I glanced over at Delilah, who had drifted off to sleep, a soft curl falling against her face. On our way home, I instructed Tony to stop at a drive-through pharmacy to fill Delilah’s prescription. Tonight had taken an unexpected turn in my favor, and I hadn’t let the opportunity slip by.
For weeks, Delilah had been living rent-free in my head, consuming my thoughts and pushing my sexual urges into unchartered waters. But now that she’ll be living under my roof and soon enough tied to me legally, I’ll be able to get her out of my system.
Could I have helped her without the proposal of marriage? Yes. But what would I have gained? Nothing.
Delilah is one hell of a woman, and I would be a fool to let her slip out of my fingers. Her loyalty to her brother was unmatched. Dean didn’t deserve a sister like her. She sacrificed her dignity to protect his name. And if she could do that for her brother, how much more would she do as a loyal wife?
As much as Delilah was ashamed of what she’d done, having been to numerous strip clubs and private parties where strippers and dancers were present, I knew her actions rated a two on a scale of one to ten, ten being the highest. But, for a modest woman like Delilah, being exposed like that would’ve messed with her.
Even now, I was still trying to wrap my mind around the story she shared with me earlier. One thing was certain, those bastards would never lay a finger on her again, and I would protect her secret with every fiber of my being.
My mind ran back to what happened at the apartment when Tony called me. One of his men had gotten information on the last person who saw Eso right before he was murdered. Vega had told me the coroner’s report stated that Eso had died from a single bullet to the head. When Tony showed me the picture on his phone, my face hardened.
Obsidian.
His real name was Harry Montague. While sitting as a state judge in his prime, he became a part of the Black Lotus Syndicate, a secret society that Dominic had gotten involved with when he was younger. A while back, Dominic suspected that this organization was trying to blackmail him and expose his ties to them. Since Obsidian was a key player in allowing Dominic to cut ties from the organization, we confronted him, since he was the only member who had been in town at the time, threatening to take down the organization. Obsidian didn’t take it lightly.
At that point, I decided to call Vega. I instructed him to look into Dean’s business and who he associated with right before it went bankrupt. I needed to understand who these men or women were and how deep their connections ran. Once I could put faces to the threat hanging over Delilah’s head, I’d be able to eliminate it.
The crunching of the gravel beneath the tires as Tony pulled into my long driveway jolted me from my thoughts. I gently rubbed Delilah’s arm to wake her up.
“Delilah, we’re here.”
Her eyes fluttered open as she straightened, and a soft moan escaped her lips as she stretched. The sound went straight to my cock.
“Stay there, I’ll open the door for you.”
I quickly hopped out of the SUV and rounded the vehicle to open the door for Delilah. Rex was already at the trunk, removing Delilah’s luggage. I offered my hand to her as she stepped out of the car.
She looked at the house, her eyes wide, before turning to look at me.
“You live here?” she asked, disbelief in her voice.
“Yes.”
“Alone?” she lifted an eyebrow.
I struggled to keep a straight face. “Yes.”
She shook her head in awe, breathless as she spoke. “This house…is gorgeous. Looks like something from one of those rich people magazines.”
“I did pretty well for a mere club owner, don’t you think?” I smiled.
She blushed. “Yes, you did.”
The two-story house was white and elegant. Upstairs, a wide balcony overlooked the manicured lawn and hedges. The warm glow of the lights inside made the house welcoming.
Despite the serenity that the house may offer, armed and dangerous men were hidden strategically around the property, prepared to take out any unwanted guests. Whether they were seeking Delilah or those who had been threatening my business.
As we stepped inside, Delilah drank it all in. The entrance hall opened up into a grand space. To the left, there was a doorway that led to the kitchen, my office and three guest bedrooms. But what made Delilah’s jaw drop was the intricate double staircase that curved gracefully toward the master bedroom and three additional guest rooms.
On the ground floor, behind the staircas,e was an open area that led to the dining room, which had another entrance through the kitchen. The chandeliers glowed on the tiled floors and the walls were adorned with family pictures.
I led Delilah up the stairs to one of the guest rooms, my hand lingering on the small of her back. I wanted nothing more than to have her sleep in my bed tonight. But, after everything she’d been through—finding her place trashed, tumbling down the stairs, revealing her secret and accepting my help with demands of her own—paired with my guilty conscience for how I treated her when we were kids, I didn’t want her to panic and back out. Even though she was under my roof, I knew there was still a possibility of her backing out of the arrangement, so I had to play my cards right.
“This will be your room.” I pointed to the door on the right. “That’s the bathroom, and that’s the walk-in closet.” I pointed to the door on the left. “When you leave this room, my room is the first door on your right. If you need anything, just let me know.”
At the center of the room was a king-sized bed, draped in a champagne duvet. The headboard was upholstered in cream leather, framed by dark wood. The walls were painted pearl grey and two floor-to-ceiling windows on either side of the bed were covered by blinds. There was a rug on the tiled floors and matching nightstands on either side of the bed with lamps. Next to the bed was a brown armchair, while in the corner of the room was a brown sofa and a marble coffee table. Mounted on the wall in front of the bed was a large TV and an electric fireplace.
“Don’t worry about your things, I’ll bring them up to you in the morning. There are robes in the bathroom. And anything you may need to get ready for bed tonight.”
“Thank you.” She placed a hand on my chest and my heart raced at her touch. I covered her hand with mine. “I know the deal is weird and all, but honestly, if this had happened when I hadn’t met you, I don’t know what I would’ve done.”
Her gaze dropped and I lifted her chin so she could look into my eyes.
“I’m sorry that this has happened to you. I promise you that you’re not going to go through this alone. I’m glad that I can be here for you.”
I pulled her into my arms, and held her tight, loving the warmth of her skin pressed into me. After a few minutes, I reached into my shirt pocket, pulled out her bottle of medication, and handed it to her.
“Get some rest. Tomorrow, don’t go to the office. We’ll sort out a few things okay?”
She nodded and I kissed her forehead.
“Good night, Delilah.”
“Good night.”
By seven a.m. the next morning, Vega had sent me information on all the people who were involved in Dean’s business before it went under. The file included pictures and detailed information about each person. Some of them were high-profile individuals, while some were ordinary citizens. Not wanting to overlook anything, I printed the pictures, including one of Obsidian.
At seven-thirty a.m. I stepped into the kitchen, where Deliah was already sitting. She held a cup of coffee in both hands and the table was littered with candy wrappers. There were dark circles under her eyes. It was clear she hadn’t slept well the night before.
“Get any sleep?” I asked as I sat next to her, pictures in hand.
Startled, she spilled some of the coffee on her robe and the table.
“Shit!” She jumped up and tried to clean it with the candy wrappers.
I went to the counter, gathered some paper towels and handed her a few to wipe her robe while I dealt with the mess on the table.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to have your table looking like a garbage dump. I eat candy bars when I’m nervous,” she blurted out.
“Delilah, it’s fine. It’s not like you got a permanent marker and scribbled all over the table.”
I collected the used tissues from her, tossed them in the bin and sat next to her.
“So, did you get any sleep last night?” I repeated.
“Hardly,” she sighed.
“I’ll get you some sleep medication to help. I’m sorry I have to do this now, but I need to get this out of the way.”
I spread the pictures on the table in front of Delilah.
“Do you recognize any of these men?”
She stared at the pictures for a while and pointed out Elliot Hawthorne, Founder of Hawthorne Global Holdings, who specialized in luxury real estate worldwide. He also had diplomatic ties, as his hotels around the world aided in humanitarian efforts of accommodating displaced women and children. He also funded refugee programs.
She also pointed out Neil Delaware and Henry Pike; both men had criminal records, and in the past five years, they'd been arrested but released due to lack of evidence.
I pushed the other pictures out of the way and placed the three Delilah pointed to in front of her.
“And you’re sure these are the men?”
“I’m sure.” She pointed at Hawthorne. “This is Elliot. He’s the one who told me everything about Dean and how he owed him the money. The other two are like his henchmen. He”—she pointed at Neil—“came to my office when I was working at the magazine.”
“And there are no other men you recognize?”
She shook her head.
“Okay.” I stacked the pictures into a pile, flipping them face down.
Placing my elbows on the table, I clasped my hands in front of me and leaned forward. “Now, you need to tell me how much money Dean owes so I can send it to the account.”
“He owes twelve million dollars,” Delilah responded flatly.
“Twelve million dollars?” I repeated, my voice raised in disbelief. “I thought you said it was five?”
“It was, until Dean stole drugs from Elliot, used them, and tried to sell them without Elliot knowing,” she stated flatly.
“Delilah, how the hell were you planning on paying that back without help? I’m sure the salary I’m paying you is more than what you received at the magazine. And I’m not even going to ask what those bastards paid in an attempt to claim you.”
Delilah went rigid, and I exhaled sharply, forcing myself to calm down. I placed my hand on hers and softened my tone. “Even if you used your entire salary each month, it’d take you ten years to pay off these guys. And by then, they’d have added so much interest, you’d be trapped forever in their debt.”
Delilah sighed. “I know.”
I hated seeing Delilah like this, a shell of the feisty woman I grew to adore. I was seriously going to whoop Dean’s ass for putting her through this.
“Send me the account details, ASAP, got it?”
Her blue-gray eyes swirled with a storm of emotions, searching mine for understanding. “I was serious about paying you back the money.”
“Delilah, you don’t have to.”
“I have to. I need to. Please let me do this,” she pleaded.
Whether I agreed to it or not, Delilah would find a way to repay me. Hell, she might ask Caite for the company’s bank account information and deposit the money herself every month. She was just as stubborn as I was. And despite the frustration I felt with her insisting that she needed to repay me, somehow, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride.
“It’ll take you ten years.”
She shrugged, the edges of her mouth curving slightly. “Hopefully, my boss will give me a raise and it’ll be less.”
“Maybe he will.” I squeezed her hand gently and I checked my watch.
“I’ve gotta go get ready for work. Your only job today is to rest. I’ll get Rex to bring you some sleeping pills. Don’t open the door for anyone but him or Tony. Got it?”
Delilah saluted. “Yes, sir.”
I chuckled and walked out of the kitchen, heading to my room to get ready for the day. The good thing was that Delilah didn’t recognize Obsidian. The bad thing was that Hawthorne housed women and children in his hotels. I’d bet a million dollars that the women and children Hawthorne claimed to be helping are victims just like Delilah.
But this time Hawthorne had messed with the wrong woman, and he was going to pay dearly for it.