by C. J. Thomas
“I didn’t stand him up.”
“It was a big event.”
“I was there waiting.”
They exchanged skeptical glances. “I’m not happy, either,” she said.
I didn’t know how I could avoid telling her what really happened. She needed to know. Besides, I didn’t have an excuse she’d believe. The truth was all I had.
“I was picked up by the cops,” I blurted faster than my mind could keep up.
Her eyes widened.
The man pushed off the desk and started pacing behind me.
“I can explain.” The office walls closed in on me and I started to hyperventilate. “It’s not what you think.”
The Madam swept her bangs to the side and took a deep, calming breath. “And what do I think?”
“That I got cold feet. That I wasn’t up to do the job. But that wasn’t it. I was picked up by the cops.” My spine curled the more I talked, realizing how it all sounded. “I was questioned about another crime. I thought they were there because of what I was about to do.” My voice trailed off and I realized just how weak and pathetic I sounded.
The Madam stared at me for what was surely the longest minute of my life.
I knew the reason she wasn’t engaging in further conversation. I’d failed her and she was calculating whether or not I was worth the risk going forward. She had to consider the possibility that I’d said something about her, and her business, to the cops.
“For what it’s worth, they didn’t ask about you or what I was doing there. And I certainly didn’t tell them anything that didn’t need to be discussed.” The pain in my chest spread to my arms. “They just needed to know more about someone they think I know.”
It hurt to think of Nash that way, but it was true. After all we’d been through, all he’d done for me, and now this? A lump formed in my throat.
The man leaned in and whispered something in the Madam’s ear.
I couldn’t lose this opportunity. It was my only chance at paying off this debt on my own terms, without any handouts. I needed to find a way to convince her to give me another shot.
She couldn’t give up on me now.
Not when I needed her the most.
She steepled her hands and tucked them under the point of her chin. “I don’t like feeling the heat.”
“I know. But, please, believe me when I tell you that I was ready to go to work for you. I still am.”
Her tongue slid over her bottom lip as she stared.
“I can do this.” I leaned forward and set my palms flat on her desk. “Give me another chance. I won’t let you down. Please.”
“And how can we be so sure?” the man said from behind me.
“I’ll make it fair.” I turned and glanced at him.
“And how will you do that?” the Madam asked, her eyes never wavering from my face, her expression unreadable.
“You can keep my commission on my next date. I’ll do it for free.”
94
Nash
DEX SHUT the car door and never once looked in my direction.
I started the Land Rover’s engine. “Let’s get this over with. I’ve got a film to make.”
He punched in the address from Mr. Lopez into the GPS and said, “Twenty-five minutes out.”
“Let’s make it ten.” My hand tightened its grip of the wheel and I pressed down on the gas.
We drove mostly in silence, but fast. Real fast. There was no time to waste. I couldn’t wait to get back to Alex.
Neither of us knew what to expect. On the back seat I had the quarter million dollars secured in a black, canvas duffel and I didn’t like the fact that I was driving around Mexico with so much damn cash.
But this was for Alex, and I’d promised to keep her safe. I still had lots to prove to her. This was just the start.
My eyes closed momentarily and all I could see was her sexy smile. Her floral scent drifted up my nose and intoxicated my brain. When I thought about her plump lips wrapped around my cock, I got painfully hard.
Ted was right about one thing: Alex was my latest and greatest conquest, the one I wouldn’t ever let go of. She was the one who consumed me, day and night, and I’d do anything to ensure that would continue well into the future.
My cock swelled the longer I thought about her.
Once this was finished, I would make it a point to ease her back into my eccentric lifestyle. One mine blowing orgasm at a time. Then she’d really start to understand what it meant to be a Submissive.
My eyes opened and I glanced in the rearview mirror. Dust filled the back window as I continued to drive.
All this other bullshit just got in our way and was keeping us from what was meant to be. Us. Together. In the studio, at the club, between my sheets.
“This is it.” Dex pointed out the windshield.
I pulled into the entrance and stopped at the gate. There was security everywhere. Men with assault rifles perched up on towers and patrolling the property lines. It was like walking onto a movie set, except this was real.
A man approached our vehicle. He had a semi-automatic rifle slung over his shoulder. I rolled down my window. “Hola, amigo. I’m here to see Mr. Lopez.”
He peeked his head further inside and looked at Dex before turning to the backseat. “Any weapons?” His English was flawless.
“No.” Dex leaned across my seat and smiled. “This is a meeting among friends.”
The man squinted his eyes and studied our nerves. When he decided we were safe to pass, he waved his hand and the gate opened. “Welcome.”
I felt anything but welcome.
“Meeting among friends, huh?” I drove the car slowly through the compound.
“You better hope so.” Dex raised his brows and stared straight ahead.
It was a gigantic mansion tucked in the hills. We weren’t too far from the border, making it an ideal location for the cartel to operate.
But there wasn’t anything around. Hardly any trees, and the remoteness of it all was what had me most worried. Anything could happen to us and no one would ever know.
I parked at the front of the mansion and took the keys with me when I stepped out of the SUV. Dex opened the back door and slung the heavy duffel over his shoulder.
Mr. Lopez appeared at the top of the steps as soon as I rounded the back of the vehicle and I immediately noticed two handguns tucked under his arms, secured inside a holster.
I wasn’t armed and neither was Dex. But I wasn’t scared.
Hell, I wasn’t even nervous.
Just anxious.
“Dex Ross.” Lopez walked halfway down the staircase and spread his arms out to the sides. Dex leaned in and hugged the man.
“And Nash Brooks.” Lopez took one step down and hugged me, too. “Welcome to Mexico. Please, come inside.”
His place was immaculate. The cathedral ceilings and open floor plans with walls open to the outside had my head spinning. It was gigantic and easily worth millions. I’d seen my fair share of million-dollar homes in southern California, but this topped them all. It was a luxurious resort in the middle of the desert, multiplied over. All paid for with drug money. This was the place movies were made from, and story ideas came to me quicker than I could keep up with.
Lopez led us through the house and sat us in the back garden next to the pool and fountain. Birds chirped and the desert sun beat down on my head.
“Dex said you had something for me.” He lit a cigar.
Dex angled his jaw at me and I nodded. He lifted the duffel and set it in front of Lopez, unzipping it until the sides spilled open.
“Alex Grace’s debt is inside.” I leaned back and looked for his eyes. They were hidden behind his dark lenses, impossible to see a reaction. “All of it, plus another fifty thousand for your troubles.”
He leaned back and puffed on his cigar. It was the sweetest smelling thing and I wanted one to smoke myself. I was sure Dex did, too. He loved to puff on a good cigar.
<
br /> Though I couldn’t see Lopez’s eyes, I could feel his intense stare boring a hole directly through me.
A young woman with a full bust came and poured us all shots of tequila. Lopez downed his and immediately took another.
Dex threw his back and I followed.
“Let me ask you something, Nash Brooks.”
I pressed the pads of my fingers together and dropped my chin as the alcohol warmed my gut.
“Do you think you can just come into my house and buy me off?” He removed his glasses and revealed his narrowed, beady eyes.
“We mean no disrespect.” Dex straightened his spine.
“This isn’t your concern,” he snapped and pointed at Dex. “And her debt isn’t your debt.” He rolled his neck over to me.
“You don’t get it.” I pushed my empty glass to the center of the table.
“No, I do get it. I invite you to my place and you disrespect me by thinking I want your money. This is between me, and her.”
I stood and zipped up the duffel. “Money is money. People like you and me know it better than most.” I pulled the bag closer to me and hooked my arm through the strap. “This is your one chance to take it, or I walk.”
His brows pulled together.
“No?”
He remained still.
“Fine.” I slung the duffel strap over my shoulder. “This isn’t Alex’s money and she doesn’t owe you shit.”
Two guards moved to stand behind him. Lopez held up his hand and continued to stare up at me.
“This is Blake Stone’s money.” I took a step forward to assert my authority. “Which means it’s your money. That’s what it’s all about, isn’t it? You getting back the money Stone owed you?”
Dex stared up at me with a clenched jaw. I was sure he thought I was on a suicide mission picking a battle with someone like Lopez.
And maybe I was, but I hadn’t come here to negotiate. I’d come here to make sure I didn’t lose Alex to some other asshole waiting his turn to fuck her.
“C’mon. Let’s go.” I turned and started walking away. “My time can’t be wasted.”
Dex pushed back from the table and joined me. We were almost to the house when Lopez called to us. “We have a deal.”
I stopped and turned to find him now standing. He smiled and lifted his cigar to his lips. “I like you.” He laughed.
Dex’s lips parted, and together we made our way back to the table.
“I wonder why we haven’t done business together.” Lopez waved his hands at the money.
I dropped it back on the center of the table.
“You have some balls.” He took his cigar between his teeth and began pulling out the bricks of hundreds, stacking them on the table. “You’re right.” He glanced up at me from beneath his brow. “This is the money Stone owed the cartel.”
“Good. Then it’s understood.”
“And I personally thank you for bringing it back to us.” He picked up a brick of money and smelled it. “Alex’s debt is clear, but she’s not out of the woods yet.”
My fists clenched and I stepped forward. “Excuse me?” I hissed.
He puffed on his cigar.
“I just gave you more than you deserve. After today, this is over.” My hands sliced through the air.
He exhaled a thick cloud of purple smoke. “Yes, my business with her is finished. You are right.”
My tense muscles relaxed.
“However,” he reached inside his pocket and pulled out a business card, “you better call this man as soon as possible.”
I took the card and noticed Lopez had a photo of the man stapled to the back. “Why?”
“Because, from what I hear, he’s about take her out.”
95
Alex
I DIDN’T KNOW what to do with myself now that I wasn’t working with Nash.
All morning, after meeting with the Madam, I paced the apartment, wondering where I should go, what I should do.
Everywhere I looked, I was reminded of Nash.
The couch he gave me as a housewarming gift. The time he bent me over the side and took me from behind. The way he filled me and made me sweat. Or when he had me spread and pushed up against the glass for the entire city to see me getting drilled.
I couldn’t escape him, no matter how hard I tried. Memories of him were everywhere.
A part of me even wondered how the shoot was going in Mexico.
Val—the opportunist that she was—probably had already swooped in and seduced him. My heart ached, thinking that he’d give up on me so easily. But when I reminded myself that he might not be the man I thought he was, it started to dull the pain.
I had to get out of here before I really lost my mind. Not a minute later, I was out the door and heading to a food truck around the corner.
I thought about calling Kendra, but with it being a weekday, the chances of her getting away from the office were slim. I still hadn’t had the chance to tell her about getting picked up by the cops, and though she’d messaged me a couple dozen times last night, I kept forgetting to let her know that I was okay.
I rounded the corner and brushed past a couple holding hands.
She was probably worried.
Once at the food truck, I placed my order, got my food, and found myself alone at a table. Just me and my grilled fish sandwich.
I had to message her. My thumb swiped across my screen and I sent her a quick text.
Sorry for going MIA. I’m good. Boy, do I have a story to tell. Call me.
“Hey, beautiful,” a Spanish accent said behind me.
I turned my head and watched the well-dressed man sit across from me.
He smiled.
I eyed my sandwich.
I knew who’d sent him, and I also knew why he was here. I’d recognized his face immediately. It was impossible to forget the man who’d kidnapped me.
“Look, I need more time.” I dropped my phone back into my clutch. “I don’t have the money yet.”
He smiled and reached across the table to steal a fry.
I cocked my head to the side and narrowed my eyes. It was the first time I’d noticed it, but he had a gold tooth that caught the light and glared in my direction. “You can’t just show up like this, either. I need some kind of heads up.”
He laughed and looked around. “Don’t worry, Alex. I come with good news.”
My brow arched.
“Your debt has been cleared.”
My jaw dropped. “What?”
“You’re free.” His gold tooth glittered in the sunlight.
I blinked and let his words ferment. Then I watched him steal my sandwich before getting up and walking away.
That was it. Our conversation was over.
My mind scrambled to catch up. Just like that, I was free from an enormous debt that was sending me down what was surely going to be a destructive path. A walk that would forever change my life. Something I’d never be able to hide from.
I wondered what had changed to make Mr. Lopez suddenly forgive me.
When I heard my phone ringing I dug it out and answered. “Hey.”
“I’m not happy with you,” Kendra said.
“I’m sorry. I should have messaged.”
“So, how did it go? Did you have hot, sticky, prostitute sex?”
I rolled my eyes. “Actually, I was picked up by a detective.”
“Wow, that sounds hot. I’ve always wanted to fuck a cop.”
“It wasn’t like that.” I scanned the sidelines to see who was around. “He was a real detective.”
“Whoa, so are you in some kind of trouble?”
I thought about Nash and the murdered intern and how I was just cleared of my debt out of the blue. Where should I even begin to fill Kendra in on the drama that had become my life?
“Alex? Are you all right? You still there?”
I spun around to look in the direction I last saw the man. He was nowhere to be seen. “I was just cleared
of my debt.”
“What?! That’s great news,” Kendra screeched through the phone. “How did that happen?”
Then it hit me.
Like a ton of bricks being dropped on my head from the sky. “Except I’m still bound to the Madam’s contract.” I sighed.
“Wait a second.” Kendra’s tone went from surprise to serious, just like that. “Let me think.”
My stomach growled and I munched on a fry, wishing I still had my fish sandwich to eat.
“After I dropped you off last night, I couldn’t stop thinking about what your night must have been like. So, as soon as I got in the office today, I went to work pulling out files.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I was reading up on the Madam and found a file that went into a good bit of detail about what Wes had to do to get Adrianna out of her own contract.”
“Adrianna Eastman used to work for the Madam?” My forehead scrunched. Adrianna Eastman, maven of Hollywood, had something in common with me?
“I know, right? Long story. I’ll fill you in later, but what I’m saying is that maybe the Madam will do the same with you.”
“Break my contract?”
“If she’s done it once, why not again?”
I wasn’t about to get my hopes up. Particularly not after having to convince the Madam a second time that I was reliable and could be the person I said I was. But if Kendra had an idea to get me out of having to escort, I was all for it.
Especially since it appeared I was now debt free and no longer in need of extreme amounts of money.
96
Nash
NOT A MINUTE after getting back into my office—having just arrived from Mexico—I got a knock on my door.
Fuck. I shoved a hand through my hair.
I hadn’t even brushed off the dust and I was already being called. “It’s open.”
Ted peaked his head through the cracked door.
My jaw clenched.
I should have known it would be him. He was everywhere, and it seemed as if he was purposefully making a habit of pissing me off as of late. “What’s up, Ted? Now’s not the best time.”
He moved to my desk, keeping the office door open, and picked up a cigar Lopez had given me.
