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Her head drops, her chin resting against her chest. My name comes out of her mouth in a soft murmur. “Kirill.”
“You’re welcome, by the way.”
“Are you really—You’re expecting a thank you?”
I smirk. “I actually expect a parade. A key to the city could be nice. But a thank you would be the minimum, yeah.”
“Am I supposed to fall to my knees in gratitude for the way you just blew up my job back there?”
What she’s saying is so absurd that I bark out a laugh. “That’s your interpretation of what just happened? You think I broke into your boss’s house and beat the shit out of him so you’d get fired?”
“Intentions and impact are different things,” she says. “Maybe you went in with good intentions, but now, I’m here without a job and it’s your—”
“Don’t you dare finish that fucking sentence, Rayne. I didn’t blow up your job; your wannabe rapist of a boss did. Blame Steven Linley, not me.”
Rayne doesn’t seem to be listening to me anymore. She drags her hands through her hair and paces away from the ledge. “God, what is he going to tell Martha? That place is a mess and—His face. Shit. He could accuse me of assault.”
“You didn’t hit him. I did.”
“He could accuseyouof assault,” she says without missing a beat.
“I dare him to try.”
“He could tell Martha that my thug boyfriend showed up and beat him within an inch of his life for no reason.” She presses her hands to her face, peeking out between her fingers. “Martha is a lawyer. Corporate, but I’m sure she has connections. Someone is going to help her take me down.”
“You’re being a little dramatic now.”
Rayne paces back towards me, her head shaking all the while. “I didn’t even think about my paycheck. I haven’t gotten paid for this week yet. Usually, it gets deposited tomorrow. They’ll cancel it for sure. I don’t know if something like this was in my contract, but there’s a loophole somewhere. I broke my contract and they aren’t going to pay me a dime.”
She turns like she is going to pace away from me again, but I grab her shoulders and twist her to face me. Her lips part in an adorable ‘O’ of surprise.
“Rayne,” I say, tucking her wild hair behind her ears, “stop worrying about all of this pointless shit. You were almost attacked. Do you understand that?”
She turns her face slightly towards my hand like a cat seeking a head scratch. It’s instinctual. The pull of our blood drawing us together. Neither of us can fight it no matter how hard we try.
Then all at once, she jerks away. “Do you understand how well connected Steven and Martha are?”
“I could have both of them buried alive before the night is out. I’m not scared.”
“Being overconfident is your thing, but you’re an idiot if you aren’t worried, too. They have a huge security system installed. The exterior cameras had to have caught you spying. I’m sure there was a clear picture when you walked towards the house. They could take that to the police.”
“Except he won’t have any evidence if he turned off the security system.”
Rayne frowns. “Why would he—”
“Because he planned to attack you. He wouldn’t want the cameras capturing that.”
“You think he planned it?”
I nod. “I saw his face when he walked in, Rayne. The only reason I was there as fast as I was is because I saw the smile on his face. The bastard came home early specifically to find you.”
Even now, the thought of Steven disappearing into the pantry makes my blood boil. I should have charged into the house that very second. The minutes I sat there, waiting for him or Rayne to reappear, were torturous.
I debated the possibilities before I followed my instincts and got out of the car. I don’t want to think about what would have happened if I hadn’t.
She shakes her head. “You don’t know that. Steven is—He was always nice to me.”
“Sure. Because he wanted to fuck you.”
