Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 64366 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 257(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64366 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 257(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
Guilt washed over me again. Not only was I putting Jamie in a precarious position, but I was also terrifying him. I grabbed him and pulled him into a hug. “Don’t worry about a thing. I guess I should have told you up front that there’s no real danger here. No physical danger, anyway. It’s just my uncle playing his head games. He’s trying to break us up, that’s all, and any information he can get that will make that happen is what he’s after. If he can find some dirt on you, he will. If he can put doubt in our heads, he will. That’s why he showed me the photos of you and Cameron. He wanted me to believe you had been unfaithful, so that I would break up with you.”
“But you didn’t,” he murmured against my chest.
“No, baby. I didn’t. I came and got your ass.” I dropped a kiss onto the top of his head. “Look… think of my uncle and his goons as overzealous paparazzi. That’s all they are. They’re just looking for dirt to use against us, while also making sure that the press doesn’t get a hold of any real dirt. Does that make sense?”
He nodded.
“Don’t worry about your safety,” I added. “But do worry about your privacy.”
“Okay.”
“In the meantime, we have a lot to do. New phones, new clothes for me, some food, and a tour of the school. And when you get your new phone, I want you to call your mom and tell her we’ll be stopping by tomorrow after you get out of class.”
Jamie looked skeptical as he untangled himself from our embrace and led me out to the parking lot. When he stopped at an old BMW and climbed inside, I frowned.
“This is your car?” I slid into the passenger seat, feeling the seat shift on its unsteady base. The dashboard was cracked, and I noticed that the back window of the convertible top was taped in place.
“It’s a loaner. My real car is in the shop. ”
“Really?” I was so relieved to know that he didn’t have to drive around every day in that death trap. “Can we pick your car up today?”
Jamie’s laugh was weak— his embarrassed laugh. “I was kidding, Kage. This is my car.”
“Oh.” I ran my hand along the cracked dashboard and took in the state of the buttons on the electronics panel. Most of the labels were rubbed off of the buttons. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude. It’s just… Let’s go get you a new car.”
Jamie stomped on the brake before he’d even gotten all the way out of the parking lot. “Are you insane? You can’t just buy me a car.”
“Why not?”
He looked confused. “I don’t know. You just can’t.”
I raised my brows and crossed my arms over my chest. “Give me one good reason why I can’t. And it has to be a logical reason.”
“I don’t know. You remember what my dad said about you buying me.”
“Are we really going to go there again? Jamie, I can buy things for you, and you can let me fuck you, and it’s all okay. What does your dad think is going to happen if I spend money on you? That you’re going to end up on the streets selling your body for drugs?”
“Maybe.” He laughed. “But couldn’t you come up with a less seedy whore fantasy for me? I’d rather imagine myself with some rich guy who supports me in exchange for sex. He’d stop by my rent-paid luxury apartment a couple of times a week to use my body.”
“So you’re sticking with guys, huh?” I teased.
“What do you mean?”
“They were your words, not mine. You said ‘I’d rather imagine myself with some rich guy…’”
“Hmmm. I did, didn’t I?” His lips stretched into a crooked smile, and he glanced away. “Guess you’ve spoiled me.”
“Spoiling you is what I’m trying to do, but you won’t let me. Quit being stubborn and tell me what kind of car you want. I need to do this for you. This car is not safe, and it’s really ugly. Not to mention it smells like an old gym sock filled with buttered popcorn.”
“Your uncle won’t like it if you buy me a car.”
“What can he do about it? He can’t take it, because it’s going to be in your name. That would be stealing.”
“Kage…”
“How about a Range Rover?”
“Yes,” he blurted, clearly as surprised at his answer as I was. “I mean no. That’s ridiculous. Those things are expensive just for the sake of being expensive.”
“Are they? You went so crazy over the limo that Aldo and Aaron drive us around in. That’s why I thought of it. Of course, we’d get you a sporty one instead of the long wheel base.”
“Kage, I’m a used BMW kind of guy. I wouldn’t look right in a nice ride.”