Intense: A Dark Billionaire Romance Read online

  “Hey, I know you.”

  I look up suddenly, surprised. A blonde girl looks back at me, smiling. I’m so surprised that someone is actually talking to me, I forget to respond.

  “Lisa,” she says. “Remember? From the auction?”

  I pause and then my eyes go wide. “Lisa,” I say, laughing. “We spoke before.”

  “That’s right.” She smiles warmly and sits down next to me. “How are you doing?”

  “I’m okay.” I say. “What about you? Who did you end up going home with?”

  She laughs. “Nobody, actually.”

  I raise an eyebrow, surprised. Lisa is gorgeous, way prettier than me. “Nobody?”

  “They didn’t buy me.” She shrugs. “No big deal.”

  “That’s crazy.”

  “Oh, it’s fine. I actually feel relieved, you know? I lucked into my current job.”

  “Current job?”

  “Sure.” She leans back and brushes her hair from her face. “They gave me an admin job. Been doing that ever since.”

  She goes on about how life is tough living here, but her room and board is free and it’s not so bad, but I barely hear her. I suddenly lost the ability to concentrate when she said the word “admin.”

  “Lisa,” I say, suddenly interrupting her but not caring. “I need your help.”

  She looks surprise. “Uh, okay,” she says.

  “Sorry,” I answer, talking fast. “I know I’m being rude. But I really need your help.”

  “Okay,” she says softly. “What can I do?”

  “I need something, something you might know how to get for me, but it’s something that could get us both in trouble.”

  Her eyes narrow. “I don’t know where you can get drugs.”

  I pause. “No, no, not that,” I say. “Nothing like that. It’s information.”

  She softens a bit, but still looks confused. “What information can I get for you?”

  I lean toward her, glancing around. Nobody is listening or watching. I have to make my move. “I know The Syndicate keeps files on everyone that hires them. My father, he’s used them before, and he’s a bad man. I need his file.”

  She blinks. “I don’t know if I can do that.”

  “Please,” I say. “I have ten thousand dollars in cash on me. I’m willing to pay you more. A lot more.”

  “How?” she says, laughing. “That’s insane. This is insane.”

  “Look.” I take the envelope and show her quickly. Her eyes widen in shock. “It’s real,” I say.

  “Where did you get all that?”

  “The man I was sold to. He’s helping me. Well, we’re helping each other. Doesn’t matter. But now I need you, and we’ll pay.”

  She looks at me like I’m an insane person. I stare at her, desperate.

  “Okay,” she says. “Okay. I’ll help you.”

  Relief tumbles over me like a wave. “Thank you,” I say.

  “Just let me get my phone and get changed. I’ve been in this all day. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  “Okay,” I say. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”

  “Of course.” She smiles, stands, and quickly walks away.

  I watch her go, feeling nervous but relieved for the first time since this all started. I don’t know what I’d do if she didn’t show up, but she did, and she’s willing to help.

  I sit there and two minutes turns into five minutes which turns into ten. Slowly, I start to look back over that conversation, and I realize something.

  She never asked how much we’d pay her. She never asked anything, in fact. She just said she’d help me and then quickly left the room. It doesn’t take you ten minutes to get changed and to grab your phone.

  “Fuck,” I say softly to myself and stand. I realize my mistake, but it’s too late.

  Four men and the woman from earlier walk into the room. They instantly zero in on me, all their eyes on me. They walk in my direction and everyone is staring.

  I’m screwed. Lisa betrayed me, stabbed me in the back, but can I really blame her? I came on too strong, like a total crazy person. She probably thinks I’m some kind of police informant or something crazy like that. She probably thought she was doing the right thing.

  Maybe she was. Maybe I’m stupid for thinking I could pull this off. Well, clearly I am, because it’s not going to happen.

  I’m going to be given back to my father. I can say goodbye to the life I wanted.

  I’m going back to hell.

  “Come with me, Aria,” the woman says. She looks even more annoyed than she did before.

  “No,” I say. “I can’t go back to him.”

  She sighs. “Please. Just come. I promise you we aren’t giving you to your father.”

  I pause then nod. What else can I do? The big men could just pick me up and carry me off if I refused.

  They lead me down a series of hallways until finally we stop outside a pair of ornate double doors. The woman steps up and opens them.

  “Go ahead,” she says, ushering me inside. She stops short of entering herself and slowly shuts the doors behind me.

  I walk into the room, looking around. It looks like a library or a study in some rich English person’s home. It’s beautiful, full of leather-bound books, and there’s a fire roaring at the far end in a large ornate fireplace. In front of the fire are two chairs, and sitting in one of the two chairs is a very small and very old woman.

  As I walk toward her, she holds up a hand. I pause and wait. Finally, she drops her hand, and I finish my approach.

  “Hello,” I say. “I, uh, was told to come here.”

  “My name is Lorraine,” she says. “I guess you could say that I’m the Madame around here.”

  My heart flutters in my chest. I’ve heard of this woman. She’s the head of The Syndicate, an old time mobster, a killer, a badass. Her white hair is pulled back in a thick braid that hangs loosely over one shoulder. She wears a thick black cardigan and khaki pants with stylish shoes and beautiful jewelry. Frankly, she looks like a nice grandmother, but I know better than that.

  She’s a ruthless killer.

  “Sit down,” she says, more of an order than anything else.

  I sit in the chair next to her. She looks at me, a slight smile on her face.

  “I hear you’re looking for information,” she says.

  I sigh and look at the ground. “I’m sorry,” I say.

  “How much is Ethan willing to pay?”

  I pause and then look up at her. She smiles.

  “We’re not stupid, dear,” she says. “And we don’t like your father.”

  Hope rekindles in my chest. Hope and something related to hope, the belief in the possibility of a good future life with someone special. It’s a specific emotion, but it’s an important one.

  “Two million,” I say.

  Lorraine’s eyes sparkle.

  “Let’s have a conversation, dear.”

  I turn toward her and think that maybe, just maybe, I won’t have to feel afraid ever again.

  27

  Ethan

  Three days pass after Aria returns to The Syndicate and I have my meeting with Richard.

  That meeting goes nowhere, as I suspected. He wants more concessions than I’m willing to give, but I promised him that I’d meet all of his demands, that I just need time. He bought that for whatever reason, and gave me three days.

  Three days to prepare. Three days without Aria.

  That’s how I find myself here, in an abandoned parking lot at three in the morning. There isn’t much to our plan, to be totally honest, but it has been hard. As part of the deal with The Syndicate, Aria had to live with them for these past few days to ensure that we wouldn’t back out. There’s no chance of that, of course, since The Syndicate is our last hope, but they want to be thorough and I respect that.

  I shift nervously, standing under the lone spotlight. I can hear water dripping nearby and smell the rain from earlier in the night. I’m
alone, very alone, although I shouldn’t be. The Syndicate is late.

  As I think back over the last few weeks, I can’t help but wonder how I got to this point.

  I went from buying a strange girl I barely knew and wanting to seduce her for a game, to needing to keep her. I’m willing to do anything for her now, and although that terrifies me, we both know why.

  I love her. I can’t help myself. We have so much in common, a shared history, and although our paths forked along the way and we went in different directions, I know I can help her. I can bring her back into the light. Maybe I can even save her.

  But this has to go well first. I can’t do anything if I lose my company and let Richard Taylor fucking destroy me.

  I hear a sound toward the lot’s entrance and I perk up, looking in that direction. There’s an old factory behind me, the brick smelling mildewy and damp, and I can’t see far enough to spot anything moving toward me. There are no lights, which means there are no cars. I’m probably just imagining things.

  But as I stand there, I suddenly become aware of something. It’s a strange feeling in the back of my mind. I look up and when I look back down, I spot two men coming around the corner of the factory.

  I don’t recognize them, but they’re carrying large rifles. I stop backwards and turn, but more men are coming from the other side. I want to run, but I have to control myself. I can’t look like a weak fool in this moment, so I stay where I am and face them.

  The man that approaches me is young, maybe in his early twenties, with a wicked scar down his face. “Ethan Locks?” he asks.

  I nod. “That’s me.”

  “We’re with The Syndicate. Lorraine will be here shortly.”

  “Thanks,” I say.

  The guy nods and then motions at his men. They fan out, disappearing into the night. The man stays there, standing near me.

  “We’re securing the area,” he says.

  I nod at him, understanding. I vaguely know how Lorraine is, though not exactly. She’s apparently an old woman in charge of the Syndicate, which seems very odd, but everything lately seems fucking crazy anyway. I don’t know how an old woman runs the biggest prostitution ring in the city, but I’m just accepting these things as they happen.

  “Check that,” the guy says and nods at me. “They’re coming, Mr. Locks. Good luck.” He melts back toward the factory and disappears into the shadows before I can respond.

  I’m left standing there alone again, although I know there are at least twenty men standing around me, hidden in the shadows.

  I take a deep breath, calming my pulse, and concentrate on the task ahead. I can’t let my nerves get the best of me. Down the road, I spot a set of headlights slowly heading toward me. They make the turn into the parking lot and the car parks next to my own. It’s an old black town car from the nineties, though it looks like it’s in perfect condition.

  The back door opens and I expect an old woman, but instead it’s Aria. She’s dressed in a black shirt and jeans, and as soon as she spots me she runs toward me.

  “Ethan!” she says, throwing herself at me.

  I laugh, catching her in a hug, pulling her small body against mine. I’m shocked all over again at how good it feels to be near her and how happy I am to see her. I didn’t know what I expected, but clearly nothing has changed. We went three days without seeing each other, and it feels like no time at all has passed.

  She pulls back, grinning.

  “You okay?” I ask her.

  “I’m great. They were so nice.”

  “Really?” I ask, skeptical.

  “Honestly. Lorraine is fantastic. Apparently they hate my father as much as we do.”

  “Guess that’s not too surprising,” I say, laughing.

  “Mr. Locks.”

  I look over suddenly toward the car. Standing next to it is an old woman with thick, long white hair pulled into a braid. Her face is lined with wrinkles and she’s holding a cane in one hand, but she’s immaculately dressed and her blue eyes are sharp.

  Aria pulls away from my embrace, but she doesn’t let go of my hand.

  “Lorraine, this is Ethan,” Aria says.

  “Good to meet you,” I say.

  She hobbles over toward us and extends her hand. We shake and she smiles up at me.

  “So, are you ready to demolish your father?” Lorraine asks Aria.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Good.” She looks at me. “I hear you’ve been good to my girl.”

  “I have been. Or I’ve tried to be.”

  “Keep being good. Did you bring my money?”

  I nod. “It’s where you instructed me to put it.” As soon as I got here, I left the money in two briefcases in two different parts of the factory. It was a pain in the ass, but it was what they instructed me to do.

  “Good. So my men have it already.”

  “I assume so.”

  She checks her watch. “And now it’s time for the last piece of the puzzle. Is he normally punctual?” she asks.

  “Yes,” I say. “Normally, he’s early.”

  “Let’s see, then.” Lorraine joins us, and we stand in a line together, an old woman, Aria, and me. We must look like a strange little trio.

  We don’t have long to wait. True to form, Richard arrives on time, maybe even a little early. Two black SUVs pull into the lot and Richard climbs out of one followed by three large men, clearly his muscle. Three more men come from the other car, making six guys in total.

  Richard approaches with a huge grin on his face. The bastard probably thinks we’re outnumbered.

  He stares at Aria and I feel her stiffen beside me. His eyes drill into hers but she doesn’t look away, and for a second I’m proud of her.

  “Hello, daughter,” he says.

  She doesn’t respond. Just gazes back at him then spits onto the ground.

  Richard laughs then looks at me.

  “Well, Ethan,” he says, grinning at me. “You called this meeting. I assume you have a huge fucking bribe for me?”

  “Something like that,” I say.

  “Good. You’re in one shit position.” He looks at Lorraine and for a second, his grin falters. “And who is this old bat?” he asks.

  “I’d be more polite, young man,” Lorraine says.

  “Why? Are you going to hit me with your cane?”

  Lorraine sighs. “You never know what’s good for you, Richard.”

  He frowns at that. “Who are you?”

  “I’m here to give you something.” She steps forward, bringing out a manila envelope from under her cardigan. She hobbles slowly toward him, holding the envelope out.

  He eyes her strangely. “The fuck is this?” he asks. “Your recipe for pie?”

  “Something like that,” she murmurs. “Take it, please. And look inside.”

  He takes the envelope from her and she hobbles back toward us, a smile on her face. She winks at me as Richard takes the photographs from inside of the envelope.

  His face drops instantly and he shoves the pictures back into the envelope. One of the guys standing right behind him snickers and laughs a little.

  “What the fuck is this?” Richard shouts, anger bubbling up in him.

  Lorraine slowly turns back toward him. “Be polite, young man. Those are photographs.”

  “I saw that. Where the fuck did you get this? They’re fake.”

  Lorraine laughs. “They’re not fake. You know that. We have more where that came from, too. Video, if you like.”

  He’s speechless. I can feel Aria’s tension next to me, and I squeeze her hand. She looks up at me and forces herself to smile.

  “Fuck this,” Richard says. “I want my money, Ethan. Fuck this.”

  “We’re even now,” I say to him. “Do you get it? You’re going to sign the contract before last, the one that was a fair fucking deal. And then we’re done with this. You’ll leave Aria alone.”

  “Or what?” he says, anger bubbling over.

&n
bsp; “Calm down,” Lorraine says. “Or I’ll put a bullet in your head.”

  “Fuck you, old bitch!” he shouts.

  There’s a crack from behind us and a bullet smashes into the ground right in front of Richard. He shouts and jumps back, eyes wide. His goons all pull out weapons.

  “I wouldn’t fire those, if I were you,” Lorraine calls out. “This place is surrounded. Boys?”

  Suddenly, lights flash on all around us, probably twenty glowing beacons all told. The looks on the faces of Richard’s men are fucking priceless as they slowly put their guns on the ground.

  The flashlights turn off, and the men disappear again. I step toward Richard.

  “Like I said, you’ll sign that contract, and you’ll leave Aria alone. Understood?”

  He gapes at me, shocked. I walk toward him, a wicked grin on my face. I’m relishing this moment, savoring the look on his face. He’s defeated and he knows it, but I need more. I want him to grovel.

  “Ethan,” Lorraine warns me.

  I stop in front of Richard. His eyes are wide with anger, and I can tell he’s on the verge of doing something stupid.

  “I get everything,” I say. “I win and you lose. And I get your daughter.” I grin at him.

  He swings, just like I wanted. His fist lashed out, clumsy and wide. I duck it, elbow him in the gut, and then bring my other fist up and clock his chin.

  He staggers back and his men have to grab him to keep him standing.

  “Do as you’re told,” I say. “Or you’re finished.”

  Lorraine sighs. “Ethan, enough.”

  I nod and walk away, back to Aria. I take her hand and squeeze it and she laughs a little.

  “Asshole,” she whispers.

  Richard staggers to his feet, getting his balance again. “This isn’t over,” he calls out.

  “Yes, it is,” Lorraine says. “The Syndicate is done with you. Fuck up and we’ll destroy you. Do as you’re told, Richard. Don’t make me come out in the middle of the night again, please.”

  Richard is at a loss for words. He stares at the woman, finally comprehending who she is and what we’re doing here. He nods once.

  “Go to your car, go home, and be good.” Lorraine waves to him.

  Richard pauses then turns. The whole group of them gets back into their SUVs and we watch as they drive away.