She Used Me for a Dare… Now I Own Her Mother

Chapter 206: Where would You like Me to Start?

”But you’re not satisfied with this much revenge, are you?”

The question landed like detonation.

Alex’s jaw tightened fractionally.

Satisfied?

The word echoed through his mind with bitter precision.

Pocket money cuts and public humiliation were barely appetizers. What he had planned for Sophia — the complete, systematic dismantling of everything she valued, would make everything so far look like warmup.

But he definitely couldn’t share those plans with her aunt.

”Tell me, Alexander Hale,” Catherine continued, voice dropping lower, carrying weight that suggested genuine interest rather than casual curiosity.

”What’s your endgame?”

A pause, deliberate.

”What are you planning to do to my pitiful niece?”

The concern in her voice didn’t match the mischievous expression on her face... lips curved in smile that suggested she cared deeply about Sophia’s fate while simultaneously finding the entire situation entertaining.

”After all,” Catherine added, tone light but eyes sharp, ”she is my only niece. I love her very much.”

The contradiction between words and delivery made it impossible to determine whether she was warning him or encouraging him.

”And what about Marcus Steele?”

Her tone shifted, carrying an edge now that cut cleanly through the tension between them.

”The boy who put you in the hospital. The one Sophia chose over you.”

A pause that felt weighted with challenge.

”Because I haven’t noticed you moving toward him at all.”

The observation landed with precision that suggested she’d been watching for exactly that, her voice carrying note of provocation... almost daring him to act, to reveal whether his revenge extended beyond Sophia or stopped at the woman who’d orchestrated his destruction.

Alex caught something beneath the challenge.

’She genuinely wants me to act on Marcus.’

The realization settled with uncomfortable clarity.

’But why?’

His mind cataloged possibilities with mechanical speed.

’Is everything between her and the Steeles not well?’

’It could be.’

’Or is this something else entirely?’

Before Alex could formulate response, Catherine turned, moving toward the tanning bench with deliberate grace.

Her hips swayed with each step... calculated movement designed to draw the eye, to remind him exactly what he was looking at.

The black bikini left little to imagination.

Water glistened on her skin, catching afternoon light as she walked, each step a study in controlled sensuality that could have made even the most disinterested man pay attention.

Alex watched, expression carefully neutral, but his gaze tracked her movement with focused attention that suggested he understood exactly what game she was playing.

The tanning bench was angled to catch maximum sun, reclined at position that emphasized every curve.

Catherine settled onto it with practiced ease, adjusting the angle slightly, then leaning back as if Alex’s presence didn’t factor into her comfort at all.

As if she did this every day.

Then she turned her head, gaze finding his with precision.

That devilish grin spread across her face... not playful, not teasing, but something far more dangerous.

A look that said ’I know exactly what I’m doing to you.’

”Come here.”

The command came soft, deliberate.

Then Catherine shifted on the bench, her legs spreading slightly apart in movement so deliberately sensual it stopped being subtle and became blatant provocation.

Slow. Controlled. Designed for maximum impact.

Alex felt his blood heat despite every ounce of control he’d maintained throughout their entire encounter.

’What...’

He stood frozen, mind processing what was happening with uncomfortable clarity.

’She’s... ’

”And apply this,” Catherine continued, voice dropping into something that could only be described as invitation wrapped in challenge, ”to my body.”

She gestured toward the lotion bottle with casual grace that contradicted everything about her positioning.

Her smile deepened, eyes tracking every micro-expression on his face with satisfaction that suggested she could read his exact thoughts and found them delicious.

’I’m giving you free hand,’ that expression said without words.

’Let’s see if you’re brave enough to take it.’

’Or if you’ll break first.’

”What? Can’t handle a women like me? ”

Catherine’s voice cut through his thoughts, carrying note of amusement that made his instincts sharpen immediately.

Her smile widened fractionally.

”Or... Are you afraid to touch me?”

The question hung in the air, deliberately provocative.

Catherine’s gaze never wavered, watching his internal calculation with obvious satisfaction.

”Or perhaps,” she continued, voice dropping into something softer, more dangerous, ”you’re afraid of Victoria...?”

”Afraid she’ll find out you put your hands on her best friend?”

Alex’s expression didn’t change, but something cold settled in his chest.

She’s testing boundaries. Pushing to see where I break. Where my loyalty to Victoria overrides my...

Her smile took on quality that suggested she knew exactly what he was thinking and found it entertaining.

”I promise I won’t tell her,” she added, voice carrying mockery wrapped in false reassurance. ”Unless you want me to.”

”The lotion’s right there,” Catherine murmured, gesturing toward the bottle. ”Unless you’d rather stand there calculating risk-benefit analysis while I wait?”

Her smile took on quality that suggested she knew exactly what he was thinking and found it entertaining.

Alex watched her expression with focused attention, cataloging every micro-detail.

The way her eyes tracked his reactions. The satisfaction that flickered across her features each time she pushed boundaries.

The obvious enjoyment she derived from daring him, challenging him, testing whether he’d actually accept what she was offering.

’She’s enjoying every second of this.’

Catherine Blackwood — Victoria’s closest friend, someone who’d just spent twenty minutes systematically dismantling his entire background... was lying on a tanning bench in a bikini with her legs deliberately spread, asking him to put lotion on her body.

’Maybe not expecting me to really do it.’

The thought crystallized with sudden clarity.

Another test. Different methodology, same purpose.

Alex held her gaze for three heartbeats.

Then something shifted in his expression.

Not nervousness. Not hesitation.

A slow, knowing smile curved his lips — the kind that suggested he’d just realized something Catherine hadn’t anticipated.

’But am I going to refuse such a generous offer?’

’Haven’t I been waiting for exactly this kind of opportunity?’

His smile widened fractionally, taking on edge that made Catherine’s confident expression falter for just a heartbeat.

”Can’t refuse to a beautiful lady like you over something this trivial, can I?” Alex said quietly, voice carrying undertone that transformed politeness into something else entirely.

”Especially when she’s the dear friend of my wife.”

He stepped forward with measured confidence.

Not quickly. Not hesitantly.

With measured confidence, closing the distance between them with deliberate steps that suggested he’d decided the rules were acceptable.

”After all,” he continued, closing the distance between them with deliberate steps, ”I have a responsibility to serve her friends however they desire.”

The word choice was intentional.

Serve.

Alex moved into the space between her spread legs, positioning himself with deliberate precision that left no ambiguity about exactly where he stood.

Their eyes locked.

The afternoon sun warm on their skin, the distance between them measured in inches rather than feet.

The tension thick enough to taste.

Catherine’s breath caught... barely perceptible, but there.

Alex picked up the lotion bottle, uncapping it with slow, measured movement, his gaze never leaving hers.

”Where would you like me to start?” he asked quietly, voice carrying undertone that made the simple question feel dangerous.

Catherine stared at him, and for the first time since emerging from the pool, she wasn’t entirely sure she was still in control.