Page 55 of Savage Empire

“No,” he grits out. “I won’t hit you, Rayna. But I won’t allow you to hit me either. Speak like an adult.”

“I need my own money, Apollo,” I burst out, eyes welling with tears as he releases my wrist. “What about that don’t you understand?”

“Everything,” he returns, frustrated. “I gave you that card to pay for anything and everything you could possibly need. That money is yours and Yordan’s. You have your own money.”

“No,” I argue, shaking my head. “That’s money for clothes, food, and toiletries. That’s what you said. I have other things to pay for?—”

“Like what?” he demands.

“Like fucking health and dental care.” I throw my hands up. “Yordan has at least two cavities he needs filled, even if he pretends like it doesn’t hurt when he eats something cold. He hasn’t had updated shots in far too long, and I’m pretty damn sure he needs glasses for reading.”

“The card can coveranythingyou need.”

“The card that got mehumiliatedtoday?” I demand, voice breaking. “What happens when someone accuses me of stealing it again, huh?”

“I’m going to kill that woman,” he snaps, exhaling hard. “Is that what prompted all of this? A fucking bitter, jealous shop attendant? Do I need to put the money on a different card, with the account in your name for you to understand that it’s yours? I told you I was providing for you, why wouldn’t that cover health and dental?”

God! What is he not understanding about this?

“And what about savings? What about preparing for when you’re sick and tired of throwing money at the strays you decided to take in on a whim, huh? I have to take care of Yordan.”

“Youaretaking care of Yordan,” he replies hotly. “You know what wouldn’t be taking care of Yordan? Working at a place where you’d walk around his peershalf naked. You think he wouldn’t hear about that? You think the sleazeballs that frequent that place wouldn’t love to tell him all about how much of his sister they saw last night?”

My face flames, anger and embarrassment coloring my cheeks. “I was applying to be a waitress, not a dancer. I told you that!”

“Waitresses still wear scraps of clothing here, it doesn’t make a difference, and you know it. That’s why you snuck off in the middle of the night to come here. Why do you have to be so stubborn? You know how many people wouldkillto have me solve all of their problems?”

“My problems aren’t all solved when you could take everything back in the blink of a fucking eye,” I sniff, holding back tears. “Why don’t you understand? Money isn’t security when it’s not actually your own.”

Apollo looks at me, taking a calming breath. “How much?”

“What?”

“How much?” he repeats.

I exhale hard. “How muchwhat?”

“How much money do you need to feel like I can’t rip everything away from you. Name your number, and it’ll be in a private, untouchable account within the hour.”

“You’re being mean.” My voice breaks. “Dangling that in front of me like you’d actually?—”

“How. Much?”

My head shakes, a tear falling from my eyes. “Stop it.”

“Five million? Ten million? Twenty?” His stare is searing hot. “It’s all fucking pennies to me, Rayna. Tell me what you need so we can stop this goddamn arguing. Someone offers you the chance of a lifetime, you take it. Think about Yordan. He trusts me, why don’t you?”

“Yordan is young and hopeful,” I say, shaking my head. “Yordan’s been shielded from the worst of everything that’s happened to us. I made sure of that. Of course he’s more trusting.”

“Rayna, I’m running out of patience. It’s fucking one in the morning. Name your number so we can stop this back and forth where I give you everything and you act as if I’ve poisoned it.”

“You want me to trust you?”

“It would save us both a lot of fucking time and energy.”

“Fine,” I breathe out. He wants me to take his money and make itmymoney? I fucking will, then. “Twenty million. Ten in my name, ten in Yordan’s. No connection to you or your family whatsoever. I don’t want you to be able to take it back because you’re secretly a shared owner on the account. And you have to handle the taxes because I have no idea where to even start with that.”

For the first time since meeting him, Apollo laughs. Actually fucking laughs, head tipped back and everything.