The Danger You Know

by Lily White

  Tilting his head, Ari is unaffected. It drives me insane how he can remain so calm no matter how I shove at him.

  “I’ll help you out. You came running to me that day in the cemetery.”

  Pushing away from the door, he takes slow steps toward me, each one emphasized by another reminder of what led to this moment.

  “You kissed me first in the mausoleum.”

  Another step.

  “You bought a new phone to contact me this afternoon.”

  Another step and his long-legged stride has devoured the distance between us.

  “And you are the one who keeps lying to both of us. I’m only here because it’s what you want. Even if you won’t admit it.”

  “You don’t know me,” I argue, though the sound of it is weak, even to me.

  He leans in, his bent finger coming up to my chin to tilt my face as hot breath caresses my neck.

  “I think I do know you. And what I know is that you are hiding something. A lot of things, really, but let’s start with the obvious. Why do you keep a residence separate from your husband’s, Adeline? If you’re so in love and happy that you truly see a future with the boastful fuck you’ve married, then why haven’t you sold this place?”

  It takes effort to swallow, my entire body vibrating like a live wire to be so close to him. His voice is an echo of truth inside me, as if he has the ability to see past the curtain no other person in my life has bothered to pull aside.

  I only just met him, but somehow, Ari has ripped out the lies I tell myself, only to shove them so far down my throat I choke on them.

  A finger softly brushing my jaw, he traps me against the counter, one hand planted on the edge by my hip, the other holding my face next to his.

  When he whispers, it sets my body on fire, calls to me in ways I never thought possible. He reminds me of the diaphanous shadow I’ve always reached for in sleep, the silent witness to my pain, my heartache, my every secret that is buried beneath the suffocating mask I’ve worn.

  “You’re trembling. Care to tell me why that is, or will you continue being dishonest?”

  His hand moves to my waist, and I realize I have no defenses against him. Nobody, not even my husband, makes me feel this way.

  With Ari, I’m no longer trapped outside of time, my body shivering and cold. I’m blazing instead, an inferno of longing and lust, of fantasies and forbidden pleasures.

  I’m everything I was seeking when I was younger, the hollow parts filled in so thoroughly that I shiver against the feeling of being whole.

  And that’s what frightens me the most: I’m so used to feeling empty that I don’t know how to fight against a man that somehow fits inside me like the second half of my soul.

  Even if he’s the worst thing for me.

  Even if he threatens the stability I’d found in someone else.

  How is it possible that I’ve just met him, yet he knows me better than the man I married?

  Ari doesn’t wait for my answer before running his mouth along the line of my jaw, his scent seducing me, his heat enrapturing me, his spell so tightly woven that I’m helpless against it.

  I came here with the belief I was saving my marriage.

  And I know I’ll leave here with another heavy weight of guilt burdening my shoulders.

  But there’s no question he’s right to keep asking me why I’m here.

  For him.

  For this.

  To feel complete for once, even when I don’t understand how or why we fit together.

  I don’t know him.

  He’s a practical stranger.

  And yet I feel like I’ve belonged to him since the day I took my first breath.

  His mouth claims mine in the next second, a kiss so violent our tongues tangle together with consuming desperation. It’s a punishing kiss, a fight, one I’m losing as his teeth nip at my lip and his tongue tastes the sting.

  Ari’s hands move to my waist, and as if I weigh nothing, he lifts me to the counter, his body coming between my legs, his hands moving to my thighs to slide the skirt of my dress up to my hips.

  His thumb brushes the edge of my panties, and a jolt shoots through me, like lightning cutting through a midnight sky, like a razor slicing me open to reveal all the secrets I hide.

  I can’t think. I can only feel. He’s a demon consuming me, darkness swallowing me whole.

  He reminds me of what I’ve never had but always needed. That piece of me I’ve been seeking for so long.

  And it’s wrong, so wrong to enjoy another man’s hands on me, so wrong to want him while hating what he does.

  But still, I’m struggling to breathe as his hands explore me, my head falling back as he slides the tip of his tongue down my neck, and when he bites at the soft spot of my shoulder that forces a moan up my throat, he slips my panties aside to discover how wet I am.

  Embarrassingly so, a masculine sound of approval vibrating in his chest, a wicked grin against my skin that tells me he knows what my body wants.

  My hands slide into the black silk of his hair, and I’m pulling him against me while his fingers tease and taunt, while he stretches my inner muscles before rubbing his thumb over my clit.

  I’m lost. Utterly and completely. I’m dirty because I shouldn’t be doing this with him. I’m filthy because I’m actually enjoying how wrong this is.

  Ari chuckles as my legs fall farther apart, my body like clay that he shapes into what he wants. Cruel mouth against my ear, he breathes out as his fingers thrust inside me, his words shredding every lie I’ve let fall from my lips.

  “Tell me you don’t want me now. I dare you, Adeline. Try to convince me you don’t want my fingers inside you, that you don’t want me to shove you down so I can take the first taste of this greedy little cunt.”

  My eyes close, tears stinging the back of my lids because I can’t deny he’s right. His dirty words are as cruel as his fingers and mouth. They do nothing but turn me on. Ignite every nerve inside me. Soften my bones until I’m malleable to his will.

  He’s overpowering me.

  And it’s the first time I’ve ever known a man to have that ability.

  Ari is vicious when it comes to taking what he wants, and I give into it so easily that my head spins.

  When I don’t answer, he laughs again, the sound haunting and sharp. “Sometimes I think I know you better than you know yourself.”

  His hands move to the back of my thighs, and he pulls my legs up. A startled cry shoots up my throat to fall back against the countertop, his body moving as he pulls my panties from my legs to toss aside, hooks my knees over his shoulders and covers my pussy with his mouth.

  That wicked tongue laps at my arousal, dipping inside me to circle the opening. And every time I try to move against him, to take control of the aggravatingly slow pace he uses to take what he wants, his hands squeeze the cheeks of my ass, holding me in place, forcing me to submit to his cruel enjoyment of me.

  But I need more, need him to go faster, my hips bucking against his tongue to chase the orgasm building inside me.

  Ari slaps his hand on my ass, his lips moving against my skin when he says, “So eager, but I haven’t told you that you’re allowed to ride me yet. Not until I’m done playing.”

  A frustrated growl shakes my chest, and he laughs against my skin, the vibration only pushing me more toward the release I need. His thumb moves to sink inside me as he nips at my clit and circles it with his tongue. Trapping the swollen nub between his lips, he sucks, his thumb teasing my opening as slowly as his mouth moves.

  This was sensual torture, my fingers gripping the edge of the counter so tight that it digs into my skin.

  But then his hands grip my ass again, that deep voice gritty when he gives me permission to take what I want.

  “Ride my face, beautiful. Use my tongue to get yourself off.”

  My hips move of their own volition, and it doesn’t take much, not when I open my eyes and look down my body to see his grey star
e watching me with complete fascination.

  Ari has conquered me, and he is savoring the view of a woman who can’t stop.

  The orgasm hits and my head falls back, my fingers gripping tighter over the counter’s edge, my chest arching as he slides a hand up my stomach and over my ribs to take possession of my breast.

  Fingers of staggering strength, he adds pain to the pleasure, his punishing grip creating an electric line of sensation between my breast and between my legs.

  I’m shaking as stars burst behind my eyes, as the rush of blood through my body becomes white noise inside my head. My body is shattering apart and stitching back together again, sounds crawling up my throat that I’m not sure I’ve ever made before.

  And when the aftershocks settle and I’m released from the storm of this man’s pleasure, Ari wraps his hand in the front of my dress, drags me up, locks his other hand behind my head and kisses me with such passion that it steals my breath, his mouth slick against mine from the orgasm he’d forced through me.

  Pulling away, he presses his forehead to mine, his fingers tangling in my hair as our stares lock.

  “Did you taste that?” he asks, temptation swirling behind eyes of the lightest grey.

  Chest heaving with the struggle for air, I ask, “Taste what?”

  His lips curl, not into a smile. Not him. But enough to let me know he’s just won this game. “How sweetly you surrender.”

  My eyes clench shut and open again as he relaxes his hold on my dress, his fingers sliding down a lock of my hair to pull it over my shoulder. Studying the ends, he shakes his head.

  “You’re gorgeous regardless, but I’m not a fan of the new length.” His eyes lift to mine. “Was the cut something you chose, or another demand by your husband?”

  The comment stabs through me, anger flaring through my body to extinguish every lingering effect of the orgasm.

  He grins as if that was his intent, to stab, to twist the knife as a reminder of why he is here.

  Stepping away from me, his wipes his mouth with the back of his hand and straightens his sleeve cuffs, platinum cufflinks glimmering beneath the kitchen light.

  “I hate to cut this short, but I have plans tonight, and they don’t include being here. I only showed up because it was surprising that you took no time to reach out.”

  He crosses the room to the door, his hand gripping the handle as he turns to look at me.

  “Be sure to send me the information for dinner tomorrow night. I’m looking forward to it.”

  Hands fisting, I narrow my eyes on him, my body so tense I might snap. “You still plan on investing in my husband’s company?”

  Ari sighs, tilts his head. “I plan on hanging around until I get what I want.”

  But he just got what he wanted. Maybe not fully, but I hadn’t been the one to stop him. How fucking dare he keep this shit up?

  “What do you fucking want?” I seethe.

  Another of those enigmatic grins as he opens the door to step into the night.

  “For you to stop lying.”

  Fear slams into me, a line of ice chasing down my spine. “You want me to tell Grant I cheated on him, don’t you?”

  He shakes his head, the evocative gleam of his hair so black that he blends with the shadows around him. All except those eyes. Ari can’t hide those. They glimmer like silver beneath the light that pours through the door.

  “I don’t give a damn about what Grant knows.”

  “Then what am I lying about?”

  He stares at me for a few silent seconds.

  “Everything else,” he finally answers before shutting the door and walking off to let the shadows consume him.

  The guilt of what I just did sinks in, my thoughts becoming clearer now that his beguiling presence is gone. Jumping off the counter, I run to the door to chase him down and scream, but he’s gone by the time I reach it, nothing but darkness stretching into the expanse.

  Tears prick my eyes, both angry and sad, my shoulders withering with defeat because I know he has me cornered.

  Giving into the sobs that bubble up my throat, I slide to the ground and press my head against the cool glass of the door.

  I’m ruined.

  Torn apart.

  And I know that no matter what I do, Ari will stay one step ahead of me.

  But how can he know I’m lying about anything?

  And why does the accusation hurt so fucking much?

  Ari

  I have to admit it was surprising when Adeline’s first text came through. I’d expected her to tough out the situation for longer than a few hours, for her to pretend she wasn’t affected even if the truth of it was written all over her face.

  Not recognizing the number, I read the message and laughed to realize I’d rattled her at lunch. For a woman who is so good at hiding herself from the people around her, she has no suitable disguises when it comes to me. Everything she says and does speaks to what she’s thinking inside that messed up little head of hers.

  Granted, it isn’t fair. I’ve been watching her for so long that I can tell you what she’ll do before she does it, at least I thought I could.

  The burner phone was surprising, and it rattled me enough that I’d agreed to meet her at her old house, which, while enjoyable, was not something I’d intended to do this early.

  It had taken strength to walk away from her. To step into shadows I knew could hide me and watch her crumble by that door.

  Memories came back to me of another time I’d seen her cry like that, the first time I’d let myself near her when she was sleepwalking.

  It hurt to see it. I can’t deny that. The last thing I want to do is cause her pain, but sometimes that’s what’s necessary when you’re stumbling through life and need somebody else to knock you back on course.

  Adeline isn’t just stumbling, she’s falling, the hole she’s digging for herself swallowing every piece of her that makes her truly unique.

  She’s exchanged truth for pleasantries.

  Strength for weakness.

  A colorful, vibrant soul for boring beige.

  I can’t feel bad for hurting her because that’s what the universe does to a person when they’ve forgotten their path.

  Only I’m not the universe, I’m just a man obsessed, a person who knows and loves her for all the crazy and charming behaviors her husband is intent to change.

  A fucking Stepford wife, that’s what Grant wants, and I won’t let him take someone so unique just to bleed the life out of her until there’s nothing left but a dried out husk of who she once was.

  Which is why I’m standing in front of a mirror right now, buckling a belt over my slate grey slacks, my black shirt still unbuttoned where it hangs over my tense shoulders.

  The elevator to my penthouse dings, and I look up to see Lincoln stroll in, brown eyes that miss nothing locking to my face, suspicion arching his brow.

  “A little fancy for date night with me, don’t you think?”

  My jaw ticks. “I sent you a text cancelling.”

  He leans a shoulder against the wall and watches while I button my shirt.

  “You always send me a text cancelling, and I always show up to drag you out anyway. By the look of it, you have other plans.”

  My hands stop, and I snap my eyes to him. “Didn’t I take your key to my place last time you were here?”

  He grins. “You did, but I had copies made.”

  Cursing under my breath, I finish buttoning my shirt and tuck it in, not bothering to look at Lincoln when I answer, “I have a dinner party to attend.”

  “You don’t do dinner parties. Last I checked, you avoid all people unless they’re paying you money to kill someone, or they’re the person you’re killing.”

  A pause, the silence filled with the accusation I know is coming.

  “Fuck. You’re messing around with Adeline again, aren’t you?”

  I won’t meet his stare. Instead, I turn around and grab my jacket from the back
of the couch to slip it on.

  “She needs a wake up call. I’m simply the person giving it to her.”

  Lincoln steps up to me, his height equaling mine.

  “Dinner party where?”

  “Her house.”

  Our eyes lock for several seconds before he laughs and shakes his head.

  “You sly son of a bitch. I knew it wouldn’t last. That girl has been all you think about since the minute you first saw her, and now you’re weaseling your way in again. It’s driving you nuts you can’t keep close tabs.”

  A roll of my eyes.

  “Well, of fucking course. You think I actually want to eat dinner there? But, how else am I supposed to figure out their security system if I can’t get inside the house? Suffering through Grant’s bullshit for a few hours is worth what I get out of it.”

  Another laugh as he scrubs a hand down his face. “Why not just kill him and get it over with?”

  Grabbing my keys and phone from the side table, I stalk past him, the sides of my jacket flying out with the motion. Lincoln stays right on my feet as we step into the elevator, and I smash my finger against the button for the underground garage.

  “I’ve killed enough people in Adeline’s life.”

  “Four, if I’m right about the body count.”

  Shooting him a look, I don’t answer. I’ve never admitted to any of the bodies I’ve racked up over the years because of her, but Lincoln isn’t a stupid man. When problems suddenly vanish around me, there’s a reason.

  The elevator drops at a speed that catapults a person’s stomach into their throat, the silence in the car awkward because I know Lincoln is judging me. Not that I give a fuck about his opinion, but still, he’s thinking everything I should be thinking about myself.

  Annoyed, I turn to him. “Just come out and say it.”

  Brown eyes assessing, he doesn’t react to the aggravated snap in my voice.

  “What do you plan to do with her? Break up her marriage? Then what? It’s not like you can give her a normal life. You kill for a living. How will you explain where you are for days at a time when you’re on a job? What happens to her if you fuck up one day and get caught?”