by Ella Miles
“Help me kill him,” I say.
She frowns, blinking rapidly. And I realize there are cameras in this room. She won’t speak against him here.
“Look what he did to you,” I snarl.
She does, and I see the pain in her eyes. I don’t know if I’ve ever met a stronger woman—Kai maybe, a woman who flipped my boss’s world upside down. But Siren has something that Kai doesn’t have—skills. She knows how to shoot a gun. She knows how to fight. She could easily fight her way out of this situation. She doesn’t need me to save her.
But it’s clear from her eyes that she won’t fight Julian. I just don’t know why.
“You think he got away without me hurting him?”
“Yes.”
She shakes her head and then looks past me, I assume to a camera. “I’ve hurt Julian worse than he will ever hurt me. I’m not faithful to him. And one day, when I no longer need him, I’ll kill Julian Reed.” Her eyes go back to me. “Until then, my job is to ensure you complete your five sins since I know you will never tell him a truth. Get some sleep, Zeke. Tomorrow we go hunt down a man.”
And then she walks out, leaving me more confused than ever. She’s the most confusing, irritating, strong, fragile, infuriating woman I’ve ever met.
But at least I learned one thing—she hates Julian Reed as much as I do. She may not have told me the complete truth yet. Julian has something on her; that’s why she follows his orders. And someday, he will hurt her badly enough that she will flip. She’ll stop doing his bidding.
I’m close to figuring out what that breaking point is. And when I do, she’ll be mine.
13
Siren
I’ll kill Julian Reed.
I shouldn’t have said it. I shouldn’t have spoken such truths out loud. Not when I knew Julian was listening. It was reckless of me.
But who am I kidding? Julian already knew I want him dead. I may never have spoken the words out loud, but I’ve spoken them enough in my mind. If Julian Reed ever stops being useful to me, I’ll kill him.
There is only one little problem with that truth—Julian Reed will never stop being useful to me. He will never stop holding my life in his hands. I will never kill Julian; he knows that. Zeke doesn’t. But Zeke deserved to learn how I felt. He deserved to know that he isn’t the only person who hates Julian.
I pull the throw blanket up, tight under my chin as I curl up on the couch. I should be sleeping in Zeke’s bed. Possibly even tucked against his naked body, praying that when he wakes up, we would get a round two.
Instead, I’m alone lying on the couch in Zeke’s living room, trying to forget about how swollen my lips are from his kisses and how sore my body is in all the right places. Even though I finally got my wish, I got to fuck Zeke, I’m still horny and turned on and feel like I could explode from his touch. Fucking Zeke didn’t get him out of my system; it just made me crave him more.
I close my eyes, forcing Zeke out of my head. Tomorrow I have a job to do. And the faster Zeke completes the five sins he owes Julian, the faster he will be out of my life for good, and my life can return to the way it was before.
Sleep pulls me under quickly, but even sleep can’t protect me from my demons…
“A word, Siren,” Julian says as Zeke walks out of the dining room.
I stay.
I pick up my glass of wine and take a long sip, watching Zeke walk away from me.
“Come here,” Julian says as he continues to sit at the end of the table.
I hate being summoned, being treated like a dog. But I choose my battles when it comes to Julian. And this isn’t one I want to fight. Just get this over with so I can go after Zeke.
I doubt he waited for me, though. I’m going to have to walk back to his house in these damn heels. Zeke was right, heels suck and are almost impossible to walk in, even if they make me feel powerful for a few minutes.
I slide my chair out, keeping my wine glass in my hand as I walk over to Julian.
He pats his lap, telling me to sit there.
I frown. “Really?”
He raises his eyebrows. “Are you going to defy me, again?”
The way Julian says ‘again’ tells me everything I need to know. He’s pissed, and I don’t have to think too hard to know why—he’s angry I put a knife to his balls, when I swore I’d never hurt him, never use my skills against him.
That stupid vow.
“Sit, Aria,” Julian says.
Everything inside of me falls heavily as I sit on his lap, completely defeated. I don’t know why I fight against Julian. He always wins. He will always win.
I’m surprised to not feel his erection poking me in the ass when I sit. At least I have that to be thankful for.
Julian continues to glare at me, and it’s clear my punishment won’t stop at just sitting on his lap.
“You broke your vow,” he says.
I nod, not defending myself.
“You know the consequences of breaking the vow.”
Pain stings my heart. No, please no.
“I do. I’m sorry,” I say, hating that I’m apologizing to this man.
“Are you? Because I don’t think you are sorry at all, Aria.”
I’m not. He knows I’m not. I wish I had the guts to slice his balls clean off. But I couldn’t…I can’t.
“You beat me up, you shot me, threatened to kill me. What was I supposed to do? Let you kill me?”
“Yes.”
I scowl. “Well, you should have known I would never let you do that without putting up a fight.”
His lips curl just a little. That was his plan. He knew I couldn’t not fight back. He goaded me.
I slap him.
I watch his face turn shocked. I watch the redness spread across his face. And it’s worth every punishment he’s about to deal out.
But when his head turns back to me, I realize I’ve just made a horrible mistake.
“You broke your vow, again,” he says.
“Consider my vow over. I quit,” I say, moving to get up off his lap.
“Really? You might want to reconsider.”
I gasp when I see the glint of evil in his eyes. I want to take it all back. Everything. Because I know exactly what Julian is thinking and I can’t—I just can’t. I can’t do this again…
“I’m sorry,” I whisper, trying to hold back my tears. And I am truly sorry. He has no idea how sorry I am.
“Prove it,” he says.
I close my eyes, taking a deep breath as I try to think of something that will make Julian trust me again. Something that will prove I’m still on his side. That I will always be on his side. Because I can’t live with the consequences.
I feel Julian’s excitement grow in his slacks. I could fuck him…No, I couldn’t.
There is only one option—make another vow.
I grab the steak knife on the table and hand it to him.
He smiles as I do.
Then I lift my hair, exposing my neck to him. “I vow—”
And then I feel the slice of the blade through my neck. And no matter what words leave my mouth, I promise myself that someday I’ll be free of Julian Reed. Even if it’s only in death.
My eyes flutter open as I’m soaked in sweat and fear. Julian’s not here. It was just a nightmare.
But I feel eyes on me. I look up and see Zeke watching me with a frown on his face. He’s leaning against the doorframe, shirtless, and wearing gray sweatpants that are somehow sexier than if he were wearing nothing at all. What is it about gray sweatpants? I ignore the bulge in his pants and focus on the scowl.
“What are you doing here?” I ask.
“You were talking and screaming in your sleep. It woke me up.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.” I sit up, tucking my knees to my chest. I’m wearing Zeke’s T-shirt, and the smell of him alone comforts me. But what I really want is for Zeke to wrap his big, tattooed arms around me. Tell me everything is going to be okay. Th
at he’ll protect me. But I’ve lost Zeke’s protection. I’m not his friend; I’m his enemy.
I replay the nightmare in my head. Zeke said I was talking.
“What did I say?” I ask, not sure if I hope he heard everything or nothing at all.
“The truth.”
“Which is?”
Zeke doesn’t answer. But the unnerving frown on his face tells me enough. Whatever he heard made him furious. At me. At Julian. At the world.
“I’ll try not to wake you again,” I say, moving to pull the throw blanket back over me and attempt to sleep again. Like that’s going to happen.
“Come to bed,” he says. It’s a command. I hate commands, except maybe when Zeke commands me. There is something sexy and protective about how he orders me to do something. And right now, I don’t want to sleep alone, even if sleeping in Zeke’s bed complicates things.
So I follow Zeke to the bedroom. I climb under the covers, as does Zeke, and then I close my eyes, hoping I will be able to sleep better with Zeke nearby to chase my nightmares away.
I feel the dip of the bed as Zeke moves closer. And then I feel his arms wrap around me tightly. I smile, knowing I won’t have another nightmare. But I also know I’m completely fucked as my heart flutters in my chest.
Zeke isn’t mine. And I can’t be his.
Fucking him might have been enjoyable, and telling him I want to kill Julian may have proven to Zeke that we are closer to being on the same side than he realizes, but in the end, I know my fate—and it will require me to betray Zeke, again.
14
Zeke
“I vow…”
Those were the words that Siren said in her sleep, trembling, and lost in a nightmare. It took everything in me just to listen and not wake her up. I couldn’t stand to just stand by when I could do something to stop her suffering. But Siren is a closed book when it comes to her relationship with Julian. There is something big I’m missing, something she’s not telling me. So I forced my legs to stay still, to not move toward her.
But I’m not sure it was worth it because I got so little for my effort—I vow.
Two words with so much meaning.
The only people who typically say vows are brides and grooms getting married.
Are Siren and Julian married?
My heart beats erratically at that thought. Siren is currently using my shoulder as a pillow. Her leg is draped over mine, and her heart rests against my chest beating in sync with my own. I’m afraid my beating heart will be enough to wake her up, but she doesn’t move.
I stare down at her left hand. No ring, no tan line, no sign she’s married to that monster. She’s not married to Julian. He wouldn’t let her fuck me if she was. He wouldn’t let her be sold to me knowing what most men would do to her once they bought her. And the kicker is that I’ve asked Siren before if she was married and she said no. She always tells the truth. And so far, she has.
Except when she’s convincing me of a lie, I think. But I heard her say the words; she’s not married to Julian Reed. I just don’t know what vow she promised him. What loyalty does he demand of her?
I run my hand through Siren’s hair. What would I give to make her mine?
I know the answer, but I won’t even allow myself to think it. She’s not mine. She will never be mine. She’s my enemy. She betrayed me, and she’ll do it again if it pleases her. When I’ve finished my five sins, I’ll be gone, and she’ll stay here by Julian’s side. She might as well be married to him.
I can’t keep lying here in this bed dreaming about what a life with Siren could be. There is no could be, might be, or even currently is with us. Because there is no us. It was just sex. Breathtaking, fantastic sex that can never be repeated. I shouldn’t even have let her into my bed except I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep if I didn’t fuck her.
But there is no reason I still need to be in bed now.
I jump out, not caring if she wakes up, and head to the shower. In the shower, I can wash away all thoughts of last night. I can wash away Siren’s scent on my body. I can wash away her.
So that’s what I do. I force my mind to change from thoughts of Siren to this Eli Beckett guy I’m supposed to hunt down and kill. I’ve done countless tasks like this for Enzo Black before. I can do this in my sleep. I decide to take a boat over to St. John, the neighboring island where Beckett was last spotted and start there. On my way over, I’ll do an extensive background check on our Eli Beckett, but I can’t use any of my usual resources. I don’t want any of my friends to know where I am; it would put their lives in danger. And it would be easier for Julian to track them down. I’ll have to use backchannels.
I start rinsing the shampoo from my hair when the bathroom door pops open and Siren struts in. She’s changed, no longer wearing just my T-shirt. She’s now wearing jeans with flats, and she’s tied my T-shirt up so it stops just below her breasts and exposes her stomach. Her hair is pulled in a high ponytail, and she’s wearing a modest amount of makeup. She’s dressed for comfort, but my cock doesn’t understand the difference between when she dresses for him or for the world; my cock always thinks she dresses just for him.
And there is no hiding my reaction to seeing her stomach in the glass shower. She can see exactly what I think of her outfit.
She smiles, raising an eyebrow when she spots my growing erection.
“What do you want, Siren?” I ask, exhausted. How can she already exhaust me and it’s only seven in the morning? I got a good night’s sleep, I shouldn’t be tired, but I am. Siren demands everything from me.
“Just to tell you to stop touching yourself and get ready. We have twenty minutes before our plane leaves.”
“I’m not touching myself.”
“Maybe you should if you aren’t going to be able to control yourself with that thing all day,” she says with a smirk.
I stiffen in annoyance. “You seemed to like my cock just fine last night.”
“Twenty-minutes, plane, St. John,” she says and then darts out.
I sigh. It seems that all of my planning doesn’t matter. We are taking a plane, not a boat. And I don’t have the energy to fight with her. I’m surprised she’s willing to help me. I thought she might enjoy seeing me struggle with a task she does on a daily basis. But I remember she wants these stupid games with Julian over as much as I do. The faster they’re completed, the faster she can return to her life before me.
I finish showering and get dressed. I quickly throw some extra clothes in a bag and pack up my gun and bullets. If we are flying commercial, I’ll have to leave them in my truck, but I’d rather have them if at all possible, which is why I’d rather take the boat. I’m sure Siren knows where to buy weapons once we arrive.
“God, you’re such a diva. Thirty minutes in the only bathroom in this house is excessive. I had to do my hair and makeup without a mirror,” Siren gripes from the hallway, but there is a smile in her eyes. She’s happy. And I’d like to think the sex last night had something to do with it.
“Just enjoying my last few minutes away from you.”
She pats my arm like I’m a child, but the second her hand touches mine, the sparks have returned. She jumps back suddenly, not expecting the connection to still be there. We both hoped that after we fucked, the constant throbbing for each other would stop. But nope—if anything, it just got worse.
I clear my throat. “Did you pack a bag?”
She shakes her head.
“Do you want to?”
“Nope, we should be able to get this done in a night, two, tops. I’ll buy whatever clothes and things I need when we get there.”
My eyes widen. I’m not used to traveling with a woman who is so low-maintenance. But that’s Siren. The most demanding, needy woman one minute and easy-going and independent the next.
“Let’s go then,” I say, throwing my overnight bag over my shoulder and starting to walk to my truck.
Siren follows, jumping into the passenger seat. She flick
s the radio on, apparently not okay with any silence. I’m not a talker as it is, and I’m especially not a talker at seven in the morning when I haven’t had coffee. More quiet still after I made a huge mistake in fucking Siren last night.
It was great, a night I will never forget. But now, anytime I’m around her, my cock gets rock hard like he expects a repeat. Not going to happen, bro. But my self-talk does nothing to talk him down.
I start driving down the gravel road, hoping I’ll be able to think about something else to make my jeans a little less tight, but Siren starts singing along to a Beyonce song, and I’m lost.
Her voice is intoxicating and alluring. It could convince any man into jumping over a cliff after hearing it. It’s not just that her voice is beautiful; it’s haunting and magical. It’s different than any other voice I’ve heard. It’s not flawless; she doesn’t hit every note perfectly like Beyonce does on the radio; she changes her voice to fit her mood and her feelings. I don’t even think she realizes that she’s singing, that her voice isn’t perfectly in tune with the melody, or that she’s now changed several of the lyrics to suit her. When she sings, it’s because she loves to sing. And there is nothing more captivating than that.
“Zeke! Watch out!” Siren screams all of a sudden.
I realize I’ve been watching her instead of paying attention to the road. I slam on the brakes just short of the edge of a cliff with only palm trees to break our fall.
“Shit,” I curse under my breath. I realize the truck is most likely stuck in the sand on the side of the road.
We both breathe heavily.
“I think I should drive from now on; I’m tired of almost dying any time I get in the car with you. Or really, any time I’m around you,” Siren says with a tiny smile, trying to lighten the tension.
