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)
I want to throw up.
“Your father did this,” Maxwell Senior growls at me from the door. “He has to be behind this.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” Reid demands.
I know my man and this is going to destroy him. This is going to be a hell I climb inside with him and I have to be there for him starting right now. “He didn’t do it,” I say rushing forward with Blake’s phone in my hand.
“Do what?” Reid demands.
“Tell the world about your scandal,” his father says, the veins at his temples bulging. “And paint it in a way to ruin you.” He points at me. “You’re his daughter.”
Reid holds up a hand. “Back off of my woman, father, and either offer a solution or get the fuck out.” Reid doesn’t even ask to see the phone in my hand or for details. I’m sure his mind is conjuring all kinds of possibilities.
“End him,” his father replies, “or maybe you just need your father to do your dirty work. He needs to be gone. I’ll handle it.”
Reid actually grabs his father’s arm and turns him to face him. “Let me be clear with you. You will not do anything. You will leave this alone. I don’t need another one of your bad messes to connect to me and fuck up my life or Carrie’s. Stay out of it.”
“Then handle it,” he says. “And get your damn hands off me.”
Reid doesn’t immediately let him go. He stares him down, tension radiating from him, and only when I touch his arm does he let his hand fall away. His father leaves the apartment and Reid shuts the door. “Let me see it,” he says, and I hand him the phone.
He reads more than the headline, a full minute that feels like a lifetime passing before he rotates to face Blake. “What do I need to know?”
“Gabe knows,” Blake says. “He’s on his way over here. He didn’t want to call you if you didn’t know. And I recommend a press conference. Head this off there.”
“Set-up a press conference for noon. I’m going to shower. I’ll be downstairs in half an hour.” He steps around me and starts walking up the stairs. He doesn’t wait on me, but I start to follow.
“Carrie,” Blake says quietly. I turn to face him and he adds, “If you need to get out of town—”
“No,” I say. “I’m not leaving him.”
I turn and follow Reid up the stairs and he’s already disappearing into the bedroom. I rush ahead and by the time I’m in the bedroom, he’s in the bathroom. I find him stepping into the shower and I don’t even hesitate. I join him. The minute I’m inside, I step to him and wrap my arms around him. He doesn’t touch me, waves of dark energy rushing off of him and onto me.
“Do you want to leave?” he asks. “Because if you do—”
“Never,” I say. “I’m here to fight with you. Always.”
He studies me a moment and then wraps his arms around me. “Then I need you to take care of both of the offices. Get Connie and pair up with her. I’ll meet you at the press conference.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I need you to trust me and let me keep this all in my head right now. It’s part of how I process when I’m under fire. I’ll explain later. But I’m done with this, and yes, we need a dog for our cat and a wedding date. This ends today.”
His words are hard. His jaw harder. The Reid I know is not the Reid going to battle. There’s a shift in him, a dark side of him present right now. This is the Reid that shut out emotions for a decade and can operate with precise, cold actions. Elijah made a mistake by awakening this side of Reid, by awakening the beast I’d tamed that is always a part of Reid.
I couldn’t stop the beast right now if I wanted to, but I don’t.
I want this over.
Chapter one hundred six
Reid
Idress in one of my most expensive blue and gray pinstriped suits with a silver tie. A suit that says I’m powerful, I have money, I will fuck you over if I have to and today—I have to. I shave close to the skin. Speed is important today and yet I take every stroke slowly, calculation in my movement and thoughts. Carrie doesn’t push me to explain myself. That she understands my need for quiet and concentration is just another reason to love her. It also speaks of trust, as does her cool, calm reaction to what we now face.
At my request, Savage arrives at the apartment to shadow Carrie. I greet him at the door, and when Carrie, dressed in a conservative pink dress, joins me at the front door, he smartly gives us space. My hands come down on her shoulders and I pull her close. “Take care of West Enterprises. The Maxwell team knows me. They know I’m not going down. The merger is still under wraps, but this will cause it to leak. It’s public record. Elijah will leak it just to create panic.”