Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 72895 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 364(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72895 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 364(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
Maisie folded her arms, nostrils flared. “I am smart. Are you here in a law enforcement capacity? Because I’d be curious to know if the FBI handbook allows an agent to fuck her witnesses or possible suspects. Maybe I’ll call my cousin Jameson and find out.”
“Like they would believe you over me.”
Kat took a step closer, and from the way Beck gritted her teeth, she was fighting the urge to take a step back.
“They would believe me, especially when I file harassment charges and have my attorneys let your boss know exactly why you have such a fucking hard-on for Sadie Ashby and her family. Hmm, Maybe I need to send an email? Or would a phone call do?”
I stared in awe of my daughter at that moment. Not just at how she came to my defense but at that spark in her eyes that I’d always thought she lacked. Kat had it in spades, but she suppressed it because I did.
I was no one’s idea of effusive or emotional, and Kat took her cues from me. But seeing it now, I knew that if she harnessed that part of her, people would respect her power. They would tremble in fear for what she could and would do to them.
“They won’t just believe me, little Addy. I’m sure they won’t waste any time kicking you off this career-making case.”
Anger flashed in Beck’s eyes. Not only did Kat’s words make me proud, but Beck’s reaction told me exactly what she valued most in this world. Her job.
When the time was right, I would exploit that weakness.
Beck wasn’t one to back down. No, she was a tough bitch, and in another life, I might have actually respected her. She lifted her chin so she could somehow look down her nose at Kat. She tossed a cold smile at her.
“Good try, but everyone at the Bureau already knows my father disappeared under mysterious circumstances. I doubt you’d want them to know he worked for your family.”
It was Kat’s turn to laugh, and she made a show of it, throwing her head back and laughing loudly.
“No, sweetheart, I doubt you want them to know. It’s the fucking FBI. They already know, and if they thought something nefarious was going on, we would have been questioned already by people well above your pay grade.”
To her credit, Beck didn’t show any visible response. A closer look would reveal tension in her shoulders and jaws, but she smoothed them out quickly. Instead, she took a step back and stalked out of the shop, the chip on her shoulder infinitely bigger and heavier now.
“Thanks, girls.”
Kat’s frown returned. “Fuck Beck. I’m the only one who can talk shit about you.”
I nodded my appreciation anyway, confident that Kat was marrying Terry for all the right reasons. She didn’t need him even though he was big and tough and could protect her. She was marrying him because she loved him, had loved him for most of her life.
Kat would be fine.
Just fine.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Sadie
“Why do you want to change the name?”
Jasper stared down at the blueprints and renderings spread across my desk. I had them done for the new Lucky Lopez club.
“Everyone already knows Lucky Lopez as a brand. Believe me, no one will stop coming just because the girls wear better shit to take off and sit in more comfortable chairs.”
“I want this place to be all new, Jasper.”
“But we’ve spent years building up the brand and the name. It’s reckless to change it now. Leave it,” he insisted. His tone said the matter was closed.
I was about to argue when the door smacked open hard. Jasper and I reached for our guns, relaxing when we identified the intruder.
“What can I do for you, Calvin?”
My baby boy glared at me with hate in his eyes. “You tried to get Mueller to kill Bonnie.” His words weren’t filled with accusation. He stated it as fact, and I nodded. “But you didn’t know he was a Fed when you offered him your pussy in exchange for murdering my wife!”
I could feel the surprise emanating from Jasper because, yeah, I kept secrets from everyone. It was how I operated. “And?”
Calvin flashed a bitter, angry smile. “Even after you fucked him, he refused to do it. Pathetic.”
I laughed. “This coming from a man who fucked a drug addict and knocked her up? Please.”
“No.” Calvin shook his head. “This isn’t about me. It’s about you and the sick things you do to get your way.”
Jasper straightened to his full height at my side and shook his head. “Who Sadie fucks—or who any of us fucks—is nobody’s business but our own.”
I looked at Jasper, wondering if Beck’s little dig was true. Had he taken my advice to fuck her into submission?
“It is my business if she’s using sexual favors as payment for killing my wife.”