CREWE'S POINT OF VIEW
His face contorted, displaying a grimace of dissatisfaction.
"I'm in a nice place. I'd like to see more of it."
"Meeting suppliers won't allow for that."
"It's better than being stuck here. You know I don't go outside when Dunbar is lurking around."
I drank my coffee.
"I know he looks menacing, but he will never truly hurt you—unless you deserve it."
"His criteria for punishment are lower than yours."
She drank her coffee, then stared at her plate, dejected.
"Seriously, this looks disgusting."
"It's good for your health."
"There's no fat in it."
"Fat is not healthy."
"Actually, that's false. We need good fat to burn bad fat. We all need protein, carbohydrates, and fats. Without that, a corner of the food pyramid is missing, and it collapses."
Sometimes, I forgot she had been studying medicine before I kidnapped her.
"What specialty did you want to go into?"
"I was in medical school before you kidnapped me, not in residency. I hadn't made my decision yet."
I didn't know what she was talking about, but I didn't show it.
"And what decision would you like to make?"
She pushed her eggs away without eating.
"Emergency medicine."
"Why?"
My world was limited to diplomacy, royalty, and business. I had never been interested in other disciplines, whether law or medicine. I lived in my own little world and I liked it.
She shrugged.
"For personal reasons."
She pushed her plate away again.
"Damn, I miss Finley."
I ignored that last remark.
"What personal reasons?"
She kept her eyes down.
"I don't want to talk about it."
"Then why did you bring it up?"
"I didn't."
She looked up, her mood turning sour.
"You're the one asking all these questions."
"And you've answered them until now."
"I don't want to, okay? You don't tell me about your life either."
"You're my slave. I don't have to tell you about my life."
"I am not your slave," she hissed. "Don't call me that."
"I'll call you whatever I want. Now, answer me."
It looked like her eyes were about to explode with rage.
"Why do you care? You've never been interested in my private life. Why are you so curious?"
Good question.
"Answer the damn question."
She knew she couldn't push me further without putting her brother's life in danger. Coercion was the best way to keep her in line, even if I was bluffing.
"My parents were killed by a drunk driver when I was eight. They hit a tree and died on impact. It wouldn't have changed anything if the ambulance had arrived faster or if a more qualified doctor had been there that night. But maybe I could save someone one day."
My fingers were still wrapped around the handle of the mug, but I didn't drink. My breakfast remained untouched, and I stopped breathing. An inexplicable pain washed over me as I heard her confession. I imagined her as an eight-year-old girl learning that her parents had been killed by someone who had been drinking too much.
Joseph was only a few years older than her, and they couldn't have understood what was happening to them. An unexpected ache gripped my chest, and I felt pity for the woman sitting across from me.
I had lost my parents. Just like her.
I didn't know what to say. I wanted to pull her into my arms, to say something to console her for her loss. But I remained motionless and rigid, unable to find an appropriate reaction. I didn't want her to think it touched me, so I did everything I could to pretend I didn't care.
She turned her gaze away when I didn't respond.
She had shown me compassion when I told her about my parents. It wouldn't be inappropriate for me to express the same understanding. It didn't mean I cared about her, personally. It just meant I wasn't a total jerk.
"I'm sorry, Cute."
When she looked up, she couldn't hide her surprise. She was likely expecting me to be as hard as usual.
"It seems we have more in common than I thought."
"Yeah... it seems so."
She ran a hand through her hair to clear her face and push it behind her back. She finally took a bite of her food, then grimaced as she swallowed.
"Seriously, how can you eat this crap?"
"I have to keep in shape. Don't act like you don't like it."
She rolled her eyes and took another bite. She must have been hungry, as she had barely eaten the day before and had fasted all night. Either she ate now, or she would have to wait until I returned from my meeting.
"You're not that sexy."
I raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, really?"
"Yeah."
I didn't believe it for a second.
"It seems, however, that you find me sexy."
"You're not bad. But sexy? No."
Her eyes were lying.
"As you wish, Cute. But I make you come every time we f***, so I must be doing something right."
She took another bite, dodging the question.
"I find you magnificent."
I wasn't ashamed of it. When we met, I didn't like her. But the more she talked back, the more she showed her sassy character, the more my attraction grew. I loved that fire in her eyes. I loved her insolence when someone picked a fight with her. I adored her courage.
She slowly lowered her guard after my admission. Her eyes were no longer throwing daggers, and it looked like she liked me—for a moment.
"Okay... I find you sexy."
I smiled ear to ear in victory.
"You didn't need to say it, I already knew. But thanks anyway."
I picked up the newspaper from the tray and opened it.
"I want to ask you something."
"Yes?"
"Everywhere you go, there are a million people with you."
"More like a dozen, but what are you getting at?"
"Are you never alone? Like, truly alone?"
I couldn't remember the last time I went anywhere without a bodyguard. When my parents were murdered, I was placed under the close protection of Finley and other guards. I grew up surrounded by an army at all times. The only privacy I had was when I went out with women and slept with them.
"I don't think so."
"Doesn't that bother you?"
Yes. No. It depended.
"It's a small price to pay for my protection."
"I don't think I could live like that..."
"Are you a lonely person?"
"No. But I value my independence. At times, I need to be alone to clear my head. If I had people around me all the time, I would go crazy."
"You've been doing just fine for three months."
When she wasn't with me, my men watched her. She was rarely alone, even in my bedroom.
Irritation flared in her eyes.
"It's a daily struggle..."
I glanced at the clock on the wall. I had to go. I finished my breakfast and set down the newspaper I hadn't had time to read.
"I'll see you when I get back."
"No, I'm coming with you."
She stood up as if it would change anything.
"No."
I grabbed my jacket hanging on a hanger in the closet and put it on, completing my three-piece suit.
"I don't want to stay here with your men. I told you they make me uncomfortable."
"Too bad."
She approached me with her hands on her hips, compensating for her short stature with her resolute attitude.
"Do you plan on keeping me forever?"
I had no idea what I was going to do with her. My impulsive reaction to keep her instead of handing her over to Bones was inexplicable. I didn't know exactly what had made me change my mind. But now that my initial plan had changed, I no longer had a strategy. I could f*** her until I was tired, and eventually, I would get bored of her and move on. But I couldn't let her go. I couldn't show the world that I had become soft.
"Maybe."
"Then, you can't treat me like a dog. Use me. You know I'm smart. I can hold my own, even when I'm outnumbered. I'm cunning, I have nerve. I'll be of more use to you if you take me than if you leave me alone here."
"Most women would prefer to wait at home, drinking wine and eating chocolates all day."
If she played her cards right, she could have a life without worry. All she had to do was not get on my nerves.
"I don't want to sit on my ass all day and get fat. I need more than that."
"You're of no use to me."
"I like scotch. I could help you with your business."
"This meeting has nothing to do with the distillery."
It would be about the underworld. It would be about getting revenge on all the bastards who had the audacity to rip me off.
"Crewe, come on."
I didn't see what she had in mind.
"You think if you learned everything about my criminal activities, you could denounce me overnight? I could tell you everything, let you go, and the police wouldn't lift a finger."
"What makes you so sure?"
"The police are under my orders."
The whole world was under my orders. I only needed to subdue my enemies.
Her eyes moved left to right as she watched me.
"Turning you in isn't in my plans, anyway."
"Really?" I asked sarcastically. "After everything I've done to you?"
"I'm not saying you were right to kidnap me. But I think you have a soul under this facade. If you had no heart, you would have handed me over to Bones."
I couldn't let her believe that I cared about her damn fate. I couldn't let her believe I had shown compassion. Otherwise, all the rules would fly out the window. She would try to stab me in the back at night because she knew I wouldn't retaliate. She could push me in directions I didn't want to go.
"I didn't hand you over to Bones because I wanted to make Joseph suffer even more. I wanted him to know his little sister was getting f***ed every night by his worst enemy. My heart died a long time ago, Cute. Everything you see today is just flesh and bone."