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Eden lifted a brow. “Obviously, you don’t have an older sister to teach you when to keep your mouth shut.”
He laughed. “A little sister, and it’s my job to tell her when to shut her trap.” He made a little bow. “I’ll be right back with your car, ma’am.” A few minutes later, he pulled up in the old Volvo Eden had inherited from her grandfather when he had to stop driving because of his cataracts. The rusted door squeaked as the kid hopped out, looking terribly confused.
“I thought you’d be able to afford better than this piece of crap.” He held the door while she climbed in. “You shouldn’t have turned me down. Obviously, beggars can’t be choosers.”
She patted his chubby cheek before getting in. “You need to remember that people don’t tip for insolence.”
“After seeing your car, I couldn’t take money from you anyway.” He slammed the squeaky door. “Hell, it’s more beat-up than mine.”
Eden ignored the statement, but couldn’t help smiling as she pulled away. As much as her little brothers were pests, she realized that she missed them. Maybe she would invite them for a visit. But only after her story broke, and she got a promotion.
It didn’t take her long to get home. That late at night, the traffic was minimal. Parking for her apartment was in the back of the complex. She squeezed the Volvo into her numbered spot and had just gotten out when a black SUV pulled in behind her. The driver was out and had her pinned against the car with one hand wrapped around her throat before she could even release a squeak.
He wore a black ski mask, and his eyes and mouth looked distorted through the holes of the mask. At first, she had to wonder if Nash had followed her and was much crazier than she’d thought. But then she realized that this man wasn’t close to being Nash Beaumont’s height, and his breath smelled like stale beer instead of mint and heat. When he spoke, his voice was nothing like smooth Southern honey. It was gravelly and scary.
“There are rules to follow, little girl.” His hand tightened on her throat. “And if you want to play the game, you have to follow those rules.” Eden tried to lift her knee and smash him in the nuts, but he was pressed too tightly against her. Still, he must’ve felt her effort because his hand tightened even more until she couldn’t breathe at all. She clawed for release, but he ignored her efforts and leaned in close to her ear. “Now learn the rules quickly or you’re going to get hurt.”
Then he released her, and while she bent at the waist and tried to catch her breath, he grabbed her purse. She couldn’t see what he took out of it before tossing it to the ground, but she assumed it was her wallet. She waited for him to drive away, then she picked up her purse and, on legs that felt as wobbly as Jell-O, staggered to the stairwell. Thankfully, it was only two flights to her apartment. Once inside, she locked the door and dead-bolted it before her knees gave out and she slipped to the floor.
It took numerous deep breaths to get her heart rate to slow. Once it was no longer throbbing in her ears, she opened her purse and searched through it. As she had assumed, her wallet was gone. But both cell phones were there. She pulled her new one out, intending to call the cops, and then realized that she couldn’t. The only game she’d been playing lately was the escort game. So she had little doubt that the guy was from the escort service. If she called the cops, they would investigate, and Eden’s story would be out. She wasn’t ready for that to happen. At least not until it came out in print with her name in the byline.
Still, she would go crazy if she didn’t share what happened with someone. And since she wasn’t about to worry her family, there was only one someone she could call. It took five rings before Madison picked up, and Eden could tell by her voice that she’d been sound asleep.
“Georgie? Are you having trouble sleeping again, sweetie?” Madison yawned. “So tell me about your time in the movies. I love the story about how you and Marilyn snuck off the set—”
“It’s me,” Eden said.
“Eden? What’s wrong?”
She took a shaky breath. “Something happened tonight. I got mugged by—”
Before Eden could even finish, Madison cut in. “Give me your address, and I’ll be right there.”
Not more than ten minutes later, a knock sounded on the door. Eden was still sitting on the floor, and it took a few minutes to climb to her wobbly legs and answer. Madison stood in the hallway wearing a fur coat, silk nightgown, and high heels.
“What happened?” She clicked into the room. “Did someone break into your apartment?” She turned, and her eyes zeroed in on Eden’s neck. “Oh my God, someone tried to kill you?”
Eden touched her neck and flinched. Obviously, she’d gone into shock, because she hadn’t even realized her neck hurt until that moment. “I think if the guy in the ski mask wanted to kill me, he would’ve. He just wanted to warn me about playing a game. And since the only game I’ve been playing lately is the escort game, I’m thinking it might’ve been the guy who runs your escort service. Does Zac drive a black SUV?”
Madison nodded. “But why would Zac want to mug you? The guy makes a fortune.”
“I think he was pissed that I met with Na—the Dark Seducer—tonight, and so Zac followed me home from the hotel.”
Madison’s eyes widened. “You met with the Dark Seducer again? But I thought you only wanted to meet with him once for research.”
Eden didn’t want to keep lying to Madison, especially when she had raced over to be with her. But Eden worried that, if she told her about the newspaper article, Madison would let Nash’s identity slip before the story broke.
“I just needed a few more details,” she said. “And I didn’t think it would hurt anything since the Dark Seducer had asked for me by name.”
For the first time since she had known her, Madison’s eyes registered fear. “He called the escort service and asked for you by name?” When Eden nodded, Madison looked even more scared. “Then it was Zac. He can get very upset if he thinks people are trying to horn in on his business.”
“But didn’t you tell him that I was only taking over for Chloe as part of my research?”
Madison shook her head. “He never would’ve gone along with it. So I cooked it up with Chloe on the sly, thinking that he would never find out.” She hurried over and slammed the door and locked it before turning to Eden. “You’ve got to promise me that you won’t play escort again, Eden. This is not a game. Zac has done some bad things in his life, and next time, he could really hurt you.”
It was a promise Eden had no trouble making. Her days as an escort were over. Not only because she didn’t want to die, but also because Nash was never going to ask for her again.
And she didn’t know why that made her so sad.
