Page 26 of Depraved Devotion

“Is that a baton, or are you just happy to see me?”

“You’re one crazy motherfucker.”

I sit up on the bed and pucker my lips to blow him a kiss. “Yes, sir.”

He shakes his head, grumbling to himself as he stalks off. I lie back down, returning to my thoughts of Geneva.

I close my eyes, savoring the image of her fury. The fire in hereyes as they darkened, shifting from that soft brown to a cold, hard black. Revealing the darkness that lives in both of us.

I recall the way she stiffened when I mentionedhim. Mason. The name alone leaves a foul taste on my tongue like ash. If he wasn’t a tool needed to manipulate Geneva, I would kill him.

Once his usefulness is gone, all bets are off.

Her reactions this morning confirmed that she doesn’t feel anything for him. But I wasn’t just provoking her because I wanted to break her down—though I certainly enjoyed that part. No, it was more than that. I wanted to push her to tear him apart.

And to show him who she really is.

The glimpses I’ve seen of the real Geneva are beautiful. They’re raw, unfiltered, pure. When she lets go of the façade, when she stops pretending to be the calm, collected professional, she’s something else entirely.

She’s everything I expected her to be—and more. Enthralling. Captivating. I want to see her unravel, not just for me, but for herself.

Because I know, deep down, she’s dying to.

As I sit here in my cell, the thought of Mason being close to her, touching her, sharing the same space as her…

Fuck him.

He doesn’t know what she’s capable of. He’s too blind to see the fire beneath that ice, the part of Geneva that craves something deeper. Something darker.

The part that matches me.

The truth is there, gnawing at her like a parasite. She’s bored with him. Dissatisfied. She’s holding on out of fear, desperate for some sense of normalcy.

I roll onto my side, my eyes half-closed, a slow smile creeping onto my face. Soon enough she’ll break. Geneva will destroy him, and when she does, when she finally lets go of that safety net, she’ll realize that she’s been lying to herself and using him as a crutch.

And she’ll hate herself for it. She’ll hatehimfor it.

That’s when I’ll have her.

Because in the end, Mason will never be enough for her. He’s weak, ordinary, and she’s so much more than that. I’ve seen it. I’vefeltit.

He doesn’t deserve her. He doesn’t understand her. Not like I do.

She’ll never belong in that mundane world he offers her.

Geneva belongs with me.

CHAPTER 13

GENEVA

“I’m going to end it for good this time,” I say, my tone resolute. “I’m done with Mason.”

Sarah doesn’t laugh like I expect her to. Her silence lingers, and I can picture her on the other end of the call—brows furrowed, lips pressed together.

“I believe you,” she finally says. Her voice is steady, but there’s a heaviness to it. “It’s long overdue.”

She’s right. How many nights have I looked at Mason and felt nothing? How many years have I gone through the motions with men but not reallylived?