Page 100 of Vengeful Lies

I shove him toward the door as he laughs sinisterly, purposefully pissing Craig off. I slam the door behind us.

“Youleftme.” Eli turns on me, imposing on my space. The barrel of my gun is pointed at his chest as he slams both hands against the door above my head. I’m pressed back against the wood and I’m not okay with being cornered.

“It was never real!” I scream at him, trying to shove him away, but he doesn’t budge. The gun is irrelevant to Eli. “Do you really think so little of me when I have a gun pointed at your chest?”

“You’re the only one I’d let do it, sweetheart,” he says, and the truth in his words hits me in a tender place.

“Stop lying to me.” My voice comes out as a squeak, and I hate how small it makes me sound. I feel like a frightened mouse compared to the prowling tiger I usually am. Something flashes in Eli’s gaze, but I don’t understand it. I don’t understandhim. Or maybe I do, and that’s what scares me so much. I see so much of myself in him, and it terrifies me.

It terrifies me that he has so much power over me and that I willingly gave it to him without even realizing it.

“Tell me what’s happening in that beautiful mind of yours,” Eli begs, his forehead dropping to mine in defeat. Tears well in my eyes, and I hate that he draws this weakness out of me. I hate this vulnerability. The way he’s able to split me in two and bring out these emotions I’ve buried for years. I hate that he ever gave me a ray of hope. I was fine by myself.

I push him back forcefully enough that he staggers, and I aim the gun at him again.

He cocks an arrogant smile as he puts his hands up as if defenseless. “Oh, I get it. You don’t like that you like me.”

A lump forms in my throat. It’s past “like.” I’m certain that I… Nope, not going there right now. I hover my finger over the trigger. “I just have to take your body to my client in twelve hours and be done with this.”

“So why don’t you do it?” he questions. “Or you can have a little more faith in your fiancé, and we can meet this head-on together.”

“You’re notreal. This isn’t real!”I scream desperately as the emotions flood over me, and my hand begins to shake. He’s playing with me, isn’t he? In the same way, he likes to torment his prey. His mind fuckery game is strong.

“If it isn’t real, then tell me why I’m here, Jewel, begging like a desperate man for you to come back with me. Do youthink I’ve ever begged anyone for anything in my life?!” he says hysterically.

“You just want to marry me for convenience so you can have your stupid empire!” I scream.

He takes a step back as if something just clicked into place. “You and I both know that what’s between us is real. Truce be damned. You are mine, Jewel Diamond, and unless you put that bullet in my brain, I will not stop pursuing you.”

My hands are shaking, and I feel like I can’t breathe.What if he leaves me? What if it’s a lie? What if I’m just convenient and can be thrown to the wayside?I’ve never loved anyone other than my father. Don’t know how to. I tighten my grip on the gun, wanting so badly to pull the trigger, knowing it’ll take all of this pain away with it. Because if I kill Eli Monti, it’ll take all of me with him.

“I want you to say yes to me,” I speak truthfully. “But I know your ambition will always put me second.”

“What are you talking about? It’s always been yes! You have been the only woman I’ve ever gotten on my knees for. I don’t know what else I have to do.”

I can barely see through my tears, and it happens so quickly that I’m stunned. He swipes the gun out of my hand, but instead of aiming it at me, he puts it to his own temple.

“What the fuck are you doing?” I step forward, but he takes a step back with determination in his gaze.

“Is this really the only way to prove to you?” he asks earnestly.

“This is stupid and manipulative, and I can’t do this!” I yell, closing my eyes. It hurts. It hurts all over.

“Of course it hurts, Jewels! Neither of us has ever fallen in love! We don’t know what the fuck we’re doing!” he says, and my eyelids burst open. He looks sad as he throws the gun to the side. “That’s right, Jewel Diamond! I fucking love you more thanI thought I was ever capable of loving someone! I know I have my faults. But if you asked me right now to give it all up for you, I would.”

I shake my head because imagining Eli without power has never crossed my mind. It’s not even an option. “You wouldn’t, Eli. Power, blood, and money are all the things you are. Being at the head of your family is your rightful place.”

“As is being by your side.” He takes a step forward, and I take another step backward, my back meeting the door.

“You wouldn’t,” I repeat, my bottom lip trembling and tears streaming down my face. How does this man so easily slip under my skin?

He reaches out to me slowly. “Why wouldn’t I give it all up when you’ve already done the same thing for me?”

It hits me with a force I’m not ready for. I choke on the tears that seem to suffocate me. His callused hand lifts to my cheek. “That’s why you ran, isn’t it? You got the final order for the hit?”

I fall into a million pieces, barely able to hold myself up as I lean into the man I tried to run away from. He cups the back of my neck and rests his chin on my head as I cry hysterically. “I tried,” I sob out. If only he had left me alone. If only he didn’t follow me here.

“I know. But don’t ever do that again. You are a part of my family, Kitten. From the moment you threw that dagger into my leg, I knew you were mine.”

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