Page 105 of Brazen Criminals

Shit shit shit. This plan is not going the way I thought it would.

Bryce reaches forward and snatches both of my hands in his. I shiver, and something lights up in Bryce’s eyes. He thinks that’s arousal, not revulsion. The guy jerks off to kiddie porn with these hands. And now he has a hold of mine.

I catch sight of Jansen in the doorway behind Bryce. His hands are out, asking if he can help, if he can snatch me away, if there is any way of salvaging this plan. If there isn’t, he’s pulling me out right now.

Not yet. I stare at my hands as I give a slow but firm shake of my head. I think I have an idea—I don’t need saving yet. Glancing back, Jansen is gone. Message received.

Reaching inside, I pull the new Clara to the surface. The one who gets angry. The one who has opinions. The one who makes mistakes, but works to fix them, who does more than apologize and wait for whatever punishment the world dishes out.

Clara: raw, battered, bruised, but finally healing—finally becoming more than an illusion of perfection, becoming a whole fucking human.

I take a breath, then snap my eyes up to meet Bryce’s. He swallows.

“Bryce, I have a question.”

“Of course, baby. What is it?”

“Why me?”

A smile curls on one side of Bryce’s handsome face. I used to love those half smiles, even once I realized he was going to insult me with that mouth. That smile meant he cared enough to show me a piece of his joy.

Now all I see is another tool to keep me contained. “Clara, you’re beautiful, smart, driven. I saw a kindred spirit in you, my other half. You know what it’s like to strive for the top, to always be better, to work on your weaknesses. Baby, you were made for me. No one will ever love you like I will. No one will push you like I will. Together, we’re closer to perfection. Together, we’re perfectly untouchable.”

I close my eyes, wishing those things were our story. But they aren’t. They’re a piece of our story, but they’re the bare bones outline. It might sound right, but all the details that made it real, that pulled me to pieces, they’re all missing.

My eyes blink open, catching the placid blue of his gaze, wishing they belonged to someone I could have loved. It was doomed before it even began. “Are you sure it wasn’t because I was barely legal? Because I look younger than I am?”

Red flushes across his cheeks. “What the hell are you talking about, Clara?”

“Bryce, I know.”

He shoots to his feet, pacing in front of the couch. “You’re delusional, Clara.”

“Am I? Tell me—how much did you make selling videos of the two of us together? Did you get money or some sort of in-store credit at the kiddie porn site?” I spit out.

I hear the crack before I feel it, my eyes watering from surprise more than pain. “You fucking bitch,” he growls.

I rub my aching cheek, stunned. I glimpse Jansen and Walker in the doorway, but Bryce is too agitated to notice them, and I shake my head again. Walker rushes forward, but Jansen pulls him back, out of sight. I need a full confession from Bryce, quick. The guys won’t stay back if he hits me again.

“I deserve the truth, Bryce. Which ones were crowd pleasers? I imagine they liked when I wore pigtails for you. Or that awful cheerleading outfit you said might be fun.” I look up at him, his fists clenched, his face crimson, lost for words in a way I’ve never seen him. I feel a bitter smile crease my face. “No, those were too trite, weren’t they? I bet they liked it when you made me cry. When I knelt at your feet with tears streaming down my face, begging for your forgiveness. Did I look young enough then to really get them going? To get you going?”

He’s on me in a second, his hand tangled in my hair, forcing my face to his. “It fucking did. But not the last few times. You’re getting too old, Clara. I was willing to forgive it, to give you a chance to make it up to me, to maybe figure out how I could still be with an aging bitch. You were just so well trained. And the way you begged—magnificent. You’d have been the perfect wife, turning a blind eye to my other…wants. But you’re not worth it anymore. I can do better.”

“Are you aiming for barely legal again?” I mock.

He shakes my head before tossing me back into the chair. “Never my type, Clara. I’ll figure it out—there’s always some broken little girl waiting for a man to tell her how mature she is, how beautiful, how perfect. And for a while, maybe she will be. But you all get old, eventually.”

It’s almost enough, but we need more. Just a bit more. “How young, Bryce? How far away was I from perfect?”

His eyes shutter to cold ice, and I shudder.

“I liked to imagine you were fourteen or fifteen. In the half dark, I almost could. But even with all the running, you’re getting curvier. Every time, it was harder to pretend. To get it up for you. You were supposed to be my next best thing. Now, there’s no way you could get me off. I guess I’d better go shopping again. Find myself a new little replacement.”

Jackpot. “I guess you were lucky I like to run,” I say, and Jansen and Walker are there, rushing to stand guard, one on either side of me.

Walker has a hand on my shoulder, needing to feel that I’m okay. Jansen steps forward, forcing Bryce to step back, away from me. RJ hovers in the doorway to the kitchen, giving me a nod. He sent the confession to the cops out front.

“The fuck?” Bryce asks, looking at the guys.

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