Page 113 of The Laughing Game

She nodded and moved further into the room to give us space. Dominic gave a muttered curse and Vihaal went in, beckoning to us to follow. Dominic was sprawled behind the desk, his golf shirt stained and wrinkled. He was holding an antique coin of some kind and rolling it between his fingers.

“Vihaal,” Dominic said, an undercurrent of irritation to his tone and hatred in his eyes as he stared at my lover. “Your father called me.”

“Oh yes? And what did he tell you?”

“He said you’d probably be coming to fire me.”

“How perceptive he can be when he tries,” Vihaal said in a deceptively calm tone.

“He doesn’t think you should, of course. Just that you probably would.”

“Well, for once, my father is right. I’m here to tell you that I no longer need you as the manager of this store. You’re fired as of this moment. You’ll receive a settlement package that is very,verygenerous, considering my suspicions that you’ve been siphoning funds over the past several years.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Dominic asserted. “You can’tproveanything.”

Vihaal’s voice, when he spoke, was calm.

“I’m not trying to proveanything, Dominic. I don’t have time to fuck around with lawyers and legal procedures. Even though a part of me does want to see you end up in jail, or forced to pay all the money back, I don’t want to go through the hassle. You’re not fucking worth my time.”

Dominic looked at me. Then he looked at Gideon. Then he shook his head.

“This isn’t fair. Your father wantedmein charge of Tarnish. I’ve taken good care of this store for so many years!” Dominic sputtered.

The sound of Alice’s muffled laughter came from the hall.

“That’s debatable,” Vihaal stated. “But I don’t have the time or the will to argue.” Vihaal stepped back and motioned to the door. Gideon and I got out of the way.

“Get out. Now,” Vihaal said. “I’ll email you the settlement papers and a transfer of your final earnings.”

Dominic stared at Vihaal, not moving. He looked at Gideon. He looked at me.

“Your father’s right about you, you know.”

“Dominic. If you don’t get the fuck out of my store, I’m going to call the police.” The tone of Vihaal’s voice sent chills up and down my spine. He was magnificent. I was in awe of his command and presence, and the way his anger made him seem ten times as big as he was.

Dominic stood. “I need to get my things.”

Vihaal only nodded. “You have five minutes.”

“Are you going to stand there and watch me?”

“Yes.”

I’d never seen Vihaal seethe with controlled rage before. As a Dom he was stern and strict, but never angry.

“Them too?” Dominic asked, gesturing to Gideon and me.

“Yes.”

“For fuck’s sake. You’ve got them well-trained.”

“You have no fucking idea.”

“Jesus Christ. No wonder your own father wanted you to fail.”

Vihaal’s expression didn’t waver, but I saw the hurt in his eyes as Dominic kept talking.

“I don’t even want to think about what the three of you do in private. I’m sure it’s disgusting and perverted.”

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