Page 29 of Promiscuous Lies

I clench my jaw as I attempt not to play into his hand and give him a reaction. “Hawke will fuck anything with a hole, so tell him to back off this one,” I deadpan.

“That sounds awfully possessive of you.” He gives me a humorless smile.

My phone pings, and I immediately look down at it.

Posie: No

Two simple letters rolled into one powerful statement.

Her favorite fucking word.

I quickly reply.

Me: You agreed to one date.

“So, yeah, I sucked cock the other day,” Eli says, but I’m not paying attention.

“That’s nice,” I say, concentrating on my phone. The dancing dots appear, then disappear.

“Or maybe it was you who wants to suck cock,” he adds.

Posie: I didn’t agree to when. I’m busy tonight.

Busy? With what? Or whom? I go to reply but then blank on what to say. She doesn’t do as I tell her, and this time, I actually asked… sort of.

“Let me guess, it’s the blonde.” This time I look up at him.

“Why are you talking about someone’s fucking cock?”

“So you were listening.” He shakes his head.

“She agreed to go on a date with me, then backed out,” I tell him, finally throwing my phone down. “I’m genuinely at my wits’ end on how to deal with this woman. My usual tactics for obedience don’t seem to be working. What do you do when intimidation doesn’t work and you can’t resort to torture?”

“Hold up. Rewind. So youdidactually ask a girl on a date?” He sounds baffled. “When was the last time you did that?”

“Never.”

“Exactly.”

“Well, she wouldn’t let me fuck her. So I figured dinner would be the next best option so I could extract information.”

“Hmmm.” A knowing smirk crosses his features. I want to wipe that arrogant smile from his face.

“I’m doing this for you, remember?” I remind him as his phone rings.

“Of course. It’s definitely me you’re thinking of and not your cock.” He laughs as he stands to take the call. His tone changes immediately, and I know who it is on the other end of the line: his wife. While I wasn’t the biggest fan of Jewel initially, since she’s a hitwoman who had Eli as a target when they met, I now respect that she loves him. Though I still don’t like that she’s a better shot than all of us.

“I have to go,” he tells me absentmindedly, still holding the phone to his ear. “Why don’t you send her flowers?”

Jewel’s voice comes through the phone. “Or a gun. I love guns as a present. Wait. Is Dutton dating someone?”

“I’m not sure most women would like your type of gifts, Kitten.”

I roll my eyes at how quickly gossip spreads in this family. It’s like wildfire.

And yet, I find myself grumbling to make a point. “She would throw out flowers if I got them for her.”

“Okay, so take dinner to her if she won’t meet you somewhere,” Eli suggests as he leaves.

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