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Rhy, telling me he sincerely hoped I spent my time in London buried in women who weren’t my childhood fantasy to scratch that itch.
I pushed away my disappointment. What was I expecting, Cal to send me nudes? That ship had sailed thanks to fucking Franco. I wanted to resurrect him just so I could kill him again.
Tate returned his attention to me. “Where were we?”
“I was telling you your proposal sucked, and you were throwing a fit,” I said matter-of-factly, happy to be anchored back to the present. “I’m reconsidering it.”
I am? Why the fuck? I needed that check. Opening a new restaurant, building a house for my family, and buying a luxury apartment didn’t come cheap.
The plane began takeoff, rolling on the tarmac, gaining momentum. Tate tossed his whiskey back in one gulp.
“Am I in a bidding war?” He slammed the empty decanter on the table between us.
“No,” I said honestly. “I’m just trying to do the right thing here.”
“No, you’re not. When given the chance, you always do the fun thing, not the right one.” He studied me intently. “Something’s changed. You’ve changed. Why?”
“Grew a fucking conscience. Sue me.” I shrugged off his attitude.
“Tempted to.” He stroked his chin. “Unfortunately, you haven’t signed anything yet. How about we play on it?”
“On an eight-million-dollar contract?” I snorted. “Fucking pass.”
Goddamn. An old-money, white billionaire was a level of thrill-seeking I’d yet to meet.
“Come.” He tapped my knee fatherly, a taunting smirk on his lips. “You know you want to.”
I really didn’t want to, but we were going to have to burn the time somehow, and I had a feeling he was going to screw the flight attendant right in front of me if I didn’t keep him busy. “Fine. What are we playing?”
“Your favorite object, Casablancas—knives.”
ROW
“Way I look at it, selling is your only option.” Tate sent a charcuterie knife careening toward the target hung on the wall in front of us. The blade sliced through the bull’s-eye so deep, it probably left a dent in the interior.
So. Tate Blackthorn was a sociopath. Just my fucking luck.
We were a quarter of the way over the Atlantic Ocean, and I was wrong—he had fought off the flight attendant’s advances several times, between picking up the phone and screaming his throat out at his PA, a woman named Gia.
“Oh yeah?” I unpinned the knife from the target, walked over to him, and hurled it at the bull’s-eye, unblinking. “How so?”
He took a sip of his second drink, putting it down on the table. “Everyone in Staindrop already hates your guts. You’ve got nothing to lose. This community you were a part of—the old-timers, local artists—they’re not your tribe anymore. Now you’re one of us. The suits, the hustlers, the capitalists. Admit it, Casablancas. You sold your soul to the devil. Your place is in hell, right along with me.”
“Hell is my playground. I’m no newcomer to the zip code.” I ran the blade of the knife along my finger, watching the edge glint along my skin. “See, I’m a hedonistic creature like yourself, Tate. And right now, there’s something I want far more than your millions, and you’re standing in my way.”
“Finally, the cat’s out of the bag.” He laughed sarcastically.
And the pussy’s fucking worth it. Though I was interested in much more than fucking her raw, and that was a problem.
“However lovely she might be, my ability to pad your bank account is even comelier. Plus, I don’t like being jerked around.”
“Why not? Must feel right at home, seeing as you’re a first-rate jerk.”
“Buddy, no offense, but you are not rich enough to entertain second thoughts,” he quietly seethed. I had a feeling most people, people who weren’t forged under the abusive hand of a raging alcoholic, found him frightening. “You need the money. You just bought a bachelor pad in London and built your family a mansion. Spoiler alert: King Charles is not as lax on taxes as Uncle Sam. You’ll swim in debt if you don’t sell. Not to mention, I’m an investor in La Vie en Rogue, and I’ll be feeling very uninvested if you shit all over our deal.”
“I’ll chance it,” I hissed.
His eyes raked over my face. “Is she worth it?” he asked finally.
