Page 19 of Sinful Empire (Mount Trilogy 3)
“The note was delivered to me by courier, and I was intrigued. Magnolia said she had someone special that her anonymous gift-giver knew I’d like. She guaranteed me that I would never find another woman who would compare, and she was absolutely right. You are incomparable. Unforgettable.”
Keira
Lachlan’s hand squeezes mine tightly. I take the strength he offers, even as I’m faced with the undeniable shock of Magnolia’s deception.
Before this moment, I didn’t know it was possible to be torn in two completely opposite emotional directions. I’m thankful Magnolia put me in Lachlan’s path, but the stabbing feeling of betrayal is undeniable.
She painted a picture of a man who was scarier than the devil himself, and yet she pushed me into his path. She couldn’t have known how things would end up. Could she?
I just . . . I don’t freaking understand.
“I don’t know if my best friend was playing matchmaker or whoring me out.”
Lachlan squeezes my hand again and reaches up to cup my chin with the other. “Don’t ever fucking say that about yourself. She played us both, Keira. Like a master. I told you she’s the best at what she does for a reason. She knew me. Knew what I liked, maybe even better than I knew myself. Then she put you in my path—the one woman she knew I’d want more of immediately. You were the ultimate drug. She banked on me becoming addicted after only one hit, and she was right.”
My mouth drops open again for what seems like the tenth time during the last few minutes, and not just because I felt the exact same way after that night. I wanted more. Needed more. Hell, I married the guy I thought he was the next day.
“I don’t understand her motives, though. That’s what doesn’t make sense.” And that’s truly the one part that has me completely stumped. Was this another case of Magnolia always knows best? Or was she playing Russian roulette with my life?
“I wish I had an answer for you, but I don’t. Magnolia Maison didn’t get to where she is by doing things without a reason. She’s smart. Cagey. I’ve always respected her. But you have to know one more important thing.”
I brace for another confession that I’m not sure I’ll be able to handle. “What?”
Lachlan’s dark stare softens further, his thumb stroking my cheek. “Two days after the masquerade, I still couldn’t stop thinking about you. About how fucking incredible you were. How you demanded what you wanted, and yet gave me everything.”
His words send heat pulsing through me as the memories replay in my head, dulling the betrayal as I focus on what matters more—where I ended up because of it.
“I went back to Magnolia and told her I wanted you again. Long term. Exclusively.”
“You did?” Shock rips through me.
Lachlan nods. “Of course I did. What you demanded and gave was completely unique. She achieved her goal. She knew I’d be hooked.”
Confusion surges up again. “Do you think she expected me to start working for her?”
“I don’t know that either, but when I inquired about terms and how to acquire you—”
When I wrinkle my nose at his term, he frowns.
“Hellion, that’s who I was and what I did. Women were possessions. To be owned. Used. And put out of my mind as soon as my balls finished pulsing. I can’t change that.”
“I don’t have to like that part.”
His gaze bores into mine. “Who I was, until you,” he says, emphasizing each word. “I couldn’t get you out of my head. You infiltrated my life. You changed everything.”
His confession soothes me, yet it doesn’t change the fact that Magnolia lied to me. But that isn’t Lachlan’s fault, and I won’t put it on him.
“So, what happened when you asked?”
“Magnolia said you were a one-shot deal. Out of the business. Needed some cash, and you only agreed to one night.”
The tightness in my lungs eases a tiny bit. “So she wasn’t planning to try to spread me around.”
Lachlan shakes his head. “No. I may not understand why she did it, but I believe she was honest when she said it was a one-shot deal.”
I want to believe that, but I don’t know what to think about my best friend right now. I never would have thought her capable of this, so it’s hard to trust anything else about her in this moment.
“How can you be so sure?”
