Chapter 22 Krista
KRISTA
I was depleted. My vagina was broken, and if Rob walked through that door one more time, I’d throw myself out a window. Yes, my share of the winnings was great, but I was done for the night.
Claire walked into the room, grinning like a fool as she fanned the winnings in front of her face. “For you,” she said, handing it over.
I counted it, surprised when I saw more than my share here. “This isn’t what we agreed to.”
“Yes, but I don’t need the money. My fun was manipulating the men into thinking they were getting their way. I got Sinner’s half of the pot as well as my husband’s.”
This was more money than I could hope for in three months, and she just handed it over like it was nothing. And that just made me feel worse.
“I can’t take it,” I said, shoving it back at her.
“What? Yes, you can. You won it with your hard work.”
My heart sank in my chest at her words, and when her face twisted in remorse, I knew she saw right through me.
“That’s not how I meant it. It was just a fun game, and you won. You did all the hard work. Frankly, I’m not sure how you’re still upright at this point.”
I sighed, closing my eyes. “He wants to talk.”
“Is that what this is all about?”
When I opened my eyes, she was looking at me curiously.
“He asked why I thought I was a disappointment. That’s why he kept coming back here—to drag the answers out of me.”
“Why don’t you want to tell him?”
That was a good question. “Because…because then he’ll see how pathetic I really am and he won’t want me.”
“Do you want to stay married to him?”
I wasn’t sure. That was the problem. “How could I? We hardly know each other.”
“No, but you seem to get along really well,” she laughed.
“It’s just sex. Sex can be good with anyone.”
“True, but you don’t keep going back to someone for sex when you want more. And you want more.”
“How do you know?” I asked, hoping I didn’t sound too defensive.
“Because you wouldn’t be so worried about talking to him if you didn’t want more.”
She was probably right about that.
“Honestly, the best thing you can do is talk to him. I know you don’t want to make yourself vulnerable like that, but he kept coming back to find out. And he might have if you hadn’t used sex against him.”
She was right, but that conversation wouldn’t happen right now. “I should call my family first.”
She snorted. “You must have it really bad if you’re calling your family first.”
She walked out of the room, leaving me alone. I snatched the phone Knight dropped by earlier, telling me this was a secure line, only to be used for emergencies.
Well, this was an emergency. I’d basically disappeared off the face of the earth, and when my parents answered, they were not going to be happy.
There was no time like the present to disappoint them.
I waited as the phone rang, almost believing for just a minute that it would go to voicemail, but then my mother answered.
“Hello?”
“Mom? It’s Krista.”
“Krista!” Her voice vibrated through the phone, only amplified when she yelled for my father. “Ben! Krista’s on the phone! Where have you been? We’ve been worried sick about you!”
“I know, and I’m very sorry about that. I was—” Man, I really should have thought this through first. “I was at the hospital with Lizzy when I was attacked—”
“Attacked?” she gasped. “Are you alright?”
“Who was attacked?” Dad asked, picking up the other line.
“Krista was attacked,” Mom repeated.
“By who? Where are you?”
“I’m with Rob—”
“Who the hell is Rob?” Dad growled.
“He’s….I met him at the wedding. He’s with Reed Security.”
“The husband,” Dad muttered. “We heard about him. It’s just not right for a man to wed a woman without meeting the family first.”
“It was in Vegas. You don’t ask permission from your family,” I argued.
“He should have! Any good man would have at least called. What if I had said no?”
I rolled my eyes, sighing heavily. “I probably would have gotten married anyway.”
“Because you have no sense of responsibility. Marriage isn’t just about sex.”
I cringed at his words. The last thing I wanted was any kind of conversation involving body parts and my father. “Dad, that isn’t the point right now.”
“That’s exactly the point. A man has to prove his worth, and instead of calling me or asking me in person, he took my little girl—”
“I haven’t been your little girl in years,” I snapped. “And it was Vegas! We were drugged!”
“You were taking drugs?” Mom gasped.
“Not—”
“What kind of man is this?” Dad shouted. “He drugged you?”
“No, he didn’t drug me!” I yelled, losing control of this conversation faster than a runaway train. “I was attacked—”
“Wait, I thought you were attacked at the hospital,” Mom cut in.
“I was. By the same people in Vegas.”
“You’re not making any sense,” she muttered.
Sighing, I rubbed my hand across my forehead. “Look, I was attacked in Vegas. Someone mistook me for someone else when I was with Rob. They knocked us out, and when we woke up, we were tied to chairs in some trafficking room.”
“I thought you said this man was in security?” Dad asked.
“He is.”
“Doesn’t sound very good.”
“Dad—”
“I’m just saying, Parker never would have gotten in that situation.”
“Oh, so now Parker’s a saint? You don’t get along with him on the best of days, but now he can do no wrong?”
“The man got you kidnapped and drugged!”
“He was drugged, too. And when we escaped… I don’t know. It was the drugs or something. We got married and drove home after he stole a car.”
“Great, so he’s a thief and disrespectful.”
“Yes, because it was really important he asked for permission to marry me when we were just trying to get out alive,” I snapped.
“Honey!” Mom cut in, stopping the chaos. “The important thing is that you’re alright. Where are you now?”
“I’m at some house in Colorado. We’re trying to figure out how to get these guys off our backs.”
“Uh-huh. And do you have his mother’s phone number?”
Frowning, I shook my head in confusion. “His mother’s phone number?”
“To plan the reception. The whole town is asking what they can get you. I need to plan things with his mother.”
Speechless. I was utterly speechless. “Mom, did you hear what I just said? Vegas wedding. It wasn’t real!”
“Maybe not, but you are married, and people will want to send gifts.”
“And we’re in Colorado trying to figure out how to escape certain death.”
“Honey, that doesn’t change the fact that when you get out of this, the whole town will want to properly meet him. We’ll need a reception, and of course, we’ll have to redo the ceremony here. Something tactful—”
“Right. Not like when you all barged in on Liam and Bailey and forced them to get married naked.”
“And they’ll all want some kind of registry to shop from.”
“In Colorado,” I repeated, saying slowly. “There is no registry, and that’s the last thing on my mind.”
“Oh, don’t worry about that. I can make the registry.”
She was going through with it no matter what I said. “Nothing with lace.”
“And I’ll have to send over someone to clean up that house of yours. It’s absolutely disgusting. When was the last time you cleaned?”
“I actually clean all the time,” I muttered. “I’m just not very good about putting things away.”
“Lizzy can help me.”
“She just had a baby!”
“Then I’ll recruit Bailey. Oh, she’s pregnant! Did she tell you?”
Joy inflated my lungs at the same time that crushing disappointment smothered it. “No, I’ve been on the run.”
“Well, the whole town is talking about it. Don’t worry. They’re still properly excited about your wedding.”
“Fantastic,” I said drolly. “We need them to be excited about a fake wedding.”
“An improper wedding,” Dad cut in.
“I don’t suppose Rob knows what he’s going to do out here.”
“What?” I asked, completely confused.
“Well, you said he was in security. There’s not much need for that out here. Everyone already has security.”
In the form of guns, but I didn’t bother explaining that wasn’t exactly what he did.
“I don’t know. He’s some computer expert.”
“Perfect! I’ll talk to Maverick. He was just telling me they kept having to call someone in from the city to fix their computer issues.”
I couldn’t wait to tell Rob that my mother had found him a job fixing computers in a small town, and he would no longer have to live the exciting life he had now.
He’d be thrilled.
“Mom, how about we hold off on all of this until I actually get out of this alive.”
“You’d be alive if your brothers were with you,” Dad grumbled.
“Again, Dad, you don’t even get along with Michael.”
“Doesn’t mean he wouldn’t be better at this.”
I was getting a migraine discussing this with them. “I have to go. Just promise that you won’t do anything until I call you and let you know I’m okay.”
“Of course, dear,” Mom said placatingly, which I knew was a lie. “I’ll just put this on hold for a few days.”
“You’re doing it all anyway, aren’t you?”
“These things take time, honey. I can’t just wait for you to tell me you’re going to be okay.”
“Well, at least you have faith I’ll return home in one piece.”
“That’s the spirit. Call me with his mother’s number. Love you!”
I barely got out an I love you before she hung up the phone. She was probably already on the phone with the bakery to order the wedding cake.
“I really hope she orders chocolate.”