Page 78 of Devil's Claim

My statement brought a laugh. “Alright. Why am I going with you? I thought I’d be locked in a room somewhere.”

Her antics were growing even more irritating. “Hardly. You’re going to be working there. I’m hopeful you can find something appropriate to wear.”

That caught her off guard. “What? Let me guess. You and your cronies own an elementary school and you’d like me to be creative in teaching the next generation how to wrangle the best drug deal. Maybe I’ll even throw in some classes about the best use of poison. Oh, wait. I forgot. You guys prefer methods of slaughter. Right? I could learn and become a full-service teacher. Imagine. Teacher of the year.”

I tamped down the anger even as my cock twitched. She had no idea what I wanted to do to her. “Genevieve handles various aspects of business consulting for struggling businesses.Some she purchases and makes needed changes. She’s also considering getting into the diamond selling business.”

Her laugh was unexpected. “Diamonds. You mean as in selling to swanky jewelry stores?”

“Exactly.”

“Fascinating. Very legitimate, but a perfect way of laundering money, especially since some of the finest jewels come from South Africa and certain small mines in Brazil. However, you should know that Russia is the top diamond mining country followed by Botswana and the Republic of Congo. While you might be able to wrangle deals, albeit dangerous ones from those countries, I doubt you’ll be able to work with the Australians or Canadians, numbers four and five on the list.”

I could barely contain a smile. “And why is that?” This would be the perfect opportunity to ask what she’s hiding from me and about her parents, but I preferred to know what I was dealing with before bringing the conversation to the table.

“Because they don’t take kindly to European swine determined to swindle them. You’d do much better importing your diamonds from smaller countries. While more dangerous, my guess is their operational skills and lack of governance will be more to your liking. In other words, you might be able to work a better deal.”

My look of surprise was obvious, which pleased her tremendously. “Impressive.”

“You mean for a little ole elementary school teacher? I do read, Kruz.”

“Nothing would surprise me about you.” Why was it that everything about her comment told me she had far more knowledge about subjects that she shouldn’t ordinarily be interested in?

“I’m glad to hear that. If you don’t mind, I am tired. I’d like to head tomybedroom.”

Mi pequeño pastelwas drawing another line in the sand. “Of course.”

She eyed me carefully before turning toward the door, every step full of tension. This was when I needed to put my foot down and help her understand a few things.

“One last thing, Christine.” I walked closer, noticing the clenched line of her jaw when she tipped her head. “Just a reminder that you agreed to come with me. You were not forced to do so. Now that you are in my house, I do expect you to be civil.”

“Alright. That I can do.” She started for the door again.

“I’m not finished yet. I realize everything that’s happened in the last few days came out of the blue and disrupted your life. You’ll need some time to process the events and your new life. I can respect that. However, you will be my wife and as such, you’ll be sharing my bedroom. With me. But I do want you to know I heard what you said about Maverick.”

She tipped her head further.

“I will make certain your son has no opportunity to locate anything considered toxic or dangerous. I’ll have my housekeeper install childproof components. All weapons will be locked away when not in use. I’ve also instructed Benito to havethe men keep their weapons out of sight. I know that’s not much, but perhaps that will give you some comfort. I promise you to protect him the best I can.”

Christine shivered visibly and that pained me. “Yes, it does. Thank you. If I agree to this deal, which now appears to include a job, I’ll want a significant salary with benefits.”

How could a man like me not smile from her twist on the deal? I should have expected no less. “You’ll need to talk with Genevieve about a salary.”

“No, you will. You created the deal, you’ll proctor the terms.”

“Alright. I’ll have a discussion with her. Anything else?”

She faced me fully, allowing her gaze to fall to the floor. The woman was calculating how much she wanted to push. I admired her spunk, eager to see what else she came up with. “That’s all for now.”

“Then I’ll need your answer and the final terms in the morning.”

“I’ll see what I can do. Now, I want you to know that while you may force me to become your wife, that will be in name only. That’s my promise to you.”

CHAPTER 19

Kruz

I’d been told more than once I was obsessive.