Page 30 of Collide

“I didn’t want you going anywhere until we had a chance to talk.”

She glared back at me, looking as though all she wanted to do wasfly across the room and bury her tiny foot into my balls.

After a few tense seconds passed between us, she sighed loudly anddropped her hands from her hips, waving one of them across her body to indicate she was ready to go.

I opened the door and stepped out into the hallway with her closebehind me, the scent of her wrapping around me. It was a smell I could get used to, strawberries and sunscreen and I wanted to both eat her up and rub her all over my body.

The penthouse apartment I called home was spread out over threefloors and I had designed it myself. It was in the perfect location, right in the middle of the city and the floor-to-ceiling windows around the entire apartment allowed me to look over my city from every angle.

I really was the King of Hollows Bay.

Riley was silent as we made our way down the hall to our destination.I stole glances at her from the corner of my eye, her eyes were wide and curious as she took in my apartment.

Aside from my father, I had never felt the need to impress anyone,but right now, I found myself hoping Riley was impressed with where I called home. It was worlds away from where she had lived these last few years, and if my plan worked, she wouldn’t be going back to that world.

And if my plan didn’t work, I would find another way to make hermine.

We reached the room I was aiming for, and again, using my thumb onthe scanner I unlocked the door. Pulling it open, I stepped aside to allow her to enter first. She raised a brow, giving me a quizzical look but when I didn’t say anything, she went inside, immediately gasping at the sight of her sister fast asleep in bed.

And then she did something I knew was coming, but allowed tohappen anyway because quite frankly, I did deserve it.

She drew her hand back before reaching up to slap me with all of herstrength across my face.

It barely stung.

“You fucking bastard!” she hissed, tears welling in her eyes. I knew itwould upset her, that she’d fear the worst, but I had to get her to see what possibilities were open to her if she took me up on my offer, and the only way of doing that was getting Angel here. Otherwise, Riley would have scurried back home and not given my proposal a second thought.

She raised her hand again as if to hit me a second time, but I wouldonly ever allow one free shot at me, and she was lucky I had allowed that.

No oneeverhit me and lived to tell the tale.

I grabbed her hands and pulled her to me, holding her tight againstmy body so she couldn’t move. She was so tiny against my broad body.

“She’s safer here than she ever was at the dump you call home. Doyou have any idea how easy it was for my men to go in there, drug her and bring her back here without anyone noticing?” I whispered calmly in her ear.

She let out a sob and it pained me right through my motherfuckingcold heart, but I wouldn’t let it show.

“I hate you, Kai Wolfe, why are you doing this to us?” she sobbed, fattears rolling down her cheeks, thick and fast.

I dropped her hands and instead took her chin between my thumband forefinger, tilting her head up so she had no choice but to look at me. Her beautiful brown eyes were filled with tears and I wanted to do nothing but kiss them away.

“Listen to me, Riley, if you don’t want to take me up on my offer, I’ll letyou and Angel go now and I won’t ever see you again.” I was lying of course, but she didn’t need to know that.

She opened her mouth to reply but I quickly silenced her, needing toget the next part out so she wouldn’t have time to take me up on the offer of leaving.

“But consider this, your sister could have a good education, I’ll get herthe best damn teacher money can buy and I’ll pay for her to go to the finest college and university if that’s what you want for her. I have the contact details for the best audiologist in the States and I’ll pay for her treatment. Angel could have the life you’ve only ever dreamed about giving her.”

Her brows pulled up in surprise, and yet again her jaw hit the floor.

She blinked several times, seemingly trying to process what I had just said. I stared down at her, letting her see the truth in my face. Letting her know that despite being a callous bastard, everything I had offered to her would be delivered.

So long as she accepted.

“Why?” she whispered.

I couldn’t stop myself, I reached up and swiped away a tear that hadbeen rolling down her cheek.

I should have said something like, ‘Because I can,’ or, ‘Becausemoney really can buy anything,’but staring into those big brown eyes, I couldn’t be anything but honest.

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