Total pages in book: 225
Estimated words: 218500 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1093(@200wpm)___ 874(@250wpm)___ 728(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 218500 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1093(@200wpm)___ 874(@250wpm)___ 728(@300wpm)
His icy stare is unnerving.
“Chloe wants me to go,” she continues. “Clearly she’s worried you’re gonna fuck with my life the way you’ve fucked with Adam’s. But you should know I don’t scare as easily as him. I might not come from a powerful family like yours. I might not be a billionaire with unlimited resources at my disposal. But what I am is someone who doesn’t abandon her friends. What I will say here to the both of you is that there are some things you said, Derek, that I absolutely love. The idea of someone giving my bestie the happiness she deserves? That tickles me. Truly. If you deliver on the promises you’ve made today and my girl decides it’s what she wants, bravo. Bravo, Derek. I’ll be your biggest cheerleader. But she has to want it. I think you should consider doing things the traditional way with her to see where it gets you. And if it gets you nowhere, you should do what every other guy that gets shot down does. Find somewhere else to shower your affection.”
“I’m not remotely bothered by being unlike everyone else.”
“Clearly. So, I’m watching. Closely. And I’ve already gone to the trouble to inform several people that I have concerns about you. You might not like that but if anything happens to me or Chloe, there are several powerful people who are paying attention and who know you’re the one to watch. You may have been the Steele brother most under radar until now, but flags have been raised in multiple places.”
Derek’s expression does not change.
I’m trembling, though.
“So, I’m watching. Call me later, babe. Or call me immediately if you need to.” She wraps her arms around me and kisses me on both cheeks before grasping my cheeks and looking into my eyes. “I love you, Chlo. This could be amazing for you. If it’s not, don’t hesitate to call me. If I don’t hear from you at least twice a day and know to my bones that you’re okay, I will act.”
“I’ll walk you out,” Derek says.
“No.” I rise quickly, panicking.
“What’s wrong, baby?” Derek asks, coming to me quickly, concern in his gaze.
He takes my face into both hands. “What, baby?” he repeats.
“I’m worried you’ll walk her out and I’ll never see her again.”
“It’s okay,” she says. “I’ll text you from my car before I leave and then again when I’m home safe. I’m walking out here safely and nothing’s going to happen to me. Right Derek?”
“Right,” he says, “Nothing to worry about right now.” His thumb skates across my bottom lip.
I back away from him and wrap my arms around Alannah.
“Love you,” she says and kisses my cheek, then leaves, Derek following her out.
I casually stroll beside Alannah to the elevator, amused at how she’s consciously keeping pace so she’s not ahead of me, unable to see if I’m up to anything behind her.
When we’re inside and the doors shut, I press stop.
Her eyes fire with alarm.
“Don’t worry. I just want a second to talk to you.”
“A flair for the drama, indeed,” she murmurs, pulling her phone from her pocket, readying it in case she needs to call for help. As if I can’t move faster than she can to get it out of her hands. She’s acting confident, but I’ve clocked the slight tremble in her hands.
“I’m a wildcard,” I tell her. “Nobody knows how I’ll react in any given situation, so yes like you said, even most of my family is wary of me. But hear me out, please.” I pause.
“You have my attention.”
“I understand your concern with the way my and Chloe’s relationship has developed, but I want to reassure you. In fact, I’ll harm anyone who tries to hurt her. The only reason Adam Hallman is being treated to opportunities instead of my anger is because she’d find it difficult to forgive me if I lashed out physically. I’m focused on giving her everything she wants and now she won’t have to worry about him; she’ll know he’s doing just fine. Soon, he’ll be a distant memory and she can focus on herself. It won’t take long for her to realize the ends justify the means.”
“What happens to Adam then?” she asks.
I shrug. “If he leaves us alone, nothing that’s down to my actions.”
“Surprisingly, I believe that you think you’re doing the right thing here. I believe you want to do what you think is the right thing by my bestie. But I’m also being honest here when I say I will go to the ends of the earth for that girl. If you hurt her, you’ll be sorry. You’re clearly mentally ill, but then again a lot of people are.” She lifts one shoulder in a shrug. “It just manifests in different ways, I guess. Part of me was thinking maybe if you got on medication, it’d solve things. But maybe not. Maybe you’re exactly who you’re supposed to be and maybe Chloe will reap the rewards. I’m not your enemy as long as you take care of her like you’ve promised to do. But if you decide to turn your energy elsewhere and don’t end things amicably where my friend walks away unscathed, you’re the one who won’t like what happens.”