Dangerously Delicious

37.

"You are a beauty. After all nothing but the best for the favored Delacourde," he answered. Talon began his prowl of the office, touching the picture frames Raizon had on the side of his office. Arianna watched on as he looked at each picture then her. 

"Thank you. Ray never told me of you. I've only met his brother and mother," she offered. If they were back in the 1800s, Talon Delacourde may have been the definition of a no-good rake. His dark hair and eyes along with his naturally tanned skin will make any woman take a second look. His features can be matched to Roman Gods along with his tall stature and muscular body. The suit he wore was perfectly tailored for him, he moved like a predator, one filled with the intentional purpose for an upcoming kill.

"Expected. He tends to keep his most prized possessions close to him, though I expected his army to be surrounding you since he's.... how you Americans say.... down for the count?" His French accent was heavier over his English words.

"I'm not that important. I'm just their boss' girlfriend, probably a temporary thing," she said shrugging her shoulders. It hurt her to think if Raizon will ever be that cruel to her.

"We, Delacourde's do love to try new things."

Arianna swallowed loudly and glanced at the photo of Raizon and herself.

"I may be wrong, mademoiselle. He did give you a piece of our family's history." The disgust wasn't missed by Arianna. She pointedly raised her hand to look at the engagement ring on her finger.

"He seemed.... happy when he proposed but...."

"But?" Talon pressed. He watched the woman his weak cousin is supposedly in love with. She can be a wonderful addition to his collection, he thought. To him, she was as innocent as they come and will be a lovely one to break.

"Not everyone was happy. I'm not 'queen' material, according to his men," she said miming the air quotes. Wrapping her arms around her stomach, she walked to the floor to ceiling window and looked out at the wondrous view of the Boston marina. She felt and heard Talon approach her. The window was reflective, giving her the view of his predatorial advancement upon her.

"So you do know of our.... 'line of business," he pressed.

"Hard not to when you were attacked by one of his enemies, now his loyal lapdogs are feeding me with this car accident crap. I'm not stupid. He was shot and now in a god damn coma," she said bitterly.

"Your best interest at heart?" Talon questioned. He was personally loving the way his meeting was going.
Arianna scoffed at his response and wrapped her arms tighter around her body.

"You're scared aren't you, mon petit bijou," he pushed. Just as Arianna was, using the glass to pinpoint her enemy, Talon was using it to detect her expressions.
"I'm scared of a lot of things..." she retorted feigning to hide her vulnerability. 

"But scared of losing my cousin. You love him," he stated with triumph. Arianna swallowed loudly. "Yes. If only he feels the same. This all can be for pretense. His version of treating me like a queen," she said moving away from the window. Being close to the creep made her skin crawl, the urge to bat away the unseen discomfort was there but she couldn't.

"Maybe he does. Why don't we go to lunch? Get away from here. I'm sure being reminded of his status is all around this office," Talon said waving his hand around the office.

"I-I don't think that's a good idea," she stuttered. Gods above, she hated to sound so weak.

"Take it as an opportunity to know another member of your intended's family." This was said with a smarmy smile which she saw right through. He won't take her to any of the restaurants under the family's name. Somewhere far from the office and good enough for him will be his choice.