That was all Charley could think about now. She’d riskeverythingfor her sister, no matter what the cost.
Even if it meant pissing off the vampire king.
Even if it meant walking away from the only man she’d ever truly fallen for.
That was the price of mixing her kind of business with his kind of pleasure. It was a price that kept on rising, no matter how many times she thought she’d already paid it.
Because now, seeing what she truly stood to lose, Charley knew nothing in her life had even come close to covering the cost of her mistakes.
* * *
After the shower, Charley inspected her naked body in the mirror. The dark circles beneath her eyes had faded, but her shoulders and collarbone were raw, the pale flesh swollen and red. Dark, fingertip-shaped welts had risen to the surface, and no amount of scrubbing would erase them.
Fresh tears welled in her eyes, but a jarring knock on the bathroom door broke through her despair.
“Charley?” Sasha rattled the locked doorknob, her voice high and edgy. “Let me in.”
“Um… Just a sec!” Frantic, Charley grabbed her bathrobe from the hook, yanking it around her body just as Sasha popped the lock and pushed open the door.
“What the hell is going on?” Sasha asked, gripping the butter knife she’d used to break in.
Charley forced a smile. “What are you doing home so soon? I thought you were staying with Darcy until tomorrow.”
“Rudy called me and said I needed to get home immediately.”
Charley’s blood ran cold. “What?”
“He said there was an emergency. I kept calling and texting you, but you didn’t answer.” Tears of relief and frustration spilled down her cheeks. “God, Charley! I didn’t know what happened and I just ran for the nearest cab and I was totally freaking out and—”
Charley cut her off with a tight hug.
“It’s nothing. I… I wasn’t feeling well. I think I ate some bad eggs.” She pulled back, keeping her voice light. “Rudy was overreacting. I’m sorry—I didn’t even know he had your number.”
“Neither did I.” Sasha folded her arms across her chest and leaned back against the doorframe, clearly not buying Charley’s casual, everything’s-just-fine act. “He also wanted to know how I did on my psych presentation on Friday. How the hell did he even know about that?”
“It must’ve come up in passing.” Charley swallowed the knot of fear and anger in her throat. The last thing she wanted was for Sasha to worry, but Charley’s own nerves had just kicked into hyperdrive.
So not only does he know her work schedule and her social plans, but her class schedule too? Down to her presentations?
“When did you two start doing family breakfast, anyway?” Sasha asked, still suspicious. “And what happened to your flowers? Seriously, Charley. What the fuck is going on?”
Charley turned back toward the mirror, unable to bear the weight of her sister’s astute questions. But Sasha stepped behind her, meeting her gaze in the reflection.
“Look at how miserable you are, Chuck.” Sasha shook her head. “No job in the world is worth that—not even for family.”
“We have bills, Sasha.”
“Let’s just sell this place. We’ll move. I’ll take more shifts at work, go down to part-time at school. We’ll figure something out.”
Charley blew out a breath, wishing she could make her sister understand, but she couldn’t—not without scaring the shit out of the girl. “I’ll work it out with Rudy. He’s not… he’s not totally unreasonable.”
“Are you kidding me? He’s a classic psychopath! He meets all the criteria.” Sasha held up a hand, counting down with her fingers. “Uses intimidation tactics for his own personal gain. Doesn’t show remorse. Fakes emotion to get you to trust him. Manipulates you every chance he gets. Trust me—I’ve been studying this stuff all month, and Uncle Boss totally fits the profile.”
Charley offered a sad smile in the mirror, but before she could give Sasha any more false reassurances, the doorbell startled them both.
Aside from Rudy, who technically owned the place now and had his own key—a fact Charley had never even considered until this morning’s surprise drop-in—visitors had to be announced by the doorman.
Charley turned and grabbed Sasha’s shoulders. “Stay in your room. Lock the door. Don’t come out until I say so, okay?”
