I head down to the kitchen, and I gasp when I see that Cree is practically hunched over Becky, one of the club whores. She’s giggling as Cree holds her arms above her head, his mouth level to her ear. I didn’t think my heart could hurt any worse, but seeing him like this slays me. He glances at me, and for a second, I see guilt, but it’s quickly replaced by a stony glare. “Can I help you?” he snaps.
I take a deep breath and steady my voice. Emily is more important right now. “I got some messages,” I mutter, moving my eyes away from the way his body is pressed against hers.
“So?” he growls. “Why are ya tellin’ me?”
“From Callum. Sorry for interrupting. I’ll take it to Riggs instead.” I leave the kitchen in a rush and blink the tears from my eyes. I lean against the wall outside Riggs’ office to give myself a minute to gather my heart. The kitchen door slams open and Cree glares at me.
“Come here,” he commands, but I don’t move. He’s lost the right to boss me around. Instead, I knock on Riggs’ door. “Eva!” Cree yells, making me jump. “Come here.”
I give him a scathing stare over my shoulder as Riggs tells me to enter. “Fuck you, Elijah,” I mutter. “You’re not the boss of me!”
I hold out my cell for Riggs. “Callum texted me.” He takes it and reads over the messages.
“Fuck,” he hisses. “Why didn’t you say he’d been messaging you? Has Cree seen these?”
I shake my head. “He was busy when I went to show him.” Riggs’ eyes linger on me a second longer, trying hard to read my mood. I’m struggling to hold myself together and it shows in the way my eyes glisten.
“Can I call him in here or is that gonna—” begins Riggs, but he’s cut off by Cree entering without an invite. “Come in, VP,” says Riggs sarcastically.
“Do you mind if I go?” I ask, staring directly at Riggs.
“Yeah, I fuckin’ mind. Stay where you are,” snaps Cree, walking around the desk to Riggs. He looks at my cell and then his eyes burn into me. “Why didn’t you tell me he was messaging you?”
“I thought they were idle threats,” I say, refusing to make eye contact.
“Jesus, Eva. How fuckin’ stupid are you?” he yells. “Now he has Emily!”
“I didn’t think he was serious!” I shout back. “Why is he so desperate to have me there?”
Cree steps towards me, but I don’t shrink back as his huge frame shadows me. “Because the second you stepped into that hellhole, he would have had a buyer lined up for you. Somebody will be paying him big bucks for you.”
Cree
Of all the moments for Eva to walk in, it was when I was threatening that stupid bitch to keep her hands off me. Becky won’t leave me the hell alone, and today was the final straw when she ran her hands along my chest. She’s new, I get it—she doesn’t know my boundaries. But I had to make it clear. My heart is already taken, and I might still be mad as hell at Eva, not helped by the fact she’s kept more information from me, but fuck, she owns me.
“Who does that? Who pays for a woman? What do they want with me?” Her eyes water and a tear rolls down her cheek. I want to wipe it away so badly, but I hold myself back.
“Whatever the person wants from you, Callum will be the one who trains you,” says Riggs.
“Train me?” she repeats. “I’m not a fucking dog.”
“The buyers have specific tastes—sex slaves, hardcore BDSM, and god only knows what else,” says Riggs.
“And now they have Emily?” She wails.
“She looks happy enough in this picture.” Riggs sighs. “I think it’s just a ploy to lure you out of here. Well done for bringing this to us and not going there alone.”
“What are we gonna do?” she asks.
“You’ve done enough,” I snap, and she rebukes at my sharp words. “Let us handle this.” I take her phone and then glare at her. “You can go now,” I snap.
She leaves and Riggs flops back in his chair. “Fuck, Cree, you’re an ass. She was upset.”
“She needs to know I’m mad at her,” I mutter, going through all of her messages.
“I think she got the fuckin’ message,” he snaps. “That was cruel.”
“It’s better she sees that now than when she falls in love with me,” I say, opening messages from any male contacts I find and reading them.
“When she falls in love?” Riggs laughs. “Brother, you’re late to the party. That girl is head over heels in love and you are blowing it completely. Stop being an ass.”
“Let me deal with Eva. You work out a way to get this girl back,” I snap, showing him the picture of Emily again. “She’s a good girl.”
“I’ll call the mayor now,” he mutters, picking up his phone.
I take the stairs two at a time and burst into Eva’s room. She’s on her bed sobbing so hard, she doesn’t hear me. “There’s a lot of men messaging you,” I say, and she wipes her eyes quickly and sits up. “Who the hell is Craig? That’s a dick name, and he calls you ‘flower’!”
“He’s a childhood friend.” She sniffles.
“Why are you crying?” I ask, stepping into the room and closing the door.
“What are you doing in here, Cree?” She sounds so tired and worn down.
“Why are all these men messaging you? Are you fuckin’ any of ‘em?”
“All of them.” She sniffs, wiping her eyes again. “Now, get out.”
I place her cell on the side table as she lays back down and turns her back to me. I hesitate and then climb behind her and settle down. I wrap an arm around her and hold her to me tightly. She tries to squirm away, but I hold her tighter.
