Chapter 29 Maia
Chapter twenty-nine
Maia
Sitting at the kitchen island in Blaine’s penthouse, I held the phone in my hand as the message taunted me through the screen.
It was late, I’d already eaten dinner, gotten ready for the night, and I was even going to head up for bed soon, but Felix wasn’t going to give up. He wasn’t going to let go of me without taking something from me first. My happiness? My sanity? I still didn’t know.
The words blurred as my throat tightened. My thumb hovered over the screen like I might finally answer, though I had no idea what I’d even say. Not like it would matter much to the egocentric bastard.
I made a move to place the phone face down, in the hopes that it would help me forget I’d ever gotten the message, when a shift in the air behind me made me flinch.
Blaine hovered over me, his chin resting on my shoulder as he wrapped his arms around my waist. He smelled like fresh rain, soap, and everything I wanted to curl up against in that moment.
I gripped the phone tighter, every muscle tense. But his hand covered mine, patient and waiting. My pulse hammered as I exhaled and loosened my hold. The device slipped from my fingers into his palm, like it had never really belonged to me in the first place.
“You know our secret relationship isn’t supposed to have any more secrets, Sunshine.”
“Tell that to Delilah…” I murmured, smiling softly as he playfully bit at my neck.
“Let's see what the little drummer boy has to say,” he mumbled as I rolled my eyes. He hummed as he read the message that was essentially reminding me of “my place" for the hundredth time.
Felix
Enjoy being with Porter while it lasts. We both know how this ends.
You can play in his little fantasy all you want. Just don’t forget what you are.
“He’s getting bolder…” He let the words drag, a low hum of dark amusement in his chest. His thumb brushed across the screen, eyes narrowing as his mouth curved into something that wasn’t quite a smile.
“Blaine—” I whispered, diverting his attention. “Don’t—”
“Don’t what?” His pointed gaze flicked to me. “Don’t handle it?”
I shrugged. “Can’t we just ignore him?”
“I’ve never been one to lay low, baby. You know that much about me, I hope?”
“Unfortunately…” Turning in the chair, I leaned back to look at his face as his hands stayed wrapped around me, the phone now forgotten on the counter behind me. “So… humor me. What's the plan?”
“Don’t exactly have a polished one yet…” He shrugged. “But the gist of it would be to make him my bitch.”
I blinked, deadpan. “That’s… the gist?”
“Mm.” He leaned in, tilting his head like he was already savoring the victory.
“Lotta moving pieces… but essentially I’d buy out his debts, cut his strings, strip him down until the only thing he owns is the air in his lungs.
And even then, Sunshine—” his lips brushed the corner of my mouth, a whisper against my skin “—he’ll be borrowing that from me. ”
A shiver ran down my spine, equal parts fear and relief. “Blaine… You can’t just—”
“I can.” His eyes caught my wandering, unsure ones. “And I will. Felix had his fun… The jokester can have a go too, can’t he?”
I shook my head. “You’re having too much fun with this, you know… and what happens when he doesn’t just roll over? What if he fights back?”
“Then we let Lucifer intervene.” His smirk deepened, boyish and lethal at once. “But before divine intervention? You let me handle him, Sunshine.”
Blaine
The city lights bled through windows, striping the leather chairs and glass desk in uneven bands of gold. I was currently in the process of handling the little drummer boy. The ambient glow made the whole thing feel more like a Batman, Gotham night than a business acquisition.
Finally, Felix stepped inside his office, muttering into his phone, and froze as he turned on the light.
I was already there.
Feet kicked up on his desk, chair spinning slow and lazy, a cherry lollipop tucked between my teeth like I owned the place. Which, technically, I would in about ten minutes.
“Porter… the hell are you doing here?” he sneered.
“Nice place.” I glanced around at the Italian leather seats and overly expensive decor. “Shame it’s not gonna be yours much longer.”
His eyes narrowed, his phone slipping into his pocket. “You break into my office to play games?”
I shrugged, plucking the lollipop from my mouth. “I wouldn’t call it a game… more like a performance review you’re failing spectacularly.”
His jaw flexed. He tried to mask it, but I saw the twitch in his cheek, the pulse in his throat. He was already sweating… Good.
A manila folder landed on his desk with a casual flick of my wrist, papers spilling just enough for him to see the bold headers, the signatures, the crooked numbers, a small glimpse of the carnage that tied every shady string neatly back to his name.
“You’ve been a busy bee…” I drawled, watching his brows furrow.
“Is this about her?”
A low chuckle left me. “Is this about Maia? My Sunshine? Of course it is.”
Felix’s nostrils flared. “She made her own choices.”
“Well, of course she had to.” I shrugged.
“Come to think of it… You didn’t give her any to begin with.
I’m simply returning the favor… So go on,” I said, leaning back, spinning the chair lazily.
“Take a look at your greatest hits. Vanguard Solutions, the shell corps, the loan sharking; very creative, I must say.”
He opened the folder reluctantly, eyes scanning frantically. Probably hated not being the one in control. Too bad.
“Impressive résumé. Unfortunately for you…” I tilted my head, let a grin curve around my mouth. “…I own every last one of those strings now.”
“I don’t know what game you're playing at, Porter, but whatever you think will happen, it won’t. My investors have too much at stake—”
“You mean Calvin?” I quipped, and he went silent as I rolled my eyes.
“Oh, please. Lockwood will pull out the second this ship starts to sink, clear his name, and leave you at the bottom. Which means you’re mine to buy out.
Every debt, every desperate little scheme, everything you thought you built. All. Fucking. Mine.”
I slid one last sheet across the desk, his eyes following it angrily. “Sign and every asset, every share will be handed over nice and clean.”
“And if I don’t?” he asked.
I stood, rounding the desk as he watched cautiously. Narrowing my eyes, I tilted my head.
“You’d be the first to know what happens when someone doesn’t have a choice. I’m making this easy for you.”
Felix’s Adam’s apple bobbed. His hand was twitching by his side.
I popped the lollipop back in my mouth, smirking around the stick as I patted his cheek twice, not missing the slightest flinch.
“Clock’s ticking, princess.”