He turns his gaze back to me. “You saw her at Arlo’s house.”
“Yes.”
He simply stares in that creepy way of his. I’m immune to it, though. Have been for years. I’m not going to tell him what I learned or what I saw. Evie is my problem, my growing obsession. Hell, I haven’t stopped thinking about her since she tried to kill me.
“If you fuck her, you’re going to regret it.”
“’If’?” I give him a patronizing look. “You mean when.”
He pinches the bridge of his nose. “Why must you always try my patience?”
“I guess it’s a middle child thing.” I grab the glass reproduction of sugar cane from his desk and twirl it around in my hands.
“You’re going to break that.”
“I break everything eventually.”
He sighs, low and belabored. “At least you know yourself.”
“The most handsome Vinemont brother—yes, I certainly do.” I’ve often wondered how many times Sin has pondered trying to kill me. He’s the sort that likely would’ve strangled me in my sleep when we were kids, but somehow, I kept him entertained for long enough that he never tried it.
“Stella would disagree.” Mischief glints in his eyes.
“Stella clearly has shit taste. After all, look who she married.” I stand and place the glass cane back on his desk with a worrisome thud.
“I’m serious, Lucius.” His usual glower returns. “The bad blood between our families isn’t something you can fuck out of her. This goes too deep and too far back for it to ever be water under the bridge. Red meant more to her than a prick like him should have, but we can’t change it. She’ll always want revenge for it.”
“I know.”
“You say you know, but you still want to get your dick wet like a goddamn fool.” He pauses and peers at me as he rises from his chair. “Unless …”
“Unless what?”
He approaches, scanning my face in the afternoon light. “Unless there’s more there than an angry fuck.”
I start to respond, but he throws his hands up. “Lucius!”
“What?”
“You can’t be serious.” He runs a hand through his hair. “She’s our goddamn enemy.”
“I know.” I can’t deny his claim, so I don’t bother.
“Fucking hell.” He stalks to the wall at the side of the room and opens the hidden bar.
“Make it a double.” I meet him there and take the proffered drink.
“Once you fuck her, you’ll be done with her.” He nods, as if to himself. “That’s what’s going to happen. You’ve got the emotional maturity of a drunk toddler, so this will pass. What are you even thinking? You don’t know her. You don’t—”
“I know her.” I finish my drink in one gulp. “Past and present. The future isn’t quite so clear.”
“If she knows you at all, she’ll stay the fuck away.” He’s already given up trying to talk me out of it. I suppose that comes from years of experience. Once I find something I want, I don’t stop until it’s mine. Up until this point, though, that “something” has never been a person.
He sips his drink and turns to me. “What if she’s with them? What then, Lucius? What if she chooses them over you? I mean, chances are good, right? She already hates you.” He blinks as if he can’t seem to wrap his mind around this conversation. “Jesus, this is a goddamn mess.”
“She only thinks she hates me. She doesn’t really hate me.”
“Has she said anything—anything at all—to that effect?” He pours himself another drink. “Or has she said that she fucking hates you, with no caveats or asterisks?”
I mean, he has a point there. “Look, what she says and the way she reacts to me are two different things. After I cockblocked her at Arlo’s place, she showed me something more. This isn’t a one-sided thing. She knows there’s something between us.”
“Yeah, mutual hate.” He shakes his head. “Let’s play this scenario out, shall we? You somehow get between her legs, fuck her, and then what? Then what?”
“Then—”
“I’ll tell you then what—then she stabs you in the fucking neck for killing her brother right in front of her five years ago. That’s what.”
“What a way to go, right?” I toast him and down the second glass.
He drops his glass onto the tray and rubs his eyes. “Why do I always have to be the level-headed one in this fucking zoo? Why?” He groans. “You need to stop thinking with your dick and focus on protecting Magnolia.”
“I can multitask.” This is the usual point in our conversations where we get into a fistfight. I shake out my arms. “Keep my face pretty. I’ve got a woman to woo.”
“As much as you need your ass kicked, I have to go. Stella’s friends are in town for the weekend.”
“The Russian?” I love kicking that big oaf’s ass.
“Yeah, but he’s going to be busy training with Stella. She’s trying to get stronger at krav maga.”