Page 75 of Pas de Trois
“Can’t we?” Renata asks with her arms crossed and her eyes burning into mine.
I shift uncomfortably in my seat.
Murphy bangs his fist on the table. “No. We can’t. That’s final. You can’t just kill a wife because her husband is dead. If I died and you pulled this shit with Stella—”
His head turns a little to steal a glance at Stella beside him. She uncrosses her arms slowly as her expression melts from defiance and frustration to concern and sympathy. The sympathy isn’t for me though, it’s for Murphy.
His face transforms from angry king to indulgent husband. It’s more than a little shocking the way that a single look from Stella has softened him so quickly. He takes a deep, controlled breath, then blows it out harshly. “The matter is settled,” he says, gritting his teeth. “Renata will continue to coordinate Anya’s care for another year. We’ll reevaluate at the next O’Shea-hosted meeting.”
Renata scoffs and it sparks a sudden fire in my belly. I’m already frustrated that I don’t have approval to host the next meeting in Russia, and having her here to react like a child with her derisive noises only fuels that angry flame.
It angers me enough to clap back at her, even though I know it’s stupid to bite the hand that feeds me. “Don’t be such a bitch about it. Honestly, Renata, the way you behave is so childish. Sometimes I think you need a keeper. Really, Murphy,” I say, catching his eyes, “that woman is emotionally unstable. She’s lucky she has Lorenzo to help make her decisions because otherwise, she wouldn’t know what side of the bed to get out of in the morning.”
The men in the room snicker, enjoying my apt assessment of Renata. She and Cordelia are the only ones fuming at me. But Renata’s fury is enough to make my spine tingle in warning.
A slow smile spreads across her face and she tilts her head slowly to one side. I feel a chill as she reminds me of the reason why I don’t tell her every time I think she’s acting like a whiny, entitled jackass.
“Darling girl, your lover still belongs to me,” she says.
Ezra is still her slave when he’s not my talent.
And she’ll use him to hurt me.
