She huffs and sits upright. “I’m so fucking bored in this house.”
I arch an eyebrow and look at Caden, who just sighs.
“Maybe if you were a good little girl, Caden would give you some entertainment. He could put a TV up in here for you, give you some colouring books, whatever you wanted. But you want to be a little brat. Brats don’t get anything.”
She bites her lip and studies me, trying to determine if I’m fucking with her or not.
I don’t think she’s realised yet that it really is that simple. She could get anything she wanted from the broken man beside me, if she just behaved herself.
Finally, she gets up and walks out of the room ahead of us.
She goes to the office and sets herself up. Caden and I go sit on the sofa in the corner behind her, with a perfect view of the screens.
I lose interest after about thirty seconds and pull out my phone. Caden’s eyes stay glued to her and the monitors.
Caden leans across to me and quietly says, “Do you understand what she’s doing on there?”
I look up from my phone and study the screens. “Not one thing.”
“So she could be doing anything, right? You wouldn’t have a single clue.”
I shrug. “You gotta havesometrust. She’s still here, isn’t she? She could be doing a lot worse than feeding my dog and riding your cock while you’re unconscious. As annoying as she is, she is kind of complying. She makes money off these things too, remember.”
Caden tucks in his top lip, biting it.
I give his knee a tap. “Bro, you’re going to have a heart attack as well as a hole in your gut if you don’t take some deep breaths. She’s cool, don’t worry.”
He sits bouncing his leg and biting his fingernails. The man needs to meditate or some shit before his head explodes.
Eventually, Elodie prints some papers and brings them over to us. I take it for Caden and fold it up.
“All done?”
She nods, then walks out the room.
We follow her back to Caden’s bedroom, and she twirls on her feet, folding her arms at us. “Do the cameras have to stay on all the time?” she asks sheepishly. “Like when I wash and stuff?”
I flick my gaze onto Caden, who remains stoic. “Yes,” he says. “You did this to yourself, Elodie. You’ll be watched like a hawk.” He steps forward, raising a finger at her. “And if you even think for one second about hacking into them and shutting them off, I’ll hack into you. With the sharpest object available to me. Got it?”
I see her twitch at the threat, but she nods. “Yes. Fine.”
I almost stagger back. No argument? No stomping her foot and throwing fists?
Caden just takes a long breath in. “Good.” He drops his hand and straightens up. “I can… I’ll bring you a book to read. I have some.”
I throw a hand towards Caden, eyes widening in aSee?!gesture. She complies – he rewards. So simple.
She looks so taken aback by this. I can see her waiting for a catch or a “Sike.”
A few seconds pass, and Caden arches an eyebrow at her. “Is that okay with you?”
She stutters. “Yes. Thank you.”
Jesus, I feel like the whole fucking world just shifted on its axis. There’s been a glitch in the goddamn matrix because wasthat just a civil conversation passed between Caden Blackwood and Elodie Valor?
Caden nods and leaves, so I leave her standing dumbfounded at the end of the bed.
“Good for you, bro. Proud of you.” I slap his shoulder.
