Chapter Seventeen #2
And then I realized—she must have been talking about Alexi when she’d said her father had bad debts to even worse men. That would explain why she’d been so vague, and why she’d hesitated to elaborate.
Oh God, she’s farmed herself out to him…
“Gentlemen, consider these women your reward for the evening.” Alexi Chekov eyed the three women as if they were slabs of meat on display at a grocery store butcher counter.
“As you can see, these lovely ladies are primed and waiting for you. And each one is assigned one of you.” He paused. “For the night.”
He snapped his fingers again, and the women distributed themselves to the three of us. A brunette with a few early wrinkles landed next to Preston. A blonde with fake boobs walked over to Tony. And Lila made her way to my side.
Lila, who still wouldn’t look at me. Who still seemed ashamed to be there. Who didn’t resemble the woman who’d captivated my heart and mind.
My Lila. Mine. But not like this. Oh, fuck, not like this.
“These ladies are under my express instruction to do whatever you would like tonight, and I do mean whatever. Three cars wait outside, ready to take you to the La Roche in Manalapan, which I am sure you are aware is one of the best resorts in the area. We will see you all in the morning.” Alexi stood.
“This is on me, of course. I’ve wanted to unload this property for a long time now, and we’ve finally done it.
I couldn’t be more pleased.” He nodded at all of us. “Gentlemen, I’ll leave you to it.”
As he turned to exit the room, I leapt out of my chair.
“No, wait.”
Lila looked up, and our eyes met. Hers were wide, bloodshot.
“Wait?” Alexi asked.
“Not her.” I pointed at Lila. “Not like this.”
“She’s not to your liking?” Alexi jutted his jaw in her direction. “That’s one of my best girls. Clients can’t get enough of that little flower.”
I recoiled. Something came over me, something primal, something that touched me to the center of my existence.
I didn’t care about the crooked path that got Lila here, or the reasons why she’d decided to sell herself to this man.
I just wanted to get her out of there—to get us out of there, real estate deal be damned. “No,” I blurted. “I won’t allow this.”
Alexi laughed. “I’m afraid that’s not your concern. She’s my employee, and she owes me. We have an arrangement.”
“Whatever she owes you, I will pay it. All of it.”
Alexi blinked at me. “I’m talking about millions of dollars.”
“I’ll pay it.”
“No,” Lila said, her voice piercing the dining room. For the first time since entering it, she looked animated—alive. “It’s too much and I can’t let you do that. It’s not right.”
“Ah, I see. There’s more to this.” Alexi laughed as if he’d just been let in on a private joke. “You two know each other, don’t you?”
“We grew up together,” I replied, unwilling to reveal any more to a man who was fast becoming my enemy. “We’re friends.”
That was more than an understatement, but I didn’t want to let Alexi Chekov know any more than that. One of his many scams included collecting information on people, then using that information against them to get whatever he wanted. He wouldn’t get anything extra on me that night—or Lila.
“Friends, huh? I’m sure.” Alexi’s tone told me he didn’t believe my comment at all. He nodded at Lila. “Perhaps this is the night to take your relationship to the next level.”
“No,” I replied through gritted teeth. “As I said, we are friends, nothing more.”
Alexi ignored me, still fixated on Lila. “You agree?”
“Yes,” she said, but as soon as her gaze caught mine, she looked away. “I would agree with that.”
“Come on,” I said under my breath. My annoyance with this whole situation grew by the second.
My thoughts raced, and I barely knew what I said.
I just kept thinking I had to get Lila out of there—had to get us out of there.
“You want money, and that’s all.” I took my cell phone from my pocket.
“I can make a few calls right now and guarantee her debt. This second.”
“Really?”
“Immediately,” I replied, more forcefully that time.
“I’m not so sure.” Alexi studied me. “Besides, I’d prefer to have this kind of payment done in cash. Cleaner that way.”
“I understand that.” I willed my expression to stay as impenetrable as his.
I knew I was playing a dangerous game with a dangerous man, but I didn’t care.
I needed to convince Alexi to trust me, get him to hand Lila over to me, and get out of there.
And I was willing to do anything—say anything—to make that happen.
“Twenty-four hours and it’s yours. I’ll make the first call right now if you want.
But I promise you—you’ll have the money.
” I tightened my jaw, gritting my teeth in frustration.
“I don’t make promises I can’t keep. Ever. ”
Alexi pursed his lips and didn’t reply for a long time. As we waited, the tension built in the room. We all stared at him, waiting for his next words. When he finally spoke, Alexi’s voice was quiet and flat. “If I’m going to make a deal like this, I require some kind of collateral.”
“Fine.” I reached for the one thing I had on me in the room, the rare Breitling I swore I’d never part with for any reason. But that had been then, and this—this moment required a statement proving I was serious.
“Here.” I ripped the watch from my wrist and slid it across the dining table. “That’s worth thirty-five thousand dollars alone.”
Grunting, Alexi picked up the watch and examined it.
“Let me add to that,” Preston said, removing his own watch from his wrist. “You can have mine too.” He pushed his towards Alexi. “Another thirty-five thousand. That gets us to seventy. Decent start.”
As Alexi picked up the second watch, I shot my best friend a look I hoped he’d interpret as a thank you. Preston gave me a small nod in return. Encouraged, I turned my attention back to Alexi. “Consider these the down payment,” I added “You’ll get the rest of the money in the next day.”
Still fingering the second watch, Alexi turned his gaze to me. “Still, seventy thousand is only a fraction of what she still owes.”
“I know.” I narrowed my eyes at him. “But I’d call this a generous statement of commitment about paying her debt. Those watches are some of the most expensive things in this room.”
“I’m still not convinced.” Alexi moved his attention to Lila, and his gaze ran up and down her body, as if taking in every curve. “Lila is a very valuable asset to me. I’d hate to lose her many talents.”
I wanted to throw up. To punch him in the face.
To reach across the table and strangle him for talking about her that way.
Lila Montague wasn’t a regular, average woman, a piece of ass, or something he owned.
I had spent a decade trying to get back to her, the woman who had always stood out to me, no matter how limited things had been between us when were kids.
And yet, she might be in trouble, she might be in debt to a reprehensible man, but I’d be damned if I left the room without her.
I’d lost her once. I wouldn’t do it again.
“We’re talking about one woman,” I tried. “Out of the hundreds I’m sure you have access to all through this region.” I raised my index finger. “What’s one less?”
“This one is very special,” Alexi replied. “I haven’t met many like her.”
I couldn’t have agreed more. I had to get her out of there. Immediately.
“Here,” I said as I yanked my wallet from my back pocket.
I took out another five hundred dollars in cash and slammed it on the table.
“I know this only makes up for a small amount of what she owes, but if I were you, I’d take this all as a statement of good faith.
The watches, the money…you’re making out very well here.
” I swallowed back my revulsion, willing myself to get through what had become the biggest business deal of my life.
“You’ll have the rest of the money by the end of tomorrow. ”
Alexi’s eyes met mine, and the tension in the room rose. No one said anything for a long time.
“Okay,” he finally replied. “I’ll allow it.”
Lila
Adam had guaranteed my debt. Alexi had let me walk. I was free. Free, and in Adam’s car, headed away from the steakhouse and back to Ibis Isle. Or so I guessed. Frankly, I would have been fine with going anywhere away from Alexi Chekov’s clutches.
“Thank you,” I tried, still shocked Adam had found out my secret in such an epic, embarrassing way.
This would alter our relationship—could we even call it that?
I didn’t know, but there was no denying it.
How could he ever see me the same way, now that he knew I wasn’t the sweet, innocent woman he remembered from his childhood?
Things were about to change. No, they had already changed. “And I’m sorry. So sorry.”
“I know.” Adam’s jaw tightened. “But I’m not sure what to think.”
“Me either,” Preston said from his place in the backseat. “First of all, I had no idea Alexi Checkov runs a call girl operation. I am glad we got you out of there, and that the other women left too.” He sighed. “What a fucking night.”
I glanced back him, mortified he too had found out this horrible side of my life. What a mess. How was I going to explain it? How would I make him understand?
As we drove through Palm Beach, Adam kept his eyes on the road. He’d barely given me a glance since we left the restaurant and had stayed silent as we dropped Preston off at his house. He finally spoke to me a few blocks from Ibis Isle. “I don’t know how to process this, Lila. I don’t.”
I gulped. “I know. This whole night has been a total shock.”
“So that’s what you’ve been doing these last few weeks?” Adam pulled his car into the driveway and shoved it into park. He still didn’t meet my gaze. “Working for him? Selling yourself for Alexi Chekov’s benefit?”