His smirk deepens. “I’m just mirroring your behavior.”
My brows draw together. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Yes, you do.” His foot starts to move, sliding up and down the inside of my thigh. My muscles go rigid. “You’re being rude by ignoring me. I’m a guest.”
“You’re not a guest,” I say shortly, unable to think with the way he’s caressing me. I should shove him off. It’d be easy enough. Why am I not doing it? This is the thing with Neo; he makes it impossible to focus. Impossible to think. “You’re an imposition.”
Neo’s foot falls away immediately. “Wow. I knew you were an asshole, but that’s low even for you.”
I run back over the words, trying to locate the insult. “Having you here isn’t easy. You’re intent on making my life a misery. Surely you must know that?”
There’s a change on Neo’s face. A curl of his lip that I’ve never seen before. It unsettles something in my gut, but I have no idea why.
“Understood,” he says in a clipped tone. “Thanks for clueing me in. I’ll fix it.”
He’s gone from the kitchen before I can blink. I stare after him, wondering why there’s a pit in my stomach.
I try to shake off the unease as I walk to my office. This is just another step in Neo’s game. He’s probably expecting me to chase him down and insist he explain himself.
I won’t give him the satisfaction. No, I’m going to work until lunchtime. That’ll show Neo that he’s not calling the shots here.
The monster rattles his cage, but I ignore him.
Something that’s getting harder to do with each day that passes.
The situation doesn’t enter my mind again as I lose myself to the mountain of emails. Neo has cleared at least a month’s worth, but there are always more arriving. It makes me want to crawl under my desk and press my hands over my ears.
I don’t, though. I could never do something so…unexpected.
I massage my temple, not blinking until my office door slams open. It’s shoved with such force that it ricochets off the paneled wall.
I raise my head, expecting to see Neo, or perhaps one of my brothers. But it’s Ansel who’s glaring at me from the doorway. “What did you say to him?”
I frown. “To Cade? Nothing. I haven’t even seen him today.”
“Not Cade,” Ansel says from between gritted teeth. He steps up to my desk, fists clenched. I’ve only seen him this angry at Candace. It’s not frightening, but very out of character for someone who looks so angelic. “Neo. What the fuck did you say?”
Just the mention of his name has my monster shoving against the bars. I go to retort, ready to remind Ansel that it’s none of his business. But, like he knows what I’m thinking, Cade slides into the room. He doesn’t say anything, but he doesn’t need to. The way he’s palming his dagger delivers his message for him.
If I upset his butterfly, I’ll pay for it in blood.
I take a breath, tightening the cage. “I just reminded him that he’s a guest here.”
Ansel grips the back of the chair opposite my desk so hard that his knuckles go white. “What did you sayexactly?”
Alarm starts to prick at the back of my neck. “I mean…I think I called him an imposition.”
Cade gives a low whistle from the doorway. “Fuck, Wylder. That’s cold, man.”
My eyes widen. “What? Why? Neo knows he’s making my life miserable with his antics. He does it on purpose. He does itwitha purpose.”
Miserable? Is that really what you’re feeling?
Ansel turns to Cade, his voice rising in disbelief. “He can’t honestly be this stupid.”
My nose wrinkles. I’m far from stupid. I have the Mensa membership to prove it. I’m a genius, just not in this area apparently.
“He’s emotionally stunted,” Cade murmurs, tugging Ansel into his arms and kissing his temple. “Needs things explained to him like he’s five sometimes.”
