“Do you want me to hurt you?”
“Kinky,” I rasp. “Are we talking about just pain or is pleasure included?”
Her scowl deepens and she slices a blade through the space between us. “I could’ve chopped your balls off.”
“That’d be a shame for both of us.”
“There are many dicks in the sea, stud.”
My sigh is exaggerated. “You know just what to say to make a man feel special.”
Frankie drifts her thumb along the lethal points of a serrated blade. “It’s a gift.”
I take a meaningful glance across her impressive arsenal. “And here I thought we were getting somewhere.”
“We were until you crept in behind me like a stalker.”
“Got something to hide?”
The truth widens her eyes before she can smother the reaction. “Just a few dead bodies. Nothing out of the ordinary.”
“What were you watching?” I didn’t notice what show came on after the ads.
“Nothing,” she blurts.
“A true crime documentary giving advice on how to get away with murder?”
She scoffs and flips a section of red hair over her shoulder. “As if I need any pointers.”
Which is freakishly accurate. I should probably leave her to it and back away slowly. Instead, my curiosity spurs me forward.
I round the end of the sofa at a normal pace to avoid suspicion. “Plotting my demise?”
Frankie calculates my every step like a sniper with her finger on the trigger. “Unless you’ve got a better idea.”
“This oughta do it.” A single tap to my phone turns on the television.
“Nooooooooo!” Her screech might wake the neighbors miles down the road. The ear-splitting racket rattles the windows as she lunges for the remote again, but it’s too late.
“Perfect Match,” I read the logo in the corner of the screen.
“It’s not what it looks like.” Frankie’s usually fair complexion resembles a stop sign, but I’m not obeying the law.
“Hot damn,” I hoot. Dry laughter is shaking my entire frame. “You’re watching a cheesy dating show.”
She hides her face in the safety of her palms. “Paisley got me hooked. I know it’s bad for me, but I can’t stop. It’s gotten out of control.”
My giddy amusement is thoroughly entertained as a couple sits on a picturesque beach while feeding each other strawberries. “Wow, I didn’t expect this from you. I honestly thought you were watching porn.”
Her glare snaps to mine. “While cleaning my knives? What kind of sex fiend do you take me for?”
I scrub at my beard. “That’s a loaded question.”
“My imagination is stocked to the brim thanks to you.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
Her eyes heat. “You should, big boy.”