Page 23 of Power & Punishment

“If I did, I wouldn’t tell you.”

“Wrong answer.” He smiles, grabbing my knee underneath the table and squeezing hard. Hard enough for it to hurt, but soft enough to know he can be more aggressive if he needs to be.

“Here’s the deal, Emilia. As far as I’m concerned, I own you. I have enough dirt to bury you and then come back for seconds.”

He’s right. But he underestimates my own self-destruction setting.

I stare back at his darkening expression and press my lips together in contemplation. His gaze drops again. Maybe I do have something he can’t have. At least, not again.

“Fine. I don’t have anything.” Yet.

“I believe you,” Leo says. I wait for him to release my knee, but he keeps it there. Maybe as a warning or maybe he just wants to touch me.

The latter could work in my favor.

“Now let’s talk about how you’re going to put yourself to good use.”

8

LEO

Touching her is a mistake.

Each second my hand is wrapped around her knee feels like being pulled into a deep hole of temptation I won’t be able to get myself out of.

And not to mention the way she’s reacting.

I want her to pull away or fight me off. Instead, she doesn’t flinch. She sits across from me with her head held high and her gaze steady. For a woman that doesn’t hold any cards, she’s acting like she knows something I don’t.

That makes me want to squeeze harder.

That fire inside her does something to me, which means it needs to be put out. And fast.

“Get to the point, DeLuca,” she says behind gritted teeth.

“Leo,” I correct, finally taking my hand off her and placing it on the table. “I’m not your partner. Good actor by the way.”

Her eyes drop to my hand before her expression settles back into disgust. “Don’t talk about my partner. He’s not involved in any of this.”

I let out a soft laugh and decide to make her sweat. I focus on my smudged coffee cup before rolling my eyes and taking a sip. And of course it tastes like stale gasoline. I’m never letting her pick our meeting place again, even though it’s convenient for her. After following her all day, Michael figured out that she lives nearby. I wonder how calm she’d be if she knew I knew where she laid her head down at night.

“Keith Richards is very much involved. As far as I’m concerned, he was your accomplice.”

Her mouth opens quickly, but she stamps it down. It looks like I found a soft spot, and I fully intend to press down until it bleeds. “As long as I do what you say, you’ll leave Keith out of this.”

“That felt like a demand, and you’re not in a place to make demands,” I explain.

“You’re not going to touch him,” she warns again. “I’m the one that stole your phone and distracted you. Keith didn’t know what was going on. He just did what I told him.”

I highly doubt that, but I like her loyalty. And apparently it’s a turn on because my pants are starting to get tighter the longer we spar back and forth.

“Are you saying I’m not the only man you manipulated that night? I’m hurt, Cara,” I say, clutching my chest.

She lowers those long dark lashes and throws a targeted scowl my way. “I’ll say this one more time, Leo. Richards is off limits.”

“You’re no fun, Emilia.”

“I’m sorry if I’m not in the mood to sit here while you get off on making me feel small.”