Billionaire Wolf's MateDate - Serena Meadows Page 0,38

from you.”

Josie pretended to be absorbed in putting Janice’s hair up into a complicated twist, but she could see that she was trying to make a decision. She reached up and grabbed Josie’s wrists. “Leave it down for now,” she said, then pulled Josie over to the window seat. “You can trust me, Josie.”

Josie hesitated for only a second, then, in halting sentences, told her about the way things worked in the clan. “My sister is in the city, she’s an exotic dancer, and my brother works as a bouncer in a bar,” she said. “Both will probably be dead in a few years, drugs or alcohol, a bullet or a knife; only a few of us survive into old age.”

She sat stunned, trying to picture how something like that could happen, then asked what she knew was a stupid question. “Why don’t you leave?”

“Most of us don’t even have a birth certificate; we don’t exist anywhere but here. We’re paid in money that can only be used here, and the council controls the police in town. No one gets to us out here; we’re trapped,” Josie said. “People have tried to leave before, but the clan always tracks them down.”

Janice felt sick to her stomach, but she took a deep breath. “I can’t believe this can happen,” she said. “I’m going to do something, find a way to help you.”

“Oh, don’t do that,” Josie said, jumping up from the window seat. “They’ll hurt you. Mr. Reggie is a good man; just be thankful he cares about you and leave the rest alone.”

Before she could say more, there was a knock at the door, and Josie ran to answer it. Reggie was standing in the hallway looking very handsome in his riding clothes. “I thought you might need some help finding your way to the breakfast room,” he said, grinning at her.

Her heart leaped in her chest at the sight of him, but she looked back at Josie, feeling like their conversation wasn’t over. “You’d better go, Ms. Janice; you’re already late,” she said.

She took one more look at Josie. “Thank you,” she said.

Josie smiled at her, then nodded her head. “I’ll be here when you need me,” she said.

Reggie reached out and took her hand, making a jolt of electricity shoot up her arm, and for a moment, Josie was forgotten in the rush of feelings that washed over her. She sighed and looked up at him. “Why does this all feel so easy now?” she asked, looking down at their joined hands.

“Because it is,” Reggie said. “Look at it this way: we’ve had two years to get to know each other, so we’re not exactly strangers.”

She smiled up at him. “Not anymore,” she said, feeling a blush creeping up her cheeks.

Reggie smiled down at her. “That was just the beginning. I plan to get to know you a lot better,” he said, wiggling his eyebrows at her.

A giggle burst out of her, shocking her just as much as it did Reggie, but she just smiled up at him and said, “I’m looking forward to it.”

But as soon as they got to the morning room and she saw the staff all lined up along the wall just waiting to serve them, her conversation with Josie came roaring back to her. Feeling a bit sick, she sat down at one of the tables when Reggie pulled out a chair for her, relieved that the room was almost empty. The last thing she wanted right then was to deal with Betty and her entitled attitude. In fact, she hoped to never see the woman again.

When one of the maids approached her and asked what she wanted for breakfast, the thought of food made her stomach turn. “I think I’ll just have coffee this morning. I’m not very hungry,” she said.

Reggie looked over at her, surprised. “Your stomach was growling earlier this morning,” he said.

She shrugged. “I’m not hungry anymore.”

Chapter Sixteen

***Reggie***

Reggie studied Janice for a second; something had changed but he couldn’t put his finger on what it was. “What happened, Janice? You were fine when I left you in your room. Did Josie say something to upset you?” he asked, reaching out to take her hand, which was freezing.

Janice looked over at him, tears in her eyes. “I’m sorry, I think I’m just tired,” she said. “I might be able to eat some toast.”

Reggie added eggs, bacon, hash browns, and a pitcher of juice just in case, then thanked the maid