Page 12 of Monsters Wear Crowns (Crowned Monsters Duet #1)

It wasn’t a request.

As the men walked toward a more secluded part of the lounge, I glanced down at my drink.

What the fuck was going on? The people here, both men and women, are likely responsible for some level of blood.

They were some of the most potent names in the city.

Some, I recognized as they were my actual clients.

Claire Ridgewald, a beautiful and fierce redhead that laundered money through her chain of luxury hotels.

She was known in the alley as the “red fox,” responsible for killing several people who got in her way.

Her money paid for quite a bit of horrible, illegal shit.

But at the end of the day, she had a lot of money.

So I helped her. Along with many others. The average person would call me a piece of shit for doing what I did, but I knew that if they saw the money I saw, they would at least hesitate.

No matter how good they claimed to be.

After about ten minutes of me contemplating my life’s decisions and morals, Rafe returned from his meeting, his expression annoyingly unreadable.

He didn’t sit right away. Instead, he poured himself another drink, the quiet clink of ice against glass filling the silence between us.

I watched the way he swirled the amber liquid, his fingers steady.

“Your system is impressive,” he finally said, continuing our discussion as if he never left. “It held up better than most.”

I arched a dark brow, leaning my elbows on the bar. “Most? Meaning you’ve done this before.”

His lips curved, but it wasn’t quite a smile. “A good businessman always tests the waters before stepping in.”

I scoffed, crossing one leg over the other. “That’s a very polished way of saying you hacked into my company.”

“Hacked?” He tilted his head, eyes gleaming with something close to amusement. “I prefer to call it…vetting. You’d be surprised how many so-called impenetrable systems crumble under the right pr essure.”

My fingers tightened slightly against my knee. “And mine didn’t?”

“No,” he admitted, setting his drink down and settling onto the stool beside me. “But I had to be sure my business interests wouldn’t be compromised if I partnered with you.”

The way he said it sent a ripple of unease through me. Business interests. A deliberately vague term. Too vague.

I didn’t let it slide. “And what exactly are those interests?”

He let the question linger between us, watching me with the kind of patience that felt predatory. “That depends,” he said, voice smooth as silk. “Are you looking for a client, Adela? Or are you just curious?”

I hesitated. I shouldn’t have. That flicker of hesitation gave him something–an upper hand I couldn’t afford to pass over. But the way he said my name, the way his gaze never wavered, it sent something sharp curling in my stomach.

“I don’t do business with people who deal in shadows,” I said carefully.

He chuckled. “You work in cybersecurity. Your entire business is built on navigating shadows. Your father saw to it when he hid the illegal activities of multiple companies.” He paused, smirking. “You protect a lot of bad people. I know some of them.”

Fuck .

“What? If I don’t work with you, are you going to tell the world that Sinclair Solutions safeguards criminals and blood-thirsty wolves?”

He lifted a hand, and before I could decide whether to lean away or let him, his fingers brushed against my hair, tucking a loose strand behind my ear. A touch so small, so deceptively intimate, that it sent a shiver down my spine.

Before allowing myself the satisfaction of that touch, I stood, leaving my drink and making my way toward the elevator. I couldn’t entertain this anymore. But I didn’t get far before he swiftly blocked me with his arm in the dark hallway.

“Let’s talk about something else, shall we? Something a bit more…personal.”

My stomach clenched. “What? What could you possibly want to talk about?”

“There’s an issue bothering you beneath this...facade.” He hummed, amused by my reaction. “One you can’t seem to shake. One that has been closer than you realize.”

My blood ran cold. I opened my mouth, but the words caught in my throat.

A slow smirk curved his lips as if he could hear the war in my head.

He moved in closer, until my back met the cool glass of the window behind me. The city glittered below, but my world had narrowed to him .

His hand lifted, fingers grazing my jaw, tilting my chin up just slightly. “You walked into the viper’s pit tonight, Adela,” he murmured. His thumb brushed the edge of my lower lip, slow and achingly deliberate. “You should be terrified of me. I know where you live.”

My breath came in sharp, uneven pulls. “Should I be?” I whispered. “You haven’t told me enough. I was leaving because this is a waste of my time. I was bored.”

Something dark flashed in his gaze–not anger, not amusement, but something entirely unhinged.

And instead of stepping away, he stayed.

His fingers tightened slightly on my jaw, his other hand pressing firmly against my waist. He towered over me, and that hunger that no man had ever been able to satisfy bloomed.

I was 5’4, so he must have been about 6’5.

Without thinking, I asked the question tearing through my mind. “What would you have done to me if I opened my door that night?”

Rafe’s lips hovered near mine, but he didn’t close the distance. Instead, he let the silence stretch until I was certain he could hear the pounding of my pulse.

Then, finally, he spoke.

“I would have fucked you.”

I struggled to keep my gaze sharp, though I slightly tightened my thighs against the fire that had just blazed between them.

He noticed, his eyes sweeping over me. “But I didn’t summon you here for pleasure,” he murmured, though the heat in his gaze said otherwise. “I requested your presence for work.”

I clenched my fists as his proximity remained suffocatingly close, his words brushing against my lips like a threat I desperately wanted him to make. “Work?” My voice came out steadier than I felt.

He nodded slowly, a smirk tugging on his lips. “You will do what I ask, Adela.”

I bristled, my body tensing against the command in his voice. “And what exactly is it that you’re asking?”

Rafe leaned in, his breath warm against my ear. “I know what you want most. More than money, more than power or any material thing.”

A shiver rolled down my spine. He couldn’t possibly. “You don’t know me.”

His laugh was low, indulgent. “Don’t I?”

Before I could pull away, his hand shot out, shoving me back against the wall beside the towering window. My breath left me in a sharp gasp as his fingers curled around my throat–not choking, but a warning. A taste of control.

“You’re fighting me,” he mused, tilting his head. “But I can feel it. That conflict burning inside you. You like this.”

My stomach clenched, every nerve in my body betraying me, caught between fear and…

His thumb skimmed over my pulse, feeling the erratic rhythm. He closed his eyes as if he were enjoying the sensation. “Do you know how I’m so certain? ”

I swallowed hard, refusing to answer.

He smiled–slow and predatory. “Those dirty little books you read at night.”

My entire body went still. A sick wave of dread curled in my gut. No. My reaction only seemed to amuse him further.

His fingers flexed around my throat, tightening just enough to make my head spin. “I know exactly what you’re missing, Adela. Exactly what you crave. And I doubt that blonde-haired buffoon didn’t give you what you wanted.”

My nails dug into his wrist as my heart slammed against my ribs.

He must have hacked into my personal accounts.

My private library. This fucker learned everything about me.

A fiery wave of anger surged through my fear, but before I could snarl a response, his grip on my throat tightened another fraction.

“You can be mad,” he murmured, “but I’m not wrong, am I?”

I gritted my teeth, having a seriously difficult time not punching him in the face.

His free hand traced down my arm. “I can give you everything you want,” he whispered, his voice dark silk. “Everything you’ve ever fantasized about with your hand between your pretty thighs.”

My breath stuttered, my body a battlefield of warring impulses.

His lips brushed against my jaw as he delivered his final demand. “Work with me, love.