Page 104 of Safe and Sound

“And you can only handle that side of me now because it benefits you,” I spat.

“Please.”

“Answer the fucking question.”

“Unfortunately yes.”

I cocked my brows at her. “Unfortunately?”

“You know what I mean.”

“Yeah. Unfortunately, I do.”

“Look, despite how I broke things off and despite how you feel about me, I need your help.”

“What exactly would you have me to do, Ava?”

“Must I say it?”

I nodded. “Considering what you’re asking of me, I think you owe me that much.”

As her gaze spun around the office, I shook my head. “Don’t worry. No one’s listening. I have the entire casino swept for bugs.” Flashing her a shark-like smile, I added, “No one is going to hear you asking me to whack your ex.”

At Ava’s horrified gasp, I laughed. “Come on now. We both know that’s why you’re here.”

“Yes, but–”

“Let me guess. It’s easy to imagine in your mind, but it’s not to say.”

“No. It certainly isn’t.”

Leaning forward, I held my hands out in front of her. “Tell me you want the hands that gave you such pleasure to beat the life from his body.”

Her eyes flared. “I didn’t say anything about torturing him.”

“So you want me to let him off easy? Put a bullet in his head?”

“I didn’t say he wouldn’t deserve torture. I just want something clean and easy that doesn’t send any blowback on you or your family.

Tapping my chin, I then said, “You’re right. Considering your aversion to blood, slitting his throat is totally out.”

The horror on her face egged me on. “You haven’t seen a mess until you slit someone’s throat. Like if you go deep enough to hit the carotid artery, it spews like a geyser. Trust me, if you don’t know what you’re doing, the force will take you by surprise. Of course, all that blood has to go somewhere. Usually it’s all over the floors and walls.”

Pinching her eyes shut, Ava murmured, “Please, don’t.”

“Of course, a bullet in the head isn’t exactly easy. Sure, it’s quick, but it isn’t ‘clean’ as you say. The blowback splatters blood and brains everywhere. Sometimes you might even get dinged with a piece of fractured skull. You stand close enough and use the right ammunition, and you can take a man’s head off.”

“Stop!” she cried.

“I’m sorry. Is this getting too much for you?”

Ava’s eyes snapped open. “What will it take for you to do it?”

“If you’re ordering a hit on a man, then you should at least be able to handle the unpleasant details it entails.

“Do you want me to beg? Because if that’s what it will take, I’ll do it.”

Cocking my brows, I said, “The bastard inside of me would give anything to see you on your knees for me again.”

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