Page 26 of Wicked Attraction

I gripped the doorknob and squeezed it tight while I kept my emotions under control. Mostly.

“Sorry to say that your precious good-time girl is sick and puking her guts up, not that you even notice or give a damn.”

A frustrated groan escaped, and I let the door go, slamming it with as much force as possible, right in his gorgeous fucking face.

I wanted to cry. Hell, what I really wanted was to be pissed off at Dell, but I wasn’t. I was mad at myself.

Dell was good-looking, well-built, and he had a great job, a legit job that didn’t keep him in town for too long. He was perfect because there was nothing between us but a good time, but today he didn’t feel all that fucking perfect.

Was a good time enough?

The answer came easily.No.

It wasn’t good enough because no one stuck around good-time girls when they were sick or injured, when they needed something more than a stiff drink and a stiffer cock.

It wasn’t Dell’s fault for sticking to the norms we’d set more than a year ago. We didn’t show up with soup when the other was sick, and we didn’t call when we were apart.

But, oh, we had a wonderful time when we were together. We went out to eat at high-end restaurants; we danced all night, took in shows and concerts, and took helicopter rides over the Grand Canyon. Once, we even took off to Los Angeles for the night.

Whatever we did, Dell and I had a great time together.

But still, he couldn’t get away fast enough with my hair not done and sticking up in all directions, my face free of makeup, my body covered in cotton instead of silk, lacy pajamas.

Like all men, he wanted the illusion. The fantasy.

And it was all my fault for being so fucking good at presenting that very thing.

CHAPTERELEVEN

Jasper

It was Sunday, and normally when we all gathered around the dining room table, it would be a loud and festive occasion where we talked about business and family. Today it was all wrong because Sadie’s seat was empty. Still. Fucking. Empty.

It didn’t matter that Virgil and Maisie showed up or that Kat and Terry had expectations in their eyes. Even Cal appeared, though he’d barely said five words to any of us. What remained of the Ashby family was accounted for in this room, and it felt wrong. All wrong.

“All right, we’re all here, so let’s stop wasting time and talk about what we need to talk about.”

Kat frowned and shook her head. “We’re notallhere. Where’s Thomas?”

“Thomas isn’t here,” I said. “He isn’t family.”

Kat snorted and shook her head, aiming a long French manicured finger in my face. “He’s not blood, but he is the reason you stopped getting your ass kicked in the fifth grade.” The satisfaction on her face that accompanied her words had my anger rising.

“That and a growth spurt,” Virgil added with a laugh.

Kat snorted again and rolled her eyes. “Thomas is important to Sadie, which means he’s important to us. He should be here.”

“Well, Thomas isn’t here, Kat. Deal with it.”

We stared at each other, neither of us willing to back down because of our stubborn Irish roots. I grabbed the bottle of Velvet Fire from the middle of the table and poured three fingers into a glass.

“Look, I know shit is fucked up right now. It’s scary, and it’s stressful for all of us, but the only way we can help Sadie is to keep the Ashby Organization running. Keep everyone under our protection safe. She worked too fucking hard, gave up too much of herself, to make this organization, this family what it is today. She sacrificed even more than any of us know, and I plan to make damn sure that we don’t lose it all, or any of it, on my fucking watch.”

The room was dead fucking silent after my little speech, and I fought the urge to roar in anger.

“Are we done here?” Kat’s shitty attitude lately had me at my breaking point.

“We’re done when I say we’re fucking done, Kat. Do you have anything constructive to add to the conversation, or are you just here to show us what a bitch you are?”

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