Total pages in book: 224
Estimated words: 215705 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1079(@200wpm)___ 863(@250wpm)___ 719(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 215705 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1079(@200wpm)___ 863(@250wpm)___ 719(@300wpm)
“Maybe they’ll occupy each other when you’re occupying me,” I suggest, stroking her hair from her eyes and laughing. “You and that mouth of yours.”
“Are we talking sex or what happened downstairs?” she asks, and there’s a lightness to her voice that quickly hardens. “Because Tabitha’s lying, but seeing her waiting on you, I can’t quite figure out why and I wanted everything we could get recorded, recorded.”
“Her agenda is herself. It’s always about her. She proved that when she pitted me against Elijah.”
She turns to face me. “Talk to me. What’s happening here? Because we recorded her, if we really got the audio—”
“We did,” I insert.
“Okay, then we got the audio. We got proof this wasn’t your doing. Why aren’t we celebrating right now? Elijah should be happy or not happy but appeased, and redirected elsewhere.”
“Something doesn’t feel right and maybe that’s just my keen sense of Elijah’s bad side that Blake is picking up on as well.”
“Blake doesn’t even know him.”
“He’s studied people,” I say. “He’s studied him. He’s expressed the same concerns I have.” My hand comes down on her knee. “I get that I have a history that makes me protective. I get that I’m over the top about that need to protect you, but I also have a strong instinct in battle. If I tell you to back off, I need you to listen to me.”
“Says the man who grabbed her? What was that, Reid? What did you think you were going to do?”
“Let her know I’m not fucking around with her,” I say. “She needs to know that crossing me has consequences.”
“I’m not sure I want to know what consequences grabbing her indicates.”
“Whatever it has to mean,” I assure her.
She studies me for several beats. “What’s next? Do we send the audio to Elijah? That at least keeps him from being able to smear you. He’ll know if he slanders you, you not only have proof he’s lying, you can sue him and win.”
“We’ll do that, yes, but Blake and I need to sit down tomorrow and dissect everything he’s gathered together because, a) the more I think about it the more that Tabitha thing felt like bait, and b) I don’t know if Elijah has it in him to back off. He hates me. I still fucked his wife. There’s no way around that.”
“Even if Tabitha was baiting you, we have the recording.”
“I know. I do, but something is off, baby. I need to think. I need to analyze.”
“What if—” she considers a minute. “What if Mick and Tabitha are using you to ruin Elijah? That has to be it. They’re using you. They’re using us.”
I consider that a moment. “I think that’s a real possibility. Blake’s already looking into Mick’s location, but let me give him a nudge.” I stand up, walk to the front door and pull my pants on before I dial Blake. He answers on the first ring. “That meeting with Tabitha felt like a set-up.”
“Agreed,” he says. “And Mick isn’t in Europe. He’s in Brooklyn.”
“Isn’t that something,” I say, as Carrie stands up, wrapping the blanket around her.
“What?” she asks.
I hold up a finger. “Call me if you find out anything else, Blake.”
“I’ll be there in the morning,” he says, “but yes. I’ll call you if there’s more.” We disconnect and I cross to stand in front of Carrie.
“Mick is in Brooklyn, not Europe,” I say.
“They are plotting against you,” she says. “Tabitha got busted. They’re afraid of Elijah and don’t know how to take him down themselves. Can you turn him into a friend?”
“Elijah?” I give a laugh. “No. Never. He won’t align with me. The sad part about this is I might actually have to ruin him and save them to save us.”
“What if I talk to him?”
“No.”
“Reid.”
I pick her up and throw her over my shoulder, and start walking toward the bedroom, my hand settling on her naked ass that clearly needs my hand. Of course, in pleasure, but this stubborn woman is going to be the death of me. “Reid, damn it,” she says. “Blood is running to my head.”
“And to your ass,” I assure her, plopping her down on the bed and leaning over her. “I’ll handle Elijah. We’ll assess how in the morning, you, me, and Blake, but I’ll handle him. You find us a dog and a place to get married.”
“But—”
I kiss her and make sure she’s too occupied with my tongue to argue the rest of the night.
Chapter one hundred five
Carrie
Iwake with Kesha curled in front of me and Reid wrapped around my back, deciding I like this new normal. I can’t even remember the last time I thought of my old apartment, but then life has been a complete whirlwind since that day. Reid nuzzles my neck and as if someone is watching, the minute his hand cups my breast, my cellphone rings. He groans and I laugh, grabbing it to frown at the caller ID.