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“Let it be,” said Noah. “We can discuss the rest when we get home.”
“Get home safely,” said Corey. “And for fuck’s sake, text us when you do.”
I chuckled. “We will.”
Picking up the phone, Noah switched off the call.
Before we could say anything, our server arrived with a large tray and started putting plates of food before us. The sight and smell of the food instantly made me hungry.
I greedily looked at the steak slices and ribbons of crispy bacon on my plate. It’d been a while since I enjoyed something as indulgent as this.
“Dig in,” said Noah. He was already cutting through his steak.
Over the next half hour, we enjoyed our meal.
We barely spoke because we were both busy devouring the delicious food. Comfortable silence enveloped us and I almost forgot the threatening atmosphere of Nick Civella’s underground haunt.
“I can barely move,” I groaned with a smile on my face as our server placed a massive slice of pecan pie before me. “But I can never say no to pie.”
The waitress serving us chuckled as she placed Noah’s dish before him.
“Thank you!” I called after her, giddily happy for no reason other than to stare at the beautiful slice of pie before me.
“I’m glad you’re over it,” said Noah. A smile lit up his beautiful face as he stared at me. “I was worried you’d be scared after that close call with Civella.”
I waved a hand. “There’s no point in taking things too seriously. I doubt this is the end of our negotiations. He can lock me up if he wants. As long as he moves his shitty business out ofmybusiness, I’ll agree to anything.”
“Milla.” Noah’s expression turned grim. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m not going to be a coward,” I said, breaking into my pie with a fork. “If he wants me in his bed, I’ll let him have it. If he wants my money, he can have it. I won’t put myself before the interests of Amhurst Co.”
“That’s fucked up.”
My fork hovered before my lips. Instead of taking a bite of the pie, I put it down.
“Don’t turn into me,” Noah said. A pained expression flared up in his beautiful eyes. “I was just like that. Remember? Back then, nothing else mattered to me. Do you remember what I lost? My brothers, my father...you.”
His words sent a sudden chill through me.
Was I becoming like him? No way...
“Don’t even think about handing your body to a stranger,” said Noah. “You won’t just be handing your body. You’ll be handing over control and losing all self-respect. And when you let someone disrespect you, you’re allowing them to disrespect Amhurst Co.”
I hadn’t really thought about things that way.
“We can part with money, not our souls,” said Noah. “You might delude yourself in thinking you can, but you can’t. It just comes back to haunt you.”
I gave a slow nod and pretended to eat my pie.
Noah’s words repeated in my head. I glanced at him from time to time, watching him covertly, and wondering if this was the same man I knew five years ago.
Where did the monster who tormented my every waking hour disappear to?
After dinner, I could barely move. Warm and full of delicious food, all I wanted to do was curl up on the sofa and sleep.
“Come on,” said Noah. He was already putting on his jacket.
Dragging my body, I forced myself to stand.
