“Nowyouhave some lass’s name actually stamped on your spine,” I grinned. “That’s for carving your name into my pricey dildo.” Leanne burst out laughing. Tim just shook his head.
“Baby, you won’t get a single complaint outta this sod.” He grabbed my face and kissed me, and I hiked my bare leg up to his hip.
“Take this off. I can’t do it, I’m scared.”
He smiled against my mouth and nipped my bottom lip. “Who’s the pussy now? Takin’ shit ‘offa you is my favorite activity.” I reached into his hair, jerking his head back. “Yes, ma’am.”
I felt the towel peel off and gulped as he eased my leg down and turned me back towards the mirror. “Oh…my gahh…”
A pink milkshake in a classic glass. Bloody whipped cream that dripped off the sides…and an equally bloody butcher knife where a straw should be. At the base of the glass? A bug. Upside-down, legs in the air…with guts. “That…that’s a squished bug. In case you were wonderin’.” I thought about how my seat bounced the day he showed up at Desiree’s. About how this all started. About the dock. The penny. The life he happily gave up to make a real one with a nobody. How this fool fills every broken crack in me and makes me into the person I didn’t know I was. I didn’t realize I had a tear running down my face until he wiped it. “Oh, no…you hate it.”
“No, no…I—I love it.”
Tim looked almost disappointed behind me, and Leanne, well…she gets it. She pursed her lips and shooed my artist out of her space to give us a minute alone.
“Do you really? I did good?”
I sniffled and buried my face in his neck. “For once? Yeah…you did fucking perfect.”I should have never let you leave that coffin. I hope you never do.
Time to tell him what he got wrong. Tonight.
Malek’s eyes look heavy. He’s never watchedTitanicall the way through, and I’m dying to hear him over-analyze all the reasons why Jack would have fit on that damn piece of wood…but I don’t think he’s gonna make it. I pointed the remote at the TV, and he opened his mouth in silent shock at my audacity right before the screen went black. Now I’ve got a very green glare.
“I was watchin’ that. Wretch.”
“No, you werewatchingthe back of your eyelids…and jerking your legs. It’s your tell.” He adjusted himself next to me and nuzzled in, getting comfortable on top of his new favorite spot—my squashed boobs.
“Lies.”
I dragged my fingers through the thick of his hair, wondering how, even now, his insufferable ass can still resemble a newborn when he’s this close to sleep. It infuriates me. How can an outright rugged man look this peaceful, and we always look like Hagrid’s fuckingdogwhen we’re asleep? Life is utterly unfair.
“We need to talk,” I whispered, making another pass through his hair. Well, that did it. Instantly awake…like I just injected him with espresso. His head raised and he looked like he was about to throw up.
“The last time you told me that…was goodbye.”
“Well, it’s not goodbye, but it might still pierce your fragile ego.” I smirked, and he adjusted himself on an elbow to get a handle on how invested he was about to be in this conversation. Honestly, I could have picked a better spot than the coffin, but…I did it for a reason.
“Intrigued. And terrified.”
I relaxed against the throw pillows. “Our little agreement was about as done a few months ago…as a raw chicken.” His eyebrows lowered, knotting in the middle. I expected it.
“Whadd’ya mean?”
“I mean…I shouldn’t have let you walk outta here, because you were wrong. The deal was a deal, but…we didn’t finish it, Malek. You said seven cleans. Seven jobs. You shouldhave stayed. Because it wasn’t until the night you left that the deal was done.”
“I know I’m thick, lass…but I don’t understand.”
I smirked. “Conor doesn’t count.”
His neck craned back, and I don’t think his eyebrows can go much lower. He’s thoroughly confused. “That’s shite. He absolutely does! I even gave him to you as a gift!”
“Which I didn’t accept. Or clean. Who buried that body?”
His throat ticked, and his mouth hung open, all the wheels turning in that stupid ginger head. “But—right, I…I guess—”
“He was never on the list.”
Malek sighed, dumbfounded. “No, I guess he wasn’t.”
