Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 107262 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 536(@200wpm)___ 429(@250wpm)___ 358(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107262 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 536(@200wpm)___ 429(@250wpm)___ 358(@300wpm)
I shake him off, jerking my hand free from him. “Don’t you ever touch me again,” I say loud enough to get attention. Last time Evan and I went face to face, I was worried about causing a scene, but I’m taking a page out of Ami’s book. Who cares what anyone else in Goldman’s thinks? “Because I swear to God, the next time your hand touches mine, I’ll leave with your fucking eyeballs in my purse.”
Ironically, it’s Evan who cares about the growing scene.
He lowers his voice so that it’s just between us, his eyes cutting left and right. “November sixth, eight years ago,” Evan says. “An email from me to him. I sent it at two fifty-three in the afternoon. Subject line is SUSHI DINNER AT KAZOKU’S. Just delete it, then you can go on and try to destroy me, Raven.”
Grabbing my bag, I turn and leave Goldman’s pissed beyond thinking straight. But as I descend into the subway, I can’t shut up the little voice in my gut that says there’s a chance that Evan might be telling the truth. Or that, at the very least, I want to know what the hell is in that email.
What could Dylan have over Evan?
Dylan, by his own admission, hates Evan with an acidic vehemence that matches only mine. It’s a hatred beyond the professional, into the personal.
Someone who hates that much… might just cross a line in order to enact his revenge.
When Evan leaves and the threat of having to listen to his voice and remember the time we spent together is gone, I can’t stop wondering what the hell would be in that email? What does Dylan have that has Evan scared that much?
And did he really blackmail Olivia and force her out of the city? Questions pile up, and I don't like a single one of them.
CHAPTER 24
DYLAN
Istrip off my shirt, just about ready to step into the shower for a well-deserved soak after a day where I accomplished more than I’d planned. I had to be out of the office for most of it, which means I’ve missed Raven all day.
Damned City Hall.
A meeting with the mayor and influential members of the city council ran longer than I expected. Two investments I’m making in town were being held up for purely political reasons, and negotiations on the required offset to clear the path took longer than I expected. But it was a productive day, all in all.
In the end, I gained approval for a five hundred million-dollar acquisition with the financially acceptable investment of only fifty million dollars. The offset? My agreement to renovate and expand half a dozen youth parks in disadvantaged neighborhoods in the city, something I would’ve happily done regardless of their rubber stamp on my proposal. I already give over a million dollars a year to programs there. I do it quietly, not trying to make a splash and gain attention for it, but those at the mayor’s level know where their funds come from.
As the steam fills the room, I rub the back of my neck, replaying the conversations. It took a lot of dancing around the solution, but in the end, I was able to walk out with what I wanted. A rare use of a Monday afternoon and evening at home, where I’ll be later joined by Raven for our usual nightly session. A grin pulls at my lips.
I’m eager to share the news with her. She’ll understand more than most.
I drop my shirt to the floor, but before I can undo my pants, my phone’s alarm goes off. My hand freezes, and I pull it out to see that the personal alarm I’ve got in my office has been triggered. It’s not one that building security has, because anyone who’s gotten that far clearly is someone who belongs in the building.
It’s an inside threat.
But anyone who’s breaking into my office is on a fool’s errand. My desk contains nothing sensitive, and my computer has security that would make even professional hackers reconsider their options.
Who the fuck is in my office?
It only takes a glance at security outside the door a moment before to see. Raven.
My brow furrows, and a deep crease settles in my forehead. What the hell is she doing? She knows I’m not there. I wait a moment and then one more for her to remember my schedule and that I’m not there. But she doesn’t leave.
It takes great effort to shut down every thought that comes to mind. I quickly change into some casual clothes, jeans and a T-shirt, before heading back to the office. The security staff give me a double-take. They’ve seen me after hours. It’s just the clothes that seem out of place. I give them a wave and stride with purpose to the elevator.