He was too much of a coward to wear it proudly the way I did mine.
“Are we going to take it back?” Heath asked.
“Eventually.” I wanted Lucian to get attached to that diamond, treating it like his brother’s soul. That would make reclaiming it all that much better—because it actually meant something to him. I knew his brother’s death haunted him, had moved him to tears at his funeral. Truth be told, his brother was the only real friend Lucian ever had.
What a shame.
“Then what’s going to happen at the opera?” Heath asked. “Just a little intimidation?”
“Something like that.” Just when he was most relaxed, I would make my appearance. It was always the best way to piss off an enemy, to continually catch them off guard so they would know you had all the power. I could easily shove a knife into his gut or squeeze the trigger of my gun, but I never did. That made it more terrifying because I would execute him eventually.
But when?
“What do you want me to do?” Heath asked.
Very few people knew I had a twin. I kept it a secret for a reason—so I could use it at my own convenience. “We’ll play a few games.”
My brother grinned. “Make him think you’re in two places at once.”
“Exactly.” I finished my scotch and wiped my mouth with the back of my forearm.
“Why are you letting this go on for so long?” Brutus asked. “You’ve never taken this long to finish a kill.”
I stared into my empty glass, only drops of the amber liquid left over. “Because it’s more fun that way.”
I drove back to my building late in the evening.
My phone still had no activity from the one person I wanted to hear from. Just before I pulled a stunt, the adrenaline pumped in my veins and I had the urge to fuck hard—harder than usual.
But she was one stubborn woman.
Heath looked out the passenger window. “Cassini is pretty sexy.”
He was lucky I was driving. Otherwise, I would smash my fist into his eye. “Be careful, Heath.”
“It was a compliment.”
“Which is why you should be careful.” I turned left and headed toward the compound.
“It’s hard for me not to notice her charms when you’re fucking her up against a Bugatti.”
I gripped the steering wheel tightly, pissed that my brother had watched the whole thing. I should have turned Cassini down, but when she pretty much begged me to fuck her, I couldn’t say no. No wasn’t in my vocabulary when it came to her. “I’ll drive this truck straight into a tree, asshole.”
“Just make sure your dick still works…otherwise, Cassini will be disappointed.”
I yanked on the steering wheel and drove right up the curb toward a large trunk.
He chuckled then yanked the steering wheel back so we returned to the main road. There were no cars on the street at this time of night, so we weren’t swerving into traffic. “It’s always been impossible to make you angry…but now you have a weak spot.”
I did have a weak spot—for a woman.
“It’s been going on for a while now.”
About a month.
“Tell her to leave her husband.”
She wouldn’t leave him even if I asked her. Her duty bound her, and I had nothing substantial to offer her. I would fuck her until I grew tired of her then dump her. She would have no money or protection, so she wouldn’t survive long. “No.”
“You actually like this woman.”
“I like fucking her—there’s a difference.”
“Yes. But if I made those comments about anyone else, you wouldn’t have tried to crash into a tree. You already laid down your hand, Balto. You’re holding a royal flush, and we both know it.”
I kept my eyes on the road and ignored the truth of his statement. If she really did mean nothing to me, I wouldn’t have risen to his taunts. He’d outsmarted me and trapped me—and we both knew it.
“Kill the husband and make her yours.”
“She doesn’t want me to.”
“A woman doesn’t get fucked up against a car like that unless she’s a whore—or she really wants you.”
There was no doubt she really wanted me. I could feel it anytime I was inside her pussy. “Drop it, Heath.”
“Whatever,” he said as he looked out the window. “Just trying to help.”
“By pissing me off?”
“By proving this woman actually means something to you.”
I showered then got into bed.
My phone was in my hand, and I stared at the only picture Cassini had ever sent me, the one with her fingers down her panties. With perky tits in perfect view and sexy olive skin, she was every guy’s fantasy.
I just wished I had new pictures to jerk off to.
Since it was Friday, her husband was probably gone.
But she still didn’t call me.
Maybe this really was over.
Could I let it be over?
Should I dig until I uncovered every piece of information about her? Then I could show up at her doorstep, shoot her husband between the eyes, and then fuck her on his bed? I had an impulsive need to claim her as mine, to prove she didn’t belong to that man simply because of a marriage license. She belonged to the man whose dick she came around.