Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 69330 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 347(@200wpm)___ 277(@250wpm)___ 231(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69330 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 347(@200wpm)___ 277(@250wpm)___ 231(@300wpm)
Bono’s fingers squeezed around hers. “Explain yourself.”
“Doumar isn’t the kind of man who gives up his property. He’d destroy it before he’d see it go to another man.” He gave Bono a hard look. “You’re going to get her hurt.” He added sinisterly, “Or killed.”
“Thanks for the VIP table.”
Bono didn’t wait for Clinton to reply. He led her outside and requested that his bike be brought around.
“Is it true?” he asked while they waited.
“Is what true?”
“That Doumar will rather see you dead before he lets you go.”
“Doumar will never give up the money. He earns too much with me.”
“What if I give him the money you’d earn?”
She gaped at him. “That’s a lot of cash.”
“I know.”
“Then you’ll be no better than him. You’ll buy me just like Doumar did. The only difference will be the price.”
He gripped her shoulders. “Yes, there will be a difference, and it’s not in the price. It’s your freedom I’ll buy, not your talent or body.”
“You’ll really set me free?”
“Of course. It doesn’t mean I’ll stop chasing you. I can be a very persistent man if I want something—or someone—badly enough.”
The idea was lovely, but Doumar was way too greedy to honor such a proposal. He’d take Bono’s money and never deliver her. “It won’t work.”
“He doesn’t love you, and he’s not your lover, but he won’t let you be with someone else.”
Doumar wasn’t her lover, but he was so much more. He was her owner and the father of her child, a child who could lose his life if she said or did anything wrong. She looked away.
He shook her lightly. “Why? Tell me the truth. If he only keeps you because he can, he’s a coward, not a man.”
“No, Doumar is not a man. He’s a boy, a very selfish, immature boy. He doesn’t want his old toy, but he doesn’t want anyone else to have it either.”
“I can be persuasive.”
She went on tiptoes and pressed her lips against his. “Shh. Don’t. I don’t want to end the night with talk of Doumar.”
The valet arrived with Bono’s bike and handed them the helmets. She got onto the back and nestled against his back, memorizing every sensory impression to store away in her heart for later when she’d hate herself for what she had to do to him.
At her exit, he took the opposite direction, driving them to a fancy hotel in the upmarket part of town. Looking up at the raw brick façade, Sky swallowed down her disappointment. If Bono meant to make her a cliché, he’d succeeded.
Dinner, dancing, and then the hotel…
She knew what came next.
Chapter 7
“Everything all right?” Bono asked, taking the helmet from Sky.
She freed her ponytail from the elastic band and shook out her hair. “Perfect.”
Taking her hand, he led her inside and requested a room. After signing the necessary documents, they took the elevator to the top floor where he swiped a card at the first door and let her inside. The room was spacious with a view of the city below. She walked to the big window to peer down. She’d never seen this side of town from up high.
If he was going to treat her like a prostitute, or a trophy date, she wanted him to admit it. She wouldn’t let him get away with pretending this was anything other than money for sex. Instead of cash, the currency was champagne and a fancy dinner. More than anything, she wanted to believe he was like all other men. It would make her betrayal easier.
Turning her back on the view, she faced him squarely. “What now?”
He didn’t falter under her level stare. Peeling off his jacket, he closed the distance between them. “Why don’t we start by you telling me what you think is going to happen now?”
She stole a glance over his shoulder at the king-size bed. “Let’s see.” She held up a hand and counted off on her fingers. “A fancy dinner, expensive drinks, and a high-end hotel equals … let me think … sex?”
He chuckled. “You’ve got to learn to trust me, beautiful.”
She motioned around the room. “Why, isn’t this part of the usual?”
His gaze fixed on her lips while amusement lit up his expression. “That smart mouth of yours is going to land you in some serious trouble one day. For the record, champagne is my usual. Dating is not. You’re the first woman I took with me to Melk, or anywhere for that matter.”
She gaped at him. “You’ve never been on a date?”
“I have.” He cupped her face. “Tonight.”
She motioned between them. “You mean us?”
“Yes. Us. You’re my first date.”
“Surely, a man like you has … been around.”
“If you mean like in sex, it’s usually a one-night stand for me.”
“If you don’t take women out, then how…?”
“I said I’ve never dated, not that I never go out for a good time. I like to party, as you must’ve deduced from me being a regular at Melk. Picking up girls is not why I go there. I don’t go looking. If it happens, it happens.”