by T. L Smith
Copyright T.L Smith 2020
Heartbreak Me by T.L Smith
All Rights Reserved
This e-book is a work of fiction. Any references to real events, real people, and real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the Author’s imagination and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, organizations or places is entirely coincidental.
All rights are reserved. This book is intended for the purchaser of this book ONLY. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or by any information storage retrieval system, without the express written permission of the Author. All songs, song titles and lyrics contained in this book are the property of the respective songwriters and copyright holders.
Warning
This book contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language and may be considered offensive to some readers. This e-book is intended for adults ONLY. Please store your files wisely, where they cannot be accessed by under-aged readers.
Cover – Outlined with love
Photographer- Michelle Lancaster photography
Edited – Swish Editing
Editor - Ink Machine Editing
Proofread – Lisa Edward
Blurb
He kidnapped me.
That was how I met Atlas Hyde.
A man known by many names and admired by all.
But most didn’t know he was ruthless, conniving, and always got what he wanted.
No matter the cost.
I was a good girl.
Never in trouble with the law.
Never took drugs.
Always did precisely what was expected of me.
Even with his hand around my throat and words that cut sharper than knives, I couldn’t help but wonder what happened to this beautiful man to make him that way.
That wonder disappeared when he threatened to kill my sister if I didn’t follow his dark demands.
The good girl I once knew had now been buried alive beneath this game of hatred and lust.
And I had a feeling Atlas Hyde never lost.
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
About the Author
Also by T.L Smith
Kisses and Lies
Chapter One
Theadora
My breath shakes. How is that even possible? To have your breath shake? Shit!
Rough hands shove me, and I fall to my knees. My tied hands shoot out to catch me before I hit the ground. If it’s rough, I’m afraid they may bleed.
Really, Theadora, that’s what you’re worried about?
I shake my thoughts away as I hear a laugh. I am unsure if I should sit up straight or stay bent over—I’m wearing a skirt that’s way too short to stay this way—but if they wanted to do something to me, my guess is they would have by now. And so far, all they have done is tie me up, put a beanie on my head that covers my eyes, and throw me in a car.
“This is her!” A deep voice grumbles, which makes me sit up straight as it rumbles through my chest. I glance up to see this man, but then realize there’s absolutely no reason at all to do so, considering I cannot see with the black beanie over my head effectively blocking my vision.
My hands are still tied in front of me, but they’re no longer touching the ground, which is a hard surface. Cement maybe? I can’t really tell.
“Yes, her.” I’m kicked forward again, this time I’m not fast enough to stop the impact of my face meeting the floor. My forehead cracks as it makes contact, and my eyes squeeze shut as a burst of pain shoots through me.
“Gentle,” that gruff voice states. “I don’t want to break her…” I swallow as he pauses, “… yet.”
Hands push me back, making me sit on my doubled back legs while one hand wraps around my throat and tightens.
This is the part where I should be screaming. I should be doing something, anything to fight this man. Except my body doesn’t want to. Instead, it locks and freezes at his touch.
I’ve heard stories of this happening, how your body locks up, even though you should be running, screaming, anything to get yourself free. I didn’t believe it was possible until this very second. How can your fight or flight response not kick in?
I’m a good girl, having never done anything bad in my life.
“Boss, we can dispose of her easily enough.”
Something snaps in me. “No.” It’s croaky, but I manage to squeak out the word.
The hands around my throat don’t move, but his breath I can feel and smell through the beanie has a minty scent as he leans in closer to me.
“No,” he says. “Do you even know why you are here, Theadora?” This man says my name as if he knows me. I don’t know him—that voice, I would remember it. Trying to analyze him will do me no good. I can’t see his reactions, so I go with gut instinct about what I want to say.
“No,” I say because I have absolutely no idea why I am here. Which makes this situation even worse because I can be clumsy and forgetful. But for me to have done something to put me in this situation where they are talking of physically harming me? No. That’s not something I’ve done.
“Maybe you should ask Lucy.”
I pull back at his words, finally trying to free myself from his grasp. He holds me in place, the pressure hardening at my movement. “So, you know now, don’t you?” I hear him take a deep breath, breathing me in.
“Where is she?” I ask with more venom than I thought I could muster. I feel the tears welling in my eyes, which I can’t reach to wipe away, so they fall helplessly down my cheek and soak into my beanie.
“So, that got your attention.” He pulls back. Well, I think he does, as I can no longer smell his breath near my face, and his hand on my throat loosens until it drops away completely. “Theadora! You don’t mind if I call you that now, do you?”
I try to keep my smart-ass mouth shut at his words.
“Look, you’re learning, much faster than Lucy did.”
A small, shaky cry leaves me as heavy footsteps surround me. Hands reach under my arms and pull me up roughly, so I am standing on my own two feet.
“Where is she?” I ask the one who is doing all the talking. I can’t tell where he is now that his hands aren’t touching my throat, but my guess is he’s in charge, so I direct my voice to where I assume he’s standing
“Lucy stole over a million dollars from me, Theadora. You will help me get that back. Or else Lucy will forget to breathe.”
My mouth opens wide in shock at his words.
A million dollars? Fuck.
How?
Why?
So many questions.
And the last but most important one.
How the fuck am I meant to get that much money?
I’m smart. I earn g
ood money managing one of the busiest clothing companies in the world, but I don’t come near to earning that. And my savings is next to nothing, since I just bought my first home.
“Do you understand me, Theadora?”
My brain is too busy trying to figure out how to pull together that much money. Selling my house won’t even give me half, and Lucy has no assets or money. Our parents died a long time ago, so it’s just Lucy and me.
“How long do I have?” I ask.
The beanie is ripped from my face, my blonde hair, which was being held back, now sticks to my lips and I push it away with my tongue. My eyes are blurry, and I can hardly make anything out as he starts talking again, so I close my eyes and listen to his voice.
“You have one month, Theadora.”
My heart drops, and I open my eyes, zoning in on that voice.
The man standing in front of me is not what I expected. Actually, he is anything but. If I saw him walking down the street I would stop to stare. If he were one of my company models, I would have stayed the whole shoot instead of instructing what I want, then leaving like I normally would.
No. This man? He is an attractive bad man, nothing more.
But despite his eyes that seem to stare straight through me, his hair is best described as scorched chestnut in color and appears tangled. He also has a nose ring and a slight beard.
Who is this man?
He looks like a grungy, hot supermodel. Not someone who just had his hands around my neck telling me I had one month to pay him back for something I haven’t even done.
One of his hands, which is free of tattoos, reaches into his pocket. He pulls out his cell phone, snaps a picture of me, and places it back where it was.
His amber, almond-shaped eyes stare at me as he glances me up and down before speaking, “You look different to Lucy.”
My blonde hair doesn’t match her black hair. My wide hips don’t match her narrow little waist either. If you put us side by side, the only part we got from our mother was her lips, there’s not a single thing else. We both look like our fathers—different fathers.
“Do you plan to hurt me?” I ask, managing to look straight into his amber eyes.
“I told you, not yet.” His hands stay at his sides, but when I look down, one twitches. I quickly look away and behind me where there is no one.
“They are outside that door.” His dark voice rocks through me as I look at the red door that would provide freedom. But what’s the use when he knows who I am? He takes a few steps, his lips right at my ear. “You could run. You could definitely make this more fun…”
I turn around fast, and he doesn’t step back as he inhales me. My body freezes when a knock on the red door makes him step back just a fraction so he isn’t near my neck anymore. A shiver I was holding in wracks through my body.
“One month,” he repeats.
“I don’t have that kind of money,” I reply, looking at him.
“Would you like to make a deal?”
Goddamn! My head tells me no, run, and try to find a way to make the money. You should never make a deal with a devil. Yet, here I am, nodding my head because my voice is lost.
“I need to hear you say it, Theadora. Would you like to make a deal so you can work off your sister’s indiscretions?”
“Yes,” I squeak.
He steps forward, his hand reaches up, and when it does, I catch a glimpse of a tattoo from under his black sleeve. Another peeks out from under his collar on his neck. Are they all over his body?
He pulls on a piece of my blonde hair, and then lets it slide between his fingertips.
“I’ll own you until her debt is paid. You do understand this?”
Nodding, it seems to be what I am good at right at this moment.
“Your life will not be the same. Any jobs you do for me will be confidential. Do you understand?”
My eyes search around the empty room frantically.
“Theadora, this will not work if you go mute. It will do nothing to assist you, but it will piss me off.”
“Yes…” I hiccup. “I understand.”
He walks over to a fold-up chair, which is the only thing in the room, and reaches for a watch, then places it on his wrist.
Why was that off in the first place? is all I can think.
What was he planning to do with me?
“My sister.”
“Alive,” he says, easing my mind. “For now.” Then he walks past, brushing against my arm as he goes to leave me standing in the cold, empty, cement room. He reaches for the red door and pulls it open, letting light in. It’s then I see the two guys standing there waiting. Both look at me, then him as he speaks to them before they walk off.
He turns back, those eyes that I’m sure will haunt me tonight stare right at me.
“Goodnight, Theadora Fitzgerald of Thatcher Lane.”
My eyes go wide at his words—he knows my street address—before he smirks and turns, letting the red door slam behind him on his way out.
The minute the door shuts I fall to the cold floor, and the tears I have been holding back fall, leaving my soul heavy.
Lucy.
What have you done?
Chapter Two
Atlas
Ocean blue eyes—that’s the only reason I didn’t kill her, those ocean fucking blue eyes. A woman has never stopped me from doing what I’m meant to be doing. It’s how I got to where I am. It’s why I am so good at what I do. No one walks over me, and my business thrives on everything I have a hand in.
We sit out front of my building as we wait. The tint on the car windows makes it almost impossible for anyone to see in, and even if she did, Theadora has no idea what car she was put into anyway.
The sun has set when she comes out. The sky now dark and ominous, which I find fitting. When she emerges with her hands wrapped around her, the skirt she’s wearing—which is way too short—seems to be a little higher than it was before. Her lips quiver with the cold, and what fucking beautiful lips they are. She looks down and reaches for her cell; one of my guys left it there for her so she could get home. I can’t have anything happen to her when I have such plans for her.
The minute she stands clutching at her cell, she looks around. It’s not a busy area, but there are a number of cars parked along the curb and in a few surrounding lots. I watch as her eyes zoom in on the one we are in. It’s as if she can sense me, and it makes me smile. She doesn’t move for a moment, simply stares at the car before she looks down at her cell, more than likely getting an Uber.
“Do we wait, sir?” Garry asks.
“Yes,” I say without hesitation. “Then follow her.”
After she finishes with her cell, she looks back up at our car, her hands skimming at her skirt and her head dropping to the side, assessing where I am. She puts one foot in front of the other toward the car. Is she going to come this way? Maybe even tap on the window? She takes another step in our direction, but she seems to stop herself and puts the cell to her ear. Whoever it is on the other end has distracted her.
“Is she fucking anyone?” I ask Garry, who’s been watching her for the last few weeks.
“No sign of any men in her life, sir.”
Her eyes look down at her feet as a car pulls around the corner. An Uber must have been close for it to be that fast. Theadora doesn’t pull the cell phone away from her ear as she climbs in, but she does look my way one more time.
A smirk I didn’t know could form, pushes my lips up.
Those ocean blue eyes are going to be fun to break.
Lucy sits on her bed with her eyes filled with tears.
“Don’t tell her. Please, don’t tell her.”
“She knows, Lucy.” My back hits the wall as I watch for her reaction. She doesn’t disappoint, taking a deep breath and screaming at me from the bed, but doesn’t make a move toward me.
“How could you,” Lucy says between hiccups. “How could you?”
“Lucy,” I say her name
, but she doesn’t answer. I take a step toward her, lifting her chin so she has to look at me. There was a time I thought she was beautiful, but now I see the ugly inside her, and that’s the way it will be staying. “I could still kill you. Would you prefer I do that instead?”
Lucy is overdramatic, this I have come to realize as we have spent time together. She throws herself back on the bed with her hands above her head as she continues to cry. Her theatrics doing nothing for me.
“She’s perfect. Thea is perfect. She already thought I was a bad egg, now you just confirmed it,” she says, the tears not leaving.
“Tell me more about Theadora,” I ask. Actually, no, it’s a command.
Lucy stops the tears straight away and sits upright. Her head drops to the side as she looks at me. “You like her, don’t you?”
Lucy doesn’t deserve my answers, so I don’t say anything.
“She’s pretty, but I’m exotic. You can have me! Don’t you want me instead?” Lucy’s hand touches my arm, and I look down at it.
My tone is aggressive when I speak to her. “Remove your hand, Lucy. Now.”
She drops it fast and pulls away from me.
“Tell me about your sister, Lucy. Now.”
Her dark eyes, which are the opposite of her sister’s, look at me before she starts talking. And believe me, Lucy likes to talk.
“She manages some shop,” she says with an eye roll. “Been working with them since straight out of school.” Lucy lies back on her bed and starts to play with her hair, twirling it with her fingers. “She hasn’t dated anyone seriously since high school.” She pushes up on her arms and looks at me. “Is this what you want to know? Who she’s fucking?”
