Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 72658 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 363(@200wpm)___ 291(@250wpm)___ 242(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72658 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 363(@200wpm)___ 291(@250wpm)___ 242(@300wpm)
“But changing distributors will be a lengthy process. Is it worth an additional five million?”
“Five million more is five million I don’t have,” my father said simply.
“And your distributor can’t expand further?” Instead of just taking the job, he chose to dig, like he wanted all the specifics before he agreed. It was tedious, but it was smart.
My father took a drink as he considered what to say. “We’re personally incompatible.”
Theo stared at him for several seconds. “And why are you incompatible when you’re making money hand over fist together?”
“Because I don’t like him.”
“Why?” Theo pressed.
My father struggled to maintain his composure, tired of talking about Axel and wanting to avoid all the specifics. “Because he’s a piece of shit. That’s why.” My father’s words had a tone of finality to them, a barrier Theo shouldn’t cross.
Theo rested his fingers on the stem of the wineglass, staring at my father across the table with eyes so confident they looked hostile. “I have a lot of shit on my plate, so if you want me to take this on, it’s going to be fifteen percent.”
My father stilled at the counteroffer. “If you take fifteen percent, then you’re going to have to bring in additional business. Otherwise, the partnership doesn’t make sense.”
“It makes sense if you hate your current distributor enough.”
I realized we had played right into his hands. He wanted to know everything about Axel to figure out how much we needed him, and now that he knew, he used it as leverage.
“As for the additional business, I’ll see what I can do,” Theo said. “The French territory is in a state of limbo right now with Bartholomew out of the game. Word on the street is a new guy is coming to the stage, and he’s not to be crossed.”
“We have a deal, then?” my father asked.
Theo nodded toward me. “What’s her part in this?”
“She works for me,” my father said. “And someday, she’ll replace me.”
“Really?” He turned to look at me, sizing me up like I was an opponent rather than a pretty face. “Scary place for a woman who’s the size of a broomstick.”
“This broomstick can break your jaw in a single hit,” I said automatically.
My father issued a quiet warning. “Scarlett…”
But a slow smile moved on to Theo’s face, like he found me charming rather than disrespectful. “It’s fine, Dante. She’s cute.” He grabbed his glass and took a drink. “I might have to take you up on that offer, sweetheart.”
“So, we have a deal?” Dad repeated, eager to close the books on Axel and start something new.
“No deal.” Theo drained the glass until there was nothing left. “I need to think about it.”
My father hid his disappointment as best he could. “I understand.”
Theo rose to his feet, ready to dismiss us. He shook my father’s hand before he turned to me. When he took my hand, he squeezed it hard again, and that playful smirk reappeared. “Goodnight, Scarlett. I hope we see each other again soon…”
3
AXEL
Theo sat in the armchair and put his feet on the coffee table. “You failed to warn me how fine she was.” A cigar was between his fingers, and his elbow was propped on the armrest. He tilted his head back and let the smoke slowly dissipate from his mouth.
I sat in the other armchair across from him, in his living room, the furniture made of wood, the walls made of black marble, the room dark except for the dim lighting from the lamps in the corners. “Because it was never relevant to the story.”
“I think it’s pretty fucking relevant,” he said with a chuckle.
I didn’t want to listen to Theo tell me how sexy she was, but I really had no reason to be upset about it. Six months had come and gone. She’d probably been with other people, and I knew I had. She wasn’t mine anymore. “How was she?”
Theo gave a shrug. “Didn’t say much. Except for when I called her a broomstick and she threatened to break my jaw.” He grinned. “She’s got some spice to her.”
“She does.” I missed that spice. But it also told me she was fine, that she was her old self, that she had moved on. I was relieved by that information…but also disappointed. Other women might have been in my bed, but no other woman had been in my heart. With Scarlett, I’d been evicted. “Anything else?”
“No amount of spice is going to keep that pretty head on her shoulders when her father is gone. He is either in denial or doesn’t give a shit about his daughter if he thinks this is a good idea.”
“I agree,” I said. “I think there’s another piece we’re missing—and so is Scarlett.” I worried about her just as much now as I did before. She would walk into a lion’s den without anyone to watch her back. No man would take her seriously in negotiations, and it would be a contest to see who could pin her down and fuck her in the ass first. I’d never said that to her because I didn’t want to scare her, but now I wished I had.