Page 87 of Outfoxed

And if they had issued the first bounty, it would have opened all sorts of other doors—like the Morettis playing a game of one-upmanship to issue a bigger, badder bounty to override theirs.

“Dad,” Sandro complained.

“Why are you whining? Your fox is fine. She’s tired, but she’s fine. The docs have already seen her, and while she’s been through a lot, she’s healing well. That said, she’s best off in the East for now. She wouldn’t have lasted a week in the Alley.”

“I’m aware.”

“I know you’re aware. That’s why you cherry-picked the bounty hunter who brought her here. Of course, we didn’t realize it was you at the time, and your fox snitched because she’s smart and wanted to put herself in a better position, which she has. You picked the bounty hunter with a good reputation and a tendency to be kind to her female targets.” Sandro’s father came into the living room. “Close and lock the door behind you. We’re having roast tonight, and your fox wants pizza tomorrow.”

“Few places have pizza in Tulsa,” Sandro stated, and he followed his father into the room. “They’re being careful with the staples now, and pizza needs too many ingredients that are harder to acquire.”

Milk and cheese topped the list of hard-to-acquire ingredients, and I wondered if I’d even be able to eat it without getting sick. I decided not to worry about it, instead turning my attention back to Sandro, who wore a suit a little too well for my comfort.

My fox settled in to enjoy the scenery.

I needed to make sure nobody found out my fox was more than ready to roll over for the bounty hunter, especially him.

With his hands shoved into his pants pockets, Sandro regarded his family with open suspicion, and when his attention landed on me, he sighed.

I waved.

“Are you all right, Jade?”

“I’m not doing too badly. I’m holding minimal hope I’m over the infections this time. I got to spend an entire week sleeping and reading, and while being shot is an experience I’d rather not repeat, the painkillers here are a lot better than in the Alley. I definitely appreciate being alive right now, but I’ve determined you come from a crazy rich family. Your mother seems to believe if she didn’t haul me here, you would never visit her.”

Sandro heaved another sigh. “Mother.”

“What part of that isn’t true?” she challenged.

“All of it is true, which is why I’m complaining. You spent how much on this stunt?”

“A million and a half to her, a million and a half to you, and the auction house fee, the charity contribution, taxes, and some other stuff I decided to buy. You know that because your bounty hunter account was credited with the amount the night of the auction. And that’s post taxes. I’m both disgusted and proud of you for having taken steps to secure your fox. You suckered me out of a fortune!”

“You’re pure evil, Mother.”

Sandro’s brothers snickered, and unable to help myself, I grinned at his disgusted tone.

“It was a little evil of me,” his mother agreed. “But I can see why you spent so long hunting for her. She’s adorable, patient, and smart. I bet she’s slippery, too, seeing how long it took you to catch up with her and coerce her into signing papers in the Alley. And she’s making you spend two years trying to convince her you’re worth her while. You’ve lost, little boy.”

According to Sandro’s expression, he longed for someone to put him out of his misery. “And you set this up why?”

“Would you have come home otherwise?”

“Considering you have Jade, yes.”

Sandro’s mother frowned. “This was more entertaining for me.”

“Whereas I’ve been spending the past few days about ready to have a damned heart attack because of you. A million and a half, Mother! I’ve been spending the entire time wondering how the hell I’d be able to buy out this contract. I was going to have to ask you for help, because while I’ve done fairly well for myself, I haven’t done that well. Not with the mandatory three million I’d have to pay Jade alone to override this contract with your terms.”

Wait. What? “What do you mean a mandatory three million?”

“She set that as part of the terms for your sale prior to any marriage. The potential buyer would have to pay a minimum of double your sale value to even be considered. And then my mother would be paid that much. She set a minimum to even consider sale, and your cut would be three million.”

“She’s worth it, and I wasn’t going to let just anyone buy her contract off me. If someone else had wanted her, they would have had to pay a lot more for her. You can afford whatever fees you paid in the Alley, especially now.”

“Well, yes, with a million and a half, I’m certainly not concerned about paying the base registration fees. However, it would have been nice if Jade had gotten a say in this.”

“I bought out the other bounty in full so there won’t be problems on that front. She was going to be sold no matter who did the buying and selling, and with me being the buyer, she at least gets a lot more options. I upgraded her to an uncontested courtesan. Before, she was going to be passed around to the highest bidder, with those wretches who dare call themselves her parents getting a percentage of every sale.”