Page 31 of Submit

IT’S A GOOD FUCKING thing I’m sitting down, because I would have just fallen if I’d been standing. All the blood drains from my face.

Hielo.

Nowthat’sa name I know. The whole world knows it. Like Pablo Escobar or Al Capone. The Hielo family is feared everywhere. They have their hands in everything from drugs, to clubs, to weapons, to oil apparently.

They were all over the news several years ago when they were credited with bringing more drugs into the US than all the dealers in Columbia combined. The last time I heard their name was sometime last year when their drugs were allegedly responsible for the deaths of sixteen students.

Dirtier, actually.

I don’t know how long I sit here, rocked to my core before Casper’s voice breaks through. He’s holding my hands. “Breathe, Libby.”

I inhale raggedly as I pull my hands out of his grasp. My mind going down the darkest of pathways. He’s going to kidnap me and hold me for ransom to somehow cut Willem’s family out of whatever dirty deal they’re working on. Maybe he plans to sellmeto one of those clubs. The Hielos are beyond dangerous, not to mention their last name literally meansicein Spanish. That’s how people say they act.

As cold and uncaring as ice.

I stand and try to back away but Casper catches my wrist. Even knowing he could murder me right this minute, his touch still sets my blood to boiling. Sensing my fear, he quiets his voice. “Libby.” I turn my head to look at the ocean. “Libby, look at me,” he says more forcefully this time. I try to squirm away from him half-heartedly even though the heat from his body is enticing. The devil himself is supposed to be gorgeous too though, right?

Finally growing impatient, Casper sweeps my legs out from under me and follows me down to the sand, pinning my body in place with his. I keep struggling until I remember that he was training martial arts with the prison guards at the gym that day I saw him. Knowing it’s futile, I stop fighting.

Instead of allowing his weight to crush me, he’s bracing himself on one forearm while his other hand holds both of my wrists in his palm above my head.

I’d probably be insanely turned on right now if I weren’t scared for my life.

Who are you kidding, bitch? You ARE insanely turned on right and now and you AREN’T afraid for your life.

“Libby, I’m not going to hurt you. Let me explain,” he says urgently, searching my eyes to see if I’m going to fight anymore. “You want the truth, right?”

I swallow and nod. My head is the only part of my body I can move since his hand is clamped around my wrists and his thigh is resting across my waist, bent at the knee so my legs are pinned between his. I’m embarrassed as my fear morphs into longing and I can tell my pupils dilate even as I twist slightly, arching my hips up against him, not caring in the least that sand is starting to fill every crack and crevice on my body. “I’m not scared of you. I’m just overwhelmed,” I explain in a breathy whisper. I couldn’t bear it if he thought that I thought he’d hurt me.

If he notices the lust in my voice, he doesn’t say anything.

“I left Venezuela eighteen years ago when I was twenty.”God, he’s fucking hot. I didn’t even know thirty-eight could look so good.“Libby? You with me?” he asks and I realize I’ve been moving under him again and I can tell my pupils are probably blown out with lust by now.

“What? Oh, yeah, sorry.”This position is a little distracting, but don’t move because this seems like a good way to die.

He smirks like he just heard my thoughts, but it fades quickly as he starts speaking again.

“Anyway, when I turned twenty my parents used my little sister, their own daughter, as collateral damage to build their reputation and their wealth. Knowing she would get killed in the crossfire, they still ordered for the trigger be pulled. At first, I didn’t believe it. As their oldest son, I was being groomed to take over the family business, much like your dear Willem. Violence and power were all I’d known as a child but I never thought they would sacrifice Adriana.MyAdriana.”

The love Casper felt for his little sister is evident in the pain in his voice and his eyes – which are looking off toward the horizon, avoiding making contact with my own. His struggle allows me to relax a little, knowing he’s capable of such emotion.

“As soon as my family confirmed that sacrificing Adriana was a planned move, I knew I had to get out. I could never do that or be that person. I wanted to burn their whole empire to the ground but I didn’t know how to do that at the time, so I left instead. I shouldn’t have run. I should have stayed until I avenged Adriana’s murder and drained the life from everyone involved.” I squeeze his fingers with mine even as he holds my wrist in place. My pinky is starting to go numb but I don’t dare move and interrupt the story. “I stole a row boat and rowed seventeen miles to the port in Aruba demanding to see the governor. He wouldn’t see me but Richard and Beatrice wanted to know what I had to say. Richard was actually running security for the then-governor and didn’t run for the position himself for another ten years. He and Bea are the only ones who know who I really am. Anyway, I told him about the plans my family had for getting drugs into Aruba’s ports. It was small, but it wassomething. Something to prevent them from gaining more power. Richard was well connected even back then. He gave me citizenship under a new name and hired me on his security teams and eventually, as his head of security when he became governor. My family still doesn’t know I’m here working behind the scenes to ensure their enemy stays alive and well.”

He’s finally let my wrists go and has started to draw patterns on my stomach with his free hand. There is no lust in his eyes so I think he’s doing it to distract himself from the emotional story, but it’s really working to put me in overdrive.

“Casper,” I whisper, all the evidence of my desire very evident. “I’m trying really hard not to freak out or maul you to death, but you have to hold your hand still so I can focus.”

He looks like he realizes what his hand has been doing and stills it immediately. “Sorry.” A small smile plays at the corner of his mouth and I’m assuming it’s because I just outed myself and the desire I’m struggling with.

“How did you know you could trust me with this information?” I ask, curious as to why he didn’t write me off with Willem.

“Beatrice said I should and she hasn’t failed me yet.”

Sometimes a woman’s intuition is the most wonderful superpower we have.

“I like her a lot,” I admit.

“Me too. Besides that, you’re innocent. Like Adriana was. You’re being used like she was and someone you love is lying to you and taking away your choice, like my parents did to her. I’m tired of my family hurting innocent people in their quest for power and money.” He resumes tracing circles on my stomach absentmindedly. “When I found out that the Dutch were in bed with my family for this deal, I wasn’t shocked. I added more security and increased our training. But when I found out about your connection to Willem, I went berserk. My family fights dirty and I fear the Dutch will underestimate them despite their hard-earned reputation. I also fear that you’re in more danger from my family than you are from Willem’s, because the Hielos will know about you by now, Libby. On my parents’ radar is not where you want to be. If Willem or Marcel tries anything to cut them out, it’s likely that you and Dania will pay the price. My parents will go after things money can’t replace because V&V has plenty of money, but right now, they have no grandchildren to continue their line. You’ll be the first target to send a message. Will would be the second target and my family will sit back and laugh as they watch V&V crumble.”

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