“My apologies.” The man’s face relaxed. “Please allow me to offer my congratulations and regret over this misunderstanding.”
“Yeah...” I took a step to the side. “I guess you should be going now?”
“Of course.” He smiled, but there was very little emotion behind it. He walked out the front door and I slammed it behind him.
“Can you help me get him to the couch?” Monica motioned for me to help once Walter Grant’s brutish employee was out of the house.
“You are the stupidest...” I growled at her as I walked over and helped her father to his feet. “Why the fuck would you run? Walter Grant has never hurt anyone when they tried
to make good on their debt.”
“No, he hasn’t.” Her father grimaced as we got him to the living room and sat him down on the couch. “Something’s different this time. I don’t think Walter is in charge anymore. That guy showed up a couple of days ago and said I had one week to pay my debt in full or he would start breaking my bones.”
“Seriously?” I looked at Monica who nodded in confirmation of what her father said. “How much do you owe him, anyway?”
“Fifty large.” Mr. Adamson groaned.
“Fuck...” I shook my head and sighed.
“I’ll get you some pain pills.” Monica started walking down the hallway.
“There’s no way I can come up with fifty thousand dollars in a week. If I can’t get away, I’m fucked.” He looked down at the floor and put his hand on his ribs. “Fuck, I think he already started breaking bones and the week isn’t up yet.”
“Here.” Monica returned and put two pills in her father’s hand.
“Thank you, darling.” He washed them down with a beer before leaning back on the couch.
I really didn’t know what to say. Monica’s father closed his eyes and kept his hand pressed on his ribs. Monica took a seat in one of the chairs next to him. I sat down across from her and stared at the two of them.
They were in a fucked up mess. If Walter Grant had changed his strategy and was actually going after debts, then there were going to be a lot of people all over Las Vegas struggling to come up with some quick money to pay him off. I had never really understood his business model, but he certainly seemed to do fairly well for himself. My theory was that he had so many debts floating at one time that just collecting a little bit on them, along with the interest he charged, was enough to make it all work out in the end.
That no longer seemed to be the case if he was employing someone like the guy who threatened Mr. Adamson. The guy looked like a beast who could definitely make good on his threat to turn the collection process into one that was excruciatingly painful. I had only resorted to violence one time when I was working for Walter Grant and I didn’t enjoy it. The man I saw standing in Monica’s living room looked like he not only enjoyed it—but thrived on it.
Chapter 5: Monica
“This is why you wanted to marry my brother.” Grady looked over at me and shook his head back and forth with a solemn stare.
“Yeah—well, I wish it was that innocent. I didn’t know my father was going to be required to pay his debt in a week, we were just struggling to make the weekly payments.” I pushed a tear away that gathered in the corner of my eye. “Even if I was still engaged to him, I wouldn’t be able to marry him quick enough to get that kind of money.”
“Your father has quite a gambling problem, huh?” Grady looked over at my father who had started to lightly snore once the pain pills kicked in. “I’m guessing he didn’t spend that fifty grand on your wedding?”
“He’s borrowed money before, but never that much. Usually we make the payments until it’s paid off, but then he’ll hear about another amazing opportunity and we’re right back in the vicious cycle.” I sighed and shook my head. “Marrying your brother was a way out.”
“You need to get some rest.” Grady looked over at me. “You don’t look like you slept at all last night.”
“Like you give a shit.” I glared at him. “I’m not saying this is your fault, but if you hadn’t screwed up my plans, I might have been able to negotiate for more time if I had some money coming my way.”
“I may not like what you did or why you did it, but I’m not heartless. I understand your reasons.” Grady stood up and walked over to me. “Come on, you need to get some sleep. I’ll stay here and make sure nothing happens to your father.”
Grady reached for my hand and helped me to my feet. He was being a lot nicer to me than he should have been considering the circumstances. I looked into his eyes and I saw kindness where I had only seen callousness before. Our hands interlocked after I was on my feet and I felt my heart racing. He squeezed my hand and pulled me closer. My emotions were in turmoil and I couldn’t explain what I was feeling. The man in front of me was the source of my problems, but I felt something connecting us in a way I had never felt before. I stood there with my breath drawn for a moment and I saw the same reflection in his eyes that mirrored what I was feeling.
He pulled me close and his lips pressed against mine, sending a shudder through my body. I had never felt that with Dane—I had never felt that with anyone. His tongue pushed into my mouth and swirled against mine. The weight of the world seemed to melt away as he squeezed my hips and wrapped his arms around my body. Our lips finally broke the seal that had formed and I started to gasp for breath.
“Holy shit...” I muttered as I stared into his eyes.
He started kissing me again, moving his lips down the edge of my cheek and brushing them against my ear before they ravaged my neck. I started to feel things I had only felt when I was alone, and my pussy was tingling with desire. I started walking towards my bedroom and his hands stayed on my hips while his lips continued to tease me neck. I had never been with a man before, but my body was begging for him to be the first one inside me, even if there was a lingering anger over what he had done.
He pushed my door closed once we were in my bedroom and his hands moved under my shirt, squeezing my breasts through my bra. His fingertips brushed against my nipples and sent another tingle through my body. He started pulling my shirt up and I turned to face him. There was a hunger in his eyes—a lust that his brother never had for me. Dane treated me like a virgin to be cherished, but Grady definitely had no interest in cherishing me. He wanted the same thing that I wanted. His lips crushed mine for a moment and his tongue ravaged my mouth before he pulled away and stripped my shirt off. His hands moved behind my back and quickly removed my bra, pulling it down my arms until my breasts were exposed. His hands felt amazing on them and my nipples got even harder when he moved his thumbs in a circle around each one.