Page 98 of Ryker

“Whoring?”

“Escorting,” she corrects.

“I started that for other reasons. Continued it for different ones.” Dread consumes my thoughts, and I glance over at her. “Has William ever asked you to do something like that before today?”

“No, but sometimes he would request me in certain clothes for meetings. I didn’t like it, but nothing I wear in the office is very risqué. It’s hard to be taken serious in board meetings as it is because I’m an outsider there, even if he’s been my stepfather for more than half my life, so I keep my attire respectable and high end.

“If you had to seal a deal with the use of your body, would you?” It’s not like I could stop her if she said yes. Tara’s not mine. Not really. No matter how wonderful it might be to keep her.

“No. I don’t think I could stomach it.” She covers her face with her hands. “Oh my god, I’m so fucking sorry I just said that too.”

“Don’t be.” I laugh a little to cover up my hurt. “I couldn’t stomach it either.”

“Then why did you do it?”

I take the first exit and don’t speak for a moment. It’s better to word this carefully. “I was sixteen when I started. By the time I was nineteen, it was all I knew. I’d dropped out of school. My mom was my only priority. When she died…” I sit at the red light and tip my head back. “Being an escort was all I knew. So, I continued and built my client base. Then I bought a rundown hotel and me, D, Knox, and Vault renovated it. It didn’t last long because it wasn’t good enough. I sold it, worked harder, and ended up with the Monarch where it is now.”

The light turns green. I make a left.

“Know your worth in whatever career you choose, Tara. I charged a high price for the pleasure of my company. I made sure I was worth every fucking cent they paid, too. When I opened the Monarch, I became untouchable. The one thing no one, no matter how much money they offered, could get. That alone brought in big bucks. I went from expensive to priceless.”

“Everyone wants what they can’t have.”

“Exactly.” I pull into a cemetery. “And half the time, once they get it, they don’t want it anymore.”

Tara’s laugh is bitter. “That’s terrifyingly relatable.”

“Isn’t it, Butterfly?” I park the car. “Come on. I have someone I want you to meet.”

With Tara by my side, I visit my mother’s grave for the first time since putting her in the ground...

Pulling myself up the steps, I climb and eventually crawl up to my apartment. After getting hit by that car, my body’s one big fucking bruise and the stitches on my chest keep pulling. At least it wasn’t worse. I could have broken a bone. Stitches are way cheaper than x-rays and casts. Especially when Dmitri is the one doing the sewing.

Christ, what a day.

My cell was destroyed in the accident, and I’m praying my sim card still works. If I’ve lost all my contacts, I’ll be royally screwed since ninety-nine percent of the people on my list are clients.

“Fuuuck,” I groan, holding my ribs. It hurts to breathe. If Dmitri wasn’t so used to getting his ass kicked in the cage, I’m not sure what I would have done. D thinks I’ve cracked a couple ribs.

Better than my skull, I guess.

Shoving my key in the lock, I twist and push things open. “I’m home.”

Natalie walks out of my mom’s bedroom. Her eyes are puffy and bloodshot. The tip of her pointy nose is red.

My stomach plummets. “Mom!” I hobble into her bedroom and fall to my knees. “No.”

Natalie's voice carries behind me. “I’m so sorry, Ry.”

“No, no, no.” The room starts spinning. “Mom, no!” I crawl across the floor like a rat to reach the side of her bed. “Call 9-1-1.”

“Ryker, she’s gone.”

“CALL 9-1-1!” She’s not gone. She’s sleeping. My mother wouldn’t dare die on me. Not after all this time. She’s fought so hard. I’ve done everything I possibly could to keep her okay. “Call an ambulance!”

My cell. Where’s my fucking cell. DAMNIT! It’s fucked!

“Ryker, she’s gone.” Natalie pulls me away before I can start chest compressions. “She’s gone, baby.”

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