Rust grins. “Your wish is my command, ma’am.”
I turn my back, trying to dislodge the stuck zipper on the messenger bag. “Maybe we can grab food on the way? I’m pretty hungry.”
“No! What are you—” Wolfe screams.
A bang deafens me. Ears ringing, I jump up and spin around.
Where Wolfe’s head used to be is now something resembling a burst watermelon, just with more skull shards and chunks of brain.
Oh God, the brains. I gag. They’re everywhere.
Brain chunks on the floor. Brain chunks on the wall. There’s even brain chunks on the fucking ceiling.
And blood.
So. Much. Blood.
“What the hell did you do that for?” I squeal as the headless body tips over, thudding to the floor
The satisfied smirk slips from Rust’s blood-spattered face. With the shotgun in his hands, he looks like a totalpsycho. Unfortunately, it’s kind of sexy and that makes it much harder to be mad.
“I took care of him like you said,” he mumbles sheepishly.
I slap my forehead. “I meant cut him loose like we promised!”
Rust scrubs a hand over the back of his neck. “Sorry, but maybe you oughta be more precise with your orders.”
“Fuck!” I shout.
“Look, I ain’t feeling sorry for this maggot. He deserved worse.”
“But we still needed the laptop passwords for the locked data from him!”
“We have the USD stick.”
“It’s USB! With a goddamn capital ‘B’, Rustin! And now we got a fucking body to dispose of…again! Look at all the blood! The brains! How are we supposed to clean his DNA off the floor and the walls and the ceiling and—shit!”
He gives me a look like a puppy that knows it did something bad. It’s cute. And effective. Damn, I hate that I can’t stay angry with him.
Shaking, I rifle through my purse on the ground and take out my cigarettes, lighting one. The first drag soothes my frayed nerves enough to respond.
“Fine. I admit I should’ve been a little more careful with my words. And the asshole deserved it.”
“Thank you! In my book, I did the world a favor,” Rust agrees. “And we still have the USB with the recordings and the files incriminating Dalton. I’d say we’ve come out on top.”
I bite down on my thumb. “So you thought I asked you to kill a guy in cold blood and pulled the trigger with zerohesitation?”
“I told you I’d do anything for you. Are you finally gonna believe it?”
Heat curls low in my belly. I’m shocked at my reaction, but lust is a welcome relief from the icy numbness.
My ex-husband is a terrible influence. His love crimes are slowly eroding my sanity and I’m here for it.
“Only you could make first-degree murder look sexy, Big Guy.”
His eyes smolder as his gaze rakes across my body. It’s like he can sense my arousal, like he’s a starving beast waiting to sink his teeth into me.
He plucks the cigarette from my fingers. “You gotta stop smokin’ when you get stressed. It’s bad for you.”
