Page 29 of Paper Thin Love

“How do you know all this?”

He’s right. I won’t admit it. I am like a fox. I like to sneak around, and due to my light footsteps and small stature, it’s so, so easy. I snuck around my father’s house and office for years, reading his work files, which were more like bedtime horror stories than lullabies.

“Because my father makes the contracts.”

Chapter 10

Mila

His spine pulls taut giving him an advantage he didn’t need over my small frame. A shiver runs down my spine as his shadow blankets me. But something else happens. A surge of excitement pulses between my thighs when he steps closers.

Why do I want him to take another step, then push further?

Because you're a fool who is attracted to tragedies; this isn’t a ballet performance. This is my real life. I need prince charming, not his evil step brother.

“What’s your last name?” Dash questions, his voice dripping with authority that makes my skin ripple. The sunlight is so strong that it reflects off his white-blonde hair, making me feel like the edge of a sword is coming down on my neck.

I swallow, forcing it down.“Michelson.”

Unlike Dash, who is a King, I’m not as proud to flaunt my name around. I don’t want to use my father’s power to gain my own. I’m probably the only person here who thinks like this.

Dash closes his eyes, a smug grin spreading across his face. He snortssoftly,as if something amusing just clicked in his mind.“Of course,” he mutters to himself. His eyes open, piercing into mine as he leans in slightly.“You’re the perfect choice,” he whispers, his voice is so low that I almost miss it. The words hang in the air, sending a shiver to the tips of my fingers.

He blinks out of his daze.“Your father works for my dad.”

“Well,” I exhale a snort, crossing my arms and raising an eyebrow,“technically my dad works for all the parents here, so don’t feel special, Dash.”

A knowing smirk playing on his lips.“That’s how you survived so long. You’re Michelson’s daughter. He’s not a strong man, but his army is…” He levels me with a look that makes my spinestraighten,as if he’s evaluating me, not my father.

I’m not strong. However, now I have a King as my soldier. Dash said it himself, we’re working together. Maybe I am like my father in that regard, weak but smart enough to build a good defense.

I nod.“Power comes in many forms. Money, blackmail, a business. My dad negotiates; he’s able to make two people who loathe each other agree. That’s power.” I reply. Compared to the other parents here, my dad isn’t so evil; he’s just tasked with the job of enforcing it.He doesn’t have to committhecrimes,just make sure every detail adheres to the contracts.Rules apply to everyone, even the wealthy and criminals.The rulesare,ifyou sign a contract with Michelson Law, it’s enforced.If you try to break it, then everyone who has done business with my father has to send help to hunt you down.

Everyone.

It gives credibility to thecontracts,makespowerful men trust others who are trying to stab them in the back.

Dash’s eyes rake over me, hot and fast, like candle wax dripping off the sides of a heated flame, then slow and deliberate, as if the wax begins to cool and solidify.“You know what’s interesting about foxes, Mila?” he asks, pausing just long enough for me to consider running.

Did I anger him? Possibly.

Did I make him reconsider me? Yes. I’m not just a ballerina; I’m a girl who he got to glimpse inside of.

No one else has.

No one has dared to peer through my cracks because they don’t see them. Dash did. That makes him dangerous…but it also makes him someone of interest to me.

“They are cute and fluffy,” My joke falls like glass onto cement.

Who the hell am I? Where is this voice of mine coming from, and why can’t it stop speaking to him?

Being in the presence of a King has rubbed off on me.

His lip twitches as his blue eyes slowly slide down my cheek like a droplet of melting ice. Then, they fall onto my lips, forcing me to swallow.

“They change,” his voice grows colder than his flirtatious expression,“their colors.”

He leans back into his crutch like he’s posing for an Instagram picture.“They change with the season. Their coats are not loyal.”

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