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“David,” I bit out. “His name was David.”
“Yes, David. What happened to him was such a shame.”
In that moment I realized what I had failed to realize all those years ago.
He knew about me and David.
Just like he knew about everything else.
“Did you have David killed to get back at me?” I asked shakily.
His half smile lacked warmth and his eyes were dead.
Evil.
“You think I didn’t know about your little affair in Cabo? You think I didn’t see the stolen glances and little smiles when you came home from fucking him in Cabo.”
“So, you killed him to punish me?”
Our eyes locked, and I saw his hatred for me in them. I was dead to him the moment I had betrayed him.
“I trust that you and I have reached an understanding,” he said, ignoring my question, yet confirming that I was right. “That you will comply with my wishes.”
I had no choice.
Alex had me over a barrel, and he knew it.
I nodded, hating myself.
“Good!” He nodded to Jean-Paul who handed me an envelope thick with money. “Inside you’ll find ten-thousand dollars. It should be enough to help you with your relocation.”
I looked away from the envelope and raised my chin defiantly, refusing to take it from Jean-Paul.
“I don’t need your money,” I said, my pulse pounding in my ears. The only thing I was taking from Alex was my freedom.
There was a dreadful pause before Alex finally threw his head back and laughed. “Finally, there’s my feisty little girl! I’ve been waiting for her to show up.”
He indicated for Jean-Paul to put the envelope away, and stepped forward, bringing a frigid, menacing air with him. He looked at me, his dead eyes scrutinizing me for a moment, and inwardly I shook with fear. Because it felt like the devil himself was standing in front of me, reaching in and staining my soul.
But I remained poker-faced. Still as a mouse. Because it would be a cold day in hell before I let Alex see how terrified I was.
“You have my word,” he said finally. Our eyes locked and my face stiffened because I was looking into the eyes of pure evil. Then, just like that, his energy changed and he clapped his hands together. “Now, let’s go and eat. I’m famished!”
He forced Noah and me to join him and Jean-Paul for dinner at a local Italian restaurant. He introduced himself to Noah as his godfather, and entertained him with embellished stories about my teenage years, all fabricated and meant purely to win over my brother. And his performance was Oscar-worthy. By the end of the night, Noah was enraptured by him, while I was trying my best not to bring up the meal I had struggled to eat.
I was a strong woman.
But fear should never be underestimated.
It fucks with even the strongest of minds, and it had its hooks firmly lashed into mine.
Later, some people would wonder why I never went to the police. Or the Feds.
Or why I didn’t tell Bull.
And my answer would be the honest-to-God truth.
I was terrified of Alex and what he was capable of.
He had friends in powerful places.
Friends from the darkest, nastiest of worlds.
Friends who could inflict your worst nightmare on you with one word from him.
The only person I could trust to take care of this—to protect Noah—was me.
Alex knew I didn’t run away from him for me. He knew I ran because I wanted to protect my brother.
Worse, he knew my nightmare was losing Noah, and if I betrayed him again, he would ensure it became my reality.
He drove that point home at the end of the night when he dropped us home. As we said goodnight, he whispered in my ear. “If you breathe a word of this to anybody, especially that cock-sucking biker prick, our deal is off.” He stepped back and shifted his gaze to Noah sitting across the room watching TV. “Do we understand each other.”
I nodded. My throat knotted with fear.
“Good. I’ll be in touch when I need further information.”
But they never did reach out for information. The next time I heard from them was the morning after Maverick’s wedding. When Alex called me and told me it was time to come back to work for him.
It was the moment I knew I’d been lied to.
I was never in Destiny to keep an eye on Bull like Alex said.
And by the time I realized it, I was in way too deep. I was in love with the man Alex wanted me to destroy.
I never meant to get involved with Bull.
Never meant to run into the back of his van.
Never meant to lose my job and accept his offer of one.
Never meant to fall in love with him.
Of course, when I did, I had planned on telling him about who I was, but not until I had it all figured out in my head.
