Page 23 of Their Princess

Then I returned to business.

Chapter Six

ADELINA

Why didI even try to help Sas? I should’ve let the cartel take his deal, rip him to shreds, and still hold the club to the fire for their money—exactly like they had been speaking about in Spanish. Not that Sas or his brothers seemed to notice.

In fact, they had all stood around looking like pale ghosts. For being permanent residents of LA, they were pretty fucking White. I couldn’t help but notice the Latino population in the neighborhoods we passed on the way into the industrial row, so it never occurred to me that none of these brutes would know how to speak Spanish. That ignorance alone was going to get them all killed.

Maybe me as well.

And here I was, trying to save their asses.

My bad.

I tried the handle again.

Nothing.

Jailed in a warehouse, no matter how nicely decorated, I beat both fists on the door and groaned. Then yelled.

No reply.

Fuck!

I skirted the bed, crossing the space toward the windows, only to find iron bars on the other side of the glass. A fire hazard. Or safety hazard. That son of a bitch really had locked me in a bedroom, like I was a teenager, grounded for staying out too late!

Who the fuck did he think he was?

I slid up the lower glass pane and reached for the bars. At first touch, they seemed solid, but I pushed and pulled on the bars anyway, throwing my weight in to the attempt to escape. Knowing how fruitless it would be didn’t squelch the adrenaline racing in my blood.

I clenched my teeth and groaned with my effort until my hands hurt, and I calmed my rage enough to plop my ass onto the sill. While the huge great room had been decorated in simple but chic tastes—neutral, nothing too masculine or feminine—the bedroom was sparse. A bed dressed in a gray bedspread, an empty closet, a nightstand, and a small ensuite bathroom, that was it.

Nothing personal. No lamps or a TV. I crossed into the bathroom, where a small window could be opened to ventilate the steam. I was small enough, so if I could reach, I might be able to get through.

I braced myself on the side of the bathtub and used the shower head as a hold. I pitched myself up, opening the window. My heartbeat quickened, anticipation building to be out of this fucking cage. Not that I had any idea of where I would go. I would probably walk around the side of the warehouse and enter again through the front doors, showing Sas just how resourceful I could be.

And that he wasn’t getting rid of me that easily.

“Adelina?” asked a man’s voice, coming from the bedroom, and I huffed.

So much for showing off. For now.

“Are you indisposed?” asked Rafe.

“Yeah.”

“Oh. I’ll wait out here.”

The door wasn’t even shut, so if Rafe looked a little closer, he would see me trying to make an escape. Instead, I slid back down to the tiled shower floor and then crawled out. I straightened my clothes and returned to the bedroom with my back straight and chin held high. Rafe waited near the bed, head bowed, as I stalked into the bedroom.

I cleared my throat.

Finally, he lifted his head and gave me a once-over. I’d known him all my life, and even though he’d become quieter since his return, I could still read his thoughts on his face.

“Yeah, I’m still alive.” Seeing me checked a box on his goddamn to do list. “I hate this place,” I snapped.

He frowned and looked around. Scratching at his jawline, he commented, “It’s nicer than some places I’ve stayed.”

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