Page 6 of Collateral Claim

“And if I don’t behave?”

Endo dips his head slightly. “You’ll end up over my knee.”

“You’re very close to being slapped, Macarley.”

“I’ll consider it foreplay.”

I growl, make a fist, and punch him in the belly. Not hard, because I would never wish to hurt another person, not even the likes of him, but hard enough to reclaim my space.

Endo grunts and moves away with a smirk, while I remain at the window.

My dad walks in with a loose tie and a wrinkled shirt. Endo’s men must’ve roughed him up. I hope that’s not the case, but it wouldn’t surprise me if Endo’s crew was comfortable with violence.

“Daddy.” I rush to him. “Are you okay?”

My father envelops me in a hug and kisses my temple. “I’m fine. Just fine. You?”

I glance at Endo, who’s watching us. “I don’t know what’s going on.” I point at Endo. “This man publicly claimed we’re engaged when I’ve never met him before tonight, and he told me you know him. Do you?”

“I’ll deal with him. Meanwhile, go upstairs and stay there.”

I step back. “Dad, I want answers.”

My dad rubs my arms. “I’ll give them to you in the morning.”

I look from Endo to my father, then back at Endo, who winks at me.

My dad didn’t stand up to Endo for me or even acknowledge that a stranger invaded the party and practically took me (and is still holding me) hostage, and his request to leave them alone bothers me. I’m a part of this man’s scheme.

I dislike confronting my father, and I want to show a united family front in front of Endo so he doesn’t see cracks he’ll surely exploit, but I also must stand up for myself since nobody else here will. “If things are said about my future, I should be a part of the conversation.”

“Scarlett,” my dad says in his firm, parental voice. “Go upstairs.”

I can tell he’s trying to protect me from whatever warpath Endo’s on, but I’m hurt that he’s excluding me.

“Are you sure you are safe alone with him?” I ask.

“No,” Endo answers, even as my dad says yes.

I bite my lip. Real fear for my dad’s life seizes my lungs, making it harder to breathe. “Then I’m staying.”

My father shakes his head disapprovingly and approaches the minibar. He pours two whiskeys neat. Endo accepts his, and my dad sips from the other glass on his way to his new desk. He recently acquired a Louis XIV desk, and he’s in love with it.

A moment of silence stretches. The men stare at me, waiting for me to leave.

I cross my arms.

“Scarlett, please, now’s not the time for one of your tantrums.”

Being scolded by my dad in front of a man who’s already humiliated me in front of hundreds of people saddens me. Tears cloud my eyes. “I’m not trying to be difficult.”

“I don’t mind if she stays,” Endo says. “I have nothing to hide. In fact, I told her why I’m here and what I’m doing with you and her.”

True. He’s insinuating my father has secrets he’d rather I didn’t know. Everyone has secrets, and I’m not entitled to know them in the same way that nobody is entitled to know mine, but this situation is as much about me as it is about my father, so I’ve earned my place in the room.

I don’t suffer from any delusions that Endo is on my side and wants to soothe my pride over being treated like a child. He’s saying this because it’ll benefit him somehow if I’m here for the conversation he’s about to have with my father. Which is precisely why I opt to leave for my room.

As I climb the steps, my phone pings with a text from Charlotte.