Highest Bidder Collection - Lauren Landish Page 0,267

pet her hair with soothing strokes.

“I never should have left you,” Arianna replies, her words coming out slow and full of genuine remorse.

She shouldn’t have. This wouldn’t have happened if she’d just listened. If she’d trusted me.

But it’s my fault. Not hers.

“It’s going to be alright,” I say softly, crouching down so my eyes are level with hers. It’s a lie. It’s not going to be alright. I’m damn sure of that single truth. Everything is fucked.

But I’ll tell her whatever she needs to hear.

I can’t lose her.

I press my lips to hers, my hand cupping her jaw and my thumb rubbing comforting circles on her soft skin.

“Is it going to be okay?” she whispers against my lips. It’s only when I open my eyes and see hers are still closed with tears running freely down her reddened cheeks that my heart shatters.

I wish I could tell her I’ll take care of everything.

But it’s not okay. And I can’t fix this.

I know I shouldn’t, but lying comes so easily to me. “Everything’s going to be fine,” I tell her. Her long lashes flutter and her gorgeous green eyes open to look back at me. So much raw vulnerability and something else are clearly evident in her gaze. Something that should push me away.

I didn’t even want to take her when she was given to me at first. I should have refused.

Maybe even then I recognized what she would do to me. How she would change who I am, and destroy everything I’ve worked for. When they put me behind bars, they’ll figure out everything. The corruption, the money, all the lies.

Even knowing that, I wouldn’t hesitate to take her if I had the chance to do it all over again. My hand clenches into a fist, firming my resolve. Even if I couldn’t change a damn thing, I’d still accept that sick fuck’s offer.

She was given to me.

Now she’s mine.

Chapter 1

Zander

I clasp my hands behind my back, staring out of the floor-to-ceiling window in my office. It’s on the top floor of Penn Square, one of the three tallest skyscrapers in the city. My fingers run along the cold metal of my Tag Heuer watch as I let my gaze fall to the world beneath me. My shoulders are squared and the rush of the city flows easily through my blood.

This is where I thrive, where I make the deals that run this city.

“Are you listening to me?” my father’s voice spills from the speaker on my desk, and the corners of my lips turn up into a smirk.

“I am.” I answer easily with an air of confidence I learned from him.

“You never should have accepted.” His words are sharp and firm. But he’s right.

A heavy sigh leaves me as my eyes narrow at the park directly beneath the building. Although my blood chills at my father’s words, I ignore him, cracking my knuckles and continuing to watch the specks of people moving about.

I’m the one that kept our family name from falling. We were going bankrupt because of his bad investments and trusting the wrong people. My teeth grind as I clench my jaw. Yes, I fucked up, but not nearly as much as he has. It's been almost ten fucking years of me rising to the top and carrying our legacy with me, creating not just a pristine reputation in the eyes of the community and business elites. I've also worked hard to create one of fear for those who run the underside of this city.

There are many men with power, but they all owe someone… and I happen to be that someone. My father’s voice drones on as I move my gaze toward the streets. My father’s still admonishing me for a single mistake.

A bad investment named Daniel Brooks.

That dumb fuck owes me a lot of money, more money than he should.

He knew how much debt he had, and he still gambled away my money. He thinks I don’t know… I know everything. I was the first to know when the sum left his account and wasn’t directly passed to mine.

This happens from time to time. Everyone owes me, and that’s how I like it. It’s only a matter of time before something gets between me and the money they owe me.

I don’t care; I always come out on top, and that’s what matters. Money isn’t power, it’s leverage. Being owed is power. True power. And that’s what I want. It's what I have. But right now