Cruel Lies - Ella Miles Page 0,52

have to succeed.

Before Langston came looking for me, I made a deal with Corbin. I’ll do whatever he wants in exchange for getting to see the boy he’s keeping hostage, a boy he thinks is my son.

I turn off my emotions as I throw back the rest of my drink—the alcohol burns all feeling in my throat as it sinks down into my stomach.

I’m saving Langston. I’m saving him.

That’s the last I allow myself to think of Langston. My eyes focus in on my target—Corbin. He’s sitting in a red velvet chair in a full suit. The only thing missing is his tie. He thinks the clothes make them look more powerful. And maybe he is powerful. He has loyal men, wealth, weapons. He thinks he has me.

He can fuck me, but I’ll never be his. I already gave my heart away…

I straddle Corbin’s lap. I hover over him, careful not to touch any part of him as I raise an eyebrow challenging him.

We doing this here, baby? In front of everyone?

His nostrils flare, taking the bait.

Why do I want to do it here in front of everyone? Because Langston is here. As much as it’s going to kill him to watch me do it, I also feel safe and connected to him. I only have the strength to do this if he’s here.

I grab his shirt, ripping the expensive buttons on his white Louis Vuitton shirt as I pop it open. I have to make the first move, and I just made it.

I’m the one in charge, not him.

I repeat that mantra over and over in my head as I roll his jacket and shirt off his arms. Corbin doesn’t move to touch me. He thinks of himself as the king, and my job is to serve him. That makes my job easier. I’ll be in complete control of everything.

I consider my next move carefully. I don’t want to take off my shirt. I want to strip him first, so he knows I have all the power. But giving up part of myself, controlling his eyes with my body is more important. I’m the most confident person in the world and have absolutely no problem fucking him is what I need him to believe.

I need every man in this room to believe.

So I pull my tank top off like it’s nothing, like I strip in front of dozens of men every day.

I can hear men clearing their throats. Others groan. Some look away, embarrassed. But most of their eyes are glued to my pointed nipples, inches away from Corbin’s pupils.

But I’m not done yet. I stand up with nothing but tiny shorts that barely cover my ass. Turning around, I stick my ass out as I swoop it over Corbin’s crotch and undo my button and zipper.

I force myself not to glance at Langston. I don’t want the men in the room to know that he’s hiding, but I feel his heated stare on me more than any man’s in the room. His eyes are trying to demand that I’m his, trying to convince me to come back to him and stop this.

I can’t.

Instead, I slide my shorts and underwear down my body.

There is a collective gasp in the room as I stand naked in front of a room full of men.

Corbin still hasn’t touched me. He hasn’t said anything either.

I turn back around, eyeing Corbin’s crotch like I want to eat him for dessert.

He doesn’t react. He just stares at me intently, not moving.

I trade his stare. I’ll fuck him in his chair, just like I did to Langston on the plane.

“Such a brave woman to come into the lion’s den and offer yourself up willingly,” Corbin says.

I hold all my tension in my jaw, but I don’t react. I don’t let out any fear.

I can’t help but think my father did this as punishment for all the pain I’ve caused.

He knew I was a terrible daughter, and I’d make a terrible mother, a terrible friend.

I think about Phoenix. I took the man she loved only to destroy him. I deserve to feel whatever pain Corbin is planning on sending my way.

“Kneel,” he says, attempting to take control from me. But one thing I’ve learned from my time with Langston is that no one can take anything from me without my consent. He can boss me around, and I can follow. He can touch me without my permission, but until I give him something, he has nothing. He