I slap his back. “No!” But yes. Definitely positively yes.
He laughs.
Then I sober up, remembering what I was asking. “I want to find out who murdered my father.”
I lied there. I lied. Clay or his proxies did it. I want my revenge.
If I could see Clay dumped wherever those other pieces of garbage went, I would be happy.
“I will help you.”
“No ifs or buts?” I stare at his ass while I wait for his answer. He simply runs and runs, machinelike, and doesn’t seem to tire.
“One.” That sounds ominous. “One if. I get to have you.”
“Have…” I squeak out. “Meaning?” It’s obvious but I have to ask.
He halts, half-turns his head to speak. “To fuck. To bed. To do that whenever and however I want to. Give me that, and I will destroy your enemies. I need you, Hailey. I always have.”
“Always?” That word seems wrong. “Oh. My. This isn’t Armageddon. You want to put me down so we can talk properly? None of what you said is…” I struggle for the right word. “…normal.”
“Soon. I’ll put you down soon. Judging by the men that attacked you, you’re not up against some pansy outfit that will throw subpoenas at you. They’ll happily murder you. Say yes to my proposal, and I might be persuaded to do your laundry too.”
“That’s not a proposal! That’s—” Blackmail? Ridiculous? Tempting?
“Your answer?”
“I need to think on it.”
Seconds ago, I was rooting for some completely inappropriate fucking, considering the murders. What’s wrong with a temporary arrangement? What is wrong withmethat I’m considering saying yes?
How do I answer this?
The clincher—he is giving me a choice.
“Will you be honest with me, in everything?”
“Yes.”
And yet I. Just lied. To him. The irony is so thick I could spread it on toast. Maybe I’m the monster. Because Kail won’t be just another card in my hand. Or in my bed. From what he’s done tonight, he could be like a whole bunch of aces. I don’t know poker, so my analogy probably sucks.
“Thank you.”
“You are welcome.” He pats my butt.
Am I really contemplating a relationship with this frankenstruct? No. This is more like having a fuck buddy with warrior skills be my bodyguard.
Besides, we might be indicted for murder before the week is over.
At the next stop, when he lowers me to my feet I am flustered and surely blushing.
Stupidly, I dust off the seat of my pants, pretending dirt iscaught there. We both know he’s been toying with me for ages. Thirty, forty minutes? I’ve lost track of time, but the cloth of my pants must be showing the wetness, and my panties feel shamefully squishy.
I sweep a strand of hair from my face. We stand at the edge of the forest, and the house is not far below. Revenant sprawls beyond the rooftops, speckled with a few lights.
He said he always needed me.
Alwaysis a strange word from him. He was only recently created. Who is he really? What does he remember? I need to find that out. How does one discover the origins of a jigsaw man?
