I came to her side and greeted her with a nod.
She looked slightly past me, as if she hoped her sister would be behind me. “You didn’t bring her?”
“Why would I?” She was my prisoner, not my woman.
Fender finished his conversation before turning to me. “Stasia is looking for you.”
I’d forgotten about her.
“Who’s Stasia?” Melanie asked.
I didn’t answer.
Neither did Fender.
“Have you come to a decision about Napoleon?” I asked, hoping he took my gut instinct seriously.
He nodded. “It’s fine, Magnus.”
I couldn’t hide my annoyance. “It’s not the right choice.”
“It doesn’t matter if it’s the right choice or not.” He quickly turned on me, raising his voice like he didn’t care if anyone overheard. “It’s my choice. Maybe I would value your input more if your decisions didn’t cause me to lose my entire camp, nearly all of my workers, and some of my guards.”
Melanie looked at the floor like she was the one on the guillotine instead of me.
Fender stared at me with a fiery gaze, like he dared me to respond.
“I’m just looking out for you—”
“If you wanted to look out for me, you would have let that cunt die the first time.” He walked away and pulled Melanie with him.
I stared at the spot where he’d just been, looking at the wall now that he was gone. I brought the glass to my lips and took a drink even though it tasted like garbage. I just needed to get something down to wash away the bile flooding my mouth.
A hand grabbed me by the wrist and dragged me away.
My eyes moved to the brunette woman in front of me, pulling me down a hallway and into a deserted room full of vintage wine, an overflow because the cellar down below couldn’t hold it all.
“What is it, Stasia?” I pulled my hand free once we were alone and looked down at her. Even in heels, she was still substantially shorter than me.
She had dark hair that was almost black, green eyes that were confident and playful, and full lips that were the perfect seal around my dick. She flipped her long hair over her shoulder. “What is it, Stasia?” she asked, mildly incredulous. “An odd way to greet the woman who lets you come in her mouth.” She crossed her arms over her chest, wearing a red cocktail dress with a single strap over her shoulder, short to reveal her nice legs all the way to her thighs.
“I… This isn’t the best time.”
“Fender piss you off again?”
He always pissed me off. “Something like that.”
A soft smile moved on to her lips as she came back toward me, her hands flattening against my chest so she could feel my hardness underneath. She crept closer, our noses touching, and then she kissed me, her hands sliding down to the front of my pants. With her full lips, she kissed me hard, pausing after the first embrace to savor the taste, and then she kissed me again, breathing deep like she liked it.
I kissed her back because it was muscle memory at this point.
Her hands undid my pants so she could have me. “I’m a little hurt that you’ve been here for a week and haven’t called…”
When her hand moved underneath my boxers, I pulled away.
Both of her eyebrows rose in surprise. “What’s gotten into you?”
I zipped up my fly and fastened the button. My thumb automatically went to my mouth to wipe away the lipstick she’d undoubtedly left there. My hands settled into my pockets next, and I kept my distance.
She crossed her arms over her chest and cocked her head as she regarded me. “Magnus?”
“I didn’t call because I didn’t want to.” I stared her down, eyes burning with fire, my voice ringing with authority.
Her playfulness evaporated when she realized this was serious and not just a mood swing. Her lips fell into a frown, and the confidence left her gaze. “I don’t understand…”
“There’s nothing to understand. We were fucking—now we aren’t.”
“We’ve been fucking for months, so that’s a bit abrupt, don’t you think?”
I looked at the wine display on the wall. I didn’t deny her just because I was in a bad mood, but that definitely made my reaction harsher. The second her lips were on mine, it felt weird, like she’d never kissed me before. I didn’t like it. Felt a little sick, truth be told. She wanted me because I was rich, powerful, and good-looking. It was an investment, getting into my pants and then my heart so she could have everything that came with me. It made me angry…because she didn’t know me at all. She didn’t know who I really was. “Not really.”
Her eyes narrowed farther. “A man only turns down sex with a beautiful woman for one reason…he’s already getting sex from another beautiful woman.”