Page 30 of Insatiable Bachelor (Bachelor Tower 1)
“That is not the criteria for figuring out who is on our side,” Kylie says. “Puppy petting doesn’t cut it.”
“It was a really cute puppy,” Ben interjects.
“He’s one of the good ones,” I insist, this time more seriously. “Trust me. Ben has some skills you’ll be interested in.”
“I highly doubt that,” Kylie says dismissively.
“Ouch,” Ben said, but he was flushed as if he found her exciting rather than insulting.
“What do you do?” Kylie asks, moving right into a job interview.
“Programming mostly. Hacking as a hobby,” Ben answers vaguely. “The kind that can get you access to things you need and hide things you don’t want seen.”
“And you have no problem with a woman living in this building?” Kylie challenges, pushing her hair off her shoulders. “That’s not going to disrupt your little special man things?”
“My man thing prefers having women around.” Ben chuckles. “I think this is way overdue. Penny here held down the fort for you, and now I’m looking forward to how you make these living arrangements more permanent. What’s the plan?”
“Blackmail, extortion, trickery of all kinds,” Kylie says, smirking behind her drink. “No rules. Just winning.”
“I like it,” Ben says, arching a brow at me, and suddenly I feel like the third wheel. “I can be of some help.”
“We’ll see,” Kylie says, staying aloof. “Do you have a card?”
Ben reaches in his pocket and hands Kylie a business card, lingering in the exchange a little longer than necessary.
“Want to stay for a drink, Ben?” I ask, wondering what might smolder between these two if alcohol was added.
“Night, Ben,” Kylie says, offering him everywhere but here.
“Night,” he says, but leaves smiling.
“Well that was rude,” I gasp, eyeing her intensely.
“I’m not into nice guys.” Kylie grimaces.
She says the last word with undue venom. “What is wrong with nice?”
“Don’t you know? They always finish last.”
I roll my eyes then wonder if that’s how Dalton sees me. I haven’t seen him since our talk. He sounded willing to fight for me. But maybe he decided love wasn’t worth it.
“Call him,” Kylie suggests as if she can read my mind. “I never wait around or play games. If I want to know where I stand, I ask.”
“How does that work out for you?”
“It weeds out the weak, that’s for sure.”
“From the looks of it, it weeds out everyone.”
Kylie raises her glass and clinks it against mine as though she wholeheartedly agrees with my assessment. “Well once I’m done bringing down the patriarchy in this testosterone-laden men’s club”—Kylie raises her voice hoping someone at a neighboring table will hear—“maybe after that I’ll look for Mr. Right.”
“You really do have a plan, right?” I ask, thinking of my father and the threats that have been made against him. I don’t want to doubt Kylie. She’s always proven to be a capable fighter, usually seeking out a battle. But she’s never had quite so much collateral damage on the line.
“These guys have spent their lives screwing around, breaking laws, and shitting on other people. I don’t have to dig deep to the get dirt on any of them. You know who doesn’t have any dirt? Me. I’m squeaky clean.”
“But Dad isn’t,” I remind her sheepishly. I know I’m driving a point she’d prefer I’d let go.
“Dad isn’t a criminal,” Kylie says as she gestures at the bartender to bring us a couple more drinks. “He’s disorganized. I bet if we clean up his paperwork, we clear him.”
We? She wants me to help her? My euphoria is short-lived. “I don’t like that anyone is after him,” I say. “We’re putting a target on his back all because you want to fight these idiots? You can live anywhere. But you want to live here because they told you, you couldn’t.” A sharp pain forms in my stomach.
“I want to live here because I should be able to live wherever the hell I want,” Kylie snaps. “My money is as green as theirs. I’ve worked twice as hard to earn it. I told you I’d take care of Dad, and I will. Have some faith in me.”
I love Kylie, but trust is hard. It’s not as cut and dried as I made it sound to Dalton.
“Do you regret saying yes to helping me out?” Kylie asks, pushing my glass closer and encouraging me to indulge.
“Not for a second.” I put a hand over hers and take a moment to enjoy the fact that my sister and I are actually working together on something. Dalton might be teaching me about love as well.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
Penny
“The guy is an idiot,” one man in a suit barked to another as I try to reach the elevator and avoid the drama in the lobby. “Dalton is throwing his career away, first for some chick, and now he’s on his deathbed trying to be a Good Samaritan.”
At the sound of his name my feet freeze, my tennis shoes squeaking on the shiny marble floor. Deathbed? What the hell does that mean? It’s been two weeks since I’ve seen Dalton, and I convinced myself pushing him away had worked. He wasn’t out trying to sort out the deep dimensions of love. He was on a bender drinking his problems away and successfully avoiding me. Or so I thought.
“What happened to Dalton?” I ask breathlessly as I bump into the two men who look thoroughly put out now. “You said he was on his deathbed?”
“You’re his girl, aren’t you?” the scrawnier of the two men laugh and nudges the other with his elbow. “Shouldn’t you know where your boy toy is?”
“What happened?” I shout, sending every pair of eyes in the lobby flying my way. I don’t care who stares. I want answers.
“Chill out. He’s in the hospital. I don’t know the details. I just know he missed a board meeting, and people are questioning his ability as a leader. That’s always step one in ousting someone. The guy made his own shit storm. He doesn’t get to be pissed; he’s caught out in it now. He should have toed the line like the rest of us instead of getting in bed with the enemy.”
“What’s your name?” I ask, staring hard at him so I can commit his face to memory.
“Pierce Savions.” He smirks. “Why, are you looking for a new warm bed to crawl into?”
“I want to make sure I give my sister your name for her list.” I keep my glare steady as his face contorts in confusion.
“What list?”
“The list of people she’s going to destroy,” I reply coolly and turn on my heel to head upstairs. His little laugh turns into a nervous chuckle as I hit the button to get me to the fourteenth floor.
“What’s the rush?” Ben asks, as I leave the elevator and blow by him in the hallway.
“Did you know Dalton is in the hospital?” I ask, winded from the adrenaline-fueled speed. “Do you know what happened?”
“No,” Ben says, worry creasing his brow. “Was he in an accident or something?”
“No clue,” I choke out as tears well in my eyes. “I’ve got to find him. I need to make sure he’s all right.”
“I’ll make some calls,” Ben tells me, and a moment later Kylie is in the hallway, trying to assess the situation.
“Are you all right?” she asks, clutching my shoulder tightly. “What happened?”
“A few guys in the lobby,” I choke out, trying to explain but Kylie’s eyes fill with rage and her back tenses up.
“Who, what did they do to you? Tell me their names.”
“No,” I say, a brief moment of calm filling me as I watch my sister transform into a wild animal ready to tear my enemies to pieces. “It’s Dalton. I heard some guys in the lobby saying he’s in the hospital on his deathbed. I don’t know what happened.”
“I’m calling around,” Ben explains, putting his hand over his phone for a second. “I think I’ve found him.”
“I’ll have a car service out front in a second,” Kylie promises as she pulls out her own cell and gets t
o work. I’m left standing in the hallway feeling the world spinning too fast around me. I’m useless and terrified as I walk to Dalton’s door and place my palm on the cool wood.
“You better not die,” I whisper as both Ben and Kylie spring into action, tugging me toward the elevator.
“Did they say what happened?” Kylie presses, but Ben just shakes his head.
“I only know what hospital he’s at, not his condition. We can be there in fifteen minutes. You already called for a car?”
“I was ready to head out,” Kylie explains. “The car’s out front now. Are we all going?”
