Page 141 of The Devil We Know

She eyes me a bit warily, but then her hand moves from my shoulder to my neck, her thumb stroking down my throat firmly.I try not to respond, but the low growl that forms in my chest is an automatic response I can’t seem to control.

The corner of her mouth curves up knowingly, and I sigh, grabbing her by her upper arms and yanking her closer so my breath paints her lips as I whisper, “Don’t think just because I’m leaving that I won’t punish you later.”

She smiles brightly, kissing me lightly and then pulling back to stare up at me mischievously. “I’m counting on it.”

I shake my head, bending down to kiss her once more before releasing her.

Tony is waiting by the door, anticipation in his eyes and his demeanor as he shifts from one foot to the other. “Let’s go, asshole.”

“Shut your hole, fucklicker.”

He smiles brightly, putting an arm around my shoulder as he maneuvers me down the hallway toward the open door, where Declan’s car awaits. “Aww, fucklicker. That one never gets old.”

We exit the building to find Declan waiting impatiently by the car door, which is standing open. He motions for us to hurry, which we don’t, and then we stop outside the car door. “Is this a giant fucking mistake?”

“Maybe. Maybe not.”

“Only one way to find out,” Tony adds helpfully.

Declan climbs into the back of the car, quickly followed by Tony. I pause with one hand on the top of the car door and the other braced on the car's roof.

I look back at the door we just exited to find Jessica, Carolina, and Issa standing there. They smile and wave, and I shake my head, entirely certain the expression on my face is pained coercion.

I take a deep breath. “Fuck it.”

Then I get in the car, slamming the door behind me.

57

A Final Adventure

Matt

We made it tothe airstrip just in time.

While the jet that was waiting for us appeared luxurious, the staff on board was less than congenial. Which under normal circumstances may be alarming, but at this point, for us, we didn’t bat an eye in response.

They insisted we keep the shutters drawn the entire flight. And I'm relatively certain that while it felt like the longest flight of myentire fucking life, they spent considerable time flying in circles just to throw us off.

And then, just to add insult to injury, we land in a field in the middle of fucking nowhere.

But at least it’s daylight.

We stand there, watching the jet fly off, and I shake my head, annoyed that I let myself be talked into this. “I swear to fucking Christ, Declan. If this is one big trap and we all die in the middle of fucking nowhere, I'm going to haunt you for the rest of your life.”

“How can you haunt me if I'm dead?”

I glare at him, poking my finger into his chest as I grit out, “Believe me, I will find a fucking way.”

Tony huffs out a breath, his arms crossing over his chest. “So, do you think we literally just got left in the middle of nowhere on purpose?”

“Who fucking knows?” I retort grumpily. “For all we know, the girls got sick of our moping around and came up with this giant ruse just to fuck with us.”

Tony's eyes widen, and Declan barks out a laugh. “Oh, shit. That's highly possible.”

Tony's lip curls, his hands dropping to his sides. ”Carolina likes the box, but I don't know if she likes it so much that she would pull this kind of stunt.”

Declan gives Tony some side eye and shakes his head. “Issa doesn't care for the cage, so if this is true, I can't believe she had anything to do with it.”

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