Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 75642 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 378(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75642 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 378(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
Chapter 26
Mila
I really thought he’d be the first to speak, that maybe we could have a conversation, but silence only grew with the miles he drove. I couldn’t bring myself to speak either, and as intimate as things have been between us before, it was a stilted silence. I have a million questions, but doubt and the risk of how he might answer has kept my mouth closed.
The building we finally pull up to is massive. It’s not surprising that it’s in a mostly industrial setting. The supply warehouse was much the same in St. Louis, although I’d only been to that one once.
I take a deep breath as he parks the SUV, but I stay inside when he doesn’t turn the ignition off.
I watch as Oracle and another guy climb out of the SUV pulling a trailer. Kincaid and Misty’s husband, Shadow, climb out of the one they’re in.
“Ready?” he asks, the sound of his voice somehow startling me.
I climb out of the SUV and wait for him to meet me on my side.
The other guys are already walking inside. Em made a comprehensive list yesterday afternoon after sitting down with me and asking what it would take to run a full business. We had to discuss the types of services that people would want. The list was extensive and expensive.
“Just being here stresses me out,” I confess, my voice low so Vincent can hear.
“You’re safe,” he assures me, misunderstanding my reservations.
I turn to look at him. “I never thought I was in danger.”
He gives me a tight-lipped smile, as if there’s more to say but he’s just not ready.
“Some of the women mentioned an online scheduling system,” I say as we walk through the front door. “Apparently it’s something that Max can set up.”
“That seems like a great idea,” he says, a little distracted as he looks around.
“They mentioned adding my prices to it, insisting that they pay even though I’m not capable of buying any of this stuff today.”
Vincent gently grips my arm to pull me to the side so we aren’t blocking the entrance when another woman walks up behind us.
“If they want to pay, let them pay.”
His simple reasoning makes the simmering anger inside of me start to bubble faster.
“If you didn’t want to do this, then you could’ve said no.”
That statement rankles even more. I didn’t want to say no. In a perfect world, in the world I created in my head when I allowed those thoughts to come up, I’d have my own salon where I made all the rules. Where there was no booth fee or commission percentages split with others. I’d have the final say in every decision. It looked a lot like what I was being offered, only these things don’t happen. People don’t go from barely scraping by one minute to having their wildest dreams come true the next. At some point, the other shoe has to drop. The deeper I let myself sink into this fantasy, the more it’s going to crush me when it all comes crumbling down.
“They aren’t trying to set you up only to pull the rug out from under your feet, Mila,” he says in that infuriating way that tells me he’s almost an expert at reading my mind. “The women at the clubhouse have a need, and with you, they have the ability to fill it.”
“Some of the guys mentioned wanting haircuts too,” I tell him, not wanting to exclude anyone.
His jaw ticks with the news, and I just have to add his reaction to the growing list of shit I don’t understand.
“Oracle asked last night if he could get on my schedule immediately.”
He licks his lips before speaking. “Don’t sleep in my bed if you’re planning on trying to get something started with one of the other guys.”
I swear my heart literally stops in my chest. How did we go from him trying to assure me what I’m being offered is real to him sounding like a jealous psychopath?
“What is this, Vincent?” I snap. “It’s my bed you’ve been sleeping in if you want to get technical.”
His eyes dart over my head. I know this isn’t exactly the best place to have this conversation, but here we are.
“One night you hold me and the next you don’t,” I say. “It’s clear you don’t want me, but now you’re saying don’t bother trying to find someone else.”
It never even crossed my mind to look, but it annoys me to no end at him thinking he can dictate what I do.
“I don’t know. Shit.” He runs his hand over the top of his head, clearly frustrated. “I don’t know what this is or what it could be. I’ve never had to navigate a situation like this before.”
“And you think I have?” I growl, refusing to let the subject just drop. “You’re not obligated to me or the boys. I can manage just fine without you.”