Page 99 of Heart of a Villain

“Mourning you.”

She bristled.

He held her gaze.

“And you don’t have to admit it,” she continued. “You and Ayesha…I can tell.”

“Do you want me to feel bad because I used to have feelings for her? Your literal fucking twin? Querida,” he squeezed his forehead, ruffling his brows, “I feel like you’re not understanding because you didn’t experience the same thing I did. I thought you were dead, and the second I run into a woman with your face, I fell like fucking gravity. I ran fucking DNA tests on her son even though I knew he couldn’t have been mine. I even still told myself, prayed that it would come back a match to me, somehow, and Ayesha was you with a head injury or amnesia or some similar fucking thing. So, you don’t get to be mad about this.”

She slid off the bed. “You can’t tell me what I get to be mad about.”

“You’re wrong. I know you.”

“You’re wrong. I’ve changed. Even you said so.”

“That’s trauma. That’s different.”

“I want to keep killing.”

“You won’t be able to handle it.”

“What, you think it’ll make me too strong?” she spat. “That I might not need you anymore?”

He walked over and bent close to her face. “Need me or not, it doesn’t matter. I’m going to be in your life, and you will be in mine.”

“Fine. We can be friends.”

“I’m going to keep fucking you. I’m going to marry you. And all that cum you couldn’t handle just now—we need to work on that, by the way—is going to be inside you. I’m going to come inside you so much, every time you sneeze, a little bit will spill out of you.”

“I want to keep killing,” she said, doubling down.

“No, you don’t.” He folded his arms over his solid chest. “And no, you won’t.”

“Then I don’t see a future for us.”

“Oh? Just like that?” He shrugged. “Fine, then.”

Surprise intertwined with instant regret moved through her, but she was too far ahead to turn back. “Fine.”

“Fine.”

“Fine.”

He stepped to the side and motioned to the bathroom.

At first, she refused to go because he’d “granted” her permission, but she stormed past him. If she didn’t go first, she wouldn’t be able to get herself cleaned up until sunrise.

At the door, she turned around.

He was staring at her.

“I’m serious,” she said. “I know what we talked about earlier, but?—”

“I thought you said you were done with me.”

Something inside her struck out, but she couldn’t tell whether it hit her stomach or her chest. It was as if he wasn’t interested in trying to understand why she needed this. Why she needed to feel powerful again.

Sayeda, you haven’t even told him.

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