Page 96 of Devil's Claim

“No, you’re more like the antichrist.” He had no idea what to make of my statement, but if I wasn’t mistaken, I noticed a flash of something akin to pain in his eyes. “I was kidding, although you are a dangerous man. I can’t forget that.”

“Do you honestly believe I’d hurt you or Maverick?” He rubbed his bent finger from one side of my jaw to the other.

“That’s not the kind of danger I was talking about.” Before he asked, I pushed my glass aside. “Do you have the final draft of the contract?”

I could tell he was disappointed. At this point, I didn’t want to get too comfortable with him. Genevieve had offered a few pieces of advice and for several reasons, including that she was a badass, I chose to trust her. One was that whatever was going on with Kruz, I needed to handle business first. Doing so the other way around would make the business aspect of our relationship complicated.

I’d almost told her it was too late, but even though he looked edible, I was holding my own. Meaning I wasn’t interested in engaging in anything passionate. I took that as a win. Second, she warned me that Kruz was the most self-absorbed man she’d ever met. While she hadn’t gone into any explanations, I’d taken that to mean he had no interest in developing a strong relationship with anyone, in business or pleasure.

What I couldn’t tell anyone, especially Genevieve, who was now my new boss, was that her words brought a wash of sadness. The whirlwind of caustic decisions and actions had yet to allow reality to sink in. Until her words. Finally, I’d pushed aside thefantasy about finding the perfect man and falling in love, living happily ever after.

Being with Malcolm should have done that, but no, I’d been a glutton for punishment. No longer. This was a business arrangement, a way to ensure Maverick had an amazing life and could do anything he wanted to do.

Nothing more.

Kruz seemed unnerved that I was pushing hard to finish the business he’d told me we’d come to discuss in the first place. Maybe he was just such a control freak that he hated that I was taking the lead. He’d better get used to it.

“What is your position within the Morales-Torres Empire?”

That wasn’t the official name and I heard the disdain in his voice. “Vice president.”

He snorted. “So Jago was right.”

“What was he so right about?”

He pulled a group of papers from his briefcase, sliding them in my direction. “That Genevieve was determined to make you an executive.”

“Don’t you think I can do a good job?” I was mostly teasing although I didn’t appreciate his sudden aloofness.

I was shocked when he suddenly wrapped his huge hand around mine, leaning in far enough over the table I gathered a whiff of his drink.

“You can do anything you set your mind to. However, I don’t like you taking the job,” he gritted out. Jesus, if his eyes weren’t burning a significant hole in mine.

“You all but told me I had to take the job.”

He squeezed my hand almost to the point of pain. “I was wrong.”

“I thought you were never wrong.”

“Don’t push me, Christine. We’re not playing a game.” Tonight, his voice was gravel and smoke from anger.

“Isn’t that exactly what we’re doing? Both you and Genevieve are happy to use what I know about diamonds and the relationship between my father and Skyler Worthington to your benefit. In turn, I’m going to get exactly what I want. Stone cold revenge. Isn’t that a win-win?” I purposely pulled my hand away. “Plus, I was able to prove how much of learning about my father’s craft I was able to maintain. That makes me a real asset to this great big dangerous empire. Worth its weight in… diamonds. Don’t you think?”

He slowly sat back in his seat, this time reaching for his glass instead of my hand. However, he was purposely tapping his finger on the rim while I glanced at the contract. Just skimming the paragraphs, I was easily able to see most of the first page was basic legalese. I’d seen more than my share of contracts when I’d worked with my father, even though I’d tried to forget everything I’d learned.

“Very clever, Christine. However, I’m certain you’ll find the terms, most of which you’ve already established, agreeable.”

“I’m certain I will. You’ve already determined I’m not the pushover you initially believed.”

I flipped to the second page where more of the meat of the contract was spelled out. His silence was followed by heavy breathing.

Lifting my head, a cold shiver skated down my spine from the way he was looking at me. “What?”

“I never said you were a pushover, Christine. Quite the opposite.”

There was no reason to acknowledge what he was telling me. I continued reading. “Do you have a pen?”

“Why?”