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Leaning back in my chair, I put my hands behind my head. I couldn’t help chuckling over what I imagined she wanted to say to me. Making her wait would either give her time to cool down, or make it worse, but whichever direction it took, I was prepared to handle it. Cadence at her worst would never be as bad as what I dealt with on a daily basis, but this was guaranteed to have her hunting for me.
Especially once she figured out the rest of what I’d done besides fix her car.
The idea had started because of the breakdown. I couldn’t live with her driving around in something so unsafe, and I knew she couldn’t afford to take care of all the issues that old piece of junk had. Short of buying her a new car, which I knew she wouldn’t accept and would raise too many questions from her family, having my mechanic take care of everything was the best I could do. It had been hard to get it all done in the short time we’d had, but my mechanic managed it, and he’d been paid well for his late-night work.
I’d set up the rest once I woke from dreaming of her in my bed again. It was going to take my computer guy a bit to pull off, and it might be a while longer before it registered where Cadence would notice, but she was going to be debt free by the time I was done.
My bank account was a bit lighter, but it was nothing I’d miss. Money had never been an issue for me, and since Cadence was mine, it wasn’t going to be an issue for her either.
It would be worth it in the end, anyway. Getting Cadence’s attention was worth any price, and I’d find a way to soothe any lingering anger once she learned the truth of it all. I couldn’t let her deny me and try to move on as if I wasn’t serious.
She was mine.
Chapter Seven
Cadence
Growling under my breath, I turned and made my way back to the house. Leo hadn’t answered, even when I called his number over and over.
I gave up and left a message for him to contact me after the fifth time I made it to his voicemail, ignoring the shiver that went down my spine each time I heard his voice on the recording. I couldn’t let him get away with what he’d done. He’d taken the decision out of my hands and put me in debt to him once again.
Without my permission.
My core clenched. I might not like the circumstances or reasons, but my instincts liked the idea of the alpha taking care of me. My body had no issues with repaying him the same way I had repaid Michael’s debt.
What did that say about me?
The front door slammed harder than I’d meant it to and my cheeks heated as Momma looked up at me from the book she’d been reading on the couch.
“Everything okay, dear?”
I couldn’t tell if Momma was still lost in the past or if she was here again, but I wouldn’t burden her either way. I pasted on a smile and nodded, slowing my breathing to something more normal.
“Fine, Momma. Sorry, I didn’t mean to slam the door.”
Momma returned my smile before going back to her book.
Not sure I could handle the questions I knew Michael wanted to ask, I went to my room and shut the door. Dropping onto the bed, I tried to figure out what to do as I pulled my favorite blanket up to my chest, rubbing my cheek against the softness to calm the agitation. I wouldn’t have been able to afford the bare minimum repair the car had needed, and I had no idea what the work Leo had done would cost. It had clearly been more than the basics.
I let myself fall backwards, closing my eyes as I ran a hand over my face with a groan. As angry as I was with him at that moment, I couldn’t deny the weight that had lifted. Having a reliable vehicle was one less worry, and one less burden I had to manage. I didn’t have to choose what to sacrifice to afford it, and tears gathered along my lashes at the relief.
For the thousandth time, I wondered if my pride was worth it. Leo had paid more for one night with me than I made in a year. I could have almost paid off the house with that amount if I had received all of it and didn’t have other debts waiting.
With what was done to the Toyota, it was as close to new as it could be, which had to have cost quite a bit, but I knew he wouldn’t have done it if he didn’t have the money to spare. He probably had more money than he knew what to do with considering his father’s fortune too. I didn’t know what he had wanted to offer me when he told me to meet him, but if it was enough to cover the repair of the car, maybe it would have been worth letting myself give in to what I wanted anyway.
I couldn’t deny I still wanted Leo. Or more accurately, I wanted him to have me. There was a pull between us that seemed inescapable. If I believed in fate, I might have been willing to say that was what this was, but fate meant I had no choice.
Leo was the son of a man known as a crime boss, and probably in line to take the reins when his father stepped down. Our interactions made it clear Leo wasn’t always on the right side of the law, and yet he’d never treated me in a way that made me feel less than him, despite his knowledge of my issues. He’d given me a choice, and he’d kept his word.
Until now. He hadn’t offered to fix the car, probably because he’d known what I would have said.
Would I have told him no last night if he’d offered?
I sighed as I opened my eyes. It was so hard to figure out what to do when my brain said one thing and other parts of me wanted something else. I knew what wasmorallyright, but letting my family sink into debt and risking being homeless seemed almost as bad as selling myself to a mafia prince. Even working two jobs, I didn’t make enough to support three people on top of the mortgage and Momma’s medical bills. Michael already had to figure out how to pay for college himself because there was no way I could help, and Momma’s condition was only getting worse. She was going to need more medications, treatments, possibly supervision once Michael left for college, and it would kill me if we had to decline an opportunity for either of them because we couldn’t afford it.
Yet giving myself to Leo for his money was wrong. It made me a whore, or akept womanif I was willing to be generous since it was only him.
And what would happen when he tired of me? Or if I got tangled up in his business? Being associated with the Galleons wouldn’t be a good thing if the office found out, and it could put both meandMichael in a bad position.
