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I sigh and look at my phone. I’m busier than I’ve ever been, yet I’ve never been more bored with the mundane running of our empire. The shine of the diamond snake watch grabs my attention, and I smirk. Well, much to my irritation, there’s one person who has made it less boring, as much as he is disruptive.
I untuck my shirt from the hem of my skirt and lift it past my tits. I angle my camera and poke out my tongue as I take a pic of my tits on full display. Vance watches me through the rearview mirror but says nothing as I send the photo to River. The sooner he gives in to me, the sooner I can push away this confusion and uncertainty he raises in me.
And I royally need to be fucked.
“Vance,” I call out. “Find out where Mr. Bently is staying and take me to him.”
He nods through the rearview mirror as I hit call on Alek’s number.
Ring.
Ring.
Voicemail.
“Alek, what the fuck? I got my ass chewed out by the old bitch because of you. You need to come back home. She’s not impressed, and I don’t want to deal with her. She came to my house. You know how fucking weird that is in the first place.”
When I look out the window, honey-colored hair catches my eye. I’m surprised to see Dawson and his woman, Honey, strolling along. She’s laughing at something he says, and his smile in return… I’ve never seen him make that expression.
It fills me with loneliness because of the thought that I might be missing out on something.
Yuck. I shove that thought down. “Alek, you need to come home. I’m starting to go crazy, and not in my usual loveable way. Like in a weird-as-shit way. Like when you look at couples and babies and think it doesn’t look too bad.” I erupt into laughter. “Actually, fuck that, kids are still disgusting creatures. But something weird is happening while you’re not here.”
A somber thought crosses my mind. Something I’ve been in denial about since I found out Alek was chasing a woman. “Is that what you’re looking for, Alek?” Love? I can’t say the word out loud. It’s not something that Alek and I have ever discussed or even know how to navigate.
“Are you looking for a companion?” Was I not enough? We always have each other’s back. But now something is changing, and I can feel it fracturing inside me bit by bit, and I don’t know what part of me will remain. “I don’t care about you withdrawing money or the shitty situation you dropped me in. Please just call me back.”
I hang up, noticing the desperate plea in my voice. I brush a hand over my hair to make sure not one piece is out of place. Something is happening inside me, and it squeezes like a vise around my throat. I feel exposed, and without Alek, who will have my back?
I roll my shoulders back, internally laughing. No, I can do this on my own. Always have and always will. When I finally look up, I narrow my gaze on the familiar road.
“Vance, I clearly said I wanted you to take me to River’s address, not back home,” I reprimand him.
“Yes, miss. You see, the thing is…” he says as he turns into the driveway to the property beside mine. “Mr. Bently seems to have purchased and moved into the mansion beside yours.”
My jaw unhinges. “How could he—” I snap my mouth shut. Because River Bently can do whatever the fuck he wants, that’s why.
The steel gates open as we drive along the long hedges, and it irritates me how much River most likely expected this. I look at my phone and see he hasn’t yet replied to my text message, which pisses me off. Considering how many texts he’s sent me with nonsense about all the wild things he wants to do to me, and when I finally reply, not a peep from him.
Sharply trimmed hedges surround the three-story, light-brown mansion for privacy. In the ten years of living next door, I’d never been curious about my neighbors or their home. Now, I wish I knew the layout inside and out.
I see the edge of a pool through the hedges, and the Victorian estate presents itself with a beautiful facade. The front doors open, and he steps out. It’s evening now, and his front porch light is on, showing him dressed in black slacks and a white T-shirt, his tattoos on full display, snaking up his arms.
Motherfucker was expecting me.
“I’ll call you when I need you to pick me up, Vance,” I say as I unbuckle my seat belt.
“Miss, I’ll come with you,” he insists.
“No, don’t,” I say as I watch River come down the stairs and toward the car. My men go everywhere with me. It’s just how it’s been for a long time. And it’s always done me justice. But right now, I don’t plan on going anywhere that puts me in danger. Actually, scratch that, I hope he fucks me up.
River opens the car door, leans down, and peers at me.
“Anya.” He says my name correctly, and his gaze falls to my wrist. “I see you got my gift.”
“Buy a girl diamonds, and you may very well get laid,” I say to him. He eyes me before he steps back, waiting for me to get out of the car. I place one heel on the ground, followed by the next, and rise from the back seat. He closes the door behind me as I look over his estate.
“The house next door? Really?” I snark.
