Page 63 of Ruthless King (Mount Trilogy 1)
Her change of subject throws me for a moment, but then I realize she’s speaking in code, like she’s also worried someone’s listening in to our phone calls.
I swear, I wouldn’t put it past him to have my phone tapped.
“Yeah, I know what you mean. I miss those times too. We’re due to catch up.”
“We’ll get to one of these days.”
“See you around, Mags.”
“Same goes, Ke-ke.”
* * *
I sneak out the back door of my own building to meet the Uber driver I asked to pick me up at an address a half block away. It’s 2:45, which means I’ll make it to the location Magnolia alluded to by three. I’m new to this cloak-and-dagger stuff, so I hope like hell I got it right.
When we pull up to the run-down restaurant where you have to order at the counter, I hop out of the car. Magnolia’s sporty red Lexus is nowhere in sight. Maybe I’m early?
I push open the restaurant door and look around, but she’s not here. I take a booth in the back, slightly out of sight, but if I lean far enough to the right, I can see who walks in the door.
Magnolia’s not known for her punctuality, but this time, I was sure she’d be prompt. Unless I misread this whole cloak-and-dagger code-word crap.
Luckily, two minutes later, she rushes in the door. “So sorry, honey. Got stuck in traffic.”
“Really? Because that’s the excuse every time, and there was hardly any on my way here.”
Magnolia rolls her eyes. “Glad you could be so lucky—and that you know me well enough to figure out my code.”
I lean forward on the table. “Do you really think he’s tapping my phone?” There’s no question as to which he I’m referring to.
Magnolia mirrors my movement. “Ke-ke, he’s tapping your ass, ain’t he?”
My butt cheeks clench, thinking of what I removed earlier, when a text from an unknown number came through that only included three words: Take it out.
I shift against the torn forest-green vinyl of the booth, not wanting to admit it. Then again, Magnolia doesn’t need me to confirm. She just shakes her head like I’m a student not catching on to the most basic of concepts.
“If you think we have more than ten or fifteen minutes before he knows exactly where you are, then you’re smoking crack.”
“He can’t be the big, bad boogeyman you make him out to be,” I whisper, only half-certain I’m speaking the truth, because I saw how quickly his entire demeanor changed when we left the room this morning. “No one has that kind of power. Plus, I haven’t seen any blood spatters or heard any screaming.” Silently I add, except for my own.
Magnolia narrows her eyes on me with a shake of her head. “I told you he wouldn’t just fuck you, he’d mind-fuck you, and he has.”
“But—”
She holds up a hand. “If you need to tell yourself he’s not a scary-as-hell, ruthless motherfucker to make you feel okay about the fact that you like the way he fucks you, that’s fine. But don’t for one second think it’s the truth. Because that’ll be the biggest lie you ever let yourself believe.”
I break her stare, focusing on the chipped red tabletop. My words are nearly inaudible. “Then how can I possibly live with myself knowing what I’ve let him do to me?” My gaze snaps back up to hers. “I begged him for it.” My stomach turns as shame drips from my confession.
Her eyes go hard. “Don’t you fucking dare feel ashamed of anything that’s happened between you two. I told you, he’s not someone you’re equipped to deal with. Men like him don’t exist in your world. You can’t fight the game he’s running on you. If he wants a woman, he gets her. Rumor is he fucks them crazy. Literally. The women I told you that he had who disappeared? I heard it’s because they lose their goddamned minds over him, and he has to sever the connection permanently because those bitches won’t let go. Don’t you dare think for a second that this is something you could possibly have fought against and won.”
A thought flashes through my mind. “Permanently, like he kills them?”
“Don’t know. Maybe they’re living in houses on the beach somewhere. Or maybe not. But that’s not the point. The point is that all you can do is lock down your head and keep a tight grip on your heart and soul while you let your body enjoy the ride.”
“He’s already in my head. You said he would be, and he is. When I’m around him, hell, even when I’m not, he’s turning me into someone I don’t even recognize.” In that moment, I’m not sure what scares me more—Mount, or the power he has over me.
“You have to fight it. Keep fighting back against him.”
I let loose a harsh laugh. “It’s not that easy.”
