by C. J. Thomas
“If you don’t stop this now, she’ll never be the same.” He leaned back and wiped his mouth. “It changed Adrianna for good. You’d never know it looking into her eyes and seeing how far she’s come, but the scars are there.”
“How’d she get out?”
“The Madam put a price on what it would cost to bail on her contract.” He glanced over at Kami. “Then, shortly thereafter, she wanted to start Mint.”
“Shit.”
“I don’t tell you this to scare the shit out of you. I tell you because Alex seems like a good girl who would rather wear your collar and play your games.”
“Thanks.”
“If she were to play the Madam’s games, she wouldn’t have a say in what happens to her.”
A stone formed in my throat.
Wes was right. What we had at Mint was different. It was consensual. The Madam was running a business built around making a profit. What she did to get big money flowing into her pockets was what had my mind racing. The images my mind conjured up were dark pits of hell that I didn’t want Alex to have to experience.
“Could you get me in with the Madam?”
Wes stared out over the bar.
I straightened and made my case. “If I can get on her list of clients, then I can hire Alex, pay off her debt without her knowing, and get her out of there before anything bad happens.”
Wes turned his head and looked at me. His eyes were pitch black. “You don’t understand.”
My brow arched high on my forehead.
“Adrianna and I burned that bridge long ago.”
90
Alex
IT SEEMED like I’d been sitting in this empty room since the beginning of time.
All I could think was that I’d been set up. That this was all a ploy the Madam created to get me arrested.
But why?
I’d yet to figure that one out. But she was the one to tell me what to wear and where to stand and what time to be ready. She was the only one who knew all those details.
The detective wouldn’t answer any of my questions on our way downtown. He told me to save my breath. That I’d need it.
I was left to speculate on why I was brought to the precinct and locked inside this room, waiting to be questioned.
I looked around and could hear my own breath echoing off the concrete walls. The air smelled of metal and I couldn’t wait to leave.
Let’s say that the Madam didn’t set me up.
Then I was dead the moment I got out. If not by her hand, then certainly by Mr. Lopez’s. After tonight, if the Madam found out I was here, talking with the cops, she’d think I was ratting her out and I’d be finished.
No matter how professional she came across, I was sure that her business wasn’t exactly legit. I never asked those kinds of questions, and no one ever talked about me having to get sexual with the clients, but it was assumed. We all assumed it. I mean, they were the ones to instruct me to undress so that they could size me up and inspect my goods for retail value. Why else would they do that?
My head fell into the palms of my hands and I growled.
This place’s grime left me feeling disgusting and in desperate need of a shower.
When the heavy door squeaked open, I spread my fingers and peeked through my splayed fingers.
Detective Pierce walked in with a heavier set man who never bothered to introduce himself. Pierce moved to the corner, crossed his arms, and leaned against the wall while his partner took the empty chair across from me.
“Ms. Grace, where were you the night of the 26th?” the detective sitting across from me casually asked.
“Should I call my lawyer?” I folded my hands in my lap. Like I had a lawyer. I was dead broke.
“Are you guilty of something?” He quirked a brow.
It was a trick question and I wouldn’t be falling for it. “No.” It was impossible to hide the irritation in my voice.
“Then you don’t need a lawyer.” He smirked. “Now, where were you on the night of the 26th?”
I closed my eyes and massaged my temples. “Am I in some kind of trouble?”
“Ms. Grace, just answer the question.” Pierce uncrossed his arms, moved to the edge of the table, and rooted his hands onto his hips as he hovered over me.
I peered up at him from beneath my brow. “Um . . .” I rubbed my eyes and thought about my whereabouts. When I realized where I was, my eyes flew open.
Shit. She was going to have my throat.
This had nothing to do with the Madam and me pimping myself out.
“You see that, Pierce?” The detective smiled at his partner.
“Impossible to miss.” Peirce’s unwavering eyes bored into me.
“I was with a friend having drinks at the new bar on Rodeo Drive.”
“Do you remember the name of the bar?”
“I do.” I tipped my head back. “Mojito.”
“And you said you were having drinks with a friend?”
I nodded.
“Does your friend have a name?”
“Kendra Williams.”
“And it was just the two of you?”
I nodded, feeling my body temperature rise.
“Did you happen to meet anyone else that night? Any men, perhaps?”
Nash’s dirty blonde hair and ebony eyes flashed through my mind. “Yeah, but I didn’t catch their names.”
“Were they friends of Kendra’s?”
“Just men being men, trying to charm us into sleeping with them. I’m sure you understand.” I smirked.
“Frank, you understand?” There was a glimmer of humor in Pierce’s eyes as he glanced at his partner.
“I’m not sure that’s been my experience, but perhaps yours?” Frank said.
They laughed.
I scratched my ear and began to sweat.
Nash knew I was about to leave him. I knew it. And now it had me wondering if this was somehow his way to keep his hold on me.
My eyes were focused out in front, but I was all inside my head.
Did he set me up?
Did Nash place the money in the alley and get me a contract with the Madam? What were the chances Kendra got a job with a firm that also represented Wesley Reid? This city was entirely too big to not be skeptical of coincidences this large.
I rubbed the back of my upper arm. My nerves and skin were raw.
“Did you happen to see this man at the bar that night?” The detective pulled out a photo and slid it across the table.
My heart stopped.
It was Nash.
“Why?” I fought to keep my voice from quivering.
The detective pulled out another photo. “Because his ex-girlfriend has been found murdered.”
I couldn’t look at the second photo.
I didn’t want to.
Her eyes were lifeless and dull.
Lunch threatened to come up and all I wanted to do was run and hide.
I didn’t understand why any of this was happening. Did they think Nash killed her and I was somehow involved?
No, that didn’t make sense. Not with the note Ted gave me. I could see the text so clearly.
Then it hit me.
Was Ted’s note a threat disguised as a warning? Did he want me to leave Hollywood? And if I did, would I be murdered, too?
BOOK 10
On My Knees
The Hollywood Nights Series Vol. 10
CJ Thomas
91
Alex
I NEARLY JUMPED out of my skin when I saw him.
“Nash, you scared me half to death.” My hand flew over my heart.
His silhouette was shadowed by the moonlight but I knew it was him. And though I couldn’t see his face, his frame was unmistakable as he filled one side of the couch to perfection.
“I wish you would tell me when you’re stopping by.” I closed the front door and moved toward the kitchen island.
He leaned back with one hand close to his chin and I coul
d feel his eyes on me, watching my every step. He didn’t move or make a peep, and that was reason enough for my hands to grow even clammier than they’d been since the police station.
I set down my purse and flipped on the lights.
My breath caught in my lungs as I slowly turned to look in Nash’s direction.
I was scared to know the reason he was here.
My heart raced.
His eyes were the darkest I’d ever seen them and I couldn’t help but feel that I was looking into the eyes of a killer.
The cops never did outright name him for the murder of his ex, but the suggestion was there. And that was enough to plant the seed in my own mind to proceed with caution.
“Where were you?” His voice was as deep—and as desolate—as a canyon.
My gaze dropped to the floor and I turned my head, unable to let him have any chance of reading my mind as it raced to think of a good excuse. It had to be something he would believe.
“Alex, I asked you a question.” His voice held firm.
I skirted around the island and pulled an empty glass off the shelf. “You should have really let me know you were waiting. I could have gotten home sooner.” Except there was no way I could have.
I filled my glass and heard him stand.
“Where were you?” His husky voice dried my mouth, and suddenly I had a desire to flee my own home.
I gulped down half the glass.
There was no way I could tell him where I was.
The detectives promised me they’d be in touch and told me to contact them if I remembered any more than I’d been able to share. Which wasn’t much. And with the kinds of questions they asked about me—my connection to Nash, where I was on the night I found the bag of money—I wouldn’t put it past them to have put a tail on me, watching my every move, looking for any slip up to lead them straight into an easy conviction for the one and only, Nash Brooks.
I stared into the center of the glass before setting it down.
Which got me to my next point of concern. If the cops were watching me closely, it wasn’t going to make seeing the Madam any easier.
Nash’s rough hands fell on my shoulders and my breath caught in surprise.
I closed my eyes, trying my hardest not to be so nervous around the man I thought I knew, fearful that Nash would sense something was wrong.
But I couldn’t do it. I knew too much. Read too deep into what the detectives planted inside my head. I was doing an awful job of hiding any of the dark thoughts polluting my feelings toward the man standing directly behind me.
“It doesn’t matter where you were.” His hot breath tickled my ear. “As long as you’re home safe with me.” He squeezed my tense muscles and nipped at the soft spot behind my ear before moving down my neck.
I leaned my head back and closed my eyes, relieved that I’d avoided having to tell him that I knew about his ex’s murder and how the detectives had him in their crosshairs on the list of possible suspects.
His fingers trailed over my collarbone and down my chest. “Pack your bags.”
My eyes opened and I turned to look at him.
“We’re leaving for Mexico in the morning.” His lids hooded over as he tightened his hold on my waist.
“What? I can’t.” My brow wrinkled.
He smiled. “You can.” He pressed his lips into my forehead. “And you will be going with me.”
My eyes danced with his as I scrambled to find a way out.
“I can’t let you escort.”
I swallowed back the tears. “How did—”
“Kendra told me.” He brushed his thumb across my jaw.
“Nash, it’s not that I don’t want to go.”
He hooked my chin and angled my face toward his. “Then what is it?”
“I can’t do this.” I stepped away. “You, the internship, I can’t do any of it anymore.”
“What are you saying?”
“It’s over.”
92
Nash
“DEX, IT’S ME, NASH.”
“I thought you’d forgot about me.”
“Sorry to be calling so early,” I glanced at the clock, “but this was my last chance before hopping on the plane to Mexico.”
Alex may have thought things were over between us, but they weren’t. As far as I was concerned—as long as Dex came through with my request to meet Lopez—this was just the beginning of Alex’s new life with me.
“No. It’s not a problem.” I could hear him chewing through the phone and it grated on my nerves. I was too strung out to eat. “Mr. Lopez is already south of the border and will meet you there.”
“Just like that?”
“Just like that.” I heard him take a swig of whatever it was he was drinking. “He’s already down there, near your destination.”
I couldn’t help but wonder what kind of business he was conducting. It didn’t matter. I’d do whatever it took to get Alex back to being all mine.
“He’ll take cash.”
I’d already prepared the amount, anticipating that was what would make both our lives easier. Anything to clear Alex of her debt once and for all, and to get her focus back on me and this damn film. “I can arrange that.”
“You’ll have to break away from filming. Can you do that?”
“I’ll make it work.”
“You can’t be late.”
“When does he want to meet?”
“I’ll message you the details as soon as we get off the phone. But as soon as possible.” I could hear him taking a piss through the phone. “Nash, this is your one shot. Don’t fuck this up. Got it?”
“You act like I don’t understand the severity of what’s happening.”
“Nash.” A long pause. “Watch yourself. If you’re not careful, you might find an early grave in the desert.”
I wasn’t about to take his warning lightly. I knew enough about Lopez to have my concerns.
Lopez was as unpredictable as anyone I’d ever heard of. Wes filled me in on the details. He was a man who only cared about keeping his boss happy and keeping his money flow strong. If things weren’t running smoothly, life could turn bloody. And fast.
He certainly wasn’t someone I wanted to cross. Not after hearing the stories Wes shared. I didn’t have experience dealing with cartel guys, but Lopez was no ordinary gangster. He was the cartel’s head honcho in all of America and was a ruthless son-of-a-bitch. And, quite frankly, I was surprised he gave Alex as much leniency as he did. For that alone, I should personally thank him.
“That’s why you’re coming with me.”
Dex gasped heavily into the phone.
“To make the introduction and make sure I walk away with my life.”
The door to my office opened and Val’s face appeared in the doorway. Her hair was tied up in a messy bun on top of her head. She smiled and I saw that she was ready to hit the road.
“I got my guy coming to pick you up now. Don’t pack much. This will be a quick trip.”
93
Alex
“YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE COME TODAY.” Her eyes narrowed and traveled the length of me before she turned her head toward the window.
I knew before I walked through the front doors that she wasn’t going to want to see my face. But I had to make peace with the Madam and let her know that it wasn’t cold feet last night.
Her mystery man—the same man who’d inspected my most private areas the last time I was here—stepped to the front of the desk and sat on the edge, waving me to come inside the Madam’s office.
I moved slowly and watched his arms cross over his chest, followed by his feet crossing at the ankles. I couldn’t read his expression any better than I could the Madam’s, but I wasn’t stupid. I knew what they thought. It was what any reasonable person would conclude.
That I’d bailed.
Got cold feet.
Couldn’t handle the job I signed up for.
But it wasn’t like that and I needed
to make them believe in me again. They were my last shot at righting the wrongs in my life.
The man pointed at the empty chair across from the Madam and I sat, setting my bag down at my feet.
The Madam continued to face the window and I got lost in all her sparkling jewelry. Silvers and golds and the glitters of diamonds throwing the light around the room seemed to be coming off of her everywhere. She wore intricate necklaces, bangles that rattled on her wrists, and a variety of stones that covered her slim fingers as elegantly as any woman of class.
“I expected more from you.” Her calm voice broke the silence that awkwardly filled the room.
I cast my gaze down and began sweating.
My appetite was gone the moment Nash left my apartment last night and I couldn’t stomach the thought of eating anything today. Especially not before I came down here to meet my fate.
I was ridden with guilt and hated that I’d let her down. But I had. There was no denying it. And knowing it was too dangerous for me to tell her the truth of what actually happened last night had me left without an argument as to why she should keep me around.
She swiveled her chair in my direction and let her eyes fall on me. She jutted her chin out and gave me a strong silent look, contemplating what to do with me next.
“I’m sorry.” I looked up at her from beneath my brow. My voice was barely a whisper but I somehow found the strength to give her at least the apology she deserved.
She folded her hands on her stomach and I wondered how she’d been able to fit so many rings on her slender fingers. It was impressive, just like everything else about her.
I bent over and picked up the bag at my feet, setting it in front of her.
“What’s this?” She lifted her hands and slid her elbows across the desk.
“Your dress.” I leaned back.
The man pulled the bag open and peeked inside.
“And the pearl necklace.”
The man dug inside, and once he’d accounted for all the items they lent me to wear on my date that never happened, he nodded to the Madam.
“My client isn’t happy that you stood him up.” Her lips straight-lined.
