Page 49 of Passion and Revenge

I should stay far away from the temptation that is Sienna D’Addario and follow my plan.

This way lies ruin, a voice in my head warns.

Clenching my jaw with self-loathing, I unlock the door with my key card and walk in.

Her head snaps up at my entrance, and she narrows her eyes at me and opens her mouth to say something. If I have to guess, it’s probably something scathing she’s been reciting in her head since our last meeting.

At the last minute, though, she presses those plump lips tightly together and turns back to her book with feigned concentration, acting like I’m not even there.

“Look at me,” I order.

“No,” she retorts. “I didn’t know I was allowed guests in my prison. Or are you Mother Gothel?”

I don’t know what she’s talking about. “I’m your jailer. I can do whatever I want with you.”

“I know.” Her voice drips with bitterness. “You made that clear the other day.”

My hackles rise. “I clearly remember you being a very willing participant that day.”

I’m not about to let her get away with acting like I forced her into anything. She had wanted me just as much as I had wanted her.

Her only response is a huff as she fixes her gaze back on her book.

My phone pings in my pocket, and I immediately know who it’s from. “Don’t you like the book?” I ask.

To my surprise, red steals over her cheek, and she blinks up at me. “Why do you think I don’t?”

“You’ve been looking at it as if you want to chuck it out of the window.”

She snorts. “The only place it deserves to end up is in the fire.”

“They are your books.”

“No, they’re not.”

My instructions to Maurizio had been clear. Get into her apartment and write down the names of all the books lying on her bookshelf.

I would think she just kept the books for show, but through the cameras I installed in her house, I’ve watched her read those books.

“What do you—” The phone in my pocket buzzes again, and her gaze drops down to the visible outline of it.

“I hope you’re not ignoring your girlfriend on my behalf.” The words are unsure, and she immediately starts to gnaw on her bottom lip.

“Is there something you want to ask me, Sienna?”

“Pfft.” She rolls her eyes. “Like I give a damn if any woman is stupid enough to get herself entangled with a walking, talking red flag like you.”

“If I had told you to drop your panties and bend over for me in the middle of that gallery, you would have done it.”

Red climbs up her cheeks, and she ducks her head. “ I never knew you were the monster you are now!”

“And three days ago, when you were begging for my cock?” I raise a brow and then take a few steps to the nearby chair. “Let me guess, you were cursed from birth with the memory of a goldfish?”

She purses her lips, looking very unimpressed with my taunt. “You’re such a bastard.”

“From monster to bastard,” I tut. “I don’t know if I’m disappointed by the downgrade.”

“I’m shocked nobody’s shot you yet. If I was a mafia guy and I had a gun, you would have gotten a hole in your head a long time ago.”

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