Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 94076 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94076 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
I shrug. “I was just curious.”
But the way Mya looks at me tells me she doesn’t believe the lie. “You’re just his type. Beautiful. Sweet. Smart.” She wiggles her eyebrows. “I mean, there’s no harm in a little fun.”
Oh boy, she couldn’t be more wrong.
Because a little fun with Lars could get us both killed.
I smile. “I don’t think that would be a very good idea. Someone once told me they don’t fuck where they sleep, and that sounds like pretty sage advice to me.” Then we made out on the couch.
Mia laughs. “Oh honey, you only work here, you don’t live here. Have some fun. And as for sleeping… I’m pretty sure there would be none of that if you decided to have a sleepover with Lars.” She leans forward and whispers, “I bet that boy has stamina.”
I can’t help but giggle. I don’t know if she’s being serious or not, but this is nice. Girl chat. I’ve never had it before. At boarding school, the other girls kept clear of me. They came from families with prestigious names and unimaginable wealth. Even if they wanted to be friends with me or include me in things, once their parents learned who I was, they were told to stay away from me.
By the time I reached my senior year of high school, I was used to it and had built a wall so high around my feelings that it didn’t matter to me anymore.
Well, that’s what I told myself.
Glancing at the clock on the wall, I realize Mrs. V. has already been gone for an hour and will be back any minute.
I stand up so quick I almost spill my coffee. “Oh no, I haven’t done any of my chores. Mrs. V. is gonna kill me.”
“What do you need to do?” Mya asks.
“Unstack the dishwasher. Clean the coffee pot. Mop the floor.”
My very first day of employment ever and I’ve already fucked it up.
“Don’t worry, sweet Ella. You grab the mop and bucket, and I’ll do the rest,” Mya says sweetly.
She gives me wink then turns away to start unstacking the dishwasher.
CHAPTER 21
Ella
I’m just putting away the mop and bucket when Mrs. V. returns. Mya is sitting at the breakfast counter drinking another cup of coffee.
“Well praise be, the chores are done,” Mrs. V. says.
“That sounds awfully like you didn’t think I would get them done,” I say.
Mrs. V. gives me a stern look. “It’s day one, missy. We’ve got a long way to go before we’re dancing partners.”
“Go easy on her, Mrs. V. That’s my new best friend you’re talking to,” Mya says, giving me a wink.
“Mya, you’re best friends with everyone,” Mrs. V. says.
“True,” Mya says with a giggle. “But Ella is my new favorite.”
Mrs. V. rolls her eyes before disappearing into the huge walk-in pantry.
A sudden burst of activity draws our attention to the doorway. Two bikers rush in carrying a third biker by his arms, his feet dragging along the ground and leaving a trail of blood behind him. A giant biker follows them into the kitchen, followed by Lars, and another biker whose name I don’t know yet.
“Put him on the counter,” the giant says. On the front of his leather cut is a patch that reads President. This must be Beast. The boss.
The two bikers do as he commands and haul the wounded biker onto the long kitchen counter. He roars with pain as blood spills from a hole in his thigh. There’s a belt used as a torniquet above it, but there is still a lot of blood dripping onto the floor.
Mya grabs my hand and squeezes it tight. She’s not afraid. But she thinks I might be, and she’s trying to comfort me. Little does she know I was there when my father put a knife into the neck of an Irish mob king who once threatened my mother. And again, when he shot Vinnie the Viper in the face for betraying him to a rival crime syndicate. Blood doesn’t scare me. Wounds don’t scare me. This doesn’t scare me.
“Bear, get Rev,” Beast demands.
“I texted him and he’s on his way,” Lars says.
Beast nods at the biker called Bear. “Then go see where the fuck he is and tell him to get here now. Stone is about to bleed out on the goddamn kitchen counter.”
The biker called Bear disappears out the door.
The wounded biker, who I gather is called Stone, tries to sit up.
“You need to stay put,” the biker next to him says.
Stone looks up at them with gritted teeth. “Fuck you, Ryder. You take a bullet to the fucking leg. Give me your knife. I’m going to dig it out myself.”
“Stop behaving like a princess and stay the fuck on the counter,” Beast growls.
I think about the bottle of whiskey in the pantry and let go of Mya’s hand to quickly retrieve it.