bed. “Nope.”
“Come with me, or I’ll drain you dry.”
My heart skipped a beat. “Nope.”
“That scared you though. What will it take?”
Hmm. Now that I could work with.
Grabbing Beast, I typed out my request and tilted the screen toward him.
I need a bank account opened, and a tax number, but I lost my ID. Can you do it?
I peeked up and caught his grin.
My stomach flipped as he brushed back sandy blond hair. He really was handsome. Shampoo commercial on steroids handsome. Seventeen-year-old me had great taste—if not great pick-up lines.
“I control the finance industry in Bluff City. Yes, I can arrange for that to happen.”
Dang, there went my guess about Pantsuit aka Safina controlling finance. “Can you do it if Kyros goes against you? I don’t want him to be able to reverse stuff after the fact.”
“By the time he finds out, you mean?” His eyes sharpened. “There won’t be an issue. The finance sector is mine and mine alone.”
“I thought Sundulus operated legally.” I crossed my arms.
He pursed his lips. “We do. Alas, not all of our contacts have the same upstanding code.”
And that kept them squeaky clean? Yeah, right—but I wasn’t about to discourage him.
“Can I take that as a yes?” he murmured, smoothing his tie.
“I don’t want Kyros to find out about this date.”
“Hard no,” Rory said, hand going to his tie. “Is there a mirror in here?”
I held out my hand for the garment bag. “In the bathroom. How long do I have?”
“An hour. Angelica said she’ll do you up.”
Already back to her matchmaking ways, was she? A pissed-off Kyros was unlikely to keep his distance. “In a body bag?”
Rory’s eyes flashed.
A light knock sounded from the open doorway, and I grimaced.
“Not quite, Miss Tetley,” Angelica said drily.
Sighing, I threw the garment bag on the bed and unzipped it. I stared at the sparkling, spangled black dress within. Full length. “What kind of social event are we talking about?”
Crap. I might know people at this thing.
“I’ve changed my mind,” I said. “Don’t like the dress.”
Rory stepped forward, snarling. “I picked it. And I have exquisite taste.”
And ego to spare. I shook my head, wrinkling my nose. “Nah, don’t like it.”
He pulled up short, eyes glimmering. “What made you change your mind so suddenly, Basilia?”
“It’s Basi.”
Kyros’s brother studied me. “Don’t forget what you stand to gain. A few hours and you-know-what is all yours.”
Thirteen thousand dollars. And all future commissions. Plus, figuring out a way to get paid the money would be a small fuck you to Angelica. Without that money, I had just over eight hundred dollars to my name. I wanted out of this game and away from here. Ironically, to do that, I needed the very thing I left at the estate. Power from financial clout.
“Three hours maximum.” I glowered. “No more.” A few bathroom breaks and I’d knock that down to two.
He snapped his fingers. “Put on the dress, Basil. I’ll return in an hour. We need to be out of here before Kyros gets back from dinner.”
That explained his openness. They were fucking cowards, the lot of them. “Don’t call me Basil.”
The comment floated to where he’d disappeared.
Jerk.
Angelica took his place, two huge black bags in her hands. “Shower first?”
“Yeah,” I said on a long exhale.
This was definitely an occasion for shave, cleanse, and hydrate.
Damn, but I loved looking good. The full-length spangled dress hugged me in the right places, accentuating my breasts and the curve of my ass, leaving the golden skin of my back on display.
Rory might have exquisite taste.
The six-inch heels weren’t ideal with my sore hip, so I’d taken an extra painkiller. Unnecessary as it turned out. Rory supported my entire right side with a slight pressure under my forearm. Probably looked like nothing to everyone else.
“You didn’t mention a red fucking carpet or that the media would be here,” I hissed at him. If I didn’t know for a fact that estate security would never let these pictures see the light of day, I’d be truly livid. This could have otherwise busted my cover with Kyros and his tower of fangers. So far, the lack of information about me was holding up. If the Vissimo had run background checks, they wouldn’t have found anything. But I had to ensure that wouldn’t change.
He kissed the back of my hand and cameras flashed.
“Didn’t I?” he murmured.
I beamed a smile at him. “I wonder what a stir it would cause if I ditched Rory Senrite, Bluff City’s most eligible bachelor,