Chapter 7: Actions and consequences

I have lived years of my life seeing the utter complexity of man's desires, but never have I seen a man so immersed in a world he has carved out solely for himself, and so out of touch with reality enough to think he can speed his way towards a marriage. That, too, with a complete stranger.

My brows furrowed as I watched Sin, a laugh bubbling at the back of my throat. It didn't matter if he looked like he could kill me, and it didn't matter if I knew he would get away with it, but I knew for sure that this had to be a joke.

I tried as hard as I could to keep the laughter down, but the words played in my head again, and I burst into laughter, my hand cupping my mouth, my chest heaving with breathlessness.

"What?" I managed to say through fits of laughter. "Not even baby-sit or work manual labor, you want me to marry you? You? Me? Is this a joke?"

He didn't reply, and I broke into another round of laughter, my head shaking.

Suddenly, the cold, round barrel of his gun touched my chest, and I froze in place, my eyes wide. I looked down, and his gun was right on my neckline, his eyes fixed on the gun.

Slowly, he met my eyes, then broke into a small smile. "Laugh, Annalise."

A lump rose in my throat, and my hands became sweaty. "Wh...what?"

"I want you to laugh," he said slowly, his eyes darting across both of mine. "That way, you won't have to do this ridiculous task. As a matter of fact, you won't be able to do anything, so laugh for me, sweetie."

My jaws clenched, and I swallowed. "I... I am sorry. I just..."

"You are crude. That's what you are. And naive. And quite spineless for a petty thief."

"I was desperate."

"Aren't you all?" He said with a small chuckle as he put out the light of his cigar. He slowly walked past me, his scent brushing past me. He had a slightly spicy scent tilted with musk and earthy patchouli, and I swallowed, blinking slowly.

I turned to him, my lips parting. Even though I knew he meant business, it still seemed ridiculous. Marriage was something I had never thought about. Much mes to a man like... this.

I always thought some man, maybe a farmer, would find my mediocre features pretty enough to cart me away to his piece of land in the countryside. Quite the fairytale Prince Charming, isn't it?

He said nothing more. Just took a glass of wine and brought it to his lips. I took a step forward, needing more explanation than he was giving me.

"Why... why exactly do you want me to marry you?"

He took a sip of his wine, then slowly dropped it on the bar glass and turned to me, his eyes dark and cold and completely shielded.

"Because, Annalise, I am a very petty man, and I barely know how to forgive. A woman has made me waste a trip through half of the world and a child, too, and I intend to get her back for it. First of all, Annalise, I intend to make Larissa burn with the jealousy of losing me to a woman who is apparently... much lower ranked in society than she is. You are perfect for that. After that, I intend to make her crawl back to me after I ruin her father and her new husband, so the only taste of wealth she can get is the drops pf cheap wine that I drop to my feet."

My lips parted, my chest heaving. Larissa. The woman from downstairs.

"I intend to show you off, Annalise. Polish you so you are the perfect woman. Make you the perfect little princess. The perfect picture of rags to riches. And in five months, Larissa will understand why I am the man I am, and she will be living witness to what I shall do to a woman who fucks around with me."

I swallowed, my eyes holding his. I felt somewhat breathless from the rage and fire in his eyes, the cold in his words and the vow tainted across them. He meant business, and he looked like he had more than enough time and money to make it happen.

"So you need me to help you get revenge on... a former lover?"

"Wife," he said with a laugh. "My former wife."

We fell into silence as I contemplated everything, my mind reeling, the images blurring in my mind's eye.

"But... what if none of that happens? What if she doesn't care?"

Sin gave a small smile. "You are naive, Annalise. And your job is not to ask me questions."

"But I need to know. I am the one who is going to be caught up in the middle of this. I am being forced to leave my life behind and...-"

"You don't have much of a life. Or an option." He raked his fingers through his hair. "We have dinner by 6 p.m. I expect you to be my date to that event. Your dresses and everything will be arranged for."

Slowly, he dropped the glass again, then slowly walked towards the large drawer. I watched as he pulled out one of them, and a large collection of wristwatches came into view.

He picked one, then clasped it around his wrist.

"You are taking five months of my life away from me for something you can afford thousands of. Isn't that just cruel?"

"Actions have consequences. We could choose other consequences if you would prefer that."

I bit down on my lip. "No, I... I will do this."

"Of course, you will." Suddenly, he walked up to me. I moved backward, my legs hitting the table and hindering my movement.

He brought a hand to my face, then drew a long line down to my lips. "If you have someone else out there, sweetheart, put it on hold for five months. So you don't have to be the next woman to find out."

I nodded. "I... I have no one."

He said nothing, then turned away, promptly disappearing into what seemed to be a walk-in closet.