Spy

DANTE.

“It's.. nothing. I just.. uh.. I have diarrhea! Yeah, that's it.” Juniper stutters, bands of sweat trickling down her face as she tries her possible best to avoid eye contact with me. 

I slowly let go of her thigh, and she springs to her feet, nervous as hell. She's adorable, especially when she's trying to resist what I'm doing to her. 

“I have to go take care of my.. uh.. diarrhea.” She speeds off without looking back, and Adelaide excuses herself before bolting after her best friend in concern. 

Simon and Reggie exchange glances in the awkward silence, and then Simon clears his throat. 

“Teenage problems?” He shrugs and I can't help the stifled laughter that escapes my throat. Reggie laughs too, but he doesn't stop eating, he is always eating. 

“They're not teens though.” I clear my throat, rising to my feet and they both follow, like an inbuilt action. “Adelaide is twenty two.” 

“Yeah but to us, they are.” Reggie calmly says and my head spins at that statement.

“I'll be in my study. Simon, get me a comprehensive list of everyone that visited the office today.” I order and leave without waiting for a response. 

For some reason, I can't stop grinning about Juniper's reaction at the dinner table. And I can't stop thinking about how much I want that tiny body of hers on top of mine. 

When she grabbed my hand back at the alley and pulled me out to tend to my wound, something moved in me, and it wasn't just in my groin. No one has ever offered to help me, or insisted on it when I try to scare them off. They all usually run from the big, scary man, but she came too close for comfort. 

Juniper is innocent, so fucking innocent that she doesn't even recognize the devil in front of her. To everyone but my daughter, I am the devil who should be feared, who likes to take but never gives, and I love my reputation. But then she comes out of nowhere with her sunshine and sharp tongue. 

Finding out that she is Adelaide's best friend should deter me from what I have in mind; to taint her innocence and possess her, to make sure she can never get enough of this devil. But instead of staying away from her, I want her even more. 

“I got the email, thank you Simon.” I whisper into the phone before returning it to the desk. I swipe my laptop, but my thoughts still move to Juniper, and her chocolate scent still lingers.

Forgetting her would have been easy if she didn't walk around the house looking so goddam sexy all the fucking time. 

“Dad?” 

Adelaide's tiny voice echoes from outside and I lift my head from the computer, grabbing the half empty glass of wine on my desk and swirling it slowly. 

“Come in, baby.” 

She slowly enters, a bright but nervous smile tugging at her lips as she saunters over to me. She takes a seat right in front of me, her hands resting on the desk.

“You don't look happy, is there a problem?” I ask, already disturbed. Adelaide is my life, and I will sooner cut my own head off than watch any harm come to her. 

“Well, it's about Juniper. I am worried that she didn't make a good first impression. Are you mad at her? I know how much you love making sure that everything is organized.” She laments, biting her lip; a habit that she can't seem to stop. 

“Come now, darling. Juniper is your best friend, she's practically family. So you have nothing to worry about, I'll make an exception and let things slide.” I say, squeezing out the warmest smile that I could for her. Smiling wasn't something that I enjoyed. 

“Thanks dad. You're the best.” She giggles. “I think this Christmas is going to be the best one yet, with her around. She's really fun when she gets comfortable.” She continues and I sip my wine, watching quietly. 

“She's really shy, but I'm sure she'll come around once she sees how welcome she is here.” 

“Well then,” I drop the glass of wine and lean in, “let's make sure she feels as comfortable as possible.” I answer and her smile broadens. 

“Thanks dad.” She gets up. “I'll leave you to your work, I'll be in Juni’s room.” 

She skips out of the room, and I return my attention to the computer. My eyes immediately pick up on a strange name in the list that Simon sent to me. 

“Bastard, I should have known. No wonder I was attacked.” I scoff, glancing at my bandaged arm. I picked up my phone to call Simon immediately. 

“I'm going to send you a name, and I want you to look into it immediately. I think Gomez and his men are still coming after our goods.” I say, my eyes darkening in anger. 

“Of course, Alpha, I will look into it immediately.” I dropped the phone after that.

Gomez is a minor enemy, and I will bring down the excuse of an empire that he has built. I'll make him regret messing with me. But at the moment, I had more important things to take care of, a tradition that I did not miss no matter what. 

Rising from my chair, I pull the drawer open and take out a lighter before leaving the study. I leave the house entirely, taking my bike instead of one of my cars. It was late, almost midnight, and the cold had grown worse. 

My bike hummed to a stop when I got to the bridge. I take out a photograph from my coat, and then the lighter that I picked up earlier. Standing by the edge of the bridge, I set the photograph on fire and watch it burn to ashes. I do not let go until it is completely burnt, even though my fingers burn along with it. 

“Happy death anniversary, bitch, and here's to another Christmas without you.” A grin plays across my face as I hop on my bike and drive away.

….

I pull my coat off as soon as I step through the front door, hanging it on the rack before making my way in. I can hear a rattle coming from the dark living room, so I make my way towards the noise, my face stern. 

I turn on the lights, and Juniper is standing right in front of me. Her face is pale, like she didn't expect to see me, and her eyes are widened. Her petite body seems frozen in place, but I can see her gulp as my eyes drop lower.

I trail my gaze down to her flimsy pajamas, and I can see her nipples poking right out, and it makes my throat run dry. 

No one has ever stolen my breath like this. 

“What are you doing down here by this time?” I take another long look at her, from her head to her toes, and she pants, staring up at me. “It's quite late you know, and you shouldn't be walking around in that, tempting people.” I point to her pajamas and she gulps again, taking a step back. 

“I just came for a glass of water.” Her voice is almost inaudible as I close in on her, unable to control the storm going on inside me. 

Why did this… little one make me lose control? I am usually in control! 

“Go on then, go get your glass of water.” 

“Will you stand here and watch me?” She asks, finding her voice. 

“Do you want me to? Because I have nothing else to do.” I smirk. 

“Or.. are you scared of the dark?” 

She shakes her head. “More afraid of what lurks in the darkness.” She maintains strong eye contact, a feat that most women cannot achieve. I am surprised. 

“Go on then, I'll stand here and watch.” 

She inches back, seemingly enjoying this, and then she turns around to enter the kitchen. I follow her, standing by the door and watching her grab a glass from the fridge. Just as she moves to the tap, I see a dark figure through the window, swiftly making its way across the garden. 

A spy.

A dark grin plays across my lips as my fists tighten.