Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 84968 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 425(@200wpm)___ 340(@250wpm)___ 283(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84968 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 425(@200wpm)___ 340(@250wpm)___ 283(@300wpm)
It would have been a dead end if only she remembered that part of her onboarding included a background check.
I wasn't pissed about the amount of energy that I had to expel to catch her only to find out that my intel about her second job had been right all along.
No, I was pissed because I should have known better.
I shouldn't have underestimated her.
The girl who fascinated me more than she should have, the girl who stole my gun, stole my time, and stole my fucking patience was standing in front of me wearing nothing but cheap satin, fishnet, and a goddamn corset.
She belonged to me.
She was mine, and where did I find her?
In a trashy, run-down strip joint dressed like a hooker and selling herself to fucking nobodies.
"Answer me. What the fuck are you wearing, Alina?" I growled again, the warning clear in my tone.
"My uniform." Her breath hitched as I ran my hand from her throat down her body.
Clenching my jaw, I let her go so she could scramble off of my lap.
I stood and took off my suit jacket.
Then lifted it up, offering to slide the jacket over her bare shoulders. "Put this on."
She shook her head, her lips parting as she took a step back and glanced behind her at the heavy, dark-red curtain that separated us from the rest of the club.
She was going to run again.
I wasn't about to let her get away from me this time.
It didn't matter how many games of Durak I won, I would never live a second escape from me down.
"I wasn't asking." My warning clear.
Her sweet lips parted as she took another step away from me. "I don't want—"
Her words fell silent when she turned to look at me and saw the anger in my eyes.
"Don't argue with me," I said, before she could refuse again.
The curtain to the champagne room ripped open and the sleazy manager, Lou something, stormed into the tiny room.
"Alina, where the fuck have you been? The guests need to see your sweet ass out—"
I barely turned my head before pulling my gun and leveling it at the sweaty, obese rat bastard. The click of the safety was deafening in the cramped space, even with the muffled bass from the music playing on the stage.
Her boss's face drained of color as he skidded to a halt.
"Fuck off," I said.
The man raised his hands, his eyes darting between Alina and me. "I was just looking for—"
"I'm coming right out," Alina said.
The fuck she was.
My thumb pressed against the hammer, sliding it back with another audible click, and his words died in his throat.
"Go serve them yourself or find someone else. Alina no longer works for you."
"Wait, no. I'm coming right out, Lou, I promise. Everything is okay."
I didn't know if she was trying to convince him of that, or herself. Either way, she was very wrong.
"I. Said. Fuck. Off," I repeated, aiming the gun at a new spot with every word.
He shook as I started at a kneecap, then his groin, then his heart, before landing on his head.
Lou's eyes went wide, and a dark stain appeared on his pants as he stared directly into my gun. Jesus, he was pathetic.
"Now," I added.
He opened his lips to say something, then thought better of it. He practically tripped over himself as he turned to run, pawing the curtain back and forth in a struggle to find the opening.
Despite Alina's wide-eyed protests, he was gone, and now it was just the two of us.
"Please. You don't have to do this."
I tilted my head, looking at her still not wearing the jacket I had offered. I pressed it toward her again and this time she took it, her hands shaking as she wrapped it around herself.
"What exactly do you think I'm doing?"
Her throat bobbed, and she pulled the lapels closer together to cover her body.
I gave her a slow, deliberate once-over.
The jacket was far too big on her frame. It swallowed her, hiding everything that I wanted to see.
"Killing me." Fear filled her eyes, but she didn't look away from me. She was terrified, but brave. Far braver than her boss.
"Well," I said casually, as I sat back down in that cheap pleather chair. "That is certainly one option."
She stiffened and I could practically see her mind race as she tried to figure a way out of this.
"I know there are those who would prefer it if I were to kill you. It would be quick, clean, and you would no longer be an inconvenience."
It was kind of amusing watching her eyes dart around. I could see her heart racing in the vein at the base of her neck and a fresh sheen of sweat made the skin of her brow shine.
"Killing you is definitely on the table, but I am entertaining…other options."