This time, Eleanor caught a smile on Julian's face one soaked in nothing but sarcasm.
"I didn't do that violin to score points"
"So you're telling me you didn't just hand Edward a MacDonald Stradivarius."
"I"
Julian's grip closed hard around her wrist.
"That thing's worth hundreds of millions minimum. Where's that money coming from, Eleanor? What else are you keeping from me?"
His grip felt close to bone-deep. With the seatbelt locking her in place, fighting back barely made a dent.
"Julian, you're hurting me."
Before she could twist free, he unbuckled his own belt and leaned in, pressing her back against the seat.
His voice dropped, low, magnetic, right against her ear something closer to a threat than anything else.
"I can make it hurt a lot more than this. Want to test that?"
