But once I was alone, lying in that bed, it began to weigh on me. Had I made a colossal mistake?
Chapter 16
Owen
I swiped off the call and almost threw the cell phone overboard. Fuck. Why was everyone so sheepish when it came to dealing with real problems? My people were afraid, and when people are afraid, they make mistakes. I didn’t want that. Couldn’t afford it. Everything was at stake, and I needed the company to be strong.
I also knew that the only way to ensure that would be to go back to Chicago to face the music. I wasn’t afraid. I could dance circles around the IRS, and if that didn’t help, I could simply pay them off. Wouldn’t be the first time for either. In the last ten years, I had discovered that everyone who had looked into our business had a family. A teenager getting ready for college, a pregnant wife, an elder parent in need of a hospital… I knew all the tricks in the book.
The truth was – I was tired. I had everything I had ever dreamt of. All the money in the world, which had only brought more problems. More bases to cover, more backs to scratch, more people to pay off. I was done. I wanted to go downstairs and lie down next to the woman who had made me happy in just a few days. She was the real thing, none of this other bullshit.
I knew what I had to do. It was the only thing that would take this weight off my shoulders, and I needed to do it as soon as possible. If there was ever any hope for us, I would have to come clean to Sydney.
But first, I raised the anchor and set the computer to take us back home. The day was still warm, but there was no sun, and it would quickly get cold out on the water. I put my phone away and went downstairs.
When I walked into the main cabin, Sydney was sitting up in the bed.
“We need to talk,” she said.
Chapter 17
Sydney
I had to know what was going on.
“Yeah we do,” he admitted. “What did you hear?”
“Enough.”
He didn’t respond so I pressed further, what was he really doing in the club that night?
I learned that Owen had known one of the investors of the club for over ten years, and wasn’t especially proud of that period of his life. Apparently, Lawson was bad news.
“Then why did you give him so much money?”
“For what?”
“For me.”
“It’s good for business. He might be an asshole, but judging by the clientele I saw the other night, the club makes money hand-over-fist. What I did, was for you.”
“That’s a lie. What you paid for me was a power play. What were you trying to prove?”
I didn’t want him to treat me like some dumb blonde, I knew something deeper was going on.
He sighed, running his fingers through his hair. “I need to just be here with you right now, okay? We both have our shit. It happens.”
I sat up straighter, “Owen what’s going on? Why did we come here?”
He shook his head. “It’s out of the country.”
“Shit.
What did you do?”
“Nothing! And technically this place is owned by a United States company, it’s an asset. So if they wanted to come get me, they could.”
“For what?”