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“That may be true, but I didn’t tell themeverything. I had to shift accounts into different names in the family. Any business, contact, purchase—everything in my name is being tracked right now. I don’t need the heat on me, and…”
He pauses, his fingertips stroking my cheek so my hair is pushed back behind my ear.
“Do you ever just consider leaving everything, Ernesto?” he asks in a hushed tone. “Perhaps it’s just me that they want to take down. If I gave them that, would she finally be safe?”
“She is safe,” he mutters. “I’m confused, Carter. I’ve never heard you so unsure of anything in your life.”
“Walking in on your rival getting ready to ravage the woman you love will do that to you,” he replies. “Let’s just pretend I never said anything about this at all, okay?”
“Of course.”
“Good. I have a fucking election to win.”
Chapter Three
Carter
I sit back on the foot of my bed, watching Isabella Julis getting dressed for the event. The button in my hand is heavy, tempting me to send her to her knees, but I refrain for now. I want her to forget it’s there and go on about her night as normal until I can punish her through the hours as they come.
She stalks out in a long, shimmery white dress, something reminiscent of a roaring twenties outfit or maybe even something for a new-age wedding. Either way, she looks too stunning to take into public. If I could have her all to myself, right here and right now, then I would.
But we are nearly late for my own party.
“What do you think?” she asks, giving me a twirl of the fabric. “Do you like it?”
“I’d like it better on the floor, around your ankles.”
She frowns like I’ve insulted her.
“Dove, when will you learn?” I make my way toward her, brushing her cheek with my fingertips and igniting a shudder down her delicate spine. “You will never find a piece of clothing worthy of your body.”
She blushes, leaning in to kiss my cheek. I take that delicacy for now, knowing that if I dare pursue more with her, that dress will end up in a puddle on the floor. She takes her little purse with her, hiding a cell phone that I got for her. She checks it once in the hallway, then again in the lobby.
“Expecting something?”
“I was texting Sam a while ago. I asked if she would be at the party with Tristan.”
“And?” I ask.
She shakes her head. “I haven’t heard from her much since…” She hangs her head, refusing to continue with that somber thought.
Ernesto opens the door for us, and I help her inside the backseat first, holding my finger up before I join her.
“One minute, dove. Work call.”
She nods, and I shut the door, pulling my phone out of my pocket, dialing a familiar number, and pressing it to my ear. It rings once, then twice, before a gravelly voice picks up on the other side.
“What’s up, boss?”
“Hey, Tristan. Have you spoken to Sam lately?”
He clears his throat, and I hear rustling through the phone line as if Tristan’s moving rooms. “I was just in bed with her, actually. She’s asleep. What’s up?”
“Nothing. Isabella was just concerned. She said she hadn’t heard from her in a while.”
He hesitates, and I can already tell something is off. “Well, yeah. You’re partially right about that.”
“What’s going on then?”
