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As she follows me down the alley, Talia gives me a puzzled glance. "Do you think that anyone actually cares what I have to say?"
I shrug, exiting the alley and pointing towards my sleek black Porsche two-seater. "Better safe than sorry."
I head around to the passenger side first, opening the door and impatiently motioning for Talia to get in. She hesitates for just a moment, her eyes meeting mine, as if she could tell just by looking at me whether my intentions were pure. When she climbs in, I smirk and shut the door. Then I hustle around to the other side, climbing into the driver's side seat.
Once I am settled, I turn to her. This close, I notice her small stature; her figure is much more petite than what I am used to. I live in a world of glamorous supermodels and Instagram influencers, all of them at least five foot ten inches. My dating pool is exclusively made up of beautiful women with dazzling smiles and deep tans. Women who generally know what their best angles are when anyone brings out a camera.
Talia couldn’t be more different if she tried.
She looks up at me, her expression guarded. I have serious doubts that she has ever been the sort of girl who is noticed for anything, much less her looks. Not that she is not pretty, just that she lacks the charisma and self-assurance I usually find in the women I sleep with.
Taking a deep breath, I inhale a lungful of her flowery scent. There is something about her, something untouchable and pure. Something possibly refreshing.
"Are you going to ask me questions or what?" she queries.
Pushing away thoughts of whether or not I find her attractive, I tilt my head to the side. "I want to know about my brother’s exploits. In fact, I want to tape-record them. If you are willing to spill your guts on camera, there will be five thousand dollars in it for you. How does that sound?"
Talia scrunches her face up. "I don’t know. You want me to admit to sleeping around with your brother on film? Why would you even ask me for that?"
I purse my lips. "What does it matter to you? It's five thousand dollars. You should be happy with that money."
A flare of disgust burst over her face. "You Morgans always seem to throw money at every problem, don’t you? It’s disgusting."
I arch a brow. "I dare you to act like you don’t want this money. Like you don’t need it. Everybody needs my money. Everyone thinks that they have a right to it."
She looks away, a muscle working in her jaw. "You don’t know anything about me, okay?"
"That’s okay. I’ve got your number. You’re just like every other girl. For the right price, you’re for sale. Maybe when this is all over, I can entice you to perform for me. I wouldn’t have sex with you, of course, but I would like to watch you squirm. Watch you at my mercy. I bet you will do anything for the right price. All women do at some point."
She lets out a humorless laugh. "Maybe all the women that you are used to. In my world, people have integrity."
"Integrity? That’s what poor people worry about."
She flashes a bloodless smile at me. "It’s good to know that's how you think."
"I’m right. You know I’m right. Can we get on with things now?"
Her lips twitch. "How about this? If I can meet Remy and you give me the five thousand dollars, then I will spill the secrets that you’re looking for."
My eyes tightened on her face. "I don’t know."
She gives me a pointed look. "I haven’t known you for all that long. But I think you know that this is a good deal for you. I am not interested in being videotaped unless I get to meet Remy."
I look at her, wondering if she thinks that meeting Remy will somehow lighten the load placed on her shoulders. I’m pretty sure that Remy is going to laugh her out of his office, assuming that he even agrees to see her. But hey, that’s not really my problem, is it?
Nodding slowly, I finally agree to Talia’s terms. "Okay. The five thousand dollars, and you can meet Remy at some point."
She comes right back with, "When? When is some point? Because I am not going to record anything until I’ve already talked to him."
My brow furrows. "And I’m just supposed to trust you?"
Talia looks offended. "Remember how we were just talking about integrity being for poor people? I have integrity in spades. And I will expect you to have it, too, even though I already think you’re kind of scummy."
"Scummy?" I reply.
"Yes. It’s scummy to ask for a filmed confession of your brother's sex life. It’s scummy to hit on me while you try to work this out. You might be a rich man, but I’m starting to think that you might be completely lacking a moral compass."
The way she is looking at me just now, her head turned back and her eyes glinting with accusation, is so confident that I am a little startled by it. My eyes are on her face, scanning her one last time for any trace of deception. But from what I can tell, she seems completely genuine. So, what the hell... Why not just fulfill her one demand right now?
