Chapter 44 Rubbing Salt in the Wound
Iris started throwing thick slices of beef, pork chops, shrimp, and fish onto the grill. The rich, smoky smell hit them all at once and their mouths started watering like crazy.
God, they wanted some so bad.
“We should probably eat our own stuff,” Brett muttered.
Derek turned his head away. “Can’t do it. Not after seeing all that.” After watching someone eat that well, there was no way he could choke down another protein bar.
“If you can’t eat, just drink some water and pretend.”
The guys chugged water to fill their stomachs and waited, hoping Logan could sneak them some leftovers once Iris finished eating.
But when Iris wrapped up her meal, she wiped her mouth and spoke up before Logan could say anything. “Logan, pack up all this food. Looks like you’re not eating much, so I’ll make less next time.”
Everyone froze.
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Logan got caught completely off guard. He’d only eaten until he was about 60 percent full, trying to save some leftovers, but
now…
“Iris! I’m still hungry!”
“Oh, you’re still hungry? Then keep eating. I’m gonna go inside and let my food settle.”
“Sounds good! I’ll clean everything up when I’m done!” Logan watched Iris walk away.
The second she went through the door, he waved everyone over. “Come on, hurry up and eat!”
Derek, Brett and the others didn’t waste a second. They grabbed everything Iris had left and threw it back on the grill. They didn’t even leave behind the lettuce that had been under the meat.
Everyone rubbed their hands together excitedly, waiting for the food to heat up. They all had these huge grins on their faces like kids on Christmas morning, but then a pointed female voice came from behind them.
“Well, well, well. Who said you could steal my food?”
When Iris spoke, all these massive guys who probably weighed over a thousand pounds combined just froze solid where they 2/6
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stood.
It was ridiculous. Here they were, grown men, and they were all terrified of this one woman. They looked like mice who’d just spotted a cat. If there’d been anywhere to hide, they would’ve dove for cover right then.
“What’s the matter? Hungry?”
Iris walked slowly toward her grill and looked over these guys standing there like scared quails.
“We… we weren’t eating anything!” Derek jumped up first and looked at Iris with his baby face. He was the youngest one in the group at only 20 years old, but he’d been in the military for a while.
He’d enlisted at 16 and performed so well that he made it into Damon’s special ops squad. His skills were solid, but he was still young and inexperienced. He’d definitely never met anyone as cold and ruthless as Iris. Otherwise she wouldn’t have almost made him cry.
“If you weren’t eating, then what were you doing?”
“We were just sitting here smelling the food. Is that a crime?”
“Of course it’s not allowed!” Iris said lazily. “The smell of this food belongs to me. Who gave you permission to smell my 3/6
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stuff?”
Derek’s jaw dropped.
“You know when food grills, all those oils and fats vaporize into the air? Those vapors have calories and nutrients in them. They’re part of my food. So when you sit there sniffing my grill, you’re literally stealing my food! What do you have to say for yourself?”
“Fine! I’ll leave!”
“Too late for that! You’re paying me back one way or another!”
Derek stared at her in disbelief. He couldn’t believe how petty and stingy she was. He felt like he was about to cry from pure frustration. What the hell was he supposed to pay her back
with?
“Iris,” Logan stood up at that moment, “I’m the one who did this. If you’re gonna punish someone, punish me.”
“Shut up and sit down!” Iris shot him a look before turning back to the others. “Look, I’m not being unreasonable here. You’re all soldiers, right? So you guys should understand fairness even better than I do. Tell me, how exactly are you planning to handle this situation?”
Derek and the others exchanged glances. 4/6
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Tyler, the oldest one in the group, spoke up. “Fine, then we’ll replace everything! We’ll get you a whole new batch of food!”
“Yeah! We’ll pay you back!” the others chimed in.
“With what exactly?”
“We’ll go out and find food for you! We’ll get you the exact same food to replace what we ate!”
“Ha! Is there anything in this world that’s exactly the same as something else? Plus, I want my payment right now, immediately. Pay me back this instant!”
“You’re being completely unreasonable!”
“That’s right. You’re just bullying us now!”
“Oh really? So a whole group of you steals my food and acts like you did nothing wrong, but somehow I’m the one bullying you?” Iris shot back.
That shut them all up. They looked at each other helplessly until Tyler finally spoke again. “Look, Iris, how about this? You tell us exactly how you want us to pay you back and we’ll do it your way.”
Iris had successfully taken control of the conversation. She sat
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Chapter 46 The Landowner’s Workers
Iris‘ expression softened just a bit. “Get going then. There’ll be food waiting when you finish.”
“Yeah, but can we even afford to eat your food?” Derek muttered sarcastically.
Iris immediately kicked in his direction. “Eat it or don’t, I don’t care! You guys still owe me anyway!”
They all shuffled off reluctantly to do her bidding. The only one left behind was Brett, who was still recovering from the worst injuries.
His leg was messed up pretty bad and he really shouldn’t be walking around for another day or two. But Iris couldn’t stand seeing anyone just sit idle either.
“You, get over here and help too.”
Brett stared at her in disbelief,
Had they just walked straight into some kind of slave plantation?
They’d smelled her barbecue for two seconds and now she was 1/6
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down casually in front of the grill and said, “That’s easy enough. You stole from me, so you can pay me back with yourselves. I’ll be generous and accept you all as my crew.”
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“Oh! So that’s what you’re after! You want all of us working for you!” Derek was the first to catch on. “Well, I’m telling you right now, that’s not happening!”
“That’s right, we all have to report back to base!”
“Iris, we really can’t stay here.”
“Then you guys figure it out yourselves. If you don’t agree to my terms, pay me back what you owe! And if you don’t pay up, you can all just sit here and wait to die for all I care!” Iris didn’t waste any more words on them. She turned around and headed back inside.
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
