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Men similar to Robert—the ones with unchecked power and fragile egos—always have a weakness. They can’t resist temptation. Especially when it’s packaged as a secret. A sin presented as a gift.

A mistress.

Robert doesn’t need to be threatened; he just needs to be lured, as Ellie had. He needs to be brought to his knees before he can even realize who is pulling the strings. I don’t waste time with elaborate planning as I did before. This was going to be simple.

I pick up my phone and open Robert’s public social media account. It’s filled with pictures of expensive cars and exotic vacations, but of course, photos of his girlfriend are nowhere to be seen.

I crafted my first message:

|Me: I don’t usually message strangers, but I couldn’t help but

notice how hot you are.

Shameless and bold.

To seal the illusion, I attached a photo. It’s an old one, taken in better times. I was on my knees, legs tucked beneath me, and my back arched just enough to curve into suggestion. The black lace thong hugged my hips, and the side of my breast was barely visible through a curtain of tousled hair that conveniently covered most of my face. It was seductive enough to intrigue.

I hit send and wait.

My entire body jitters as I watch the message status change from sent to delivered to read. And to my luck, it didn’t take long for the typing indicator to appear… disappear… then appear again.

|Robert: Fuck. Hey beautiful.

And to my joyous disbelief, the door to opportunity swings open.

The casualness of the reply said everything. This isn’t his first rodeo; he doesn’t know who I am, and he doesn’t care. I could be a bot or a murderer for all he knew, but he was ready to grab the bait. It was just the thought of a random woman wanting him; that’s all it took.

And just to prove how normal an occurrence this was, he followed up with his own photo. One of his hard dick. I’m not surprised.

I stare at the image on my screen for a long moment. There’s nothing remarkable about it. It isn’t small, but it isn’t big either. Just another man’s ego made of flesh, sent to a stranger without a second thought.

Unsure if it’s the emptiness that’s planted itself inside of me or just such a strong desire to get rid of Preston from my head, but I feel nothing when I see it. No heat or desire, just amused by how easy this is.

My brain, the traitorous thing that it is, conjured a fleeting image of Preston. I wondered how he would compare to his brother. My cheeks flush with shame once more as I clench my jaw and shut the thought down

|Me: Wow. You’re so big. I don’t know if I can take it all.

|Robert: We can find out.

His arrogance is laughable. He thinks he has me wrapped around his finger, but he has no idea that he’s already in the palm of my hand.

The conversation continues for another hour, each message pulling him deeper and deeper into my web. He’s drunk on power—on the idea that he can have any woman he wants with a simple message. It makes what I’m about to do feel like justice. Not for me, but for his poor girlfriend.

|Me: If I send you my address, will you come over?

|Robert: I’ll come over and then all over you ;)

I cringe through the disgust, but a smile quickly follows; I can’t help it. I’m holding the match over gasoline, and Robert is standing in the puddle. The thrill surges through me, the way I’m sure a drug would when the high hits.

He thinks his charm, his money, and his influence make him untouchable, but I’m about to prove exactly how fragile he is. I send him my address, tell him the door will be unlocked, and map out exactly where I’ll be waiting for him, ready to do whatever he wants.

I want him to walk through that door with the same smug confidence he has in the messages, and I want to watch it shatter.

The knife is already waiting, hidden at the foot of my bed between the mattress and bed frame. I placed it there days ago, not knowing when a moment would come up when I needed it. The blade is sharp, clean, and perfect for what I have planned.

Thirty minutes pass in a flash; from down the hall, I hear the door open, and I get a sudden jolt of energy. He’s here, and I have no doubt he’ll follow the instructions I gave him.

I move quickly, positioning my phone carefully behind my jewelry box and a stack of books, concealing it, but allowing the camera to capture every moment that’s about to unfold.