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“I’m not a man.”
“Fine. Blood people. What do you say? Only truth?”
“You’ve already lied. There’s no way you could steal that much money from under someone’s nose, and they wouldn’t know it,” I argued. His little smirk said it all. He had, and his family had been none the wiser.
“They still wouldn’t know if I hadn’t allowed it,” he said smugly.
“How will I know you’re telling the truth?”
“You’ll have to trust me.”
“I don’t trust anyone.”
“Neither do I.”
He watched me with infinite patience as I debated. Total truth? It would be a relief with at least somebody, but what if it spilled over into all aspects of my life? I wasn’t sure I was ready to face the real Sonya Hughes.
“I don’t know if I’m capable of being totally honest.”
“That sounds like a pretty good start to me.”
I had never met anyone like Drew Carter before. His family had seemed decent. Distant and angry, but from what I had gathered, he probably deserved their disdain. Yet here I was. About to commit to being honest for the first time in . . . a long time.What has he done to me? And why am I allowing that?
I thrust my palm toward him, and he beamed, then made a small cut in the center before slicing a matching one in his own. We shook. I gazed at the crimson smears on my palm.
“Some Kind of Wonderful” by The Drifters began to play, and I threaded our fingers together, our wounds pressed together. Drew eased out of the booth and tugged me to my feet. Sam jolted up, but when he saw we weren’t going anywhere, he relaxed again.
We rocked to the music, quiet, as if the moment was sacred. Maybe it was.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Drew
“Let’s go.Now.”Sonya shoved me with a lot of force for a woman.
“What the hell?”
“Stop talking and go. There’s a back exit off that corridor to your right.”
I glanced at it, seeing an overhead sign pointing toward the restrooms. “Do you always scope out the exits?”
Apparently, I didn’t get the urgency of the situation because the lethal look she gave me got my feet moving. “Hurry, but don’t draw attention to us.”
“Who are you? GI Jane?”
“Shut up, Carter, and get me out of here,” she hissed, maneuvering in front of me. She grabbed Sam’s leash in a panic, but more than that, she was excited. We burst out the back door into an alley, and she looked both ways. One end was closed off, so we were forced to the street. Sonya poked her head out, checked both ways, and decided it was clear. We took off, traveling away from the bar. We’d made it about a block before a man in a suit and his goon stepped out from a side street, blocking our path. Sam stood in front of her and snarled.
“Well, well, Gwennie. I know you aren’t trying to escape me,” he said with a sinister smile as if the dog wasn’t there. The man had a few years on me, but I recognized our similarities in an instant. The suit was tailored, as was the shirt. Salvatore Ferragamo shoes. Matching Hermes tie and pocket square. Glittering diamond cuff links. And finally, the tell-tale signature of status: a Rolex.
The goon reached out for Sonya, and I immediately moved her behind me. Sam bared his teeth and lunged, but the man jumped out of the way. He scowled, and I dared him to make a move.
“This doesn’t concern you,” he said to me. “Believe me, if you walk away and leave her to me, you’ll be better off.”
“I could say the same to you.”
“You work quickly, don’t you, darling? Already found someone else to manipulate. Come now, sweetheart. Don’t hide behind this nice gentleman. It would be a shame to let him be pummeled on your behalf.”
“I don’t know who you are. Gwennie is sweet. Did you know she looks after her dog? Works really hard so he has the best care.” What the fuck was I doing? Apparently learning by osmosis.
