Total pages in book: 94
Estimated words: 91164 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 456(@200wpm)___ 365(@250wpm)___ 304(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91164 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 456(@200wpm)___ 365(@250wpm)___ 304(@300wpm)
“Allegra, I was just—”
She pushes my hand away, jumps to her feet. “What did you do? What the fuck did you do?”
I stand. “Sit. Relax, Allegra. We’re having a nice night.”
When I try to take the whiskey from her, she pulls back sharply which sends liquid sloshing over her arm and mine, onto the couch.
“What did you do, Cassian Trevino?”
“It’s fine—”
“What did you do?” she demands.
“I had her give you a shot. Just to be sure you were safe. To be sure there wouldn’t be any accidents.”
Her mouth falls open. She takes a step backward and glares at me.
I put my hands up in surrender. “Allegra, it was to protect you—”
“You made a decision about something that important on my behalf while I was half out of my mind?” she asks, voice rising.
I take a step toward her. “Allegra, calm down.”
“Allegra, calm down?” she hurls her glass at me. I duck in time, and it crashes against the wall. “You fucking bastard! You don’t get to make those decisions for me! What the hell is wrong with you?”
“I was just trying to protect you. Be reasonable, you didn’t know the history.”
“Well, maybe you should have told me. Maybe you should have waited until I was, I don’t know, conscious, to fucking tell me and let me decide for myself, for my body!”
“Allegra,” I get to her, wrap my hands over her arms. “You have to understand—”
She slaps my hands away. “It’s not me who has to understand, Cassian! It’s you. You are not God. You’re not a king who just gets to decide willy nilly—”
“There was nothing willy nilly—”
“Get off me. Don’t touch me.” She tries to pull her dress on over her head, getting her arms caught in the process. I go to help her, but again, she pushes me away.
“Be reasonable. I didn’t want to put you in the situation where you might be forced to make a choice—”
“Oh, you’d give me the choice then?”
“Jesus, Allegra.” My phone, which is in my jacket pocket, pings with a text. We both glance over to the desk where it’s hanging over the chair, but I ignore it. When I turn back to her, she’s shaking her head, furious.
“Sleep somewhere else tonight. In fact, sleep somewhere else until you understand what you did was wrong. Because whatever your reasons, you don’t just get to decide those things for me. You don’t!”
She storms toward the door, turns back around to grab the photograph of her mother and herself from my desk then walks out the door nearly colliding with Jet on the way.
“What the—"
“Let her go,” I tell him, pushing a hand into my hair.
Jet looks at me and I realize I’m still mostly naked apart from my briefs. I pull on my pants and shirt.
“Severin will meet you in half an hour. I texted you the location, but wanted to be sure you didn’t miss it.”
“Thanks.”
“What was that?”
“Nothing. She’ll calm down. You sticking around for a while?”
Jet nods.
“Keep an eye on her. Don’t let her do anything stupid.”
Jet is trying to contain his amusement.
“What?” I ask as I pull my jacket on.
“Just never seen you like this, brother.” He mutters something that sounds an awful lot like pussy whipped.
I flip him off and walk out to meet Severin.
20
CASSIAN
Severin and I meet at a nightclub in the next town over. It’s a dive and the last place either of us would choose which is exactly why he chose it. I park the SUV two blocks away. I didn’t take the Ferrari because I don’t want anyone knowing my business.
The worst music ever made plays too loudly, the thud of the bass irritating as fuck as bodies gyrate on the dance floor. I look around the crowd, noting the exits before heading to booth at the far end where I can see Severin is already seated nursing a drink.
I weave through people trying to touch as few as possible. When I get to the booth, a waitress asks what I’ll have and I order a whiskey.
“Nice place. Come here often?” I ask Severin, knowing full well he never would.
He stretches his lips into a non-smile. The waitress returns with my drink and lingers a moment. I take out my wallet and hand her a fifty-dollar bill. Her eyebrows disappear into her hairline.
“If you could make sure we’re not interrupted.”
“Sure thing, hon.” She pops her gum and winks before walking away.
“What do you want, Cassian?”
“Wanted to thank you for your gift.”
“I didn’t do it for you. Good to clean house once in a while.”
“What did you get out of him?”
“That’s your job.”
“Except that he came to me half-dead.”
“Isn’t that what you’re used to dealing with?”
“Don’t fuck with me, Severin. Did he tell you anything?”
“Nothing of value. Someone on a bike dropped off cash. His mother was home, but saw nothing of course.”