Total pages in book: 46
Estimated words: 45284 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 226(@200wpm)___ 181(@250wpm)___ 151(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45284 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 226(@200wpm)___ 181(@250wpm)___ 151(@300wpm)
“How do you know my name?” I snap.
He grins. There’s something mean in his eyes, but also something like fear. Or maybe I’m projecting the second one, praying he feels that way so he doesn’t give into the dark part of him, which seems intent on hurting me.
“There was an announcement on Realization Global’s website,” he says. “So just try to relax, okay?”
“What do you want from me?” I say, glancing at the fire door.
My belly tightens when I see my mistake. The fire door closed behind me, locking securely, meaning I’ll have to walk around this man if I want to escape. He stands in the middle of the alley, hands on his hips.
“I just want you to deliver a message.”
“What message?”
“Tell your new boyfriend that if he doesn’t leave one million at this address…”
“What are you doing?” I ask sharply when he reaches into his pocket.
“You’re real skittish, aren’t you? I’ve written the address on a piece of paper.”
I’m tense as he slowly withdraws his hand from his pocket. He seems to take some pleasure from how honed in on the movement I am, staring as I wait for him to get it over with.
A knife, a gun, but no, it’s a piece of paper, like he said.
“No,” I say when he gestures as if he’s going to walk over and hand it to me. “Leave it on the ground.”
He laughs cruelly, then shrugs, dropping the paper.
“Tell him if he doesn’t leave one million, a tiny amount for him, we’re going to hurt you, Amelia. I’ve never seen Tommy look at anybody like he looks at you.”
“How do you know what he looks like when he’s looking at me?” I hiss.
The man taps his nose. “I’m a sneaky fellow. Let’s just say that. See you around. Oh, and he has twenty-four hours.”
“Find her,” Tommy yells from around the side of the building.
The man’s face drains of all its bluster, and he quickly turns, ducking his head and sprinting out of the alleyway. He takes a left opposite the entrance and then runs fast.
Tommy appears at the mouth of the alleyway with two of his security men bordering him. When he spots me, he rushes over, his whole body heaving like he’s going to erupt from the inside, like he’s going to go into full-savage mode.
“What happened?” he asks, touching my shoulder.
As soon as he makes contact, the fear drains away, replaced with a sense of belonging and safety. He doesn’t need to talk to me for me to experience this wave of comfort. After I’ve explained, his hand gets tighter, his jaw pulsing. He turns to his security man.
“Next time we’re out, secure all exits.”
The man bows his head. “Yes, sir. I’m sorry. I didn’t think—”
“Didn’t think what?” Tommy says when the man cuts himself off.
“That, ah, we needed to.”
He looks at me, and the implication is clear. He didn’t think they needed to secure the exterior exits because he assumed I’d stay inside and not sneak away. They probably guarded all the appropriate areas, assuming I would stay inside.
“Let’s go back inside,” Tommy says, taking my hand.
I squeeze onto him tightly, momentarily forgetting the drama with the job, the video, the hiring. When we return to the café, Loki is lying on a towel with his tongue hanging out of his mouth, panting happily.
I stroke him along his head before returning to my seat.
“Who was that?” I ask.
Tommy curls his fist around the note. “An old friend.”
“Funny way for a friend to act.”
“He’s not a friend anymore,” he says. “Some bad things happened, and he blames me. That’s why he called me a liar. He thinks I present a false face to the world just because I don’t go around talking about decades-old shit. He’s a joke and just made the worst mistake of his life.”
Tommy closes his eyes for a moment. His body is shuddering as if he’s going to erupt in rage. I touch his hand, though I’m still unsure how to feel. I decide to push the work thing to the edge of my mind for now, to where I don’t have to think about it.
“It’s okay. Nothing happened. I’m fine.”
He opens his eyes and looks at me as if nothing else exists, the café fading away, the rest of the world ceasing to matter. “I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself if that bastard hurt you, and Ami, you need to know… you were the most qualified candidate.”
“We don’t have to talk about that.”
“Yes, we do because it’s the truth. I asked George to hire you because I wanted you. That video drove me wild, but in typical George fashion, he told me he had to be responsible for his hires. He said he wouldn’t hire you just because I told him to.”
“So why am I here?” I ask.