Total pages in book: 39
Estimated words: 36052 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 180(@200wpm)___ 144(@250wpm)___ 120(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 36052 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 180(@200wpm)___ 144(@250wpm)___ 120(@300wpm)
“What exactly are you looking for, Leon?” Bear looked annoyed. Like he was done with this and wanted to move on. Did he believe Black? Was he regretting taking responsibility for me? Did he regret what we’d done together earlier? That thought gutted me. Sex with Bear had been the best thing to ever happen to me. I knew, realistically, we couldn’t have any kind of meaningful long-term relationship. Bear was way the hell outta my league and I wasn’t too proud to admit it.
“I wanted to ruin your life the way you ruined mine.”
“How’d you find us?” Bear continued as if Black’s answer meant nothing. I could tell by the look in his eyes he was filing everything away for later.
“Stumbled across you in Palm Springs. Just happened to see your face in the crowd and followed you. That’s when I realized I could finally get you back.” He grinned. “Did you fall for her or was she merely a good fuck to you?”
Bear crossed his arms over his chest, planting his legs a shoulder-length apart. “Oh, yeah. I fell for her. Made her my woman.”
Mr. Black threw back his head and laughed. “Of course you did. But I really didn’t think you could be led around by your dick that quickly. She hasn’t had her claws in you a full day. She must have some magical pussy.”
Bear popped him in the nose. Blood spurted on both sides of Black’s face, and the man screamed.
“Jesus, Leon,” Boon snarled. “You’re makin’ me look bad.”
Bear turned his attention to Boon then. “So? Here I am. What revenge do you want on me?”
“Never said I was gettin’ revenge on you, Bear. Only that I was gettin’ revenge.” Boon jerked his head in Black’s direction. “He’s the reason I was in prison. Not you. You offered me a way out, and I was a fool and didn’t take it. That’s on me.”
Bear tilted his head at Boon. “How exactly you gettin’ revenge on him?”
“Figured you guys’d take care of him, given all the shit he did to get here.” Boon turned his gaze to me then. “I’m sorry about this, Olivia. I was going to get you out of there until I saw Bear and realized we’d run into the very person Leon wanted to destroy. I knew you’d be safe with Bear. Even if he suspected you to be a spy, he’d have protected you until he got all the facts. Letting this go down the way it did was the only way to get you away from Leon and your father.”
“What’s Leon got on her old man?” Bear asked.
“What hasn’t he got? Martin Calhoun is into every dirty deal in the northern hemisphere. He’s ripped off so many countries it’s a wonder he’s still alive. Not to mention the grooming and trafficking he’s done with underage girls.”
Boon nodded at me. “This was his first run at Olivia. Assuming she’d done what Leon wanted, she’d have been out and home in a couple of weeks at most. Calhoun was going to start using her to appease his various clients. He hadn’t done so before now because he needed her educated. She needed to be able to converse about any topic to better suit his needs. Leon threatened to expose him. To bring charges of human trafficking and running a pedophile ring. Last thing he wanted was to end up in prison. Rich or not, we all know how things go for pedophiles in prison.”
“So he sold out his daughter.” Bear didn’t word it as a question.
“That man would sell out his own mother if it suited him. Considering Olivia is his stepdaughter, he never batted an eye.”
I felt like I was going to shatter. I hadn’t loved my father. Not really. It was more the idea of having a father that appealed to me. But hearing this man laying it out so bluntly cut me to the bone.
“Liv, look at me.” Bear’s voice was pure command. I hesitated, but only because I wasn’t sure I could stand it if I saw anger in his face. Trust didn’t come easy, and I’d already lied to him. Hell of a way to start out a relationship. I was afraid he’d remember that and question himself.
“You know she’s lying, Bear. Anything she told you when you fucked her was bedroom play.” Black’s voice was nasal from when Bear had broken his nose, but he still sounded strong and confident. “She was pumping you for information she intended to pass on to me.”
Bear turned and made eye contact with Lemon. “Is this guy for real?”
Lemon’s eyes widened. “You’re asking me? He’s your buddy.”
“He’s a fuckin’ motherfucker,” Bear spat. “He has absolutely no idea what happened or was said between me and Liv.”
“Oh, hell no. He’s tryin’ to sow seeds of doubt.” Lemon moved closer to Black. “I’m not really sure what he’s trying to accomplish, though. Liv’s one of us.” She gave the man a wicked sneer. “We don’t turn our backs on family.”