CHAPTER 4
Sean just stares at me and then stares at Black. “We had an agreement.”
“This doesn’t violate our arrangement in the slightest. She’ll still live in New York, but her occupation will be somewhat different. If you two are no longer engaged, I don’t see how it concerns you anyway.” Miss Black thinks she’s won. The confidence in her gaze says as much. Tapping her fingertips together, she looks over at me.
As I stare at Black, things click into place. She’s been telling lies, but they’re always seeded with truth. Sean is engaged to someone else, and he is, but the woman is an employee. This entire time Black has been trying to get me to turn on Sean. For a second, I think about screaming at her, but it’s better if she underestimates me, so I play along. “What happens if I say no?”
Miss Black drops her hands and sits straight up. “That wouldn’t be a prudent move.”
I laugh. “Nothing about this job is prudent, and the one you’re offering is even worse on the moral scale of life.”
“You already broke the scale when you took money for f*cking Mr. Ferro, so I doubt that’s a sincere concern. What you should be asking is, ‘what happens if I say yes?’”
Folding my arms across my chest, I tug Sean’s supple jacket tighter. “If I say yes, you have an easy out when the police come looking for the owner of that bracelet. If it leads back here and you’re gone, they’re going to blame me for the dead girl in Sean’s room. I may look stupid, but believe me, I’m not.”
Sean moves behind me and sits down so that only Black and I are standing. He’s fuming, but he doesn’t speak. This is my mess and he lets me fight my battle.
Miss Black’s lips curl into an amused grin. “I think you’re juvenile and na?ve, but not lacking in intelligence. The bracelet in the hotel room wasn’t your friend’s. It belonged to the dead girl. I sent her over to check on things and something went wrong. No one will track that bracelet back here, and if they do, we’re all screwed anyway. Although I try to leave no trails that point back here, there are still signs.”
I need more time to process the information. This is news to me. “And if I say yes?”
She grins broadly. “Then you will become my protégé and make more money than you ever thought possible. You’ll own Long Island because every politician and bureaucrat will come calling, and when they do, you’ll have them by the balls. It’s a pretty place to be, Avery. And with the girl-next-door charm you have, combined with the can-do attitude, you’ll own Nassau and Suffolk County. You’ll never have to worry about money again. You’ll always have a roof over your head and it doesn’t matter that your parents left you destitute.”
The comment about my parents slices through me and leaves my jaw hanging open. It feels like she sucker-punched me in the stomach. There’s no air. My parents didn’t leave willingly. They did everything they could for me when they were alive, but now they’re gone and I’m alone. If things don’t work out with Sean, I’m screwed. I have no plan B and everything I’ve worked so hard for has been torched. My life is comprised of cinders, ash, and tears. And I’m so ready to move on, so desperate to shirk the grief and pain, that her offer sounds tempting.
“Enough.” Sean stands and takes my hands, before pulling me toward the door.
“I think she’s able to make up her own mind, Mr. Ferro.”
Sean glances back at Black. “I know what she’s capable of,” he smirks, “You’re the one who needs to look out.”
I pull out of Sean’s grip and look back at Black. “I can make up my own mind, Sean. I don’t need you to protect me here, and maybe it’s not a bad idea. If I say yes, will I have my own bodyguards the way you do?”
Black’s smile turns sincere as she nods. “Of course, and Gabe will be one of them. I already know you’re comfortable with him.”
I nod, and contemplate what she’s saying. Sean is standing next to me and looks completely shocked. “You’re not seriously considering this?”
“I owe her a freaking fortune, so I can’t leave.”
“I’ll pay it, Avery.”
“You can’t. It’s my mess.” I glance over at Black behind her desk. “You paid my medical bills too, didn’t you?”
“Of course. I couldn’t have collectors examining one of my girls. I added it to your tab. That debt would vanish in a matter of weeks if you took the job I’m offering. And remember, I only offer it once.”
The wheels in my head are spinning fast. “Can I take Mel?”
Black smirks. “No, I want you starting over and hiring the kind of woman you are, not more who are like Mel.” Because Mel’s a dime a dozen is implied by her tone.
“You’re wrong about her.”
“Regardless, I own her, like I own you. The question is will you continue to work on your back or do you thirst for something more?”
I don’t know what to say. Part of me wants to say yes, but the other part wants to take Sean up on his offer to pay off my debt. The truth is, I don’t want to owe either of them anything. I need to go look for that buried treasure on Oak Island or something. I’m so screwed. This is a life changing moment, but it’s not one I welcome. “I don’t—” I don’t know what I’m going to say… I just start speaking.
Miss Black lifts her hand and cuts me off. “Don’t decide now. One thing at a time. Let’s put the person who’s trying to shoot you in the ground, and then we can move forward with our business plans.”