Page 147 of Ruthless Intent

But I can’t, and the words just keep on falling from my lips.

“What really went on between you, Jason and Louisa, Zain? Everyone always thought that she was your girlfriend, not his. And then it turns out that she’s dating Jason, and pregnant with his baby … not yours. So if you didn’t fly into a jealous rage and kill both of them, then who did?”

“Stop talking.” There’s a look on his face, a light in his eyes, that should scare me.

He’s furious. Even I can see that. And yet I don’t care. I don’t fucking care.

“You didn’t kill them, I know that now. But someone did. Why? Why did they do it? Why are you keeping the name from me?”

He advances on me. I hold my ground.

“Why won’t you tell me?”

“I said shut the fuck up.”

“No! I have a right to know.”

“You have no fucking rights other than the ones I give you!” His shout echoes off the walls.

“This isn’t the dark ages, Zain. That contract you forced me to sign isn’t legal. I’m not stupid. You may have scared me with your threats about my mom, but you don’t have that any more. If I wanted to walk out right now, I could.”

“Try it. See what happens.”

CHAPTER EIGHTY-ONE

ZAIN

The threat hangs between us, and I can see the second she makes her decision. Her jaw tightens, her eyes flash, and then she turns her back on me and walks toward the door.

No. Fucking. Way.

I lunge forward and grab her arm to haul her back around to face me. Pain radiates across my cheek, but I ignore it, in favor of transferring my grip to her wrist and twisting her arm up behind her back.

The move pulls her body into mine. I wrap my fingers around her throat and force her head back.

“Did you really think I was going to let you walk out of here?” I back her across the room, until I have her pinned between my body and the wall.

Her eyes are spitting fire at me. And I want nothing more than to fall into them and burn.

“Let me go.”

My eyes track the movement of her lips. “Or what?”

Her tongue snakes out to lick over her lips, and the action is my undoing. I lower my head and capture her lips with mine. My tongue finds hers, strokes along it, then dips into her mouth.

I release her wrist and wrap my arm around her waist. Her arms lift to loop around my neck at the same time, fingers spearing into my hair.

There are a thousand reasons why I shouldn’t kiss her.

There are five hundred reasons why I shouldn’t be lifting her off her feet and carrying her through to the living room.

There are a hundred reasons why I shouldn’t lower her to the couch.

I can’t list a single one of them.

Our mouths part long enough for her to drag my shirt over my head. The first touch of her hands on my body sends a shudder through me. Her fingers slide up my back, along my spine, and wrap around my shoulders.

The voice of reason telling me to stop, to walk away, is squashed into silence by other more powerful things.

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