Two Weeks Later

Camilla

 

“Thank you for watching him here. I know your parents prefer that you babysit at my apartment, but my sister relapsed in her recovery again, and she needs a place to stay.”

Squatting down, I remove Liam’s scarf and coat. “I have to limit his exposure to Sasha when she’s like this.” He yawns, and I attempt to flatten his brown hair that’s woven with auburn strands. It has succumbed to static, leaving my kiddo looking like a miniature Einstein.

I admire how his Batman pajamas hug his little body in the cutest way. He hasn’t lost his toddler belly yet, which makes him all that more adorable.

“My parents are going to bed soon, so they don’t mind.” After reaching back to tighten her blond ponytail, Hailey picks Liam up and cuddles him close to her. He rests his head on her shoulder, and I wish I could stay home with him tonight so he could cuddle with me instead.

“Do you want to watch your Ninja Turtles movie before bedtime?” she asks. I laugh when his head shoots up and he claps.

“We watch it now,” he says.

“Sure, and since you’re wide awake, maybe this time you’ll make it through a whole thirty minutes of the movie before falling asleep.”

Hailey giggles, and I hate thinking about how she’s almost finished with college and will be pursuing her career. It’s going to be difficult to find a sitter who measures up to her.

 

***

In the parking lot of Octavia, Denver’s swankiest gentlemen’s club, I turn off the ignition of my car and hunch over. Every aspect of the sleek black building’s architecture is alluring for the affluent and dominating males.

The word Octavia is above the front glass doors in silver, and just beneath the roof, small blue bulbs line the perimeter of the building.

That’s it. Simple. Streamlined. Classy. Yet every time I enter or exit this fine establishment, I feel dirty, and it’s because I still have the memories of what I used to do here.

Every male who I’ve ever encountered inside has been polite, but they don’t give a damn about my brains or heart. They want to use me, along with every other attractive employee, to satisfy their carnal appetite.

I found that out the hard way when I met Tony, except he wanted to use my sex appeal for something more complex and dangerous.

I can’t stall the inevitable any longer, so I lock up my car and walk toward the employee entrance at the side of the building.

“Camilla, my cannoli girl. How are you this lovely evening?” Bruce asks after opening the door for me. Even the security guys in the back of the club wear suits, and his is becoming tight around his belly. “I saw that,” he adds with a brow cocked.

“Saw what?”

“I watched you looking at my gut.” He rubs a hand over his stomach. “It’s your damn fault.”

Planting a hand on my hip, I tilt my head to the side.

“Oh, I have to hear this.”

“You bring me one of your homemade desserts twice a week. Times that by fifty-two weeks, and you get at least twenty extra pounds. Damn, girl. Times that by how many years?”

I can’t help but snicker. “OK, I take full responsibility. No more desserts.”

“Whoa, whoa, now. I didn’t say anything about cutting me off. I just don’t want you poking fun of my belly.”

“Aww, I’m only playin’. There’s more of you for the ladies to love on, and there’s nothing wrong with that.”

“There you go.” His head nods in agreement. “We’re on the same page now.” Before I start toward the ladies’ dressing room, we high-five, and his hand sails over his dark curls.

I stride down the dimly lit hallway, and once I reach my locker, I swap out my jeans and boots for my sequin silver skirt and black strappy heels.

As soon as I stand in the uncomfortable shoes, I think about Liam again and imagine being in my pajamas, sleeping next to him in our bed. I miss the sweet kid already. Sighing, I lock up my belongings and walk over to a mirror.

“Have at it, sweetheart,” Gracie says, holding out her makeup brush that’s been dipped in a shimmery powder. She’s sitting next to me, primping before her shift as a dancer.

I swipe the brush over my chest and dust off the extra that has landed on my tight black top. We have a routine, Gracie and I do, and she’s the only person in this club who I will see outside of it.

Remembering I need to get my girls out, I push them up from my bra until cleavage is spilling over it. Lastly, I tease my long auburn hair at the scalp to appear sexier, and that’s about as good as it gets.

“Thank you. I’m off to serve drinks.”

“Oh, I almost forgot… Matt wants to see you in his office before you hit the bar.”

“Hmm … OK.” Striding down the hallway, I come to my boss’s door and tap on it.

“Come in.”

“Hi. Gracie said you wanted to see me?”

His eyes only glance up as he hands me a paper.

“First thing in the morning, go to this lab, and take a random drug test.”

“Since when do you order random drug tests?”

“I knew you weren’t going to make this easy,” he mumbles before he sits back in his chair and looks at me. “Someone called and reported that you’re on drugs, so I have to check.”

“Seriously? Matt, you know how I feel about drug use. I even confided in you about Sasha’s addiction.”

“Sorry, but Marianne took the call. You know she’s a snitch and will tell James if I don’t investigate. What’s the big deal? Go take it, you’ll pass, and then we can move on from whatever drama you’re obviously involved in.”

Having a younger, arrogant boss is annoying. I just want to mess up that stiffly-styled, preppy hair of his.

“The big deal is that someone did this to me, and I have no clue who it was.”

“They wouldn’t give a name, and I don’t care. Just take the damn test.”

 

***

Pulling my wool coat tighter, I cross the parking lot after my shift. At 2:00 a.m., it’s even colder than when I arrived. I love the scenery of Denver, but I’m over the Colorado winters and miss the warmth of South Carolina where I grew up.

I can see my breath as I curse over how early I have to be at the lab for the drug screen. Add in the anger brewing over the three men who managed to cop a feel tonight, and I’m in a peach of a mood. Picking up my pace, I reach my car and shove my key in the lock.

“Clarissa Rosenthal.”

My real name … and that voice.

“Now that I have your attention, turn around,” he says.

Gradually, I shift to face him. Ellis Burke is in the backseat of a black Mercedes sedan with the window lowered. The others are tinted, so I can’t make out who’s driving.

“I know you’re a hacker by trade, but I can’t fathom how you uncovered my real name.”

“We need to have a discussion. Get in.”

“I’m not getting inside your car. I’m tired and have to get a ridiculous drug test in only five hours.”

“And if you want to pass that test, you’ll get in my car this instant.” A smug smile eases from his lips.

“You made the call to Octavia, but why?”

He holds up the photo I’d placed in Tony’s casket. Seeing my son’s smile leaves me gasping for breath.

“Get in the car, Camilla, if you don’t wish to lose your child.”

With the mention of Liam, I march to his window.

“Don’t you threaten me, and don’t you dare mention my son. Don’t even think about him, and give me that damn photograph.”

His smirk vanishes. “I’m not a man you want to cross. Get. In. This. Car.”

“Fine. You have five minutes to explain what this is about.” Crossing my arms, I stomp around to the passenger side, and a driver exits the vehicle. Expressionless, he opens the door for me.

Be stoic, Camilla.

I tell myself that, but I’m screwed. Somehow, Ellis knows too much already. I get in the backseat, and as I sink against the leather beneath me, I inhale its scent of wealth and power. “How did you discover my identity?”

“Hacking has made me a great detective.”

“What do you want? And can I have my picture back?”

“Did you, or did you not, withhold from Tony that he had a son?” He holds a hand up. “And I caution you to answer honestly. I have ways of knowing everything.”

“I never should’ve gone to the funeral home.” My head falls back against the seat. “I only went out of guilt. I imagine like Tony, you have no idea what that emotion feels like.”

“Answer the question, Camilla, or would you prefer I call you Clarissa?”

“Don’t ever say that name again, and yes, I withheld the information from Tony.” Rolling my head in his direction, I prepare to face his anger.

His fingers tug on his full lower lip as he examines the photograph, so I study him while I wait. Instead of a suit tonight, he’s in khakis and a navy sport coat over a pale blue shirt.

“That’s what I suspected. This kid looks just like a Burke.”

I swipe the photo from his hand.

“I obviously had good reason to hide it from him. Both of you are heartless. Now, what do you want?”

“Your son is going to be raised as a Burke.”

“Ha! Fat chance of that happening. I don’t want him anywhere near your diabolical family.”

My chin is clenched by his strong fingers. He turns my head toward him and leans in. Even in the dim light, his eyes are vivid, alluring like the rest of him, and I’m pissed with myself for finding him attractive.

My gaze shifts to the partition, and I wish the driver could hear and see this, but would he even help me?

“Listen to me. On account of your deceit, and the circumstances you’ve created, I have terms you’re going to follow. If you don’t agree to those terms, then I will take your son away. It would be easy to do once a judge heard the details of your sordid life.

“First, you’ll have failed your drug test, which I can have happen with a few keystrokes. On top of that, you’re a washed-up dancer turned bartender, have a strung-out sister crashing in your atrocious apartment, and well, I don’t have to explain to you the shit I could cause with a phone call to your parents.

“I can see it in the papers now. ‘Many years later, the mystery is solved as to the disappearance of Clarissa Rosenthal and her sister, Sasha.’ ” Holding his hands up, he spreads them out. “The word ‘kidnapping’ would be in bold as the headline.”

Tears well up in my eyes, and my lower lip quivers.

“Tony was right; you’re evil.”

His fingers grip my chin and press harder this time.

“I knew he’d cause me grief from the grave. You and Tony Jr. are interruptions I don’t need, but my parents deserve to know their only grandchild.

“For that reason, I’ll allow this situation to disrupt my world. Besides, it will be good to have another male to carry on the family name.”

“Please, leave us be. Let me raise Liam. I promise I’m a good mother. I struggle financially, but he’s always cared for and loved.”

Desperation tips the scale, and my lukewarm tears tumble to my cool cheeks. Looking away, Ellis clears his throat and releases my chin.

“Money, right… I recommend you change the password to your bank account to something more challenging. It was quite easy to empty that miniscule nest egg of yours.”

From my dry throat, a sob emerges. He’s going to take Liam away and leave me homeless. I have no choice but to play by his rules, so I cough from my cry and suck in short breaths, attempting to collect my dignity. Sniffling, I pull a tissue from my purse and wipe my eyes.

“OK, I’ll do whatever you want. Please, please, don’t take my child from me.”

Snaking his fingers through my hair, his thumb skims along my cheekbone, wiping away the tears. He moves closer, his sultry breath inches from mine, and his eyes roam my face as if he’s admiring a gallery painting.

“There’s no need to cry. If you’re open to this, your life will be easier–better even. Do exactly as I say, and you won’t lose Liam.”

I should shove him away. Spit in his face. Anything other than what I’m doing, which is leaning into his hand at my cheek to savor his touch.

I’m emotionally fucked in the head, always finding myself attracted to the villain instead of someone nice, like my friend Christopher, for instance.

As if Ellis feels something, too, he withdraws his hand.

“First, you’re going to quit your job.”

“What? That’s crazy. I have to work.”

“Liam is a Burke. His mother is not going to be employed at a strip club. Instead, you can finish earning that worthless degree you’ve been working toward for years.”

“There’s nothing worthless about public service.”

An eye roll confirms his smugness.

“Then, in two weeks, you’ll move into my home. It’s over 15,000 square feet, so there’s plenty of room. You’ll like it. It’s much nicer than that dwelling you’re in now.”

“I can’t live with you. I don’t even know you, Liam will be scared, and I can’t give up my place. My sister has nowhere else to go.”

“Do as I say, and I’ll return your money. You can use it to keep your apartment.”

“If I’m not working, I’ll burn through that money in no time.”

“We’ll cross that bridge when the time comes. I’m also hiring a nanny to help with Liam’s care. He’ll have a tutor, as well.”

“A tutor? He’s three, Ellis, and I have an amazing sitter. Liam adores her.” My chin is grasped once more but gently this time. His thumb grazes across my bottom lip as he eyes it intently.

“Although it’s pointless for you to challenge me, I’m surprised by how much I like your attempts. I also enjoy hearing my name from these pouty red lips.”

I swallow, my throat further parched from the burning gaze I feel on me. “There are more terms you must agree to, an intimate one in particular, but we’ll save that conversation for a later date.”

What the hell? Does he think I’m going to be some kind of sex slave?

“Don’t touch me.” Jerking free, I huff and fling my head back against the seat. “I can’t believe this is happening.”

“You caused this. My brother had many less-than-desirable traits, but regardless, he deserved to be a part of his child’s life. Maybe he’d be alive today had he known of Liam’s existence.”

I cross my arms and glare at him.

“Tony hated you.”

“Your words can’t hurt me. I don’t feel things the way other people do.”

“That’s evident.”

“Get out of my car. A moving company will be arriving in two weeks to pack up your things. In the meantime, I advise that you separate what you’d like to keep with you, seeing as how the rest is going into storage.”

Shoving the door open, I step out. “Oh, and, Ms. Rose, since we both know you’re a runner, it’s important I state that you better stay put. If not, I will find you and remove Liam from your custody. With the luxury of a laptop, I can give you any identity I choose. You’ve been warned.”

“For the record, I hate you, too!” Slamming the door, I stand in the cold air and cry. The car drives away, and my head hangs in defeat. There is no way out for my sweet child and me. I’ll never forgive myself for getting involved with Tony Burke.