Total pages in book: 116
Estimated words: 106292 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 531(@200wpm)___ 425(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 106292 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 531(@200wpm)___ 425(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
“Don’t you have like . . . a billion staff members in this hotel who were literally hired to clean up after you.”
“Yeah,” he scoffs. “After me. I’m not paying them to clean up after you.”
“Then it seems we have ourselves a little problem,” I tell him, letting him hear the bite in my tone. “What did you mean when you said Empire runs on a mutual understanding?”
He glances at me again. “You’ve got a lot of questions for someone who says they don’t want anything to do with it.”
“Can you blame me for wanting to know more about the society who wants me dead?” I question. “Besides, they’re rightfully mine. If I intend to steal it out from under you, then it only makes sense for me to know what the hell I’m getting myself involved in.”
Zade scoffs, and the sound is like a knife right through the back, making it all too clear what he thinks about the possibility of me actually taking him down. “You’ve got fight in you, Oakley,” he says. “I like that. It’s in your blood, the fire to be on top. Any rightful leader of Empire should be able to stand tall like that.”
“I sense a but coming.”
A wicked smirk stretches across his lips, and he rolls to face me before gripping my chin. “You could have all the will and desire in the world to try and take Empire from me, but you’ll never succeed. Understand that, Lamb. I applaud your strength and respect you. After all, you are the rightful heir, and it’s been drummed into me my whole life that I should hold nothing above those who possess the blood. It kills me to have to spill even one precious drop, but I will spill it all if it means claiming my crown.”
“You terrify me, Zade,” I whisper, gently pulling my chin out of his grip.
He nods, and there’s sadness in his eyes. “I know,” he admits. “I terrify myself sometimes, too.”
“You don’t want to do this?”
He shakes his head. “Of course I don’t want to do this. Do you think plunging my hands inside your chest is going to get me hard? No, not even close. But that changes nothing.”
Reaching out from beneath the blanket, I let my fingers brush along his arm, my hand shaking as I come in contact with his skin. I can almost sense the complex design of the ink beneath my fingertips, imagining the way the intricate pattern could come to life with my touch.
Electricity shoots through my fingers and right through to my chest as my heart races. I can barely catch my breath, feeling like I’ve just run a marathon. Zade doesn’t move, doesn’t try to push me away or touch me back. He simply stares at me as my fingers curl around his wrist, holding onto him like my only lifeline. I swallow over the lump in my throat, and as the seconds pass, my heart starts to calm, finding an odd comfort in his touch.
I don’t look away from his stare, feeling as though this is the first time I’ve ever really had a moment to talk to him with everything laid out on the table. All the lies are dead and buried. Just two people and a shitload of raw honesty.
“You keep changing the topic,” I tell him.
“I don’t mean to,” he says. “I just don’t think the day-to-day running of Empire is really that intriguing in comparison to you.”
My cheeks flush, and I try to push his comment to the back of my mind, knowing damn well he doesn’t mean that in a sexual way. He’s not intrigued by my mind or body, but by the blood pulsing through my veins. “Consider me intrigued,” I prompt. “Tell me about it.”
He lets out a breath, considering how to explain this to me in simple terms. “Empire started as a group of young men with a hunger for power and the drive to protect their own. They were men in high places in the community, both feared and respected. Police, judges, the town mayor, and even the local mafia boss. Anyone who could bring something to the table. You name it, Empire has it covered. They were sworn to secrecy and made vows to put Empire above their own lives and their children’s lives.”
“That’s fucked up.”
He nods. “Over the years as these men were married and had families of their own, the organization began to grow, along with it our power and reach. They quickly rose, taking control of the government and international affairs while maintaining their legacy. When some began to get greedy, The Circle was formed, and along with it, the by-laws they enforced. The original founder, my great-great-grandfather, Arterius DeVil, was officially crowned leader of the organization, and his people vowed to follow him blindly. A vow in which each member still follows to this day.”