“He doesn’t like you.” Cato took another long drink of his coffee and finished the cup.
I stilled at the comment and the abrupt way he said it. “He doesn’t know me.”
“He doesn’t trust you. Doesn’t want me spending any more time with you than necessary.”
I kept the same calm façade, but my heart was beating a million miles a minute. Thankfully, he couldn’t feel my heartbeat. Otherwise, my pulse would be a dead giveaway. I defused the statement. “Neither of you trusts anyone, so that doesn’t say much.” I drank my coffee even though the last thing I needed was caffeine. It was idiotic of me to think I could manipulate someone like Cato. I made more progress than I expected because we were monogamous for the time being, but the second I stepped out of line, the Marino Brothers would be on me in a heartbeat.
“We don’t trust anyone for a reason. It keeps us alive.”
“I really seem dangerous to you?” I asked, forcing a chuckle I didn’t feel.
“Just your pussy.” He rose to his feet and grabbed both mugs to carry them into the kitchen.
Once he wasn’t staring at me, I let out the breath that was packed deep in my lungs. My fingertips felt numb from the adrenaline. I was dancing on a fine line, risking my neck every single day I spent with Cato. If I didn’t finish my task soon, he might dig a little deeper and realize exactly who I was. Or maybe the reason Bates didn’t trust me was because he already knew exactly who I was.
Landon was waiting for me in the back of the bar.
Lights were low, and few people were drinking this late on a Tuesday. Landon was in all black, holding his glass of scotch like it was a crutch he needed to walk. He hardly lifted his gaze when I took the seat across from him.
He’d already ordered a glass of wine for me.
“What happened?” he asked, instantly inquiring about my relationship with Cato.
“Hi. Nice to see you too. What’s new?”
He lifted his gaze and gave me a vicious glare. “I’m crashing with one of the women I used to sleep with. I pay for rent and food with sex and monogamy. All I have is the money I swiped from the vault and the accounts. That’s what’s new with me, Siena. Now, what’s happening with Cato?”
That was more information than I needed to know, but since we weren’t that close, it wasn’t totally awkward. “We’re exclusive.”
Landon’s furrowed brows softened into a look of surprise. “Did he ask for that?”
“Yes.”
“Really?” he said. “You’re monogamous?”
“Until I’m finished decorating his house. That’s the plan, at least.”
He rubbed his fingers across his jaw, feeling the thick beard he’d allowed to grow in since the last time I saw him. “Your plan is working. A guy like Cato doesn’t quit a lifestyle like his without reason.”
“I’m just as surprised as you are.” I thought it would be a lot more difficult to lure Cato into a connection. This guy could have any woman he wanted—and as many women as he wanted. To put that aside just to enjoy me seemed illogical. “But I think he’s grown tired of the repetitiveness of life. I think he’s bored and unfulfilled. I’m the only woman in the world who’s ever told him no. I’ve played hard to get. I’ve dated other men in the meantime. That’s not something he’s used to, and I think he’s intrigued by it.”
“Whatever you’re doing, it’s working.”
“Yeah…”
“You think you can get him somewhere alone? Your house would be the perfect spot. It’s quiet, and there are no neighbors. Damien and Micah could show up in the middle of the night while he’s asleep and ambush him then.”
“Even when he’s at my place, his men establish a perimeter around the property.”
“Tell him it makes you uncomfortable.”
Even if I did, I would be too paranoid to see the plan through. “Landon, I don’t know if I can do it. He threatened me. Not directly, but he did. Maybe he was stupid enough to fall for my ploy this far, but I don’t think he’s dumb enough to fall for this. Bates is on to me too. Said he doesn’t like me or trust me.”
Landon held my gaze as he listened, his hand returning to his glass.
“I’m on the edge of a knife. Cato clearly feels a connection toward me. He tells me things, and when I