Chapter 24
ELARA
It’s difficult to read Rhett as he cuts into his steak. He stares down at his plate like he’s trying to crack it with force, but the smile hasn’t left his face in almost twenty minutes. From the outside, we’re everything. On the inside, things are much more complicated.
“What do people talk about on dates?” I ask, smiling, smiling…
“Apart from—” When he cuts himself off, I know he was about to reference our macabre plan. “I’m not sure,” he goes on. “Favorite colors. Holiday destinations. The… future?”
“The future,” I mutter. “Now there’s an idea. I have to admit, I haven’t let myself think too deeply about that for a long, long time. Maybe you should start.”
“We’re in the same spot, beautiful. I’ve never given it much thought either. I’ve always lived day-to-day. My legacy, my future, what I’m going to do when I’m an old man… well, an even older man. Yeah, I’ve never really thought about that.”
“Maybe this is your chance,” I tell him. “Do you want a family?”
“I always thought I was too cold, too distant,” Rhett mutters.
“And since I started my current line of work…” A pause as we both silently acknowledge the fact he’s not talking about his bounty hunting.
“I always thought I was too dark. Too broken. Too corrupted by what I’ve done and what I’m going to do. ”
“You’re talking in the past tense,” I point out. “You thought you were too dark. Has something changed?”
He looks at me for a long time without saying anything. A tingle dances up my spine and settles between my shoulder blades.
“Has something changed?” He finally echoes. “Sunshine, everything has changed—” He stops, not giving me time to let the compliment fill me with love and belonging. His gaze moves across the room. “What the fuck…”
I turn and follow his gaze.
My heart clenches into a tight, painful fist in my chest. My stomach clenches like it’s trying to force vomit up my throat.
Lucian Conti is striding across the restaurant, head held high as if he’s not a man on the run. I move to stand, but Rhett tells me, “Stay where you are. He hasn’t got a weapon. Not one he’ll be able to get to before I kill him.”
“Someone’s going to call the cops,” I say. “Someone will recognize him from the news.”
Fear tries to tighten my throat as Lucian finally stops beside our table. He’s wearing a sharp black suit, which probably costs more than most people’s apartments. There’s a scowl on his face as he leans down, laying his hands on our table.
“Well, this is lovely,” he says, staring at me in a way I recognize well. It’s a look that says, If I can’t have you, bitch, then no one can.
I open my mouth to speak, but nothing comes out but a weak whimper, and I hate myself for it.
Rhett speaks through gritted teeth. “This is quite the play, Conti, showing up in public like this.”
Lucian nods. “Oh, sure, sure, I haven’t got long. But I need to know… what the fuck is going on here? All the smiling, joking, and bullshit. What is this? When did you meet? How long have you been dating?”
“That’s none of your business,” Rhett snarls. “You’ve got no right to come here, no right to even think about being in my Sunshine’s life again.”
When he says Sunshine, a look of profound hate overtakes Lucian’s face. He looks like a spoiled child whose father has just told him he has to share his toys.
“Sunshine, huh?” Lucian says, trying to stay calm even as he grabs thick handfuls of the tablecloth. The cutlery begins to rattle as his hands tremble.
Fear warps into hate as I glare at him, this man, this pathetic little weasel who took everything from me.
When I told Rhett I wanted his help so I could kill this man, part of me wasn’t sure I could do it.
But if someone put a gun into my hand right now, I’d pull the trigger without a second thought. I’d paint the walls with his brains.
“Aren’t you going to say anything?” Lucian says, turning to me. “I broke out of prison for you, sweetheart.”
Rhett’s eyes are scanning the restaurant, wondering if he can get away with killing Lucian here. The plan was to lure Lucian somewhere after the date. We didn’t think he’d be stupid enough to walk into a public place like this.
“You know I’ve been trying to make contact,” Lucian goes on, staring at me.
His voice breaks, something else I’m familiar with.
Lucian always had to think of himself as Mr. Good Guy when it came to his sick obsession.
Like I should be grateful for his attention.
“I wanted to see you… be with you. But now I see you’ve chosen this cop instead. ” He shakes his head in disgust.
Rhett widens his eyes at me, willing me to go along with this.
I swallow and prepare myself. Rhett’s right. If I play along, there’s a chance we can get Lucian out of here, lure him, kill him. End this, end him.