Page 10 of Devil's Claim

“We’re making small talk now?”

“Would you prefer to remain in silence?”

Jesus. Why did his voice have such a tremendous effect on me? I was still pulled into his web, constantly aware of how good looking he was and how much my pussy throbbed every time he spoke. “I’m a waitress, not by choice, but by necessity.”

“Why?”

“Okay, Mr. Dangerous. I was a teacher and I loved my job. It was all I’d ever wanted to do, but there were budget cuts and since Iwas relatively new, my career was tanked. Poof. Out the window. I tried to find a new job, but if you know anything about Miami, you’d know how tough the market is. I settled on waiting tables at a local diner serving as a dive bar for winos and men looking to find a hookup for the night. Don’t worry. I’m not that kind of girl.”

Why was I bothering to tell him anything?

“You seem like a nice girl.”

“I try to be, but the world has tested me over the last few months.”

“Why Mr. Dangerous?”

I snapped my head in his direction. “What would you prefer I call you? Spanish boy? Killer? You won’t tell me your name, not that it really matters. Come to think of it, if you’re going to kill me, why can’t you have the decency to tell me your name?”

His narrowing eyes meant he was getting pissed with me. I wanted to tell him to take a number.

“I’m not going to kill you, Christine. My name is Kruz.”

“Kruz. Not something that fits with a Harley-riding bad guy. I like it.” There was something in the depth of his eyes that changed, as if he never received compliments. “I meant that in a good way.”

“I know.”

“A man of few words.”

“It allows me to survive.”

“I won’t ask you what you do. I’m certain you won’t tell me.”

“I’ll just say no one should ever cross me. Under any circumstances.”

“That much I understand.”

The wine was tasting better and better, even if a slight distaste remained in my throat. I swallowed the surge of conflicting emotions, still at a loss as to why the fear I had wasn’t as much about him killing me, but about the desire ripping through every cell.

He was truly a beast of a man, but I sensed something deep inside him, maybe a longing to care about someone.

There you go making up fairytales again. Knights in shining armor don’t exist.

No, they didn’t. I’d found that out the hard way, not only through direct interaction, but through despicable actions in a system that was supposed to protect me.

As well as those I loved.

I hung my head, staring at the remaining liquid in the glass. Before I knew what was happening, my captor had refilled my glass. Who did that after they broke into a person’s home, brandishing a gun at them?

Whatever the reason, I was grateful and took another swallow.

Then another.

With nothing but a stale muffin in my stomach, I was quickly feeling no pain. Maybe that was the best way to be. While he remained as silent as a church mouse, I tried to figure out what my guest wanted with Tonya. “It’s because of her mafia connections. Right?”

His eyes were pinned on me again, or maybe they’d never left. “Meaning?”

“That’s why you have a beef with her. Her father is supposedly some notorious mafia man. At least that’s what is whispered behind her back. Plus, she has more money than God and while she runs some influential blog or something, I’ve never seen her actually put in a day’s work.”

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