Page 127 of Vicious Little Games

“What do you mean?” I ask, not understanding what he means.

“I was going to ask if you wanted to come work with me after you graduate,” he says, which blows my mind. “I mean, it would just be administrative at first, but eventually…”

“That’s…wow,” I mumble. “You don’t even know me.”

“Which is why I thought you could come to Thousand Oaks, so we could have a chance to get to know each other.”

“That’s…very generous of you to offer. Let me think about it?”

“Of course. No pressure. I may still be a little in shock, but without a doubt, I want to get to know you better. I have friends in New York and Vegas isn’t that far. We can figure out when we can meet up.”

“I would really like that,” I tell him. “Honestly, this is going better than I expected. I thought…if I were hit with paternity results in the middle of a weekend trip, my first reaction would be to get angry or think it’s a scam.”

“My wife always says that I’m too trusting. And she’s the one with an awful temper. It’s my job to try to keep her calm whenever things don’t go her way,” he says with a smile full of warmth for the woman he married. Even talking about her faults, it’s obvious that he loves her.

Isn’t that what love is? Caring for someone, wanting all of them, even the flaws?

Cass is a stubborn little liar with a penchant for violence, but she’s my violent, stubborn little liar.

And I wouldn’t change a single thing about her.

So, she can keep insisting I go back to New York, and I’ll keep pushing back, reminding her how good we are together, making sure she knows that I’m not giving up on us.

39

Cass

I’m just about to head out to go fishing for an unfortunate Russian man when Cole slips through my bedroom door.

“Hey…wow,” he says, his eyes widening when he sees me in my little black dress and heels, my hair pulled up off my neck.

“Hey. How did things go with your dad?” I ask him while trying to ignore how much I love the way he looks at me.

Cole shakes his head and takes a seat on the foot of my bed, eyes lingering on my bare legs. “The talk with Andrew was good. Great. He’s…a really nice guy.”

“Okay. So why do you say that like it’s a bad thing?”

He chuckles and then gives me a sad smile. “Because I don’t think I’m anything like him.”

“Of course, you are. You’re a nice guy. Or at least you were. It’s my bad influence that’s turned you into a murdering mobster.”

“I like being a murdering mobster,” he says confidently. “So, I guess I don’t have to try to be a nice guy anymore...” Tilting his head to the side, he says, “Where exactly do you think you’re going looking like that this late at night?”

“I’m going to Rasputin.”

“Rasputin? You’re going to a Russian club? Why?”

After smoothing my palms down my dress, then adjusting my thigh holster, I tell him the truth. “Daddy gave me a new assignment.”

“Oh, yeah? One just for you?”

“Yep.”

“What’s the assignment?”

“I have to bring home an inside man for him to string up in the basement tonight.”

“Wow. And how exactly are you planning to get him here?” Cole asks. His jaw ticks as he clenches it tight. “Oh, right. That’s why you’re dressed like…that.”

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