Page 41 of Hell Hath No Fury

She smiles, and I see the teasing glint in her eyes. I give her a tiny shake as I mutter, “You’re really going to fucking mess with me right now?”

Her hands move to my back, and she pulls me close, wrapping me up in a hug so her reply comes out against my chest. “Well, I’m always going to give you a hard time. If that’s a problem for you, we’ll probably not work out.”

I hug her to me, one palm pressed between her shoulders and the other on the back of her head. I lower my head until I press my nose to her hair and inhale deeply, the warmth in my chest making me tighten my arms, attempting to pull her impossibly closer.

After a few moments, she releases me, and I begrudgingly let her go. Then I take her hand in mine, leading her around the pool to a sitting area around the other side of the pool house. Agatha and Carolina have transformed it into its own private oasis, with little tea lights twinkling everywhere and a candlelit table. I lead her to the table, pulling a chair out for her and pushing it in when she sits. I take my own seat, sliding my chair closer to hers with the subtlety of a bull in a China shop. She peers at me warmly, that small smile back on her lips, and I shrug, completely unapologetic for wanting to be close to her.

Incapable of resisting, I touch her hair, the silky strands slipping through my fingers. She doesn’t attempt to pull away or push me away, her expression open as she says, “So, you remember my hair being this color?”

I nod, slowly releasing her hair and resting my hand on my thigh. “You didn’t start bleaching it until well after we’d met. But if I remember correctly, it was right around the time you turned into a finely tuned killing machine.”

She snorts and then replies, “Pretty much. That was around the time I was told I either become useful or used up.”

I frown, my hands fisting on my leg at the idea that she could have been used up. And I know exactly what she means. Just because she could no longer bear children didn’t mean they wouldn’t insist she continue to use her feminine wiles to suit them. My lip curls, and I turn my glower away from her.

Her hand on my arm draws my attention back to her face. She’s gazing at me knowingly, but then she shrugs. “We’re not living in the past, remember?”

My body immediately relaxes, and I nod. “You’re right.”

She pats me on the arm and straightens in her chair, but I lean closer, waiting for her to meet my eyes again. “But mark my words, Lilith. If anyone so much as thinks about fucking with you again, they’ll have signed their own death warrant.”

Her lips twist in amusement, and she looks away, her eyes focusing on the table in front of her. I reach out, resting my hand on top of hers before sliding it into her lap. “What?”

She gives me a sideways look and shrugs, so I press, “Come on. Spit it out.”

She sighs and then shrugs. “Other than Mickey, I don’t know if I’ve ever had a man defend me before.”

“Well, I can tell you with certainty that there are at least a few other men in the world who would defend you.”

She raises a brow at me. “Oh, really? Like who?”

“Like the three men who came to see me before my date with you.”

Lilith frowns and then gapes at me for a moment. “What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about Tony, Matt, and Darius,” I reply seriously. “They were quite intent on knowing my intentions before allowing this to move forward.”

“Allowing?”

I nod and then laugh as I reply, “Oh, yes. They needed to make sure my intentions were serious.”

She shakes her head and sighs with amusement. “And what did you say?”

“I told them the truth.”

“And what is that?”

“That you’re mine, and if anyone wanted to attempt to get in the middle of that, I’ll happily cut out their heart.”

She raises her brows, giving me a serious look. “Right for the heart, huh?”

I nod, hoping my expression reflects the seriousness of the threat. Because even as outrageous as it sounds, I am fucking serious. She smiles, obviously happy with my response, so I add, “So, yes, there are definitely a few other men out there whowould defend you to the death, and I get the impression that that concept is like a two-way superhighway in this group.”

“Yes,” she answers, her hand turning over beneath mine and gripping me firmly. Her eyes meet mine steadily as she leans in slightly. “And now, you’re a part of it, too.”

That warmth is back in my chest, and I’m just about to respond when Agatha yells from the other side of the pool, “You guys want some food?”

Lilith jumps in her seat and glares in Agatha’s direction before she turns to me and asks, horror in her tone, “Is Agatha cooking?”

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