“I think you’re a waste of time,” Pandora says, looking me up and down. “You won’t hold his interest for longer than a week, just like the others. So the fact that he’s asked all of us to doyoua fucking favor is absolutely laughable.”
“I don’t want you to do shit for me.”
“Doesn’t matter what you want. Only matters whathewants.” She glances at him, and now her expression changes. Her eyes widen, and she swallows hard as she goes just a little sickly green.
I turn and see that Mateo has his gun pointed at Pandora’s head, his face a mask of pure fucking rage.
“You’ve crossed one too many lines, Dora.”
“I didn’t know she was that important to you,” she insists, her voice full of desperation. “Please, I’m sorry, I?—”
“I’d really rather kick her ass than have you shoot her,” I say conversationally, but then lift a shoulder. “Have you fucked her?”
Pandora licks her lips and her cheeks darken, and there it is.
“Oh, you did. That’s why you’re so fucking jealous. I get it, he’s an amazing fuck.” I nod and then step closer to her. “But do you want to know what’s evenbetter? He takes such good care of me, it’s insane. Anything I want or need, it’s mine. And I don’t need much. He listens to me, which is rare in men these days, and he plays with my hair, and that’s one of my favorite things,ever. His penthouse is so freaking comfortable and?—”
“You took herhome?”
I grin, enjoying myself. “Yeah. He did. I live there now, actually.”
She shakes her head in disbelief.
“And I’m not someone who takes pleasure in seeing another woman hurt. It really pisses me off, if I’m being honest. Because all you had to do was be cordial. Not my friend, just decent. Instead, you called me names, and I don’t like that.”
“Just tell me what you want me to do with her,” Mateo says, his voice hard and devoid of emotion.
“But we go way back!” Pandora rushes to him and grabs his arm, and I lift an eyebrow.
“You’ll want to take your hands off my man before I remove them from your body.”
Christ, I’ve been hanging out with gangsters for too long.
“I want her gone, but not dead,” I reply. “I don’t like you having women around that you used to fuck. Turns out, Pandora’s not the only jealous one in this room.”
“Go,” Mateo says.
“But, I live here, and I?—”
“Not anymore. You’re done, Pandora.”
Her jaw drops in shock. “This business will crumble without me, and you’re going to throw away a decade of friendship for this little slut?”
He’s fast.
He rushes her, has her off her feet by the throat and pinned to the wall in a heartbeat.
She’s struggling to breathe, pulling at his arm, but there’s no way she can move him.
“She’severything. You’re nothing, Pandora. I’m about three seconds from snapping your neck. Would you prefer that?”
She barely shakes her head no, and he drops her, and then she scurries out the door, holding her neck as she goes.
With his eyes on mine, still so angry that I wonder if he’s mad at me, he pushes a button, and seconds later, Snake walks in.
“Get Steven in here.”
“It’s his night off.”
