she’s wearing a coat to cover those gorgeous breasts she’s delusional enough to think I could forget, and her eyes are big and regretful.

“Come on,” I say in a coaxing tone. “I don’t bite. Hard. Well, not enough to leave a mark. For long.”

The last line finally brings a smile to those kissable lips, and she gives in to the inevitable, opening the door wider in invitation. I step inside and secure the door. She steps away but not soon enough, because the air fills with delicate notes of vanilla and honey, and whatever distance I was trying to maintain between us evaporates.

“You really need to lock this when you get home.”

“It’s a safe neighborhood. Except for the flashers. And how did you know I didn’t?”

I shrug with a convincing shake of my head before I see the stack of cash she had earlier. Eager to rile her up while I get to the bottom of this, I snatch a bundle, fanning it with my thumb.

“Why, Ms. Banks. Now who’s guilty of soliciting?”

“I am,” she says with big, woeful eyes and so much concern creasing her brow, I brush a few strands of her hair away just to soothe her.

“You’re soliciting me?” I ask, amused. “Because we need to work on your tactics.”

“I mean, I’m requesting your assistance.” She grabs the second stack and presses it into my hands with the first, her eyes locking on mine. “I want your services.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

AUSTIN

Thoughts of Dimitri and his notorious mind-fucks prick at my brain, and I straighten, folding my arms across my chest. “Explain.”

My words are harsher than intended, but I don’t back down. No matter that worry forms a line between Evie’s eyebrows, or how her lips seem stuck softly open, like she wants to say something but I’ve scared her silent, I need answers. Because if Dimitri is trying to recruit me, we’ve just entered a whole new realm of deep shit.

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