Page 10 of House of Soot

He pulls back, his eyes narrowed as if he is experiencing something unexpected. For a moment, I worry he didn’t like the kiss.

A smile forms on his face. “Goodnight, Jenna.”

“Goodnight, Blaise.” I lean against the door frame, watching him walk back toward the main house. My lips still tingle from his kiss, and I press my fingers to them, savoring the memory.

Everything feels different. Brighter. More vivid. The stars seem to shine just for me, and even my garden glows in the moonlight. I've spent years dreaming of romance, but nothing in my fantasies comes close to this reality.

God, what a silly woman I am. All those hours I spent arranging Ronan's office flowers just so, hoping he'd notice the careful color combinations. The way I'd time my garden work to catch glimpses of him through windows… What a waste of my time.

This thing with Blaise is real. He doesn't just see me. He wants to know me.

I unlock the door, floating more than walking inside. Mom's already asleep in her chair, her crossword puzzle fallen to the floor. As I drape a blanket over her, I realize I'm smiling so hard my cheeks hurt.

For the first time, I understand what I've been missing. Love isn't about chasing someone who doesn't see you. It's about this wild, wonderful feeling of being wanted in return.

4

BLAISE

The taste of her lingers on my lips as I walk away from the cottage, and it’s…well… fuck… Like her, it wasn’t what I expected.

Until I kissed her, the night was going perfectly. Her shy smiles, the way she leaned into me during dinner, how easily she opened up. All according to plan.

The irony of it all. She's spent years mooning over that entitled prick, Ronan, and here she is, falling for a son of the family he helped destroy. The same son whose parents died because of her loose lips. She’s falling into my trap.

But then I kissed her. It replays in my mind. Her body melting against mine. Her soft gasp when I tangled my fingers in her hair. The sweet taste of her lips. Something twists in my gut, different from the satisfaction I expected. There was an innocence in the way she kissed back, hesitant at first, then eager. Real. Intoxicating.

"Fuck." I’m not supposed to like being around her, kissing her. That’s not a part of the plan. She's supposed to be a means to an end, my way into the Kean estate, my chance todestroy Ronan's world piece by piece. Starting with the girl who worships the ground he walks on.

But there was something in that kiss, a spark I didn't anticipate.No. I shake my head, forcing those thoughts away. She's the enemy. The girl who got my parents killed. This connection I think I felt, it's nothing.

But fucking hell, how does a woman pull off acting so innocent after betraying the people who’d taken her in? Maybe Ronan manipulated her somehow, used her obvious crush on him to extract information she didn't realize would lead to murder.

No. I can't start making excuses for her. She's not some wide-eyed innocent caught in Ronan's web. She works for him now, doesn't she? Lives on his property, tends his gardens, probably still follows him around with those adoring eyes when I'm not there.

Even if she was manipulated before, she's chosen her side. She's loyal to the family that murdered mine, that stole everything from us. That makes her the enemy, no matter how sweet her smile or gentle her touch. No matter how real that kiss felt.

I push away my reaction to the kiss and focus on hers and how I’m sure I can make her fall for me. And the harder she falls, the sweeter my revenge will be when I finally show her exactly who I am.

I head to the security office in the main house to get ready for my shift. I’m glad no one recognizes me, but it’s fucking insulting at the same time. The Ifrinns have been completely erased from the place they built. As I holster my gun, I have a fantasy of walking into the house, guns blazing, killing them all, not just Ronan and Hampton, but Mrs. Kean and maybe even Keira, Ronan’s sister, too. She and my brother had been close, and the few times I’ve seen her, she doesn’t seem to care about anyoneor anything except the kid Mr. and Mrs. Kean have taken in. I’ll spare the kid. She can’t be more than nine or ten. She really is an innocent.

I live in my revenge for a moment and then like Jenna’s kiss, I push it aside to focus on my job. Not the one where I protect the Keans but the one where I map out the estate's security system. Flint's already identified that at least one of the secret access points is still there, but we need more.

I enter the house, making my way back to a room where all the property’s surveillance system is set up. As I round the corner, I run into Ronan. He has his phone to his ear, but he holds his hand up to stop me.

"Yes, Father, I understand." He rolls his eyes. "The shipment needs to be clean. We can't risk another incident like last month."

I force myself to breathe normally, to keep my face neutral. I keep my head down, like any good subordinate would.

When he hangs up, he studies me, and my pulse kicks up wondering if this is the moment he realizes who I am.

“Have you worked for us before?”

I shake my head. “No, sir. I’m brand-new.”

His brow furrows. “Maybe we went to school together?”

Ice slides down my spine. We didn’t go to school together, but we knew each other as kids and later teenagers. We weren’t close. My brothers and I always thought Ronan was a prick. But our families were friendly. Hampton was my father’s friend. Or so my father thought.

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