Page 49

“Caleb.”

Locked into his rage, he didn’t respond. It happened to me when I was taking out particularly heinous people, and unless I distracted him, he’d kill the pitiful-looking man.

“Sweetheart,” I said tentatively. I thought maybe the term of affection from me would shock him out of his anger, but he didn’t even register that I’d spoken. Ignoring the blubbering idiot and the fresh scent of urine, I moved closer, trailing my hand up his chest. I physically had to pull his attention to me. The green of his irises was completely gone. Instead, chaos and violence shone in the inky depths of his eyes.

“I’m not going to say he didn’t mean anything by that comment. Obviously, based on his receding hairline, he can’t get laid, so he pays for that shit. But you can’t kill him here, because if you kill him in this elevator, it’s going to be a bitch to get clean.”

That comment earned me a slight grin.

“That’s your concern? Not the outright murder? And I have people for that, Scar,” Caleb responded. I had to hold back my so do I comment, but I was just happy that some of the murderous rage had subsided.

A sly grin spread across my face. He was probably shocked that I wasn’t cowering in a corner at his actions. That was what most women would be doing. Actually, Caleb didn’t seem to be surprised by most of my reactions. When he’d seen my scars, there was this moment of connection between the two of us. He knew I didn’t want sympathy or even attention over them.

I pressed closer. “I’d pull the trigger if you asked me to, and I’m pretty good at ditching a body too.” Confusion flicked across his face. He didn’t know whether I was serious or fucking with him to distract him from why he was so irate. I didn’t offer any clues as to what the correct answer was.

“What’s your proposal? That we let him go?” Caleb snarled at the suggestion, and it made me laugh. He was like a toddler having his favorite toy taken away.

It wasn’t lost on me that we were having a conversation while a middle-aged man sobbed with a pistol shoved between his lips.

“Hold on. We let him go, but we get his name and address. I’m going to do some digging, and we can decide whether we need to revisit our friend here in an easier-to-clean space.” I turned to address the guy. His ruddy cheeks were streaked with tears and snot. He’d spoken some bold words for someone who was unremarkably average.

“For your sake, I hope you’re just sleazy and not into some awful shit. If so, I can convince him not to kill you. But if I look you up and don’t like what I find, I’ll be the one to cut off your balls before letting my husband have his way with you.”

The man whimpered at my words, and I already knew I’d be seeing him again. In the next moment, Caleb roughly searched for the man’s wallet, stashing the whole thing in his suit pocket before restarting the elevator.

“You’re extremely lucky my wife had a clear head tonight, or yours would’ve painted these walls. I might not kill you in here, but you don’t get to fucking speak to her like you did.” Shrieks filled the small space as Caleb drove his knife into the hollow of the man’s collarbone.

The doors opened with a soft ding, and Caleb turned to exit, letting the dude collapse onto the dirty floor.

“Fucking crazy bastard. I’ll have you arrested,” he said between ragged breaths.

I whipped around, warm blood coating my thumb as I pressed it into the wound, dragging out more yells. “You aren’t going to call or report anyone. And believe me when I say I can find out anything about you. And I have a feeling your days are numbered.” I wiped the crimson liquid off on his white shirt, mentally noting that I needed to call my cleaners to get out here ASAP. “Sleep tight. We’ll see you soon,” I called over my shoulder.

When I exited the elevator, Caleb stared me down as he leaned against the hall wall. His suit pants were tight, drawing my eyes to the bulge at his crotch. The rage had shifted into something that looked an awful lot like hunger.

I moved past him, opening the door to my apartment. All the hairs on my arms stood on end at the feeling of being stalked. It was nearly pitch black in the space. The only light was coming from the windows in my living room. Hot breath fanned across the back of my neck, causing my skin to break out in goose bumps.

Caleb’s deep tenor shot straight to my pussy.

“I want you to run.” I moaned as his teeth latched on to my flesh. “I’m too worked up. First the dressing room, and now this. I need an outlet. Since you didn’t let me kill him, I’m going to give you a five-second head start, and then I’m going to come after you, Scar,” he said against my neck, his hands digging into my hips as his cock hardened against my ass.

“One.” Bite. “Two.” Bite. “Three.”

He’d short-circuited my brain with the nibbling on my neck because it didn’t even register at first that he was counting down. My head start was practically nonexistent. But I knew this apartment like the back of my hand. I pushed off him, taking off down the small hallway to my left. My lungs burned with how fast I sprinted toward my bedroom. I needed to get to my closet and my go bag before Caleb looked too closely.

This little game of his was actually going to be very helpful. Problem was, I was so fucking turned on by the idea of being chased by him.

I careened around a corner, listening for any sign of where Caleb was.

“Ready or not, here I come, wife.”

My heart rate kicked up higher at the sound of thudding feet. The man was fucking running like he was out for blood.

I slipped behind the door. The moment his hulking form burst through, I launched myself onto his back. I attempted to wrap my arm around his throat as my legs locked around his muscled waist, but I couldn’t lock in the choke. The position made it so that my pussy was pressed against his muscled back, and the friction of it rubbing against my clit had me moaning.

Caleb froze at the sound, but it only lasted for a split second before he slammed us against a wall. My back took the brunt of the blow. The weight of his body sent the air whooshing from my lungs, and my hold loosened enough for him to pry me off his back. There were no words exchanged, just our combined labored breaths. Of course, since we were both fucked in the head, we had massive grins on our faces as we attempted to beat the shit out of one another.

In the back of my mind, I wondered whether this was all a test. I’d given up quite a few hints about myself over the last twenty-four hours. I should have known that if anyone pieced them together, it would be Caleb Callahan. I broke out of his grasp, but he sent me sprawling on my bed. I was facedown in my blankets when his heavy body landed on top of me. He grunted when my elbow rammed into his ribs, giving me enough space to scramble from beneath him and stand on the mattress. The cocky asshole hadn’t anticipated the right hook I threw at his face, sending his head snapping to the side. He slowly turned his face back toward me, his pink tongue prodding the split in his lip.