Page 141 of Tarek

The man’s nose flares as he assesses me. The thought of him her touching makes me sick.

She was fucking this man, and he was coming to her rescue. In just over a year, she replaced me.

I pull the man’s pocket square out and toss it at Penelope’s feet. “Clean yourself up.”

Someone shoes shuffles, I look around to see Penny’s date about to hit me. “Levi don’t.”

Penny’s command stops him. He drops his hand and smirks. “Next time, she won’t be around.”

“How tall are you? 6’2?” I guessed, my body already leaning on the glass door to exit.

Levi throws his shoulders back. “Yeah, what about it?”

I shrug. “Just in case you need a casket. Penny, remember what I said.” Without a second glance, I leave her behind. As I walk down the hall, I can still hear Archer at the podium.

I pass by some people talking and skip down the stairs. Ken sees me and immediately he drives my car around the roundabout.

The night just became better, my girl is back, and I had the best sex I’ve had in over a year. Sliding into the back seat of my car I pull my phone out and dial.

“Sup, T?” Dax asks. I can hear people talking and animals making noise in the background.

“Where are you, Prescott?” I ask as the car swerves and dashes down the street.

“Istanbul. What do you need?” he asks.

“Jeremy Douglas. I want you to look into him and make him an offer he can’t refuse.” I chuckle.

“What? You’re supposed to be the sane one in our group. What’s going on?” Dax sounded genuinely baffled.

“I lost my sanity when I fell for Penny. Jeremy Douglas contracted her.”

“Oh, okay. Give me the score,” Dax says. As I drive on my way home, I explain to Dax what I want done. Penny may be angry, but I told her she is not going back to Trinidad again.

ChapterSixteen

Dereck

Frantic, that is how Ilyana should have been sounding. When she called me in the office and calmly told me she killed Miranda’s husband, I flew up from my desk and made my way to her. At first, I thought maybe she knocked him out, but she didn’t. I pull my feet away from the pooling blood on the floor. She really killed him. She killed Miranda’s husband. I stand here in shock. Even Jermaine looked shocked with his eyes wide open and his mouth gaping. Poor man must have been caught off guard. I didn’t even know she was having an affair with Jermaine. Now he is on the floor dead. I press a handkerchief to my temple, tapping my sweat away. In theory I should be disgusted by the sight of a dead man on the floor. In theory my wife should be panicking asking me, what to do. Neither of us are responding the way normal people would react.

I scratch my head thinking about the next step. I sigh, watching Ilyana as she calmy drags the fishnet stocking up her leg. The thought enters my brain as I look around the room. There is a single red balloon attached to the ac unit, scattered rose petals on the floor and flowers. What a way to end Valentine’s Day. But next year I can have the best Valentine’s Day ever. All I have to do is get Ilyana convicted. I feel weirdly happy and relieved.

Stuffing my hands in my pockets I said, “I think we should call the police.”

Ilyana stands with a purse over her shoulder and pulls her skirt down. “And why would we do that?”

“Because you murdered someone. You have to report it,” I reply. She stops and laughs, bending at the waist. Ilyana stands up right and shakes her head at me.

“Call the police. And how do you think that will go down?” Ilyana asked.

“You killed a man, Ily. I am going to tell them everything.” I point toward the dead body on the floor.

“Police, Police! Oh, not the police,” she cries.

“Officer, yes I was having an affair,” she chokes clutching her chest “But my husband came in a jealous fit, and he stabbed him.”

Ilyana looks at me and cracks a slap across her cheek. Her cheeks redden, and I know it may swell in some minutes. “Officer, he tried to force himself on me, and I…”

Ilyana bends over, pressing her hands to her face as she starts to cry.

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