Total pages in book: 59
Estimated words: 58600 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 293(@200wpm)___ 234(@250wpm)___ 195(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 58600 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 293(@200wpm)___ 234(@250wpm)___ 195(@300wpm)
“I know. You don’t like this.”
“That’s a goddamn understatement.”
“What other choice do we have?” I say. “If I don’t go, he could kill her.”
“If you go, he could kill you,” he counters.
“That’s a risk I have to take. For Mom. You’d do the same for Elliot.”
“You’ve got me there,” he snarls. “Goddamn it. Remember, I’ll be nearby. And if you’re not out in five minutes, I’m coming in anyway.”
“Alex…”
“No,” he snaps. “I’m not arguing that point.”
“What if it takes longer—”
“Enough, Tori,” he says firmly. “Five minutes is already too much time to be alone with that psycho. You wanted a compromise. This is your compromise.”
He’s not going to give in, is he?
“Fine, let’s do this. But I’ll need a change of clothes; I’ve only got my coat and underwear.”
“I’ll loan you something,” he says. “But it’s going to be baggy.”
A surreal feeling hits me as I walk up to the entrance of the beach house. I know Alex is jogging up and down the beach behind the property, but that doesn’t do much for the nerves and the fear twisting through me.
For Mom, I remind myself.
The door swings open before I can ring the bell. Damien holds a gun in one hand. He’s got his other clutched to his chest, probably from where Alex snapped it the last time he tried to pull some crap.
“You did the right thing coming alone,” Damien says smugly.
“What do you want?” I hiss, thinking that ten seconds have already passed.
I know that Alex will be counting down. He was livid about putting me in harm’s way. But he didn’t have a choice. If he’d refused, I would’ve come here anyway, with or without him.
Damien steps aside, nodding into the house.
“Where’s the big bad wolf?” he says, laughing in a self-assured way.
I rush to the center of the room, where Mom is tied to a chair. I glide my hands over her body, checking for injuries. Apart from the knock on her head, she seems unharmed.
“Where are your goons, huh?” I snap, spinning to him, letting anger rule me, which probably isn’t the best idea.
He rolls his eyes at me. I turn back to Mom, taking the gag from her mouth. She sucks in a breath. “Your man scared his goons away,” Mom says bitterly.
“Enough of that,” Damien snaps, striding over.
“Why are we here?” I demand. “I know Mom made a mistake, but hurting us won’t turn back time. People cheat, Damien. It’s wrong. I hate it. I’d never do it, but it’s a fact of life. You don’t kidnap people. You don’t stalk people because somebody cheated on your dad. Can’t you see how warped that is?”
“You think I’m some evil piece of shit, don’t you?” he says wearily, as though he’s got the weight of the world on his shoulders. He walks over to the couch and drops down, resting the gun against his knee. In my head, the seconds tick by.
What if Alex storms in here before I get a chance to lure Damien to the porch? What if my man smashes through the window when the gun is still aimed at me?
Why did this have to happen now when my body is still sizzling from what we did?
“You’ve kidnapped an innocent woman,” I snap. “You stalked her daughter to a bar and got a job there just to—”
He laughs, shaking his head. “You’re not that special, Tori. I got a job there because I needed a damn job because my dad made me promise to try and stick to the straight and narrow before he died. Before he died.” He glares at Mom. “You heard that, didn’t you, Monica? My dad died because of what you did to him.”
Mom sniffles. “I’m sorry… I’m so sorry.”
Mom, you don’t owe him an apology, I almost say, but then I think better of it. Antagonizing him probably isn’t the best idea.
“We Kents have a reputation, it’s true,” Damien says. “But we’re not as bad as people like to make out. We’ve got fingers in pies, but only because that’s the only way to make some damn money in this city. At least, it was before Dad… Monica, tell your daughter why my father took his own life.”
I gasp.
Mom shudders, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I didn’t plan on any of this. He was so intense, so possessive…”
In the back of my head, I think about Alex, how intense and possessive he is, and how much I like it.
Focus, Tori.
“You cheated on my dad,” Damien says. “You got rid of his child. The pain was so bad, he took his own life.” Damien speaks numbly, but there’s emotion beneath the surface. It almost makes me feel sorry for the lunatic.
“Mom,” I whisper.
Mom sobs, shaking her head. “I’m sorry. I’m just so sorry. Please, if you’re going to hurt anyone, hurt me. Tori has nothing to do with this.”