TEACH ME A LESSON CYRUS!

CHAPTER 3

CYRUS

They say a devil never bends, never listens, and importantly never obeys. But I did. I fucking did. And all for what? For the second wife.

But who am I kidding? Something was different about her. She wasn't the weakling I met a year ago visiting this house. That girl had been a ghost. Shoulders hunched, voice barely above a whisper, always dressed like she wanted the walls to swallow her.

This woman? She was flesh and blood and fire.

The weakling who always averted her eyes whenever I stared at her. She was different. Now she has changed.

Her eyes shone something else entirely, and damn, that makes me thrilled. Defiance. Challenge. A predator sizing up another predator. She wasn’t prey anymore.

"Cyrus, I'm really sorry that my useless second wife tried bossing you like that." I could hear Justin's voice and it almost made me sick. The way he said 'useless' like it was her name. Like he’d said it a thousand times until she believed it.

But I only sat and continued staring at the food. The roast was getting cold. The crystal glasses sweated condensation. But why not stir up trouble? The night was already ruined. Might as well make it entertaining.

"Oh, is she the second wife?" I deliberately asked, and I stared at Justin himself. I was waiting for his reply. Let him choke on it.

"Yeah she is. Why ask when you already know?" Justin asked, looking confused. If only he knew I hated when people act all confused. Confusion was a weakness I carved out of men before breakfast.

"Oh, I thought maybe she is the first wife." My tone carried the words straight forward. Clean. Surgical. I watched them land.

Just then I shifted my eyes to the bitch beside the bastard Justin. This must be Vanessa. Diamonds at her throat. Venom in her smile. She looked at Lisa like she was something scraped off a shoe.

Just then, she was back. Now she was wearing a robe and some slippers. Her dark, silky hair was down, still damp at the ends. The robe was white. Thin. It clung in places it shouldn’t. She wasn’t trying to seduce anyone. She didn’t have to.

She looked innocent in the eyes of those who believe in deception, but in my eyes she looked like she was plotting something. Planning. Calculating. The same way I did before I took a company apart.

"What are you doing back here? Huh, we have a guest and he doesn't like people who aren't family, so get out."

Beth's voice sounded laced with nothing but jealousy and anger. She was Justin’s sister. Spoiled. Loud. Used to getting her way because men were afraid of her father.

"You better leave and get going. You are not welcome to sit here," Stonia added. Stonia was the aunt. Bitter. Old. She hated Lisa because Lisa was young and Stonia’s beauty had expired twenty years ago.

That was when the doors opened.

My father walked in. Richard Hale. The room went dead silent. Forks stopped mid-air. Even the fucking clock seemed to pause. When Richard Hale entered a room, the oxygen changed.

He looked at Lisa, then at the table where everyone was seated. "Lisa," he said, voice like gravel.

"Why aren't you sitting down?" He asked. I looked at him. He never raised his voice. He didn’t need to.

"Oh, Father. I can’t sit without the permission of our guest." I could hear her voice and I smirked. Clever girl. Putting it on me. Forcing my hand.

"Do you have any problem with her sitting, Son?" my father asked, and I replied straight forward and clear.

"No, not at all." Let them all watch. Let them see who really controlled this table.

They both sat down, and she sat down next to Justin. But she faced me. She looked at me like a predator, and I smirked. I'll never give her the satisfaction of getting what she wanted. Not yet.

I never looked up. I cut into the untouched steak just to give my hands something to do. The knife scraped the plate.

"You know, Son, I would be glad if you get to know my daughter-in-law."

From the table, Vanessa flaunted her hair sideways. She thought he meant her. Of course she did.

"Well, Father, I don't think Cyrus will be interested in knowing little old me." Vanessa smiled proudly. Stupid. So fucking stupid.

"I wasn't talking about you. I meant Lisa. I feel you two could really be good pals."

Vanessa felt so embarrassed she was just silent. The red crawled up her neck. Justin wouldn’t even look at her.

I never looked at her at all. "Mmh, I'll very much love that, Father." Lisa's voice sounded. Sweet. Poisoned honey.

I never answered. Let her twist in it.

Stonia scoffed and Justin frowned. His jaw was so tight I thought his teeth would crack.

"I mean, I'll learn so many great things from you, Cyrus King. Isn't that right, Brother?" Lisa's voice sounded, but I never said anything.

Just then my eye twitched. I felt something warm trailing from my lap to my feet. Wine. Red. Expensive. Spreading across my thousand-dollar slacks.

"Mhmm," my voice sounded, unexpected. I looked up and my eyes met hers. She pretended as if she didn't do anything. Innocent. Wide-eyed. A fucking liar.

She held her wine and drank. One slow sip. Never breaking eye contact. _Brother_. She’d called me Brother to piss me off. It was working.

"Great! I never thought you would agree," my father said with a chuckle. He missed the war happening under the table. Good.

But my eyes refused to leave her gaze. What the hell? She’d changed. Or maybe she’d always been this and just hid it well.

Lisa stood and walked out of the room. The robe swayed. Every man at that table watched her go. Including Justin. Especially Justin.

I also stood and left the room, my food untouched. I never ate anything. The wine was cooling on my skin. I could still smell it.

I was barely up the stairs when I heard an annoying voice behind me.

"Umm, Cyrus. I can show you around if you want."

Beth said it. If only she knew how much I despised her voice. Like nails on a chalkboard. Like Justin’s voice. Like everyone in this house.

Before I could tell her to fuck off, another voice cut in. Softer. Controlled.

"I’ll show him," Lisa said, appearing at the base of the stairs. "He’s my guest." She said _my_ like she owned me. Like she’d branded me.

"But he is my brother," Beth argued back. Her voice was getting shrill. Desperate.

Beth’s smile cracked. Mine didn’t. I looked between them and made my choice. It wasn’t even a choice.

"You can leave, Beth," I told her.

Beth’s face twisted, but I was already walking. Lisa led the way, her robe swishing around her ankles. The hallway was dark. Old paintings watched us. The house was a mausoleum and she was the only thing alive in it.

She didn’t speak until we reached her room and the door clicked shut behind us. The sound was final. Like a lock. Like a gunshot.

I backed her against it. "What sick game are you playing?" My voice was low. Dangerous. The kind of voice that made CFOs piss themselves.

She tilted her chin up, defiant. That new look in her eyes again. Not fear. Never fear. Not anymore.

"Oh, Brother, I'm not playing any game," she muttered with a smirk. She was lying. We both knew it.

"You don't fucking know what you're getting yourself into, Lisa. I'm a dangerous man. I don't build, I destroy," I said in a devilish tone. It was a warning. It was a promise.

Just then she touched my chest. One finger. Right over my heart. Like she was checking if I had one. "Then do it. I dare you to destroy me," she whispered. Her gaze never left mine. No hesitation. No tears. Who the fuck was this woman?

I leaned in, my lips brushing her ear. I could smell her shampoo. Something soft. Something that didn’t belong in this house. "

Naughty wives need to be taught a lesson."

"Oh please, teach me a lesson, Cyrus," she said, and that made me smirk. Darkly. The devil she woke up was going to enjoy this.