Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 70209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 351(@200wpm)___ 281(@250wpm)___ 234(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 351(@200wpm)___ 281(@250wpm)___ 234(@300wpm)
No one would ever know.
My family would never know. Conway would never know. I’d give her to Egor once he was finished with his business, and I could wipe my hands clean. My reputation would be intact.
But the guilt counteracted it. Back and forth, my conscience swayed.
We were talking about rape here.
I’d never been that kind of guy.
Did I want to start now?
Even if I didn’t, I’d have to put her to use. If I didn’t do something with her, she would find it suspicious that I bought her. She was smart, so she would push the envelope more and more. When she realized I wouldn’t rape or kill her, she would understand what kind of power she had.
And then the chaos would erupt.
I could make her clean and cook, but I didn’t need to pay fifty million for those services. Even if she wore lingerie at all times, I still didn’t need to drop that kind of cash for that—and she would know it.
Fucking her seemed to be the only option.
But she would never want me. I would always have to use force.
Fuck.
I was sitting at my desk in my office when my phone started to ring.
Conway’s name was on the screen.
My cousin was the last person I wanted to speak to right now after the stunt I’d just pulled. I’d dropped his name to get into the Underground, and I did something I promised I would never do.
What if he knew?
It was a bit ironic that he was calling me right now, especially in the morning. At this time of day, he was usually busy with Sapphire or working. I cleared my throat before I took the call. “What’s up, Con?”
Silence. Heated silence.
That lack of response told me everything I needed to know.
Yep. He knew.
I didn’t say anything else, knowing it would be stupid to say more than I should.
“I just had an interesting conversation.” Anger spilled out over the phone, filling the air around me. It was hot and thick, humid like on a summer day.
“I hope you weren’t talking to yourself.”
“Carter,” he hissed.
Bad time to make a joke.
“You went to the Underground and bought some woman—using my name?” The ferocity erupted over the line. “One of the Skull Kings called to check up on me because I’ve never sent someone in my place. Asked if I’d gotten the girl yet.”
Maybe I should have given him a heads-up. “Look, I didn’t know they were going to call you—”
“You don’t know anything about the Underground. You don’t know anything about the process. How stupid are you? You really thought you could pull this off without telling me? Do you have any idea how psycho the Skull Kings are?”
“To the best of my knowledge, they’ve never called you before.”
“Because I’ve never sent you in my place, dumbass.”
“And what did you say?”
He sighed into the phone. “I went with it. If I let them believe I was out of the loop, they would have killed you.”
“Were you convincing?”
“Damn convincing, asshole. Now what the hell is going on, Carter? We promised we were out of the game. What could have possibly brought you back into it?”
“I didn’t think I’d ever get back into it either. It was a one-time thing.”
“And why was it a one-time thing?” He practically growled into the phone like a bear about to rip my face off. “What was so damn important that you would drag us back into this? I’ve got a wife now. And not just a wife—a pregnant wife. I can’t risk her safety or the safety of my kid.”
“I never wanted to drag you into it. I thought it would be simple—in and out.”
“Asshole, it’s never that simple. If you wanted this done right, you should have brought me into it.”
“You would have said no.”
“Damn right. And we wouldn’t be in this mess because of my wisdom.”
“Mess?” I asked. “What mess? They called and asked a few questions, and that was it. You’re being paranoid.”
“Am I?” he countered. “Because they’ve never called and asked questions before.”
“That was because I’ve never gone in your place. Now that it’s cleared up, we’re good to go.” The damage was done, and there was nothing we could do about it now anyway. “This is the last time, I swear.”
He calmed down slightly, but his anger still simmered. “What was so enticing that you couldn’t say no?”
The only thing I cared about. “Cash.”
“How much?”
“One-fifty.”
Conway was silent, clearly surprised.
“I’ll split it with you since you covered for me.”
“Carter, I don’t care about the money. I care about my family now. I want nothing to do with this anymore. Call me boring, but I want the quiet life that my father has always talked about. I want to wash my hands clean and start over.”
“You’re getting your wish. I only agreed because of the cash, but I won’t agree again.”