“Answer me!” I jump, his deep angry voice startling me. “Find out who she called.” My eyes go to the door to see Kailler standing there.
“My mom,” I answer him. There is no point trying to hide it. I knew he would be able to track the call before I made it. All I needed really was to get a warning to my mom. I accomplished that so my job is done. His hold on my ankle releases.
“We’re leaving.” He grabs me, tossing me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
“Put me down!” I wiggle in his hold. He smacks my ass. I suck in a breath. The sting of the slap goes straight to my sex, turning into pleasure. You hate this man, I remind myself. I lift my head to see Kailler following behind us. “You’re a jerk face!”
“Jerk face.” He steps onto the elevator. “Did she call me a jerk face?”
“Yes.” Kailler’s response is snapped out. I guess she’s mad at me too. I lift my head again to meet her gaze. Her eyes soften for a moment before she quickly masks it.
Aidon walks out of the building, still carrying me over his shoulder. He puts me in the back of the SUV, slamming the door behind him. I don’t try to get back out, but his men are everywhere now. A moment later Aidon gets in on the other side, ensuring that I stay put.
“What do you want for dinner?” What do I want for dinner? Is that really what he’s asking me right now. “You didn't touch your breakfast or lunch. You need to eat. Tell me what you want.”
“I’m not hungry.”
“You have to eat.”
“No, I don’t.”
His jaw ticks. I am hungry, but now that I know it’s bothering him that I’m not eating I can’t help but poke at the big jerk. He deserves it after everything that’s happened today.
“You will eat.”
“Are you going to hurt Roxy?”
“You don’t need to worry about that.”
“You don’t need to worry about what I’m eating.” I fold my arms over my chest, looking anywhere but at him as the SUV starts to move.
In the blink of an eye my seatbelt is off, and I’m pulled into Aidon’s lap. “You’re starting to piss me off.” Tears sting at my eyes again. “Don’t cry,” he growls.
I burst into tears.
Chapter 13
Aidon
My crew is mostly men, and the women who are on it, women like Kailler, would rather gouge their eyes out than cry. I don’t know what to do with a crying woman. It shakes me up inside to hear Cora sob. It makes me want to tear the world apart with my bare hands. If Kailler had her way, I’d be the one torn apart. Her eyes flash angrily at me to do something.
Awkwardly, I pat Cora on the back, but it does nothing to soothe her.
“Drive faster,” I bark.
Dante steps on the gas.
“Stop touching her,” Kailler hisses under her breath.
I halt mid-stroke. Is Kailler saying that because she thinks I’m reneging on my deal with Karin Vieth or because she thinks that Cora hates me? Either way, I should do as my second suggests, but when I lift Cora up off my lap, her arms tighten around my neck, and her crying increases. Panicked, I look at Kailler, but this time she averts her gaze. She doesn’t know what to do about Cora either.
“What would Lawson do?” I ask.
“Lawson’s the villain,” Kailler sneers.
Cora heaves a sob.
“If I knew what he would do, then I’d know what to avoid,” I inform both of them.
Cora just shakes her head while Kailler’s lips press together so tightly they disappear. This is not working out for me. I wish I could order Cora to stop crying, but I feel like that would be met with more evil glares.
“Cake,” I say suddenly.
“C-cake?” Cora stutters.
“What?” Kailler says at the same time.
“Cake.” I nod emphatically. “I want a white champagne cake with fluffy frosting and…”
“Strawberries?” Cora offers quietly. The tears on her lashes look like diamonds. She could ask me for anything looking as sweet and tender and vulnerable as she does in this moment.
“And strawberries.”
Kailler is on the phone before I finish my sentence. Cora looks like she’s about to ask me a question, and I’m not equipped to answer anything at this moment, not with Kailler next to me and Dante driving. I shove her face back into the crook of my neck and stroke her back again. It settles her—and me, I guess, because as the vehicle speeds back to our compound, my tension seems to fade away. Cora leans into me, her bones like liquid. Her breath slows and evens out. The crying storm seems to have worn her down. That, and the motion of the auto, has put her to sleep.