Page 36 of Kade
He’s examining my face again. I’m really fucking horrified. And so, so sad for him. But I give him a gentle smile and shove the rest of it away. He continues, reassured.
“We never had enough money. She would spend our welfare checks on drugs most of the time, but we sometimes got food from the church or the food bank. I’d steal money from her purse to buy food at the corner store, too. She never noticed.”
I slowly place my hand on the table and slide it toward Kade’s hands, afraid he might not want the contact. He stills before sliding the shakers to the side of the table. He picks up my hand, cradling it in one of his, using the fingers of the other to trace the blue veins visible on the back.
“And when she was gone?” I ask quietly.
Kade’s fingers don’t stop their movement. “Micah and I took care of each other. We’d find food together, hustle together. Everything we found, we split. If we couldn’t eat that night, Micah was right there with me, hungry, too. We were a team.” Kade shrugs. “The home was okay. We got fed three squares a day. But it wasn’t until Ransom pulled us all together that I finally felt…safe, I guess.”
“You guess?”
Kade snorts, “The things we were doing weren’t exactly legal, you know? They weren’t safe. Fuck, we all carried knives and other…stuff.” Kade’s wink makes me laugh despite my horror at all he’s lived through. But I sober as he continues, “But the nine of us, we took care of each other. It was the first time I ever felt a part of something. Hell, knowing the guys had my back meant I didn’t have to sleep with one eye open. Ransom made it his priority to make sure we were taken care of. He took responsibility for us, even though he was barely older than we were.”
Kade’s eyes lock on mine. “He still takes care of us. Everything we’ve built. It’s because Ransom wanted better for us all. He dragged us, sometimes literally, into this business. He wanted money because that meant power and control.” Kade taps the top of my hand. “We got it.”
“The power and control?”
Kade nods. “And the money.”
“So he built a business and made sure you all had a place in it.” I want to meet this mysterious Ransom.
“We built the business.”
I tilt my head in confusion. “Isn’t that what I just said?”
Kade’s low chuckle dances up my neck. “We all worked in it, yeah, but ownership of Brash Auto…well, the Brash Group is actually split nine ways. We all have an equal share. It’s not just his.”
I swallow carefully. “So what does the Brash Group do?”
“Owns all the Brash Auto’s. Ransom’s got us in commercial real estate. He’s talking about developing some high-end communities. He even built a fucking high rise for us all.”
Jesus.
And I was sleeping in my car a few weeks ago. I thought the distance between our financial situations wouldn’t matter, but this isn’t just a few blocks.
It’s the fucking Grand Canyon.
My voice comes out a little higher than I would have liked. “You own a high-rise?” Kade shrugs casually, like I just asked him if he owns a blue shirt.
“Yeah. Ransom lives in the penthouse at the top. We all spend time there. Then there are two apartments per floor below that for us. Then there are smaller units in the building we sold.” My mouth is dry.
“How many floors?” Kade’s eyes are sharp, laser-focused on mine.
“Forty,” he says shortly.
Well shit. This guy is so far out of my league. It’s past funny and moved straight into ridiculous.
“Billionaires build high-rises,” I whisper.
Kade’s eyes narrow. “Yeah,” he says simply.
18
BECCA
Itry to pull my hand from his. He tightens his grip but finally lets me pull away. His eyes darken, and the tick is back in his jaw.
My thoughts are swirling but keep coming back to one simple thought.
