“Oh,” she whimpered. I could tell she was close and didn’t want me to stop. I leaned down to her neck, hearing her breathe in my ear. Her sounds were going to play in the back of my mind like a damn broken record.
“Max, please,” she begged. “Don’t stop.”
I considered her request for a moment, taking in the sight of her, so vulnerable and desperate. I’d waited for what felt like years to have her right here, exactly where I wanted her, but I knew I had to make her wait; to make her want me more than she already did.
It was my turn to play a game—one I stood a chance in. I was serious when I said I wanted her to burn for me. I wasn’t going to let her have it easily.
“Liars don’t get to come, baby.”
CHAPTER 43
MAX
I’d dreaded this meeting the most.
The air was filled with flowery perfume—a scent that had become all too familiar. Heavy curtains blocked out most of the morning sun, which made the already dim room suffocating. The silence was broken only by the faint sound of traffic from the street below and the ticking of the clock on the mantelpiece. Time continued to tick past me without mercy.
“Max, would you relax?” Valentina urged in a slow, annoyed voice. “Have a drink, won’t you?”
I glanced at her, my jaw tight. “It’s seven in the morning. I don’t have time for this.”
Somehow, everything always came back to Valentina. She caused more problems than she was worth. But she knew too much, so I had to put my anger aside.
She smirked, relaxing her posture. She was always like this—seemingly at ease but ready to strike at any moment. “You’re marrying into a world of trouble. You’d better make the time.”
“Right,” I admitted, taking a deep breath. “Let me get on with it then. You attract bad attention, Valentina. And you drink too much,” I said, my voice firm.
A slow smile spread across her lips—the kind of smile that had the power to disarm most men. I wasn’t most men. “I attract attention, yes, but bad? That’s subjective, Max.”
“I need stability and predictability. You are neither.”
“Is that why you’re marrying her—for ‘stability’?”
I stepped closer, my eyes locking onto hers. “You know the stakes as well as I do. I’m not looking for salvation, just trying to keep the ship from sinking.”
She tilted her head, a mocking smile playing on her lips. “Because of the opium you’re transporting? Funny that you’re lecturing me on my bad habits when you clearly have your own to deal with.”
Her insults hit me like a dull knife, but the real pain came from the realization she knew about the opium.
“What do you know about the Americans, Valentina?”
She leaned forward, lighting the end of a cigarette. “What don’t I know about them? I know they work with the Feds. I also know they’ve been dipping their hands into your cookie jar for weeks.”
I narrowed my eyes. “And what do they want with you?”
She exhaled a plume of smoke, the faint glow of the cigarette illuminating her face. “They want what everyone wants, Max. Control. Power. They liked working with Cillian and thought I had valuable information for them.”
“Do you?” I asked.
She shrugged. “Depends on their offer.”
My head fell back, and I let out a dark laugh that vibrated deep in my chest. “Let me guess. Your silence has a price too.”
“I just want what’s mine, and in return, I’ll keep my mouth shut.”
“And what is yours?”
“My inheritance.”
