“You don’t know anything about me,” I hissed, keeping my voice down because I didn’t want his kind mother to overhear the venom in my words. “I’m completely spoiled. I was supposed to fly to the Caribbean for Christmas on a tropical island. With friends. We were going to party every night, bake in the sun, hop from island to island doing nothing but spending my father’s money.”
He shrugged, his eyes half-lidded. “Plans change.”
What an absolute bastard. I really couldn’t stand him. Not only was he terrifying, but he was a pain in the ass. Worse, heknewit. Even worse than that, helikedit.
He turned on the television as I sat there so aggravated that I couldn’t think of anything good to say. He surfed channels before settling on professional wrestling. Big, shirtless men in Speedos hammed it up on screen, throwing each other around and sweating a lot.
“You like this stuff?” I asked him loftily.
“I’m hoping you don’t.”
I gritted my teeth and bit my tongue on a venomous reply. Instead, I started watching men jumping off ring posts and body-slamming each other as if it were the most fascinating thing I’d ever seen. His mother came in carrying a tray with two steaming mugs of coffee, a tin of cookies, and a plate of crackers, meat, and cheese.
“Thank you so much, Mrs. MacCarrick.” I lifted the coffee mug to my lips with trembling hands and carefully sipped it. Good God, it was precisely what I needed. “You’re a lifesaver.”
His mother beamed. “You’re too kind, Sofia. But please, call me Fiona. If you keep calling me Mrs. MacCarrick, I’ll start to believe you’re as stubborn as Leon.”
I shot a look at him, my face blank but my eyes saying: “See? Even your mother knows you suck.”
Leon only grinned at me. I chose to ignore him and took a sugar cookie from the tin. My blood sugar was low, and the cookie remedied that. I made sounds that let his mother know how delicious it was and didn’t even have to exaggerate.
As Leon took his coffee, his mother noticed what was playing on her television. She frowned at her son. “Leon James MacCarrick. Iknowyou are not watching that trash when we have a guest.”
He sipped his coffee, his green eyes wide and innocent. “I’d put on something else, Mum, but Sofia’s a huge wrestling fan. She didn’t want to miss the Slamfest Championship. Something about how people getting hit with folding chairs has always been her favorite.”
I’d like to hithimwith a folding chair. There was never one around when you needed it.
“Oh,” Fiona said, looking at me speculatively. Was that a tinge of disappointment in her eyes, or was she worried I wasn’t completely right in the head? You’d think she would be used to it, having raised a kid like Leon. “Well then, you go right ahead, sweetie. I’ll be in the kitchen finishing up a little cooking. Will you two be staying for dinner?”
Leon opened his mouth to answer, but I was quicker. “I’d love to stay for dinner, Fiona. That is if it’s no trouble.”
A smile lit up her face. “Oh, no trouble at all. I love company. My boys are busy so often. Most days, it’s just the cat and me.”
Leon scowled. “You know I’m here as often as I can be.”
She patted his shoulder. “Of course you are, dear. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have quite a bit of cooking to do.” She smiled at me kindly. “I hope you’ll forgive me for being such a poor host.”
“Please,” I said, a little taken aback by how kind this woman was to a complete stranger. Maybe Leon only chased trashy women, and his mother knew I was way out of his league. “I hope you’ll forgive me for showing up uninvited.”
“Oh, don’t think twice about it, pet. You know what they say. May your home always be too small to hold all your friends.” And with a smile, she bustled out of the living room and back to the kitchen.
I ate a cookie and glared at Leon. “You’re making your mom cook for your hostage? What kind of son are you?”
He looked annoyed. “Spare me the judgmental eyes, Princess.” He gulped down coffee and set the mug down. He must have some high tolerance for pain because that coffee was hot. He glanced at me, frowning as if I’d been the one to do something wrong. “I need to make a call. Can I trust you to behave yourself?”
“Or what? You’ll tie me up in the guest bedroom?”
“I’m starting to believe that’s your thing. And hey, I’m happy to oblige.”
My skin went hot. I was certain I was blushing and hated myself for it. “I’d rather be devoured by rats.”
“You’re one of the kinkiest girls I’ve ever met. But to each their own.”
“Oh, honestly, fuck you.”
That made him laugh. I could not manage to get this guy’s goat, and he effortlessly got undermyskin. But come to think of it, this man had killed three people since I had the displeasure of meeting him. Maybe I didn’t want to get his goat after all. I felt safe here and now, but only because of his mother. After all, what kind of man brought a woman to his mother’s house and then murdered her there?
Or was this Leon’s way of proving to me that he wasn’t going to hurt me? I had no idea, but I felt like a pawn, moved around without knowing why or what was happening and having zero clue about the big picture.
