Page 25 of Vengeful Lies

And then a dazzling idea comes to mind.

When he threatened me two days ago, he said if I were to break into his apartment, he’d slit my throat… but he said nothing about his mansion.

I smirk as I check the time on my phone. Ah, but the night is young.

I beam at the thought of fucking with this guy just as much as he fucked with me tonight.

I sure as hell won’t be falling for that again.

CHAPTER 13

Eli

I’m going through paperwork at my desk at Lucy’s when my father walks in, his second closely following him. My father signals him with his gaze alone, and he closes the door. It’s irritating, the way my father still acts like he owns everything.

Technically, he still does. Until he hands it over to me, it’s only a matter of time before he does it, even if I don’t have a wife, because my mother is sure as shit pressuring him to retire.

“Whiskey’s there.” I point to the bottle at the edge of my desk. He picks it up and smirks at my exquisite taste.

I look at my watch. It’s two in the morning. “Isn’t it past your bedtime, Pops?”

He doesn’t even acknowledge the smart-ass comment, and I try to hide my own smile. My father is as straight-laced as they come. His humor is… well, it’s on the border of non-existent and dry, and I’m almost certain he might be a psychopath.

In this, the apple didn’t fall far from the tree.

“I was just finishing with some business before heading home. Did I hear correctly that you cut Edward Graham’s finger off and carved a message into his chest?”

I don’t look up from the paperwork I’m signing off on. “No. I cut his finger off and doubled our profit. Dutton carved a message into his chest.”

My father nods approvingly. “That one is full of surprises, isn’t he? You did well doubling the profits.”

This catches me off guard. My father very rarely praises me. It’s cause for alarm in itself. I give him my attention now. Over the last two years, I’ve taken the lead on sixty percent of his businesses, and I handle most of his indiscretions. Slowly, he’s handing me over the empire I’ve continued to build upon, but he still holds enough of the reins because of that archaic marriage stipulation.

“Your mother is adamant I have a party for my birthday,” he says grimly. We both sigh at that. My mother is probably the only thing that keeps us from losing all of our humanity. Neither of us cares for moments of celebration, but we both indulge her because we love her. She deserves her every demand. “I’d like to announce my retirement then to make your mother happy.”

Tension ripples in the air. Because what goes without being said is that I will have to be, at the very least, engaged by then.

His birthday is in three months.

“If you haven’t found someone of interest by then, I’ll also be treating it as a matchmaking event.”

“Multitasking at its finest,” I growl. “And does Mother know about this?”

“Of course not. But are you going to tell her otherwise? Will you ruin the pleasure she gets in party planning because you can’t pull your head out of your ass?”

I clench my teeth.

“I love you, son. And I’ll kill anyone who interferes with you or this family in any way. You are my heir and the second love of my wife’s life.”

“I’d say her first love,” I correct.

He gives me a scathing look, his dark eyes promising payback in my future, and I smirk. “Don’t get smart.” He’s always jealous of my mother loving anyone else. I’m actually surprised my own father didn’t try to suffocate me as a baby with how much attention she gave me instead of him.

“Back to the topic at hand. Whether you think I’m being unfair or not, there is a code. You understand this more than anyone since you’ll be the next head of this family. No exception is made, not even for you. There wasn’t one made for me, and I will apply the same rules to you.”

“And if I don’t have someone by your old-man party?” I jest, always wanting to get under my father’s skin.

He throws back the rest of the whiskey, admiring the empty glass. “Then your mother will be upset, and I will remain in charge for many more years to come.” I know he’ll force my hand before he upsets my mother.

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