Page 63 of The Torturer's Target

He wondered why he hadn’t been able to see how annoying she was during the early stages of their relationship. He would have saved himself the trouble of putting up with her craziness at the end of it.

She was unrelenting, and her hands were around Max's shoulders again. She batted her eyelashes at him in flirtation. “Hm, baby? Didn’t you miss me? I know you did.” She giggled.

“No. To answer your previous question, no, I’m not happy to see you. You’re ruining a perfectly good day, Mira,” he informed her reluctantly, shrugging her arms away and moving away from her.

She hurried to catch up with him and bumped into Tesiera, who’d just returned with his suitcase. Tesiera stepped back and acknowledged the woman with a polite bow.

“Who is this…” Mira ran her accusatory, judging eyes over Tesiera. “…woman?”

“None of your concern,” Max responded with an arch of his brow. He collected his suitcase and said, “Thank you. Are Bose and Clinton ready to leave?”

Tesiera gave a curt nod, completely ignoring the woman.

Mira stepped closer and held Max's shoulder. “I just got here; you can’t leave!” she whined.

Max turned to face her, irritation written all over his face. “I told you not to come here again,” he replied curtly.

“I know, I know. Okay, I’m sorry, babe, huh?” Mira wrapped her arms around his waist from behind. “But I’m here now, aren’t I?” Her voice took on a pleading tone, hoping to pacify him. Or guilt him.

Tesiera watched the scene unfold before her, taking in every detail. She couldn’t help but wonder who this Mira woman was to Max. An ex-lover, perhaps? The way she clung to him, all touchy-feely, spoke volumes about their past relationship. Max seemed to barely tolerate her presence, as if she was a fly and he simply didn’t have the strength to squash her.

“Boss?” the security guard interrupted.

“What is it?”

“Bose said he needed a few more minutes in the surveillance room, but he’ll be out as fast as he can,” Paul informed him.

“Alright. Tell him I’m waiting,” Max replied, dismissing the guard with a wave of his hand.

“While you’re waiting, your favorite girl will give you a massage. I know you overwork yourself, Max,” Mira drawled seductively, getting behind him after he’d settled down on the couch.

“You don’t give good massages, Mira,” Max said flatly.

She ignored him and began rubbing his shoulders. “I’ve improved. I’ll make you feel so good, baby.”

“Leave me alone, Mira,” Max ordered, turning to face her.

Mira folded her arms and pouted. “You’re being harsh, babe. That’s not fair. I wanted to surprise you, and I also came so that we could—” Mira’s words trailed off as she noticed Tesiera standing nearby.

“Why is she just standing there anyway?” Mira glared at Tesiera, her eyes dark with anger. “What is she?” Her tone turned venomous. “Is she your new whore?”

Max's calm demeanor vanished in an instant. “Do not speak about her that way.” He warned, his voice low and dangerous.

Mira seemed to realize she’d gone too far. “I’m sorry, babe, so sorry. I didn’t mean it,” she said contritely, turning to Tesiera with a forced smile. “Apologies.”

Tesiera simply ignored her and pulled out a stick of gum from her pocket, unwrapping it and popping it in her mouth. She chewed slowly, her eyes never leaving Mira’s face.

Mira hated being ignored and shot a deadly glare at Tesiera but refrained from cursing at her. She couldn’t afford to make Max angrier than he already was.

It grated on her nerves that the whore was so beautiful, and she couldn’t help feeling jealous. As a supermodel, she was used to being the center of attention, but with this whore around, she felt like she was fading into the background.

“Can’t she get out and…I don’t know, go stand guard somewhere else? We need some privacy,” Mira suggested with a fake smile.

“No, we don’t. Mira, meet Tesiera Anderson, my protector,” Max introduced the women. “Tesiera, meet my ex–girlfriend, Kamira McDonald.”

Tesiera inclined her head, but was otherwise indifferent.

“Oh, she’s your bodyguard?” Mira regarded the woman with derision, but her jealousy had largely dissipated. This woman was definitely not in Max's league; Mira had nothing to worry about. Bet she is just another leech that glommed onto him.

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