Page 24 of Exiled Heir

“Servants can only sell what they know. He took you to two people I already know he’s on the payroll of.” Cade turned away, examining himself in the mirror. He no longer looked gray; the flush had returned color to his skin.

He turned his arm in the mirror, looking at the tattooed lines.

“Is this going to be a problem for us?” I asked. “You keeping all the cards to yourself? I can’t help you if you aren’t straight with me. It’s dangerous for both of us.”

“Are you afraid of danger now? Weren’t you Declan’s enforcer before he decided to kill you?” Cade adjusted the fall of his bangs on his forehead. “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of getting hurt.”

A flare of anger made me fist my hand, banging my closed palm against the door. Cade glanced at me in the mirror before returning his eyes to himself.

“I’m not afraid of a little pain, but you said you trust me. Either you trust me, or you were lying,” I said. “It’s that simple.”

It was not that simple, and the words were acid on my lips. If he had even the faintest idea of who I was, who my parents were, then he wouldn’t throw me to the wolves; he’d kill me himself and hand what was left to Declan. He had no reason to trust me, but still I was hanging on what he was going to say next.

“I trust you. Everyone else here has games they’re playing. You’re the only one whose price tag I’m sure of.” Cade’s voice was even. He turned, pushing past me back into the bedroom.

I caught a whiff of his scent, spicy, uniquely him, and sweat tinged with fear. Turning, I leaned against the doorjamb, my arms crossed.

“Tell me how you got involved with Declan.” I kept my voice reasonable, the tone I used when I was explaining to someone that they could either pay me Declan’s protection money now, or they could find out what happened when they didn’t.

Cade’s head dipped, and he turned back to me, arms crossed in front of his chest. “A business deal that went sour. My mistake for choosing the wrong bedfellows.”

“Literal bedfellows?” I asked, even though the idea of Declan putting his hands on Cade made something in me want to take the glass Cade had just fixed and smash it into a million pieces. It was just because of how foolish it was to mix business with pleasure, I told myself.

“No. Business bedfellows,” Cade said, his head tilting slightly, like he couldn’t quite understand what I was upset about.

I opened my mouth, the questions piling up, but Cade held up a hand.

“Now we’re both going to sleep. It’s noon, and neither one of us got a good night’s sleep. I don’t want to be disturbed until six this evening.”

He turned sharply, getting back in the bed, tugging the curtains closed. For a moment, I stood there, frustration mounting.

The curtains opened, and Cade glared at me. “Go to sleep. I’m not paying you to look tired. I’m paying you to look like my consort. My consort would be nothing short of perfection.”

Then he let the curtains fall closed again. Grinding my teeth, I sat back down on the bench, finally lying down when I heard Cade’s breath even out.

We wouldn’t be having any more conversations until the ice prince got his beauty rest. Slamming my head back on the pillow, I closed my eyes and fell into an uneasy sleep.

ChapterNine

Sleep came in fits and starts. I was used to getting little sleep on a job. Once, Declan had me go undercover with one of his rivals. I had spent months in a studio apartment, sharing the space with three other guys from the rival crew. With all of them around, I couldn’t sleep more than two or three hours at a stretch.

Cade kept waking me, shifting against the expensive sheets. His breathing would even out, then speed up, then go quiet. It was a cycle I recognized.

Sleep, nightmare, wake.

Sometime around three, my exhaustion finally caught up with me, and I was able to get a good three hours of sleep. The sound of the curtains being opened made me sit up, ready for a fight before my eyes focused.

“Well, you might need a trip back to Rhys sooner than we expected.” Cade wrinkled his nose, looking me over.

The tattoos on his arms swirled, ducking beneath the sleeves, leaving his arms bare, looking almost naked. Frowning, I pointed toward his right arm, where the tattoo snake was missing.

“Hey, what happened to the—”

Something wrapped around my ankle. When I looked down, a black snake slithered in tight circles around my leg. Its pink tongue startled me, flicking out twice before it continued climbing.

“Basil,” Cade hissed. “Stop that.”

“Who’s this?” I bent low, unwrapping the snake from my leg, feeling its taut muscles, the thick squeeze as it wrapped around my hand.