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Chuckling to himself one moment, in the next he struck out like a snake, attacking his prey. Snatching up my wrist in a painful grasp, he pulled it towards him to hide the vicious grip under his other hand. “You do realize I don’t give a shit that we’re in public right now. I will take you out of here, kicking and screaming if I have to in order for you to understand just who you’re talking to.” My only reaction was to swallow the threat down. “That’s better.” He patted my hand. “Now, I have a proposal for you in light of our little event that occurred last night.”
I tried desperately to pull my hand away to no avail under his tight grip. “What event?”
He nodded his head in approval. “You’re a quick learner. A lot smarter than I thought, and that’s a good thing, Clarice. Let’s see if we can keep that momentum going here, shall we? This Saturday night you will accompany me to a dinner being given by the Mayor. My driver will pick you up at precisely seven o’clock.”
“No.”
He shook his head. “No?” Then leaned in closer. “You know I really had high hopes for you there for a minute.”
“I am not going to go out with you.”
“Then how about I revoke our little deal from last night and make good on killing your friend, Scarlett? All it would take is one phone call from me. Kieran and her are out having coffee together as we speak.”
“How?” Was all I could ask.
“Well, I do have to admit that it was a smart attempt on your part to delete his number out of her phone, but what you’ll quickly learn is, I’m smarter.” Instantly, I moved to get up, the need to find Scarlett and make sure she was ok, taking over. Pulling me back down before I could manage to get to my feet, he growled, “do you really want to make a scene right now?” My eyes darted around the café, looking for any cops that might have strolled in or anyone else who looked like they could help me. It was then that I spotted the two monsters from last night. One was talking to Gabby and the other was talking to Abigale. “I assure you that I willalwaysbe one step ahead of you. There’s no one in here who can rescue you.”
My eyes darted back to the devil in front of me. “How do I know you won’t hurt Scarlett anyway?”
Letting go of my wrist, he wrapped it up in both hands and began gently caressing the bruised skin. “You don’t. But I will say this, as long as you cooperate with me and do as I ask, she will remain healthy and most importantly... alive.”
“As you ask? As in this won’t be the only time you blackmail me with her life?”
Moving his hand to my face, he stroked my cheek, causing me to flinch away from his touch. “Now look whose catching on.” Getting up, he looked down at me. “Saturday. Seven o’clock. Wear something elegant. If you need to buy something, use this.” He threw down what looked to be a wad of all one-hundred-dollar bills onto the table before turning and walking out the door, cutting off any protest I might have had.
Chapter
Four
Creed
What the fuck was Idoing? I had never intended to even go into the café where she worked, let alone talk to her. It was just supposed to be for a collection of information to keep tabs on her in case she changed her mind and talked to the cops about what she’d witnessed at the club last night. But the next thing I knew I was in the café, threatening her if she didn’t accept my invitation for a date.
Back in the car, I had to listen to the lecture I knew would come after my poor decision making. “You really think it was a good idea to invite her to the Mayor’s dinner party Saturday? She could talk to the wrong person about what she saw last night,” Torin stated.
As someone who had known me for so many years, I didn’t take his doubt in the situation lightly, but when I was near her it was like I couldn’t help myself. I had to have her, and I was willing to make that happen however was necessary. It just so happened to come in the form of her biggest weakness, her friend’s life. Even though I normally respected Torin’s opinion, when it came in the form of an objection to me inviting Clarice to the Mayor’s dinner, it pissed me off. Mostly, because I knew what I had done was a stupid move, but I didn’t need him rubbing that fact in my face. “Are you questioning my fucking judgement, Torin?”
