Page 29 of Reckless Love

“I hyperfixate on things.” He cleared his throat. “On people.”

“People?” I echoed.

He let my hands go, running a palm over his face. “I’m fucking this up.” He stood abruptly and paced to the window, his back to me.

I didn’t move. “I don’t understand… but I want to. You can tell me.”

“Hyperfixation is a condition that can be attributed to several diagnoses,” Wick answered, still facing the window and staring out at the city lights below. “OCD, ADHD, anxiety, autism… There are therapies and medications, but nothing really worked for me, so I learned how to channel it.”

He turned, looking a little lost for a moment before his gaze latched on me. “As a kid it was dinosaurs. I could tell you the approximate size of a stegosaurus, the average lifespan of a pterodactyl, the differences between the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods.”

“That’s cool,” I offered, still not sure where this was going, but willing to listen. The normal controlled volume of Wick’s voice lifted and fell with his enthusiasm.

“As a teenager, I became obsessed with the stock market. About finding patterns and themes. It’s how I was able to make money so fast. And after that, I started focusing on businesses. On learning assets and knowing when to buy or sell companies, stocks…” He trailed off.

I stiffened. One of those companies had been Papa’s.

“It was why I was there,” Wick admitted.

Tingles pricked my skin. “Why you were where?”

“The party at your house,” he rasped, finally meeting my eyes. “Your grandfather’s company was failing. It came across my desk in a report, and gems are usually a safe investment. Rarely do precious gems—especially the kind your grandfather used—loose value. I went to the holiday party hoping to meet him. I wanted to invest. To become his partner.”

My breath caught.

“And then I saw you.” Wick’s tone became almost reverent. “I saw you crying when no one was around, and, for the first time in my life, I became obsessed with a person.”

“Me?” I pressed a hand to my chest, stunned.

He nodded, giving me a wary look. “Yes, you. I remember the dress you wore. The shoes with the tiniest scuff on the heel of the red sole. The way the light caught in the diamonds of your jewelry. The way you smelled like snow and fresh strawberries. But you weren’t a dinosaur that I could check out thousands of books to learn about, and you weren’t something I could buy. I needed a new approach.”

“What did you do?”

His lips thinned. “I had to make you need me as much as I needed you.”

It took a minute for the dots to connect, but when they did, I was on my feet. “The auction.”

Wick nodded slowly. “Your grandfather was making one bad decision after the next, destroying his company piece by piece. I considered saving it. Considered playing the white knight and hoping you met me through him, but I also knew the odds weren’t that great. So, I waited. And when he passed away…

“You took his company. You took everything,” I whispered. “But how could you have known I’d turn to Wife for Hire?”

He winced. “The agency is very selective about who they offer their services to, and I knew Mr. Devane had met his wife through them. And when I learned he was your grandfather’s attorney, I knew he would mention them to you. It was the only logical move he could make, and I was right.”

“But how could you know that I’d agree to it?”

This time he didn’t flinch. “Because I know people, and I knew what moves to make to ensure you were exactly where I wanted you.”

“How?” I was so confused.

“With the right amount of money and resources, you can learn anything about anyone. And you, sweetheart, were worth everything. I knew I had to make you mine, make you need me enough to be mine, so I did.” He was so unapologetic about the fact that he’d controlled my life like a puppeteer.

“This was all just… what? A game?” Hurt sliced through my heart as I shook my head.

“No,” Wick growled. “You were never a game, Sia. A game implies you had a chance, and, I’m sorry, baby, but you never did. Not after I saw you. That night sealed both our fates. You were always going to be mine.”

My breath caught as Wick leveled me with a vulnerable look.

“But it also meant that I would always, will always, be yours, Sia.”

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