Page 12 of All's Fair In Love & War

I quickly sat up, my feet hitting the floor as I studied her. “Who the fuck are you?” I asked, looking her up and down, making sure she caught every ounce of attitude I had to offer.

The longer I looked, the more my lip curled in disgust. She was beautiful—fine in that effortlessly dangerous way. Andlisten, I’m not a hater, so I can admit that. However, her looks didn’t mean shit to me. I wasn’t paying attention to her beauty; I was clocking her features, and nothing about her face screamed Bulgari. She didn’t resemble that half-breed bastard upstairs, which told me one thing loud and clear—this chick wasn’t family.

So why the fuck was she here? And why would Khalil think sendingherdown to deal with me was a bright idea?

I might not be built for brawling, but I’d still claw that bitch’s eyes out without hesitation. Khalil might be tall, muscled, and caramel fine—okay, that’s not the point. The point is, he’s a man. I can’t take him. Buther? We’re even. And if she thought she was gonna walk in here and garner the same fear he does, she was about to catch a rude-ass awakening. I’d fold her like laundry on a Sunday.

She raised a brow, clearly entertained by my disrespect. “I’m the woman keeping the wolves at bay so your little ass can keep breathing. You should be bowing at my feet.” She slammed the door, leaned against it, and winked.

“You got the wrong one. I’ll never bow to a glorified whore with delusions of importance,” I replied, and the woman’s smile sharpened into something sinister.

“I’m a lot more than that, baby. I’m that bitch. If you dropped the attitude, I might teach you a thing or two.”

“Who the fuck said I needed your help?” I snapped because the bitch didn’t know who she was talking to.

She tilted her head, her eyes softening like she pitied me. “Nobody, baby. But if youdidn’tneed help, you wouldn’t be locked in this freezing-ass basement, barefoot in a damn bathing suit, looking like regret and three bad decisions stacked on top of each other.”

That touched a nerve, but I didn’t let it show. Instead, I kept my face blank and my arms crossed, so she’d know I was one bad mood away from turning this entire house upside down.

“Don’t worry about me,” I muttered. “I’ll survive just fine.”

She snorted. “Cute. But survival ain’t the same as winning. And right now, you’re losing—loudly. Throwing tantrums in a man’s house like you forgot where you are. Grow the fuck up. Learn to play the long game, or stay losing.”

“No, you won’t,” she said, cool as ever. “And surviving isn’t the same as winning, so grow the fuck up. Instead of throwing tantrums, what you should be doing is playing the long game.”

I rolled my eyes. “And I bet you think you’re the one to teach it to me, huh?”

She stepped closer, heels clicking, voice low and razor-sharp. “No, baby. I’m the one who decides whether you get a seat at the table… or end up under it. That’s why they sent me in here.”

I lifted my chin. “I doubt it, so be real. Why are you here? Did Khalil send you to babysit?”

She smiled—barely. “Nah. I was sent here to talk you into getting with the program.”

"And how areyousupposed to do that?" I snapped as I stood, preparing for war.

The woman arched an eyebrow and grinned. "Have a seat, baby. I don’t tussle. I get money, I dominate rooms, and I make men eat out of the palm of my hand. Fighting is beneath me. If I wanted to hurt you, I’d send the very man who’s holding you captive to do it."

“You mean my fiancé?” I asked, and I could tell by the expression that crossed her face that I’d caught her off guard.

However, she schooled her features so quickly that I thought that I might have been seeing things. “Yes,yourfiancé. And do you want to know why he would do what I say?”

“Why? Because you swallow his dick whole without choking?”

“That’s one of the reasons.” She shrugged with absolutely no shame. “But it’s not the most important one.

I raised an eyebrow. “Oh? Please enlighten me with your powerful pussy secrets,” I replied sarcastically, rolling my eyes.

The woman smiled, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Contrary to what you might believe, I don’t need to fuck Khalil to hold my weight. I know what keeps him up at night. I know what moves him, what rattles him, and what’ll make him snap. That’s not just pussy power, baby—that’s battlefield war strategy.”

“I don’t beg men to take me seriously. I don’t have to raise my voice, throw a punch, or flash my ass to get what I want. I walk into a room, and the temperature changes. That’s not sex appeal, sweetheart. That’s presence, and you, too, have what it takes. You just need to learn how to use what you have to get what you want.”

I scoffed. “Sounds like ego to me.”

She tilted her head. “Call it what you want, but while you’re busy trying to claw your way out of here with attitude and pride, I’m walking through front doors nobody thought I’d survive in. That’s the difference.”

I didn’t respond—not because I didn’t have a comeback, but because something in her voice soundedreal. She wasn’t performative, and her words didn’t come off rehearsed. What she’d said and how she’d said it told me that it was the truth.

The woman stepped further into the room, her arms still crossed, watching me like I was a wild animal.

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