“You haven’t washed any of the clothes you gave me, dickhead. I need to stay active so I’m working out without pants. Got a problem?” She rolls her eyes and stretches forward to touch her toes. “I mean, it’s not like you’ve given me anything to freshen up with either. Not a hairbrush, no deodorant. You know, some basic necessities a girl needs?”
I grind my teeth so hard it's a miracle I don’t crack any. “Get up. Get dressed. It’s time for a walk.”
“Oh, goody,” she mumbles sarcastically while pushing to her feet and grabbing a pair of sweatpants we’d lent her off the bed. “Surprised you haven’t got a leash for me yet.”
I turn my head away to give her a sense of privacy while she dresses, but Declan has no such inclination. He leans his shoulder against the wall and crosses his arms, his gray eyes trained on her. “Don’t tempt me, Poison. You might look good wearing a collar.”
She shoots him a scathing glare, but says nothing, trudging past us and into the hall. She knows the drill by now, and she knows there’s no use in trying to escape down here.
We fall into step on either side of her, close enough that her shoulders brush against our arms. Yeah, we could give her a little space, but that’s not the point of this. We’re not here to make her comfortable. We’re here to push for answers.
“Tell us about your dad,” I start. “What does he do in his spare time?”
When she doesn’t acknowledge me, Dec adds, “Who does he spend his time with?”
Fallon doesn’t answer him either, keeping her eyes trained forward, her chin lifted high in defiance as we stroll down the long hallway, past the concrete rooms we use for less savory means of extracting information.
“Does he travel?” Dec asks.
Still, she gives us nothing.
“Did he ever travel with your mom?” I try. Her shoulders tense, and she picks up speed, walking faster as if trying to outrun our questions. Yeah, good luck with that. “Did you go with them?” I ask, matching her steps until I’m in front of her and walking backward so that she’s forced to look at me. “What did you see? Who did you see?”
Her shoulders rise with each rapid fire question, and she tries to step around me, but I cut her off. Those beautiful green eyes glare up at me, but I don’t give her an inch, stepping into her and making her back up until she bumps straight into Declan’s chest.
I meet his gaze over her head. She wants to play the quiet game with us? Well, we can play games.
Together, we crowd into her space until Fallon’s back meets the wall and we’re towering over her.
“Stop it,” she grits out between clenched teeth.
“Why?” Declan skims his fingers up her side. “Do we make you nervous?”
“You make me murderous,” she says while slapping at his hand. “I already told you I’m not involved in any sex trafficking but you refuse to believe me, so why should I keep trying to convince you?”
“We believe you,” I say, stepping even closer and breathing in her alluring scent. God, why does she have to be so fucking beautiful? “We know you’re not involved.”
That grabs her attention. “Then why the fuck am I still here?”
“Because you’re a stubborn fucking brat. Now, answer our questions.”
She glances between the two of us, trying and failing to hide the heat blooming in her eyes at our close proximity, despite her annoyance. But I see it. And so does my brother.
“You want to know what I think?” he asks, dipping his head so that he speaks directly in her ear.
“Not particularly,” she says, her voice noticeably breathier than before.
Declan chuckles. “I think you get off on being scared.” Her eyes widen at his words and then flick to me, gauging my response. “I think you push us this far to see what we’ll do about it.” His hand slides over the oversized shirt she’s wearing, to her neck, and up to grip her chin. “You like the masks, the danger. Bet it gets your pussy wet.”
She shoves him away from her. “Get off me,” she pants. “I just want to go home.”
“To your cushy apartment?” I chime in. “Must cost you a pretty penny living in that place off of a public relations salary.”
“You say that like you don’t know exactly how much I make and how much I pay to live there. Cerberus knows it all, isn’t that right?”
God, that smart fucking mouth.
“You’re right. Cerberus does know it all. Like how you’re living off of the trust fund your mother set up for you.”
