He withdraws, and I moan, my body still trembling.He pulls us both up, flipping me around and dragging the jeans up over skin that’s already raw. The scrape makes me hiss, makes my knees buckle. I sway, wet hair plastered to my cheeks, chest heaving, legs weak in a way that’s not just from exhaustion.
“Walk.” His voice is gravel, and it vibrates down my spine.
I obey, stiff, furious, humiliated, my backside throbbing, the memory of his hand seared into me. I decide that I hate the forest. A lot. At this point, I’ll always wear his damn handprint on my butt. Lights gleam ahead through the trees, his men staying out of sight. How embarrassing. Under my breath, I make myself a promise. Justice might think he’s in control.
But one day soon, I’ll kill him.
TWENTY-ONE
Justice
For a smart woman, sometimes Ella is way too reckless. What was she thinking heading into the forest with armed men all around her? Her sense of self-preservation isn’t nearly what I expect. Plus, somebody shot a fucking missile at my place with her in the kitchen. I’m not sure who was the intended target. Could’ve been both of us.
I truly thought she’d behave herself tonight. The little brat.
She stomps inside my house and kicks off her boots, flinging mud. The woman is a mess. Leo follows her, looks around, and makes a beeline to hop on my sofa. He snuggles down and starts snoring instantly. Apparently fleeing my place took a toll on him.
“Go take a shower,” I order, needing to check in with my men.
Ella huffs, turning to face me squarely.
A knock sounds behind me and I turn, opening the door to find Wynd. He’s dressed in jeans and a dark shirt,no doubt patrolling the property. “I’m sorry to bother you, but I just got off the phone.”
Ella sneezes behind me. If she caught a cold from running from me in the forest, she’ll regret it. “Go take a shower,” I order. Again. “What call, Wynd?”
He keeps his gaze focused on me and not the disobedient brat by the sofa. “Since we’re having shipping problems, I’ve been in touch with the Kayrs operation, and they have some alexandrite.” Wynd winces, his deep eyes darkening as he avoids looking at Ella. “They’re willing to make a deal but want a stake in Malice Media in exchange.”
I bark out a laugh. “Dage is messing with you. If the Kayrs family wanted into the social media game, they’d already be in it.” Their powerful family has been around as long as mine, if not longer, and they stay out of the public light. Always. I wonder idly if they’re making a move with the missile and then quickly discard the thought. Dage Kayrs would come at me in full sight. “Return his call, tell him I’m dealing with some shit, and ask what he really wants.”
Wynd shrugs. “Dage is out of the country, and I’ve been dealing with Talen.”
Just great. Talen is Dage’s younger brother. I’ve never quite figured out their business structure, but after meeting Talen once, I figure he’s the enforcer like I am. If they want somebody dead, Talen seems like he’d do the killing and grab an ice cream cone on the way home. Though, he’s smart. It’s possible they want to know more about crystals and how to charge them. Something tells me the Kayrs family could do it. “That guy would rather have his kidneys removed with a rusty butter knife than deal with social media.” That much I can surmise. “He’s messingwith you and just wants money and not a social media platform. Probably a lot of money. Make a deal.”
“Okay.”
Ella sneezes into her arm.
“Bless you,” Wynd says.
I glance at her. We’ve been in the rain a lot lately. “Go take a hot shower.”
Wynd shuffles his feet. “Kaz also called in, and there’s some chatter about Ella’s unknown whereabouts coming from Rosalie Mooncrest. Alexei isn’t involved yet, but …”
“Got it. Thanks.” I shut the door and turn to face Ella. “Apparently you need to call your friend again and do a better job reassuring her this time.Afteryou shower.” I look pointedly at the mud she’s dripping on the wood floor.
She shocks the shit out of me and punches me right in the gut. Oh, her fist glances off. But my temper still explodes.
“Fine.” I drop my shoulder and lift her over it, allowing her to land hard and lose the air in her lungs. “I’ll put you in the shower myself.” The brat bunches her legs up, shoving her knees into my chest. I’m so over her attitude. I plant my hand on her ass. Hard. Once and then again. Her yelp is way too satisfying. Yeah, no doubt she’s sore from both spankings. Just what will it take to tame this wildcat? “I promise my hand will outlast your butt, so you might want to try a different tactic.” I stride through the house and up the stairs to my suite, kicking open the door and moving into the bathroom.
The place is all stone and wood with garnet and obsidian accents. I feel the power from both gems as I walk in, reach inside and twist the shower faucet, and ignore the struggling bundle over my shoulder. She’s too small to go around punching people in the gut.
Appealing, though. She’s fucking adorable with an exaggerated sense of her physical abilities. I’m starting to worry about her, and that won’t do. Oh, mentally she’s deadly. But physically she needs to learn not to punch people twice her size. I give her one more smack to the ass and flip her over, settling her inside the spray. One swipe of my hand has the shirt over her head, and I easily yank down the jeans, which she kicks toward me. They land in a wet slop at my feet outside the shower.
I can’t help but stare. Her eyes have gone a cerulean blue with temper as the water washes the mud from her tight body. High tits, pink nipples, toned abs. Probably earned running away from computer system facilities she’s hacked. Her skin is smooth and toned, and her legs long for her small body. I should leave her alone.
Then she punches me again. Aiming lower this time.
Shit. I slap her wrist away from my junk before she can make contact. “Damn it.” I step inside and push her against the far wall. “Fine. You obviously need assistance.” I tear off my shirt, kick my boots off, and rip off my jeans to follow them.
