Total pages in book: 56
Estimated words: 53725 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 269(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 179(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 53725 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 269(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 179(@300wpm)
“And then you’ll be king?”
“I will, but I will always take a knee for you, baby. I’m going to make you believe that. Dinner is at seven. I’ll pick you up at six. Does that work?”
“Yes. Of course.”
He kisses me again and then turns and walks away, but just as he reaches the door, he pauses. “You thought I was gone this morning. I saw it in your eyes. I won’t ever do that to you again.” With that, he disappears into the next room, and a few moments later, the door opens and closes.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Damion
Furious doesn’t begin to touch on how I feel about what my father did to Alana and her mother.
An hour after leaving Alana’s apartment, I’m dressed in one of my best navy suits with an appropriate matching tie, ready to take on my father and the board, if necessary. I’m at my home office window, staring out at the city without really seeing it when Caleb ends a call and steps to my side.
Caleb’s a tall, fit guy my age, with brown buzz cut hair, who wears suits that scream money. He completes the look with a piercing stare I suspect he acquired during his ten years working for the CIA. He’s now “for hire,” often working for my father, which is how he became the guy who was tasked with driving me to the airport ten years ago and getting me on the plane at all costs.
Fortunately, when Alana’s father decided to dig around and look for ways to ruin my father, my father called Caleb. He had no idea how close I’d gotten to Caleb back in the day. I’d seen something I shouldn’t have seen, something my father withheld from Caleb that could have gone south on him in a big way. The end result is that Caleb accepted the job “dealing with Nick Blue” my father offered for no reason other than to control the situation and then called me.
“At least we know why Alana’s father was stupid enough to go after your father,” Caleb comments. “It was all about his woman and his honor.”
“More like his pride and stupidity,” I comment dryly.
“You ain’t joking. He didn’t even hire a good PI, and this is the guy he has digging into the background of a man who might as well be called a mob king. Your father owns this city, at least until you take it from him.”
“Nick has no idea how lucky he is we know each other. You could have ‘ruined’ him in an instant.”
“I do your father’s dirty work when I enjoy it. Translation: when I get to ruin the rich assholes who are as dirty as your father but aren’t paying me. Nick Blue isn’t dirty, he’s just a loser. Truth be told, I’d give him a good beating and enjoy it.”
“That makes two of us,” I say. “He’s turned Alana into his cash cow and his wife into a prostitute.”
“Alana doesn’t know her father started a war with yours?”
“Not yet. And I’m not even sure what the hell to tell her. No matter what I say, it doesn’t really matter if I downplay what my father is capable of or not. If she reacts the wrong way, she could get them all killed.”
Caleb stares out over the city, grunts his agreement, and then glances over at me. “I’m not sure what his endgame is.”
“Meaning what?
“Normally he’d act quickly and target anyone who was a threat, especially a weak target like Nick Blue, and just be done with it. But he told me to dig up dirt on Nick, or make it up, whatever it took, and prepare to take him down but hold. Your father doesn’t hold back on an easy target. So why is he now?”
“What are you thinking, because I know you’re thinking something.”
“It feels like it’s about Alana to me.”
That is not what I want to hear, and I turn to face him and him me. “Why Alana?”
“Think about it. She went to him over the money he was using to fuck her mother, and when she said no more, he just said okay? It’s almost as if she gave him what he wanted in the first place.”
Now I grunt and turn back to the window. “It was always about Alana,” I say.
“And why is Alana important to him?” he asks.
“Because she’s important to me,” I answer instantly.
“Exactly. And why does he want to hurt something important to his own son?” he asks.
My lips press together. “He doesn’t want to hurt her, he wants to hurt me.”
“I kind of gathered that ten years ago. He was going to get you on that plane ten years ago if I had to tie you up and put you there. Why did he send you away?”
“The same reason he decided he needed leverage over me with Alana,” I say. “I threatened his empire.”