Page 37 of Savage Kingdom

The next nightGideon barged into my room looking like a different man. He wore a three-piece suit with a black silk tie. His hair was slicked back, not a hair out of place, and those whiskey eyes were piercing me.

I was in the dress he had picked yesterday. My hair had volume thanks to the blow dryer in the bathroom. My lips were rosy from the ChapStick I grabbed from the reception desk on our way up yesterday.

Gideon licked his lips as his eyes traveled from my head down to my toes. The heels he had me wear made me taller by five inches, making my legs seem like they went on for miles.

There was discomfort in my foot, but I ignored it. The wound wouldn’t bleed anymore, and that was all that mattered.

“You look beautiful.”

I passed by him, whispering, “I wish I wasn’t.”

There was a limo waiting for us when we stepped outside. We had to keep up appearances. I had no idea what role we would be playing, but I was stuck following his lead.

“What happens when you find the man you’re looking for?” I asked, not looking anywhere near him. My little adventure with him would end soon enough, and I’d rather not remember the way he looked.

“Let’s not worry about that until we have to, Petal.”

It was a stupid idea not having a plan, but like hell if I let him know that. We arrived at the entrance of the club, right smack in the middle of downtown Chicago. In one of the most famous buildings in this city. I didn’t know why I was surprised.

Gideon extended his arm, giving me his hand. He didn’t take it by force—no, this was his way of letting me know I could trust him. I took his grasp, but I didn’t let my guard down. I didn’t trust anyone.

We walked past the security in the lobby. Per the instructions Gideon flashed on the beeper, we headed to the elevator we should take. When we made it to the elevators, we went in the third one and took it all the way to the last floor. Once we were on the fortieth floor, we crossed the lobby door to another set of elevators. This time we took the fifth one. As soon as we were inside, Gideon let go of me, and I felt relieved.

“Now this where it gets interesting,” he mumbled as he pushed numbers in a specific order—a code.

I stepped a little to the side and behind him. I was weaponless, so if anything went wrong, he would be right by the door, and I got the feeling he would protect me. I knew events like this were weapons-free, with security checking you upon arrival, but I also knew there were ways around everything.

The elevator moved up again, but this time the back door was the one that opened.

“Showtime.” Gideon turned to me, grinning.

I didn’t know why, but I smiled back. “Let’s go cause some mayhem.”

Gideon didn’t say anything back. He kept staring at me, at my lips. I wondered if, like me, he wondered what it would feel like if we kissed? He licked his lips, and I thought he might have tried to find out, but he stepped out of the elevator without a word. The hallway was dark, with green dimmed lights paving the way.

“Do me a favor, Petal,” Gideon said, and I stared at him impassively, waiting for him to keep going. “Don’t smile.”

I looked down, feeling a sense of disappointment wash through me. Shaking my head, I mentally chastised myself. Why was I acting like a lovesick schoolgirl? Feelings had run intense since I’d met him. It was like learning to breathe for the first time.

I needed to get my head in the game. No, what we needed was a long-term fucking plan to get out of the mess he was throwing us into, and one that got Damian off my back. He must be fuming right now with no word from me.

We came to a halt at a wide red door. The entrance to Sinestre. At first, I thought this was all the cartel’s doing, but no, a club in a place like this takes many more connections than two ex-cartel members could pull off. It takes someone influential and part of this city. Clubs like this aren’t easily pulled.

Gideon knocked, and at the same time, he gave my waist a small pinch. It was his way of saying everything would be okay. As soon as the doors opened, I knew it wouldn’t be. One way or another, I had a feeling I would lose myself.

The man at the entrance was huge, white, and bald, looking more like a Nazi than a cartel member. Things kept getting more interesting by the second.

“Name,” he said, looking down at his tablet.

“Mr. and Mrs. Colton.” Gideon grinned.

Inwardly, I rolled my eyes.

“The missus loves to play.”

I slightly bowed my head.

The guard looked at me, and Gideon motioned for us to step to the side where they checked us. Then they stood aside and let us walk into hell.

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