London

Ariel wasn’t stupid.

She was onto me.

An intelligent woman liked that noticed everything under her nose. She knew Crewe better than I did, so she knew when his behavior was out of the ordinary. She knew he was changing just the way I noticed he was changing.

But that meant my plan was working.

Crewe didn’t share Ariel’s suspicions at all.

He trusted me.

That actually made me feel terrible. Guilt overwhelmed me when it shouldn’t, and I found myself questioning the plan I’d set out. But I had to remind myself that I was a prisoner when I should be a free woman. Even if my anger had softened, that didn’t change my circumstances.

I deserved to be free.

I had to keep moving forward. Once Crewe gave me a clear sign that what we had was real, I’d finally have the courage to ask him if I could leave. I could plan another escape since the guards weren’t as suspicious anymore, but that would probably backfire. And I felt like Crewe deserved more than a breakout in the middle of the night.

If he had a heart like I thought he did, we could come to an understanding. He would let me go because he knew it was the right thing to do. Our relationship had changed so much, and we couldn’t stay this way any longer.

He cared about me.

He respected me.

He would let me go.

I knew he would.

A week went by, and Crewe was back to being in a good mood. Ariel must have dropped her argument, and they returned to their comfortable business relationship, focusing on numbers and scotch. We shared all our meals together and had amazing sex at night. It was as good as it was going to get.

Fall had set in, so it was a cool day. The sky was overcast with heavy clouds that hinted at rain, so I stayed in the royal chambers in the private living room while the fire roared in the hearth. There was a nice collection of books on the shelf, so I made my way through each one. Some of them were first editions, Scottish literature that would be worth thousands if they were taken to market. They were special antiques that filled the air with dust and time, making me feel like I was in a different century.

Crewe finished working after five and walked inside, stripping his jacket and tie by the door. “Lovely?” He called out to me when he couldn’t see me in the bedroom.

I suddenly felt like a married couple, the husband coming home and announcing his presence to his wife.

I liked it and hated it. “I’m in here.”

Crewe walked in as he unbuttoned his white collared shirt. He didn’t smile when he stood near the couch and looked at me. He stared at me with an expression I’d become used to. It was nothing but intensity, the way he showed he was excited to see me.

My heart still fluttered just as it did the first time he did it. I wished it wouldn’t, but I couldn’t control all the impulses my body made. I shut the book and rested it on my lap. “Get a lot of work done today?”

“Some.” His shirt was open, showing his perfectly chiseled physique. “Not as much as I would like.”

“Maybe you need to hire another Ariel.”

“I would if such a person existed.” He stripped off his shirt and tossed it on the armrest of the couch.

I tried not to stare at his glorious body, but that was nearly impossible to do. He was the sexiest man I knew for a reason. He was all muscle and skin, not an inch of fat anywhere. He had nice, toned arms, his muscles defined and powerful. I liked seeing him undress the second he came into the bedroom. He usually stripped down to his boxers and sometimes threw sweat pants on. I didn’t even realize I was biting my bottom lip until the light pressure became uncomfortable.

He slid his belt out of the loops then folded it in half. When he yanked on both sides, the leather smacked together and made a noticeable crack.

He hadn’t spanked me in a long time. Kinda missed it.

His pants and shoes came next before he sat beside me on the couch, glorious in just his boxers. His arm rested over the back of the couch, and he stared at the fire as the sun disappeared from the windows. It was nearly dark.

His hand moved to the back of my head, and he gently touched my hair, what he usually did when he was sitting beside me.

I felt the bumps sprinkle across my arms. I didn’t know if I was nervous about the fact that I was playing him or if it was because I actually felt something. The intensity of the emotions made it impossible to differentiate.

When I felt his gaze on me, my mouth went dry. My thighs automatically squeezed together, and I forgot about the book I was reading altogether. Couldn’t even remember what it was called.

His hand slowly turned my head so I would look him in the eye. His fingers dug into my hair as well as my scalp, exerting silent control over me without any resistance.

I met his look, seeing the bright irises surrounding the center of his eyes that were highlighted from the flames. I’d never cared for brown eyes, always preferring men with green or blue irises, but his were the prettiest I’d ever seen. They were the same color as the scotch he drank, and they suited him perfectly. The color was tuned to his dark mood, which sometimes lightened if he was having a good day.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, my mouth dry. My nerves lit on fire, my fingertips burning as well as everything else. My thighs squeezed harder when the interaction began to feel like it was the first time we’d ever touched.

It was definitely the first time we ever touched like this.

He was different. I was different.

Everything was different.

His fingers fisted my hair, getting a tight grip before he leaned in and kissed me. It was a simple kiss without tongue, but it still took my breath away. His lips hardly moved with mine, and all the passion was felt in his restraint rather than his movements.

He pulled away and looked at me, but I knew that wasn’t the end of it. That was just a slow beginning—a slow burn that would turn into a roaring fire.

I yanked down the front of his boxers so his cock could come free. When I went down on him, his pleasure was always the biggest thing on my mind. I wanted to make him feel good, to make him come back to me instead of looking for sex elsewhere. But now I didn’t think about his pleasure or how this could forward my agenda.

I just wanted him in my mouth.

I leaned over and licked the head of his enormous cock, my ass in the air. His hand moved up my thigh and yanked my dress up so he could rub his hand over my ass. My hand wrapped around his impressive girth, and I slid most of his length inside my mouth, ignoring the uncomfortable stretching of my throat and just enjoying the way he tasted.

I loved the way he tasted.

His hand kept the hair out of my face, and he watched me with a stern jaw and a hard expression. His eyes followed every move I made, the arousal heavy in his eyes. When his breathing changed, I could hear it. Louder and louder it became as he enjoyed my wet mouth surrounding him.

I sucked the juice from his tip then pushed him as far back as my throat could handle, feeling my gag reflex struggle not to go off. I kept going because I wanted him, all of him.

“Fuck…” His hand moved to the back of my neck, and he guided me up and down his length, moving slowly as he wanted to enjoy every steady thrust as he slid into my mouth. Saliva dripped down his length and to his balls, and I moved my mouth to his sac so I could suck it back into my mouth and return it to his length.

His fingers dug into me harder.

I wanted to keep going, but I also wanted that big cock inside me. We were both so wet and anxious for each other, and I could hardly stop my legs from shaking. I wanted him every morning and every night, but I particularly wanted him now.

I pulled my mouth away, a sticky line of saliva forming between my mouth and his tip. I wiped it away with my fingers as I sat up, feeling that scorching gaze practically burn a hole right through my skin.

Crewe immediately moved me to my back and nearly ripped the dress off me. He treated the zipper with violence, nearly breaking it as he dragged it to the top of my ass. Once my straps were loose, he peeled them down my arms until he could get it off with one swift tug. When we were in his office, the only thing he removed was my underwear. But when we had no interruptions, he wanted me in nothing but skin.

I pushed his boxers down to his ankles, and he kicked them away, making him beautiful and naked on top of me.

He wrapped one leg around my waist and pinned me into the couch, my head resting on the armrest. The fire was still burning, acting as the only light in the living room. The sun was gone now, and all we could hear was the flicker of the flames. One of the maids would announce dinner, but neither one of us would hear the door.

My hands snaked up his powerful chest and to the back of his neck, my pussy begging to feel his cock inside me. I breathed against his mouth, anxious for him to fill me with every inch of his length.

He purposely dragged it out, teasing me on purpose. He brushed his lips past mine and rubbed his length against my folds. I was soaked and so was he, so we slipped past one another without resistant. When he rubbed against my clit, my bottom lip quivered.

My nails dug into his shoulders. “Crewe, make love to me.” I looked him in the eye as I whispered my request, knowing he would grant it. It wasn’t like him to make me beg for too long. He didn’t have the restraint.

He pointed his length inside me and slid through my wet tightness, a masculine moan accompanying his movements. His arms tightened as he suspended himself above me, the scruff of his face brushing against my cheek.

My nails cut into his skin deeply, and I let out a moan that rivaled his. My eyes closed for a moment as the shiver of excitement ran up my spine. The fire burned and crackled in the background, but the sound of his breathing was in the forefront. Everything outside of that room didn’t exist. It was just the two of us in the middle of nowhere, making love in a stone castle built by his ancestors. I wanted him for more reasons than just to get off. I wanted him because I missed him all day. I missed him the second he left for work in the morning.

I missed my captor.

He rocked into me slowly, his long length stretching me over and over every time he moved. Every time his powerful body moved, his muscles rippled and shifted under the skin. He was a mass of power and strength, and he was stronger than the stone walls that surrounded the castle.

My hands kissed his body as they trailed down his back, feeling the muscles shift under my touch. My fingers had a mind of their own, and I dug into him harder than I meant to, gripping his body like it was grooves on a mountainside.

Crewe positioned my other leg against his chest and deepened the angle, giving me his entire length as he moved inside me. His breathing accelerated as his hips thrust harder. When sweat formed on his skin, the drops reflected the firelight.

“Crewe…” My fingers dove into his hair, and I felt the sweat coat my fingertips. I was already on the verge of exploding, but my quickness to come was no longer surprising. This man made me crumble so easily because he knew my body better than I did. He knew exactly where all my buttons were and how to set them off.

He kissed me hard as he continued his pace, fucking me with long and even strokes. His cock hit me in the perfect location every single time, lighting me on fire as if he’d just drenched me with gasoline.

His tongue dove into my mouth and met mine with enthusiasm, swirling together in a heated embrace. I could kiss him a million times and never get tired of it. Every touch was just as good as the first one. His hands made my curves feel more feminine. His kiss made me feel more beautiful. And his heart made me feel safer than anywhere else in the world.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and looked him in the eye, seeing his intensity match mine. I’d never had this kind of passion with another man. I’d never shown it or been the recipient either. It was the kind that made my toes curl and my moans turn to pants. “Crewe…I love you.”

His pace slowed instantly, his strokes becoming longer and more spaced out, but he never stopped. He held my gaze with a hard expression, his emotions tucked away on purpose so I couldn’t see them.

I wasn’t thinking when I blurted those words out. I knew I needed to get him wrapped around my finger if I ever had any hope of leaving this place. Maybe my subconscious was doing the fighting for me, making sure I got out of there as quickly as possible.

If he didn’t say it back, it was just going to halt all the progress I’d made. It would make things awkward between us, ruining the beautiful companionship we’d grown from nothing. My hands dragged down his shoulders, and I rocked my hips to take his length again. I kept my eyes glued to his, hoping I would get something out of him. If I didn’t, at least I didn’t want to chase him away.

But the damage was done.

To mask the tension, I pulled his lips to mine and kissed him again, my lower body working to take his length with the same excitement he showed earlier. I was still about to come, and once we got back up to speed, I would have my explosion.

Crewe thrust his hips hard again, fucking me with the intensity as he did before. His lips moved against mine until he lost his concentration, feeling so many things at once. I couldn’t kiss him anymore either because all I could do was breathe. I knew the combustion was coming, the sizzling heat that was going to ignite me in an inferno so hot that I would melt to the touch.

After a few more thrusts of his cock, I felt the explosion begin at my core and reach everywhere else. The sensation burned from my fingertips to my toes, making me pant and moan incoherently. The pleasure was so profound I couldn’t make out a single word other than a scream. My arms locked around his body as I rode the high as long as possible. The tenderness started between my legs and moved all the way up to my belly. All I felt was pure pleasure, even when the orgasm passed. I existed in a pleasure coma, existing only to feel.

Crewe’s eyes remained on me the entire time, watching my over-the-top performance. He moved his mouth to mine and kissed me again. “I love you, Lovely.” He spoke against my lips, his eyes heavy-lidded but open. He brushed his nose against mine before he kissed me again, his cock continuing to pierce me with impressive thrusts.

I felt something I couldn’t describe, and I couldn’t describe it because I’d never felt it before. It was a form of joy, higher than unbridled happiness that made me feel a spectrum of colors in my chest. My hands tightened their grip, and I felt my pussy clench around his cock for an entirely different reason. Waves of heat pierced my body everywhere, lifting me to a new state of being.

I looked into his eyes and pressed my hands against his chest. I could feel every time he breathed, every time his muscles flexed as he moved. I moved my right hand over his heart, feeling his pulse work at full speed to please me.

Crewe pressed his forehead to mine and gave his final pumps. His breathing deepened as he reached the end of his restraint. He released a quiet grunt before he shoved himself completely inside me, giving me all of his come.

I grabbed his ass and tugged him harder even though there was no room left. I just wanted every drop of his seed, every ounce of his arousal.

His eyes darkened at my actions, and he sucked my bottom lip into his mouth, moaning as he felt me.

My tongue entered his mouth, and I continued to pull him hard into me, not wanting his cock to go anywhere even though it was softening. I wanted him to stay buried inside me until he was hard and ready to go again. “Give me more.”

He kissed my neck and my jawline. “Want more of my come, Lovely?”

“I want it all.”

We lay on the rug in front of the fireplace wrapped up in a blanket Crewe had pulled off the couch. He threw another log onto the fire when the flames burned too low, and we were warmed by the heat that filled the room. After several rounds of sex, we were too tired to do anything besides lie together.

Crewe held me against his body while he kept his eyes closed. He wasn’t asleep, but he didn’t have as much energy as he usually did—because he used it all up on me. Somehow, he looked even more handsome when he was relaxed. His jaw wasn’t so tight, and his lips softened in a way I couldn’t put into words.

I pulled the blanket higher over my shoulder when I felt a draft come into the room.

Crewe opened his eyes when he felt me move, and his gaze was just as intense as always. He watched me without blinking, making sure I wasn’t going to leave his side before he relaxed again.

It was like I’d spooked a bear.

We hadn’t had dinner yet. When the maid arrived, we ignored the door, and they left us alone. Now I was hungry, but I was far too comfortable to move. I’d rather starve as long as I got to stay in Crewe’s arms.

Crewe closed his eyes again, the sound of the fire soothing him to sleep.

I moved my hands up his chest and gently massaged him, feeling the rock-hard muscles that protected me every night I slept by his side. The mood was comfortable until my stomach rumbled loudly.

Crewe didn’t open his eyes, but he grinned. “I can take a hint.”

“Sorry…”

“It’s okay.” He rolled me onto my back and fisted my hair in one fluid motion. He gave me a hard kiss before he rose to his feet and grabbed his phone from his pants pocket. He made a call to someone downstairs before he hung up and tossed the phone aside. “It’s on the way.”

“Good.”

He pulled on his sweat pants before he joined me by the fire again. He returned to his spot on the rug and circled his arms around me once more. “Don’t eat me, alright?”

I ran my hand up his chest. “I can’t promise anything.”

The corner of his mouth rose in a smile.

I got comfortable again and studied him, seeing his thick hair coming in around his chin. He had a strong and chiseled jaw, a physicality that reminded me of old-fashioned movie stars. He had a naturally handsome face, clearly born of royalty.

He turned to me when he noticed my stare. “You see something you like?”

“I like all of you.” I moved closer into his side and rested my face in the crook of his arm.

He held me close to his chest then pressed a kiss against my temple, a sign of affection he rarely showed. He didn’t mention what happened when we made love. I didn’t mention it either. I wasn’t sure if there was anything to say.

I had him right where I wanted him.

I hadn’t thought I’d ever be able to accomplish it.

Making him fall in love with me.

Now I felt innately evil, tricking him into feelings he may not have felt otherwise. I fucked him for months straight, being every fantasy he ever had. I never pushed him on topics that made him uncomfortable, and I was the confidant every man dreamed of. I put aside my own freedom, my sassy comebacks to focus on what was important.

Getting out of there.

But now, it didn’t feel like a prison. He didn’t feel like a monster. I missed him when he was gone all day. I loved sleeping beside him. I judged myself for softening for a man cruel enough to keep me as his prisoner for six months, but most of it was out of my control. A part of me even wanted to stay.

But I refused to accept that fate.

I just had to figure out my next move. I’d never given it much thought because I didn’t think I’d ever get this far. I never thought Crewe would look me in the eye and tell me he loved me.

It was unbelievable.

It rained the next day, so I had nothing to do but stay inside and listen to it pour. Crewe had a private gym, but I preferred to work out outside underneath the blue sky. It made me feel like I had freedom, even if it was wishful thinking.

I cleaned the quarters since I had nothing else to do and took care of Crewe’s laundry. I always hoped I would come across the transmitter that was remotely linked to the bomb in Joseph’s head, but now that I knew it was all a hoax, I stopped caring about it.

I couldn’t believe he’d lied to me for this long.

If he loved me, why hadn’t he told me the truth? Why hadn’t he offered to let me go? To let me be a private citizen again with my own life? Why was he still keeping me here like this? Was it really love? Or was it just habit?

I wasn’t sure.

The fact that he hadn’t come clean about anything just hardened my resolve. My heart throbbed when he said those words to me, making me feel higher than a kite, but now I was yanked back down to earth where my shoes hit the hard ground.

His love wasn’t enough to give me what I deserved.

The truth.

I walked downstairs in one of the dresses Dimitri had placed in my closet, my hair done and my makeup light. Crewe never said it, but I knew he preferred it when I wore minimal makeup, usually just mascara and a small amount of foundation. He preferred the natural look as opposed to the supermodel look.

I hadn’t seen Ariel since their big fight, and I hoped I didn’t cross her path anytime soon. The woman wasn’t stupid, and she knew I was up to no good. Actually, she hit the nail right on the head. Any interaction with her could just stir up her suspicion.

I approached Crewe’s door and came face-to-face with Dimitri. “Can I see him?” I had to check in with his personal bodyguard anytime I wanted anything. I would normally have a thing or two to say about it, but since Crewe’s affection was more important than my attitude, I bit my tongue.

Dimitri didn’t say a word before he disappeared inside the office. He came back a moment later. “He’ll see you now.”

“Thanks.” I held back the sarcasm before I walked inside.

“Dimitri?” Crewe didn’t look up from his desk as he was finishing signing a document.

“Sir?” Dimitri said.

“Lady London can come and go as she pleases.” He grabbed another paper and signed the bottom in one quick motion.

Dimitri nodded before he walked out.

I tried not to smile at Crewe’s offer, knowing he gave me power no one else in this castle had.

He finished what he was doing and met my gaze, looking handsome in his gray suit and black tie. A glass of water sat on his desk, his scotch nowhere in sight. He even gave me a slight smile, the kind that reached his eyes. “What can I do for you?”

I sauntered to his table, my hips shaking. My fingers touched the top of his desk, and I slid them across the wood as I walked around and parked my ass in his lap. “You’re already doing it.”

“What am I doing, exactly?”

I brought his fingertips to my lips and kissed them. “Looking fine as hell.” I kissed his fingers again before I held them in my lap.

That intense gaze returned to his face, his mocha-colored eyes warm like freshly brewed coffee. “I would take you on this desk, but I have a meeting in ten minutes.”

“Then take me after the meeting.”

His hands gripped my ass, and he pulled me closer to him. “Consider it a date.”

“Ooh…the best date I’ve ever been on.”

When he smiled, he looked like an entirely new man. It was the first time I saw a boyish charm, a playfulness in his eyes that made him cute in a way he never was before. He used to be dark and foreboding, downing scotch left and right and snapping when he was in one of his foul moods.

But now he was happy.

Was that all because of me?

He lifted me onto the desk and kissed me. “Wait right here. I’ll be back in an hour.”

“An hour?” I asked incredulously. “You’re lucky you’re worth the wait.”

He smiled and kissed me again. “You know I’m good for it.” He stepped away, his shoulders broad and powerful. He was about to walk out and leave me there to wait for him.

I came down here for a reason, so I stuck to my plan. “Actually, I wanted to ask for a favor. Since I have time to kill…”

He stopped and placed his hands in his pockets, but he didn’t walk back to me. He stood still and tall like a mountain, his strength underneath the surface of that crisp suit. “You know you can ask me for anything, Lovely.”

My heart skipped a beat again. My palms were clammy, and my breathing was uneven. He said heartfelt things when I least expected them. The fact that I knew he meant them made it even more meaningful. “I was wondering if I could call my brother…haven’t talked to him in a while.” I was deliberately playing him for a fool, and now the guilt was growing inside my gut. I shouldn’t feel any compassion, but I did. I didn’t feel good about what I was doing—at all.

He stared me down for a few more seconds before he pulled his phone out of his pocket and pulled up the number on his screen. He walked to the desk and set it on the surface. “Ten minutes. Dimitri will check on you.”

All the guilt disappeared instantly when I heard those words. I had a chaperone to make sure I did what I was told, that I got off the phone with my brother within the ten-minute time frame. The second I asked for a little freedom, he shot it down with an insult.

I forced myself not to speak my mind and stir the pot. He was giving me what I wanted, so there was no point in sabotaging myself. My chance would come. I would get what I deserved all in due time. “Thank you.” I had to force myself to spit out the words even though they felt like acid up my throat.

Crewe snaked his hand up my arm until he reached my shoulder. He looked down at me with his handsome face before he pressed a kiss to the corner of my mouth. “I’ll be back in an hour. I want you naked on my desk when I come back.”

Within the snap of a finger, I was back to being infatuated all over again. Excitement ran through my body in waves, and a tingling sensation formed in my fingertips. I wanted to be naked on that desk right this instant. “Yes, sir.”

His eyes narrowed in satisfaction before he walked away. He moved to the door on the other side of the room, ruling me and the entire castle in his silence. With broad shoulders and a powerful physique, he could command anyone that crossed his path. His power was innate and true, stemming from the invisible crown on his head.

When he was finally gone, I grabbed the phone and hit the call button.

It only rang once before Joseph answered. “Yes?” He spoke with his guard up, unsure if it was me or Crewe.

“It’s me.” I sat in the leather armchair and wondered what it was like for Crewe to sit there every single day. His hard body had pressed against the leather cushions for years, but there still wasn’t an outline from his weight. His desk was perfectly organized, and the wood lacked even a speck of dust. It looked too clean ever to have been used.

He didn’t sound happy to speak to me. “If you’d just left with me, I wouldn’t have had to wait for your call every single day.”

“And if I had left with you, you’d be dead right now.”

“I’m not so sure,” he said coldly. “How are you?”

“Things have been good.” I could never go into the details about anything unless I wanted his head to explode.

“Made any progress?”

I eyed the door again even though I was certain I was alone. I brought my voice to a whisper just in case. “One of his men told me the transmitter in your skull is fake.”

“Fake?”

“As in, it’s not wired to anything.”

Joseph paused as he let my words sink in. “What makes you think this guy is being honest?”

“Because he hates me and wants me to leave.”

“Hmm…”

“I think he’s telling the truth. I don’t think Crewe would do something like that.”

“Why does this guy hate you?”

“Because I got him demoted since we didn’t get along. Now he works outside all night, and I’ve put a wedge between him and Crewe.”

“Good job, sis. Then maybe he is being honest.”

“I think so. I don’t see what incentive he has to lie.”

“Yeah, I don’t either. That’s good news. I can just ambush him and take you.”

“Ambush him?” I asked incredulously.

“Take all of my men and burn that castle to the ground,” he said coldly. “They’ll never know we’re coming.”

Joseph had a violent way of solving problems. Crewe would deserve what was coming to him, but I didn’t want that for him. He was a good person despite the evil things he did. All I wanted was to leave peacefully, not get anyone hurt. “We don’t need to do that.”

“You’ve got a better idea?”

“Actually, yes. He told me he loved me yesterday.”

Joseph paused again. “You’re being serious?”

“Yeah.”

“Wow. Crewe is a bigger dumbass than I thought.”

I felt offended when I shouldn’t. “He’s not a dumbass. I made it happen.”

“He’s still an idiot. What are you going to do now?”

There was only one solution, but I didn’t know how well Crewe would take it. “I’m gonna talk to him and ask him to let me go.”

I could hear Joseph roll his eyes through the phone. “That’s not gonna work.”

“I think it might.”

“No, it won’t. You’re just gonna spill your secret, and he’s gonna keep a tighter leash on you. Shit, he might even kill you. He’s got a lot of pride.”

Crewe would never kill me. “I’m not gonna spill my secret. I’m just going to ask for more out of the relationship—like freedom. I want the ability to come and go as I please. If he can’t give that to me, then he doesn’t love me.”

“Everyone has a very different definition of love—especially a guy like him.”

“I think he means it. He’s different with me.”

“He’s keeping you locked up in a castle. Sounds like a fucking monster to me.”

I couldn’t argue against that. “Let me do this first.”

“And if it goes south? He’ll never let you call me again.”

No, he wouldn’t. “It’s not gonna go south.”

“But what if it does?” he asked. “I have no way of contacting you.”

Based on everything I learned about Crewe, I had to believe he would let me go if I asked. He was compassionate and caring, and we had a deep connection. I refused to believe he would backhand me and chain me to the floor. “If you don’t hear from me in two weeks…come and get me.”

“I can get on board with that. Where are you?”

“Sterling Castle outside of Edinburgh.”

“Tell me about his crew. Where are their posts? What time do they change shifts?”

I told him everything I knew and what kind of weapons they had. “But if it comes to this, I don’t want you to kill anyone. Just make them surrender, get me, and leave. And don’t you dare shoot Crewe.”

“There’s no way I can pull that off. People are gonna get shot.”

“Then I don’t want to be rescued.”

Joseph sighed into the phone. “This guy has really fucked with your mind, London. You shouldn’t care if I shoot him between the eyes.”

“But I do care.” A lot. “I don’t want anything to happen to anyone. They’re good people just trying to support their families. They’re no different from you.”

“I would never kidnap anyone for six months,” he snapped.

“But you aren’t innocent. You crossed him to begin with. Let’s not forget how we got into this mess.”

All I got from him was silence.

“Those are my terms, Joseph. Give me some time to talk to him.”

“What if he moves you?”

“He hasn’t mentioned any plans for travel, so I doubt it.”

“I doubt he keeps you in the loop about everything,” he jabbed.

“Two weeks, okay?”

Joseph didn’t say anything.

“Okay?” I pressed. “Two weeks and you choose Plan B.”

After another moment of silence, he finally agreed. “Fine. Two weeks.”