14. Dutton
CHAPTER 14
Dutton
“ I heard you’re going on a date,” Eli says as he sits behind me. I choose to ignore him.
A row of ten women and four men stand before me in lingerie. I assess each of them to make sure they’re in sellable condition.
“Does your father know about this date?” he asks.
“Does your father know about all your activities?” I ask pointedly. I look away when I realize I bit at his antics. “Remove the bra,” I tell the last woman.
She gulps but does as I say. I don’t move on to the next in line, I stare at the woman in front of me who barely stands five foot two. I loom over her, and it’s obvious she’s intimidated. Usually, I feed off that, but not here. Not in this place.
“Are you sure about this?” I ask the woman. She looks up at me, her freckled features young and innocent. “You’ll all receive an abundant amount for these services, but it’s okay to back out.”
The virginity auctions have been something my father has run for over thirty years now. He came to an agreement with Anya and Alek Ivanov to conduct business in their territory because they host all the other black-market auctions in Manhattan. In return, they get a small cut. The virgins earn the most.
We safely conduct the auctions with vetted clients who have specific fantasies. Security is provided outside the room, and by tonight, these fourteen people will leave with their virginity taken. They range in age, but I’m always quick to pluck out the ones who aren’t quite ready, no matter how desperate they are for the money.
The girl swallows.
“Leave us,” I say to the other candidates. The girl in front of me is confused but doesn’t move. Only Eli remains in the room.
“Please. I need the money,” she says, almost tearing up. She had only just turned twenty-one, but the girl was as frightened as a fledgling. It means she’ll sell for more because the innocent types always sell for the most.
“Are you sure you’re prepared for the money to come at the expense of someone taking from you and using your body in the process?” I ask clinically. She flinches. I try my hardest to soften my tone.
“You don’t have to do this. This is not the only option to make money,” I tell her, and her bottom lip wobbles. “If you don’t feel like you’ll be empowered by this decision, then you should leave. You’re safe here, but we won’t force you to do anything.” I bend down and pick up her bra from the floor.
When I hand it to her, tears begin to spill over her cheeks. “I n-need the money to h-help my little sister. She n-needs chemo. If we don’t… then—” She can’t finish the sentence.
“Corinne,” I call loudly for my assistant, who schedules all of my virginity auctions. “Please escort her to gather her things.”
“No, please—” The girl’s mouth immediately snaps shut as my cold stare lands on her.
I continue. “See what jobs we have available. Perhaps we can manage an advance that’s paid off over the duration of her employment.”
The woman seems surprised but tries to keep her sobs in as she says, “Thank you,” and hurriedly leaves the room.
“Yes, sir,” Corinne says. I wave her off and face my cousin again, who raises his scarred eyebrow.
“Well, well, well. Isn’t someone becoming soft,” he says, following me into my office.
“I don’t need to hear that from you,” I berate as I sit behind my desk. I have many offices but have only recently found the one at Pearl to be my favorite. Most likely because it brings me entertainment in the form of a particular little monster who thinks it’s appropriate to throw things at me.
“Touché.” He glances at his ring and smirks as he takes the seat across from me. I try not to roll my eyes at the lovesick fool as I pour us a glass of whiskey.
I’m not convinced by anyone who tries to tell me that marriage is anything but a contract where you lose your fucking mind and ambition.
Fucking pussy-whipped asshole.
Though, he’d pull a gun on me if I voiced that.
“How’s married life?” I don’t care about it; I’d rather avoid having the focus on myself. I look at my phone, pissed, as I see she still hasn’t responded to my friend request on Instagram. I’m hardly on the fucking app and only use it for PR purposes that a team manages for me. But the fact that she won’t add me has me wildly irritated for some reason. It’s like she goes out of her way to fight me on every little thing. The closer I try to get to her, the more she resists. And it’s driving me insane. I’ve never had this issue with a woman.
“Fucking amazing. I’m obsessed with her,” Eli says without hesitation.
“I can tell,” I reply, distracted by my phone as I look over my last text message, waiting for Posie to respond. I sent her a text an hour ago, telling her to meet me tonight for dinner, and she still hasn’t replied. That’s when I notice Eli’s silence and look up. “What?”
“Are you jealous?” he asks, leaning forward in his chair.
I can tell when he’s intentionally trying to push my buttons. In fact, I’m incredibly gifted at it myself. Pissing people off is what we do best. I don’t like it when the woman I’ve set my eyes on is doing it to me.
“No.”
“Interesting. Because I heard rumors about a blonde girl at a certain club…”
I raise a brow at him. News travels fast.
“What did the twins say?” I growl.
“That you were acting weird around a dancer.”
“I told you; I’m keeping an eye on her and her association with the Boston Delinquents club.”
“Is that all, though?” he asks. “Because you haven’t mentioned hiring Will yet for intel about her. And that’s very unlike you. You usually go for the most efficient route, so why are you looking into this personally?”
“Shouldn’t you be thanking me for looking out for you?” I ask.
He shrugs. “I don’t think the Boston Delinquents are going to be a problem. I met with their new president, Waylon Striker, a few weeks ago, and we’re in the midst of negotiations. Nothing’s solidified yet, though, and if I were them, I’d definitely be putting spies in where I can. But I think we’ve come to an understanding.”
“Which is exactly why I have to get to the bottom of this,” I say, glancing back at my phone.
Eli doesn’t seem convinced. “Hawke said she’s a looker.”
I clench my jaw as I attempt not to play into his hand and give him a reaction. “Hawke will fuck anything with a hole, so tell him to back off this one,” I deadpan.
“That sounds awfully possessive of you.” He gives me a humorless smile.
My phone pings, and I immediately look down at it.
Posie: No
Two simple letters rolled into one powerful statement.
Her favorite fucking word.
I quickly reply.
Me: You agreed to one date.
“So, yeah, I sucked cock the other day,” Eli says, but I’m not paying attention.
“That’s nice,” I say, concentrating on my phone. The dancing dots appear, then disappear.
“Or maybe it was you who wants to suck cock,” he adds.
Posie: I didn’t agree to when. I’m busy tonight.
Busy? With what? Or whom? I go to reply but then blank on what to say. She doesn’t do as I tell her, and this time, I actually asked… sort of.
“Let me guess, it’s the blonde.” This time I look up at him.
“Why are you talking about someone’s fucking cock?”
“So you were listening.” He shakes his head.
“She agreed to go on a date with me, then backed out,” I tell him, finally throwing my phone down. “I’m genuinely at my wits’ end on how to deal with this woman. My usual tactics for obedience don’t seem to be working. What do you do when intimidation doesn’t work and you can’t resort to torture?”
“Hold up. Rewind. So you did actually ask a girl on a date?” He sounds baffled. “When was the last time you did that?”
“Never.”
“Exactly.”
“Well, she wouldn’t let me fuck her. So I figured dinner would be the next best option so I could extract information.”
“Hmmm.” A knowing smirk crosses his features. I want to wipe that arrogant smile from his face.
“I’m doing this for you, remember?” I remind him as his phone rings.
“Of course. It’s definitely me you’re thinking of and not your cock.” He laughs as he stands to take the call. His tone changes immediately, and I know who it is on the other end of the line: his wife. While I wasn’t the biggest fan of Jewel initially, since she’s a hitwoman who had Eli as a target when they met, I now respect that she loves him. Though I still don’t like that she’s a better shot than all of us.
“I have to go,” he tells me absentmindedly, still holding the phone to his ear. “Why don’t you send her flowers?”
Jewel’s voice comes through the phone. “Or a gun. I love guns as a present. Wait. Is Dutton dating someone?”
“I’m not sure most women would like your type of gifts, Kitten.”
I roll my eyes at how quickly gossip spreads in this family. It’s like wildfire.
And yet, I find myself grumbling to make a point. “She would throw out flowers if I got them for her.”
“Okay, so take dinner to her if she won’t meet you somewhere,” Eli suggests as he leaves.
A smile blossoms on my lips because although I’m definitely not taking dating advice from Eli or the twins, his suggestion isn’t a bad one.
Guess I’m bringing her dinner.