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I resist the urge to roll my eyes and cut to the chase. “What do you want?”
“Me?” he asks innocently. “I’m not the one who asked to chat.”
“Cut the shit, Bellasio. You wouldn’t have accepted the meeting unless you wanted a soapbox to stand on and something to win. So tell me, what will it take to get you to fuck off?”
He chuckles darkly. “Let’s start with an honest conversation first, shall we?”
Dima and I exchange a glance. “I’m capable of one,” I say. “Are you?”
His eyes narrow, but he manages to keep that sickly smile in place. “Archie Theron. You want him back.”
“Obviously.”
“I’m aware of who he is.”
“You want a prize for that?” I ask sarcastically. “As for wanting him back, he’s my future father-in-law. It’s not really a matter of whatIwant.”
“I wonder what your fiancée would think about your generosity of spirit.” He picks imaginary lint from his pants and recrosses his legs. “Tell me: Did money change handsafterthe engagement, or before? Did you see her and bargain, or was Archie the pimp?”
I don’t look at Dima. If I do, Benedict is going to suspect something. He’s going to know that I know. I hide my clenched fist by drumming my fingers on the arm of the chair. “It was a coincidence.”
“Probably not for the old man, though. He’s more cunning than you realize.”
Oh, don’t I know it.
“His daughter, though, not so much, right?” I hesitate, and he laughs. “Don’t worry. I already know she has no clue what’s going on. The woman is pretty, but not very bright.”
“I’d say you’re projecting, but then again, you’re neither brightnorpretty, are you?”
His forehead reddens instantaneously. The man is so easy to needle. His every nerve is exposed and raw, waiting for someone who knows how he’s wired to drive him to the brink of madness.
“She would have passed you over for me,” he snarls. “Another couple of days working my magic and she wouldn’t have been able to refuse.”
“I wouldn’t put it past you to try, fruitless as that may have been.” I arch a brow to match my smirk. “You’ve always wanted what someone else has.”
He glowers at me, anger flashing in his eyes. “I saw the look on her face when she saw me,” he spits. “She wanted me. The little tart. Thewhore.”
“Celine would never be interested in a worm like you.”
He grins wide. “I’m not talking about Celine.”
I can’t help it. My hands ball into fists. I suck in a breath to calm myself, and he hears it.
Benedict laughs like we just shared some playful secret. “Ah, that’s it, isn’t it? Broke through that glacial composure of yours and I didn’t even have to say her name. Don’t like when I talk about your baby sister, do you,DonZakharov?”
“Brother…” Dima warns from where he’s seated next to me.
I bite down my anger. “Quit stalling. You didn’t agree to this meeting to ask me about my fiancée or my future father-in-law.”
“Didn’t I?” Benedict coyly asks. “I’m so curious about your chosen family, though, Ilarion. There’s so much I’d love to know.”
“You’ve done enough prying for the night. Now, tell me what you want before I walk out of here.”
He folds his hands in his lap. Behind him, his mute guard still scans back and forth, back and forth, as robotic as a sprinkler head. “Do you really think you can keep this secret from Celine forever?”
“It’s not my call to make.”
Benedict nods. “What are you prepared to do to get him back?”
