Tarnished Tyrant - A Mafia Romance

Chapter 7 Episode 7

“Did you know I was going to be the one doing your audit?”she interrupts. “When we met on the flight… did you know?”

Arnold is still watching our verbal volley with obvious joy. Allhe needs is a bucket of popcorn and he’d be set. But as muchas I’d like to continue toying with Belle, I do need to talk toher.

“Leave us, Arnold,” I say, waving my hand lazily towards thedoor. “Ms. Dowan and I have unfinished business to discuss.”

He slumps with disappointment, but hurries out of the room.He knows all too well that I expect my orders to be obeyedwithout question.

The moment the door is closed, Belle steps closer to my desk.“What kind of sick game is this?” she hisses.

“Game?” I lean back in my chair, enjoying the view. Thewoman really is stunning. I’ve always admired pretty things.

“This,” she snaps. “This… place. First, your… your henchmanasks me to lie to cover his embezzling ass, and now, you…”

She says “embezzling” like it’s a dirty word. It might be theworst crime she can imagine, given her profession.

She has no idea what she’s truly walked into.

Her voice trails off. I jump at the opportunity. “And now, Iwhat?”

“I’m afraid I don’t.” I stand up and walk around the desk. Idon’t miss the way Belle pulls back, trying to keep somedistance between us. As if I haven’t already seen her lust.Heard it. Tasted it.

“This,” she says again, blushing. “You brought me here, and…This is a trick.”

“What’s a trick? Are you talking about how we f****d on aplane when you didn’t even know my last name?” I ponder.“Or that we f****d and you didn’t know where I worked? Ormaybe you’re talking about when I made you come twice in anairplane bathroom, mere steps away from all the otherpassengers—including your sister. That was kind of a trick, Isuppose. Were you talking about that?”

If Belle’s face was any redder, she could be mistaken for astop sign. She’s breathing heavily, and with each inhale, Icatch the faint outline of her peaked n*****s.

“I’m talking about making a fool out of me in front ofeveryone,” she spits. “The trick where you get me to have sexwith you and then blackmail me into… into whatever youhave going on here.”

It isn’t often I get to play with my food before I eat it. Notthese days, anyway.

I plan to make it last.

I lean back on the edge of my desk and cross my ankles. “So,let me get this straight: you think I learned who your companywas sending to audit me, tracked your flight information, flewto the godforsaken shithole that is the Oklahoma City airportso I could catch the same early morning flight you weregetting on, seduced you mid-flight by convincing the flightattendant to ‘accidentally’ shove you into my lap duringturbulence—which I also must have arranged—and thenfucked you silly in the bathroom… all so I could have leverageover you to force you not to report any discrepancies in ouraudit?” I tilt my head to the side. “Did I get all of that?”

She narrows her eyes to slits. “More or less.”

“None of this is ‘cute,’” she snarls. “Blackmail isn’t ‘cute.’White collar crime isn’t ‘cute.’”

I lean forward and pick a piece of lint off of her shoulder. Herentire body stiffens. I can practically see sparks shooting off ofher from the pure chemistry flowing between us. When I leanback, her body naturally inclines towards me. Like a magnethelpless against the pull.

“No,” I agree, “it’s cute that you think I’d go to all that troublefor you. As if I couldn’t get my way regardless. As if you haveany control over the outcome.”

Her face goes slack, hurt or shock or both flickering across herfeatures. “You just admitted to all of it.”

“Did I?” I shake my head. “I don’t think so. That was a theory.Your theory.”

“Are you sure you’re ready for it?”

“I asked for it, didn’t I?”

I chuckle. “That’s just it. I’m not sure you’re ready to acceptthat that is exactly what happened.”

She shakes her head. “That what is what happened? I don’t… Idon’t understand.”

“You asked for it,” I whisper, leaning forward. “I was astranger on a flight. I had no f*****g clue who you were untilyou fell in my lap. Then I followed you into the bathroom, andyou begged me to f**k you. There was no trick. No ulteriormotive. You wanted it, beautiful Belle. You craved it. Youpleaded for it.”

We’re only inches apart. Her eyes flick from mine to mymouth and back again. I watch as the realization slowly settlesover her.

She wanted me. She still wants me.

But then Belle jerks back, her top lip curled in distaste.“You… you… you asshole!”

“You say that like I took something from you. I didn’t. Yougave it to me. And then you whimpered for more.”

“Asshole,” she hisses again. “So you expect me to believe thisis all just some random coincidence?”

“Yes. Because that’s what it is.”

She shakes her head. “No. You have a plan.”

“That’s truer than you realize,” I admit. “I always have a plan.You don’t become me by letting bullshit like fate and destinydetermine things.”

“And who are you, exactly?”

The truth is sitting on the tip of my tongue. I could tell her. It’snot like she could do anything about it, anyway.

But I’m not here to traumatize the woman. I just need her tocooperate.

“I’m the CEO of Zhukova Incorporated,” I say simply. “AndI’m willing to make this worth your time.”

She hesitates for a second, her gaze raking over me. Then sheshakes her head. “No.”

But I saw the hesitation. The hunger in her eyes. I’ve seen itcountless times before. People hungry for money, for power,for a favor. I’ve become adept at understanding what peopleneed and making that happen for them…

For a price, of course.

Her eyes flare again. “No.”

I roll my eyes. “You don’t have to play high and mighty. It’sjust the two of us, beautiful Belle.”

“Don’t call me that,” she snaps.

“You don’t have to hide who you are from me,” I continue. “Ialready know the filthy thoughts floating around in yourhead.”

“I know how to make you feel good.” I move towards her, andshe backs up, step for step. “I know that you worry yourselfinto knots—a knot that only I could untangle. Twice, actually.”

She lifts her chin, the green in her eyes flaring as she glares upat me. “I don’t want anything from you.”

I press my finger to the furious crease between her eyebrows.“Let me untangle this knot, too. What will it take to do thetrick: ten thousand dollars?”

Air hisses out of her lungs.

I smile. “That’s nothing to me,” I tell her. “I’ve been payingoff smug auditors like you for years.”

“Then you’ve been hiring a bunch of shady creeps with nomoral compass.”

“You know where a moral compass takes you?” I ask. “Afuture without money in your pocket. A future where youdon’t have a job. What’s the point of letting that peskycompass lead you to poverty?”

She puffs out her chest. Her breasts whisper across my skin.My body remembers the way she felt and the front of my pantsare tight.

The fire in her eyes does something to me. Not many peopleare willing—or stupid enough—to stand up to me.

That’s probably what this is: a novelty. This woman has givenme a hard-on twice in a handful of hours because she’spushing back. And I don’t like it, but I respect it.

“Not even close. Do you want to hear a threat?” I ask. I lean inclose until her face fills my vision. “I told you on the planethat I’m not a nice man. But that doesn’t even begin todescribe the darkness I can rain down on your life. Accept myoffer, and you’ll walk out of here ten thousand dollars richer.But refuse, and I can dismantle you brick by brick until there’snothing left. And I can have it done before the elevator doorsat the end of the hall open.”

She swallows hard. Her lovely throat bobs nervously. I want tolick all the way up and down it, to taste the salty tang of herfear and the sweetness of her perfume.

“Who do you think you are? God?”

“In this city, I’m the closest thing to it.”

She stares up at me, and I know she’ll give in. Everyone does.Toss a threat and a little money their way and average peoplefold like cheap suits.

“My integrity isn’t for sale,” she says, punctuating the point byjabbing a finger into my chest. “f**k off. And find a newauditor.”

She yanks my office door open and spins out of the room.

Before she’s even cleared the doorway, my phone is in myhand. As soon as the line connects, I give the order.

“Call me when it’s done.”

I hang up just in time to hear the chime of the elevator doors atthe end of the hall.