“Yeah, Riley?” Jesse asks, snark on full display. “More than a girlfriend?” Jesse stares at the bracelet again, and I touch it, uncomfortable that it means something other than what I thought it did. This isn’t a gift like flowers or even a designer purse. It stakes a claim.
I swallow hard and close my eyes, trying to control my racing pulse. With my former profession, there have been a hundred times when I’ve felt embarrassed or uncomfortable. A stray fart, or an awkward position that puts air where God didn’t intend it, but nothing, and I do mean nothing, compares to what I’m feeling now. My two boyfriends and a set of parents that run an empire with varying degrees of felony, asking for clarification of my love life.
“More than a girlfriend,” Riley confirms, grabbing my hand away from fidgeting with the large stones. “More than ascension, too.” The room spins, then I let my gaze meet Riley’s. I say let, because up until this point, I’ve tried not to let his aura affect me.
As expected, his gaze is nearly intoxicating—the look—poetry. The kind I could understand in any language. “What do you mean?”
“Do you trust me?” His words are a near whisper.
A loaded question. “Yes,” I return, tone lower than his. “I need to know more. Not everything, but more, and…” I say, letting my eyes find Jesse.
Riley sees my hesitation and cups my chin to bring it back to keep my gaze on him. “Like everything else. It’s my problem.” Riley does look at Jesse, though I can’t find the courage to do the same again. “Everything will be okay. I’ll take care of it.” Even though I’m far from my old life, I feel helpless to have others taking care of things. That’s not who I want to be. It’s not part of the plan for the new life I’m crafting for myself.
“I’ll help,” I counter. “It’s our problem.”
Riley raises one brow. He’s not upset with my declaration. He’s impressed. “You will,” he replies. “We’ll talk later.” There are promises in those three words, and it’s good enough for now. It must be because right now it seems like there are multiple fires to put out. He’ll tell me what I need to know.
Mr. and Mrs. Astor have their heads bent over a table near the edge of the room. There is paperwork scattered in an organized way. Contracts of some sort. Amy rushes into the room flanked by security guards.
“Sorry I’m late, everyone. I got caught off guard at how beautiful this place is.” Amy has red cheeks and smells like coconut suntan lotion as she brushes past us to the table. I’ve never seen her this casual in person, and I wonder how long she’s been here. Jesse watches her carefully, then follows behind to the table. “You’ll find I’ve drafted up everything that we spoke about. It should be self-explanatory, but as always, I’m here to talk you through everything.” Amy smiles at me, a wide grin, then flashes the same smile to Riley. Something about it doesn’t feel right.
“What are the contracts for? The merger? I thought that was finished with. That’s why you’re living here.” It’s obvious this house wasn’t built in a month. This mansion belonged to the cartel.
Mr. Astor laughs. “Merger? Is that what they told you? Riley, son, come now, if you are to take her as a wife, she should know the basics of business.”
Jesse scribbles on several of the papers, keeps a few for himself, then backs away from the table. “Anything else for me, Amy?”
She furrows her brow. “No, I made the changes you asked for. As long as that looks good to you, you’re free to go. But…” Amy’s voice trails off. “Can we talk off the record? Grab a drink with me by the east pool after this?”
“I have plans right now. Don’t worry about me.” He licks his lips, and I can’t help the thrill the subtle gesture sends through my body. I rub my arms to quell the bumps breaking across my skin. Riley notices and mistakenly thinks I’m cold. He wraps a big arm around me.
Riley clears his throat. “After dinner, we need to talk, Jesse.”
Jesse nods, his gaze darkening before us. “We do. We haven’t been doing enough of that lately.” Once again, Jesse’s gaze flicks to my wrist.
He leaves, and no one misses the way the door slams behind him. I watch Mr. Astor’s neck work as he swallows. “The cartel didn’t hand over their empire, Drew. We extorted them into the acquisition. I’m afraid it’s messier than we anticipated. There are informants everywhere, including in this house. These contracts are buttoning up some details of a sale. The cartel has given us a deal on some things in hopes we give them some control back.” His laugh seems too gleeful for the topic of conversation. “We won’t, of course, but this is a legal sale, and it can’t be challenged in a court of law. Everything else, the drugs, and power, will be challenged on the streets, unfortunately.”
I walk over to the table and see a small, shiny bowl I missed when I first scanned the room. It’s filled with diamonds. Huge ones. I glance at the paperwork and read to myself. “Diamond mines?”
“A diamond empire. The biggest one in the world. Others think this is about drugs and weapon importing, and of course it will be, but that’s a cover for what we’re really taking over.”
My eyes must grow wide because Mrs. Astor puts her hand on my shoulder. She tells me twenty percent of the business is mine. “What’s the catch?” I say, completely stymied. “Other than the obvious danger I’ll be in, why give me anything? You don’t even know me.”
“We’re sorry about your landing today. We have intel trying to figure out exactly what went wrong and how we can prevent it next time. We don’t take massacres or sabotage lightly and it will be investigated as if my own blood was targeted.” I notice the apology immediately.
Riley meets my eye, and I stay silent. “I suppose I have my son to blame for your lack of knowledge about the family business. He must really love you if he’s trapped you this monumentally and hasn’t told you a thing.” The room spins.
Trapped? Love. Is this what love is? Callie would know. The pang in my stomach is fierce when I realize how long it’s been since I’ve talked to my friend. Is she okay? “Oh, I don’t know about love,” I say, heart thudding. Thank God Jesse isn’t here. Amy is though, and she’s watching us closely, taking in every movement and word.
“Drew, this is your paperwork to sign.” She explains exactly what the paperwork says, and the binding words make every muscle in my body tense up. “Do you have any questions?”
I have a million, but none of them can be answered by Amy. Even as wise and shrewd as she is, I’m the person who needs to answer my questions. I think of one. “How does me signing this contract change things? In simple terms,” I clarify.
“You are officially in the Astor family now, in case that wasn’t clear. The motel contract wasn’t binding like this one is. It’s life.” Amy’s lips press together in a firm line. “You’ll always be protected as long as you always protect the family,” she goes on.
Riley pretends to be busy signing his part, but I know he’s listening. Mr. Astor steps in. “We do have honor, Drew. The Mexican cartel was supplying weapons to our enemies and trafficking humans, something we could never stand for. Is this organized crime? Yes, but we have a moral compass.”
I sign and initial the last page and glance up to the patriarch. “Like a serial killer who only kills bad guys?” My voice shakes as I ask.