Page 37 of Heart of Stone (Dark Billionaires)

Kate had never realised how much she moved her fingers before.

Brit, the special effects make-up artist, had worked until Kate could barely look at her own hands without feeling unwell. “They’re disgusting,” she grimaced.

“Then they’re doing their job well,” Brit smirked crookedly, her tattooed hand working overtime tending to Kate’s own.

Despite the fact that she knew well and good that all of her fingernails were attached, the sight of the wet, bloody mess that Brit had created still made her shudder. In the mirror, a black eye stared back at her, swollen and painful-looking. She’d had to change her clothes too. Gone were the clean, fashionable items that she’d been given, replaced by dirty rags that she’d been assured were cleaner than they looked.

“How long?” Brax leant in the doorway, his jaw locked.

Brit tilted her head sideways, her long, straight ponytail falling to the side. “Don’t rush me, babe.”

The growl Brax released would have had Kate shrinking in her seat, but Brit didn’t appear to be affected by it.

Seeing Kate’s worried look, Brit patted her arm. “Don’t worry. He’s a big teddy bear. Last night he had a tea party with our little girl.”

“At a full sized table or a children’s one?” Kate asked. Please let it be the latter.

“A bright pink children’s one. He had to sit on the floor. It was adorable.” Brit smiled, giving her husband a loving glance. “I don’t know how the two of us managed to produce a girly girl. Did you know he used to work as a security guard for a metal band?”

Envy stirred beneath her. Not for Brax. God, if Kate was married to Brax she would shit herself every time he walked through the front door. But for the easy bond they seemed to have. The hidden smiles when they thought Kate wasn’t looking. “Is that how you guys met?”

Brit’s grin was nostalgic. “Yeah. Going on fifteen years ago now.”

“I still had all my hair,” Brax joined in. His phone briefly buzzed before he shut it off.

“It was down to his waist at one point,” Brit revealed, her lip piercing twitching as she smirked.

Kate’s mouth fell open. “Really?”

“It had to go,” Brax said sadly. “I would have looked like Bill Bailey had it gone on much longer.”

Brit’s sigh was nostalgic. “It was fun to hold onto though.”

Kate’s eyes widened awkwardly, suddenly looking anywhere but at Brax or Brit. If only she had a free hand to fan herself with. She glanced down and her embarrassment was doused like a swimming pool falling onto a candle.

“I think Kate’s horrified by that image,” Brax chuckled.

She shook her head. “No, I just accidentally looked at my own fingers again.”

Brit snorted out a laugh. “Don’t worry. You won’t have to look for much longer. You’re all done.”

“Now remember,” Brax said, walking both his wife and Kate through what looked like an abandoned restaurant, “you say the wordWarrentwice in a row, and I’ll pull you out of there immediately.”

“And I’m okay with you grabbing or shaking me,” Kate replied. They’d been through this a hundred times, and the covert words to use.Stopfor ‘keep going.’Don’t hurt mefor ‘I’d like you to stop what you’re doing, but I’m fine to keep going otherwise’. “Or grabbing my hair.”

“But grab it at the base, Tommy. Otherwise it’ll actually hurt her.”

“I remember,” he grumbled.

Kate turned to look at Brit. “His name is Tommy?” A grin grew over her. “That’s unexpectedly sweet.”

“Hence why I go by Brax.” He stopped in front of a door with a long silver handle. Talbot, one of the men who had been at her father’s house that night with Brax, stood in front of it, but there was no malice in his expression today. Instead, he simply nodded at her kindly. “Right,” Brax announced. “He’s in here.”

“Good luck,” Brit smiled.

“Thank you for your help,” Kate replied, taking a deep breath. “And for helping me get out of the house without Warren noticing.”

Brit waved a hand. “Don’t mention it. It was a nice change from doing wedding and party make-up.”

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