Page 87 of Serpent King's Prisoner

“But you have to be careful,” he continued gravely.

A soft moan escaped me as another wave of pleasure pulsed through me. He watched intently, his gaze darkening further.

“You can come now,” he said.

“You’re giving me permission?” I asked, a note of challenge in my voice. My fingers didn’t let up on their relentless pace, the pressure building within me teetering on the edge of release. His dark eyes flickered with amusement, but he didn’t break his intense gaze from mine.

“I don’t give you permission,” he said, his voice thrumming with authority. But there was a smile on his face, and I was pretty sure this was his version of…playful. It was strange, but it was working for me. “I’m ordering you.”

The command, coupled with the sheer intensity of his gaze, was enough to send me over the edge. I cried out, clutching the edge of the tub for support as pleasure rippled through me. My vision blurred as I rode out the waves of my climax, my heart pounding in my chest.

As I came down from the high, panting heavily and trying to steady my racing heart, Nathan’s intense gaze never left me. The corners of his mouth were turned up in a small smile, an odd mix of satisfaction and something I couldn’t quite place.

“You’re such a good girl,” he murmured, his voice carefully casual. He leaned forward, tucked a strand of wet hair behind my ear.

“Can you help?” I asked, my voice barely above a hush. It was a gamble, reaching out like this, but it was one I needed to take.

“Help?” he asked. “Isn’t telling you to come enough help? Because it seems like it is.”

I laughed. “Your father, you idiot. Can you help your father?”

Fuck, I’d fucked up. I insulted him, I had overplayed my hand, I was going to pay for it…

But he relaxed, laughing, throwing his head back. “Honestly, I don’t know.”

I kept staring at him as he brushed another wet strand behind my ear, and another, and another, as if he was smoothing paper out, his fingertips tracing delicate lines across my skin.

“Maybe you can help. If he’s less stressed, he won’t take it out on you.”

He paused, his brow furrowing as if he were sifting through a sea of dangerous secrets. The silence stretched, and I could almost hear the cogs turning in his head. Finally, he spoke, his voice low and steady. “We’ve got trouble. There’s a rat in the organization, hitting our money-laundering operations.”

I kept my expression neutral, though inside, the gears of my own mission clicked into place. “Maybe I can help you figure it out,” I suggested, as casually as I could muster.

“What do you know about money laundering?”

“I watched Money Heist like eight times,” I answered quickly—too quickly. “After dinner?”

He laughed again. “Dinner?” He raised an eyebrow, the tension in his jaw easing slightly. “Oh, right. Shit, your dad. Where are we going?”

I pulled away from him, feeling the weight of my next words. “There’s this little spot in the Tenderloin, the Copper Spoon. My dad and I go there all the time when he’s in town.” It sounded so mundane, so normal.

Nathan’s face twisted with distaste. “I’m not much for diners,” he admitted, his lips curling into a half-smirk that didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“Remember, we’re playing it casual. We can’t go to a Michelin star restaurant yet, though I expect you’ll take me there, what, next weekend?”

He laughed again. Fuck, I loved making him laugh…but I loved staying alive more, I reminded myself.

“Casual means dinners with my dad,” I reminded him, standing my ground. “And right now, Nathan, it looks like you’re going to have to play by my rules.”

“Your rules, huh?” His smirk blossomed into a grin, surprisingly genuine. “Alright, Abby. Lead the way.”

And then he grinned, and I felt a little guilty.

But I needed to come out of this alive. And he…he deserved this. He deserved me playing him anyway.

Right?

Chapter Forty: Nathan

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