“But why? It’s not like you need the money. Why would you degrade yourself like that? I saw that guy pawing at you. Can you imagine what Elliot would have done if he’d seen the same thing? I’d be posting bail on his ass, that’s what, because he’d have torn the guy’s arm off.”
I suppressed a wince, thanking my lucky stars it’d been Ryker who’d spotted me. It wasn’t like I’d expected them to be there. I knew Ryker owned a few clubs in various cities around the world, but, really, what were the chances? I felt like Rick Blaine in Casablanca. Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, he walks into mine.
I hit back. “But it’s okay for all those other women who work there, and in your other clubs, to ‘degrade’ themselves, but not me, huh? Why not me? What’s so special about me?”
“You’re my best friend’s kid sister, that’s what’s fucking special,” he roared, showing an unusual fit of temper.
If he calls me a kid one more time… “I am not a child.”
He scraped a hand over his face and muttered, “No, you most certainly are not.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
He ignored my question, staring me down. Neither of us was willing to give an inch, nor to show weakness of any kind. We were both as stubborn as the other in our own way, although I was well aware my stubbornness often presented itself as irascibility whereas Ryker’s came across as commanding.
Pfft. Being a woman sucks sometimes.
“I need to go back to my place and get some clothes.”
Ryker slid his eyes over to me. “You’re going nowhere. I’m not letting you out of my sight until we’re back in the US. Where are you staying?”
Ignoring the flush of heat through my core at the intensity of his gaze, I reluctantly gave him the address. He took out his phone and made a call to… someone, instructing them to clear out my hotel room and fetch my clothes to this location. I waited for him to end his conversation.
“I’m not going back to America, Ryker. I’m staying in Japan.”
“The hell you are.”
I tightened my jaw, clenched my hands into fists. “You can’t force me to do anything.”
His lips curled at the edges, so subtle, almost evil. “Oh, darling, we both know that’s a lie.”
I hated it when he called me darling because my idiotic heart always skipped a beat. The stupid thing couldn’t tell the difference between a term of endearment and a sarcastic put-down.
“Oh yeah?” I snorted. “Good luck muscling me onto a flight. I think one of the airline staff might notice I’m being coerced.”
“That’s what private planes are for.”
“I’ll fight you every step of the way.”
He scratched behind his ear. “I believe you. Which is why you either capitulate, or I’ll walk down the hall and fetch Elliot. Your choice, Athena. Me or your brother.” He released a glimmer of a smile and tapped his watch. “Ticktock, little bird.”
Bastard. He’d cornered me. Cut off my options. Presented me with Hobson’s choice.
“I hate you.”
He rose from the couch, crossing over to where I sat. He rested his fine ass on the arm of the chair.
“I should put you over my knee and give you the hiding of your life for this,” he murmured, tucking a lock of hair behind my ear.
I broke out into goose bumps both at his words and the tenderness of his caress. Closing my eyes, I breathed him in, and the faint scent of cologne mingled with Ryker’s own scent—one I’d memorized until it was indelibly inked on my senses—made my fingertips itch to explore.
An ache spread through my chest. Ryker always managed to tip me off-kilter. Even when he pissed me off, when he behaved unreasonably, when he made me hate him, I still wanted him. But when he showed kindness, I couldn’t resist. Like an addict craving their fix, I leaned in, desperate for contact. He stroked my cheek with the back of his hand, the touch of his skin so gentle that a glimmer of hope sparked within me. Maybe there was still something there, a flicker of attraction, one I could nurture and turn into a flame and then a blazing inferno.
“Hiroto was blackmailing me.”
Ryker’s eyebrows shot up, almost disappearing into his hairline. “Excuse me?”
I heaved a deep sigh. “He caught me stealing his wallet.”
It had been as a result of a game of truth or dare with a bunch of backpackers I’d met on my travels. I’d been asked to describe my first sexual experience. I chose dare because the thought of sharing the best and worst night of my life with a bunch of virtual strangers brought me out in hives. Of course, I wasn’t really going to steal the wallet. I’d intended to return it as soon as I proved I’d achieved the dare. When Hiroto caught me, I told him the truth, but he refused to believe me.
“He threatened to call the police, said he knew people high up in the Japanese police force, that he’d have my ass thrown in jail for years if I didn’t do what he wanted. I believed him. He told me I had to complete a full month working in the club and then my debt would be paid. I’ve only been there a few days, Ryker, I promise. No one touched me. Not like that. Never like that.”
Ryker got to his feet, scraped a hand through his hair. “Why, Athena? Why would you steal? You have enough money to buy Japan, for fuck’s sake.”
“Wrong,” I replied flatly. “Elliot has enough money to buy Japan. I have nothing. I am nothing. I’m no one. I don’t matter.”
Ryker’s face twisted, but before he could patronize me with empty platitudes, I stood and walked briskly into the bedroom, closing the door firmly behind me. I climbed under the covers and held my breath, waiting for Ryker to follow.
He didn’t.
5
Ryker
I tossed and turned all night. Athena’s parting salvo kept running through my head. I have nothing. I am nothing. I don’t matter.
Those statements couldn’t be further from the truth, and yet they’d come from the heart. She really, truly believed every word.
So many questions…
What did she mean when she referred to having nothing, being nothing?
She was everything.
And why did Athena think those things about herself? What was going on in that gorgeous head of hers that made her truly believe she didn’t matter? She had two parents who loved her unconditionally, a brother who assumed the role of genie when it came to her. Whatever she wanted, he fell over himself to give her. Elliot would move mountains if it brought Athena an extra hour of happiness.
And me. She had me.
Except she didn’t know that, did she? And even worse, I couldn’t tell her. If I did, she’d harbor false hope of something more. Yet it could never be, not in the way she deserved. Sure, we could fuck each other raw… but we didn’t have a future. Elliot would never accept a relationship between me and Athena.
How did I know this? Because once, a few years ago, he caught me checking Athena out after one too many glasses of champagne. He sidled up to me and stood there, saying nothing, his eyes sparkling like cut glass. When I’d asked him what the fuck he was looking at, he’d said, “A dead man if you ever lay a finger on my sister.”