Page 36 of Between Passion and Revenge: Part Two

“What? What are you?—”

“If you touch Keystone, if you buy it, you’ll find yourself connected to some shit you never thought you’d have to deal with.”

This part, also, isn’t a lie.

Shae stares at me hard, her mouth pressed together. I’d think she was completely unaffected by the news if not for the way the skin around her eyes tightens, and she loses some of her color.

After a tense stare-off, she says, “I don’t believe you.”

I look at her hard, battling back my frustration.

“I thought you’d say that,” I reply. Nodding in her direction, I say, “Keep the tablet. Go through the files. There’s a number there for Axel—he’s the one who found all the information and can hel?—”

She drops the tablet on the table.

“What the fuck do you want, Storm? Why are youreallyhere?”

There’s so much anger projecting from her right now that I have to bite back a grimace.

“Shae…it’s been so long. Too long,” I say truthfully, speaking from my heart. “And I’m sorry I hurt you.”

“Hurt me?” she rushes to add, leaning forward again in her seat and placing her hand over her chest. “You didn’t hurt me, Storm. You couldn’t hurt me. Not then and not now.”

I pull out every one of her tells, counting up the lies.

“We promised never to lie to each other, Shae,” I reply, my voice low. And there it is: another crack.

“That’s funny coming from the biggest liar I know,” she shoots back.

A slight bead of moisture in her left eye, but it disappears as soon as it appears.

“What do you want?” she repeats, her voice sounding tired, exhausted. She closes her eyes and crosses her arms over her chest, leaning back into the padded leather chair.

“I want to help you get out of this mess unscathed.”

“Oh, really?” she asks, the sarcasm dripping from her words so violently it feels like a physical thing despite the slight crack in her voice.

“Yes. I have a plan, but I’ll need you to agree quickly. We have to move fast to head all of this off and keep you safe. Will you hear me out?”

God, I want to touch her. I want to hold her. I want to draw her close to me and get more of the familiar fruity scent that’s now crossed with something new—something harder, darker.

Shae winds her hand in the air, telling me to get on with it. I smirk but straighten to prepare myself for her reaction.

“I want you to drop the Keystone deal and let the other buyer have it.”

NINE

SHAE

Iglare at him for almost a full minute, drawing out the negotiation tactic I learned during the trial by fire that was my first wealth management position. For a second, sheer panic flamed hot through my body at the idea that he’d decided to play Daddy to the twins and was now here to exact his revenge for my keeping him away.

But then I realized an important fact.

Storm had the opportunity to be in their lives when I reached out to him before giving birth. His silence was a clear and definitive answer.

So, I shove aside all fear and panic and submissive thoughts and stare my ex-lover down.

Storm doesn’t move. Doesn’t break.