Page 32 of His Game (His Obsession 1)

She stared at me for a long moment, then picked up her fork and stabbed it into the broccoli with quite a bit more viciousness than was necessary, even if one wasn’t a fan of that particular vegetable. Without taking her eyes from me, she shoved it into her mouth and begin to chew.

"So," I began. "I've been thinking about things while you've been holed up in the spare room." Taking another bite of chicken, I made her wait as I chewed and swallowed. "I understand that it's not fair for me to make demands of you without offering you something in return. Therefore, I'm giving you this chance, this one chance, to strike a deal with me. So, tell me, Veda, what is something that you would like out of our arrangement?"

"I want to know how you plan to use me. And I want to live," she said immediately.

Although I had expected that answer, it still struck me dumb for a second when she said it. Letting her live...for now, yes. I needed her to live. For now. The first demand was harder to answer without giving away my answer to the second. "I want you to be your sister."

She didn't seem surprised by my response. "What exactly will that entail?" Lifting her fork and knife, she cut off another piece of chicken and put it in her mouth.

"I will need you to transform into Nicole. New clothes. New hair. Perhaps contacts, as I think her eyes are bluer than yours. Am I right?”

She nodded. “They are. She’s always been more…” she looked around for the word she was looking for, “vibrant than me.”

“I seriously doubt that,” I told her.

She harrumphed as she looked down at her plate and moved the broccoli around with her fork. “You didn’t know my sister.”

“I didn’t need to. I saw her interview on TV. It was enough to see she didn’t hold a candle to you.”

Her fork slowed, but that was the only reaction she gave to my honest words.

Seeing she was uncomfortable, I continued our original discussion. "Once everything is done, you'll no longer be Veda, except when we're alone in this house. As Nicole, you'll accompany me when I need you to, wherever I need you to, and you'll have nothing but fucking love for me when others are around."

"And then?"

Then you will die in front of the man I have grown to hate.I understood her relationship with her sister more than she knew. "I'm still working the rest of it out."

She didn't believe me. I hadn't expected her to. My Veda was much more intelligent than that. She caught my gaze, her trembling lower lip giving her away, despite the steel in her gray eyes. "I want to live, Luca."

But that was a very dangerous option for me, which meant it wasn’t an option at all…unless…maybe…there was something I could hold over her. "Your parents," I said. "Where do they live?" I threw it out there casually, taking a bite of my veggies.

Her fork dropped to her plate with a clang. "I'm not telling you that."

Ignoring her outburst, I briefly closed my eyes, savoring the taste of the food. The broccoli was steamed to perfection. "You have to give me something, Veda, for me to even consider this. If you were in my shoes, knowing what you know, and our places were reversed, would you just let me go willy-nilly out into the world again?"

I had to give her credit, for she thought about it. Really thought about it. She even managed to hold her composure as she said, "No. I wouldn't."

"Then you understand the position you're putting me in?"

She gave me a nod, her hands clenching into fists where they were resting on the table.

"Eat," I told her. After a few tense seconds, she did as I demanded, and I continued our conversation. "Let's set that one aside for now, to be discussed again at a later time. What else would you like?"

"My own clothes."

Ah, this one was easy. "Done. But you're only to wear them when you're here. From what I've seen of your sister, you two appear to have different tastes in clothes. When you go out with me, you’ll wear what she would.”

"We do," she admitted quietly. "She liked to think of herself as quite the fashionista."

"And what is your style, Veda?"

"Hot Texas Summer."

My lips twitched in amusement. "What else would you like?"

"I want to call my parents."

I started to shake my head, but she quickly jumped in.

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