Page 99 of The Colour of Revenge

My throat tightens, my voice trembling. “Enzo. Non so cosa fare.9”

Enzo’s eyes dart between Nate and me, assessing, waiting for the right moment.

He takes a step forward, but Nate’s growl stops him dead in his tracks. The sheer primal sound of it sends a tremor through me.

“Who the fuck is this guy, Carina?” Nate snarls, his voice a mixture of betrayal and rage. “Was everything a lie?”

“I thought you were playing me,” I snap back, my arm flinging toward Edward, frustration boiling over. “That you were using me for him.”

Nate’s voice cracks with pain, the rawness of his hurt breaking through the anger. “And so you jump into bed with another man without talking to me?”

I freeze, horrified by his words. “Jump into—Nate. No!” I shout, my hands shaking. “No, I’m not—"

He looks at me, disbelief flashing across his face. “You’re not fucking him?” His voice cracks with something like desperation.

“No!” I cry, exasperated. “Enzo is my friend. He’s my hacker.”

Nate exhales a breath of relief, his shoulders relaxing just a fraction, but the anger never truly leaves his eyes. He still doesn’t trust me.

“How could you think I’d work with him?” he demands, his voice raw, torn between anger and hurt.

“It was the only thing that made sense,” I explain, my voice faltering under the weight of it all. “It was too coincidental. And after what I did…”

“What you did?” Nate’s confusion deepens, and I see his gaze flicker from me to Edward and back again.

“She stole half my fortune,” Edward interjects smoothly, his expression as sharp as a blade. “Bled me dry over a number of months.”

The words slice through me like a thousand tiny cuts.

I turn to Edward, my chest tightening with a mix of rage and guilt. “When did you figure out it was me?”

Edward’s laugh is cruel, the sound grating on my nerves. “Just now,” he says, his words laced with a malicious joy. “It all fit into place.”

I feel my world unravelling around me, and the weight of everything crashing down is almost too much to bear.

Nate

My girl.

My brave, fierce, unbreakable girl.

She’s endured more than anyone ever should. More pain, more betrayal, more darkness than most could survive. And yet, here she stands—tall, confident, unyielding. Looming over the man who bought her, who treated her like she was nothing, as if he’s little more than a speck of dirt beneath her heel.

And yet, despite her strength, I can’t shake the guilt. She thought I was like him. That I was just another snake in a designer suit, pretending to care while secretly plotting against her. It guts me every time I think about it.

Yes, I’ve done shady things. But betrayal? Of her? Never. Even if I wanted to, I’m pretty sure my heart would give me the middle finger and quit.

But I get it. After everything she's been through, how could she not question me? How can I blame her for not trusting me?

What I do blame is Edward’s stupid face for existing in the first place. And, boy, do I have plans for that face.

The sneer he gives her is almost comical—like a villain in a bad reality TV show who just realised his evil plan is about to backfire.

Carina's gaze flicks between him and me, her expression unreadable. But her eyes—fuck, her eyes burn like embers, like she wants him six feet under and then some.

"You're still just a stupid, scared little girl," he taunts.

I see the way Carina stiffens.