Page 50 of King of Envy

I came up behind Ayana, my body coiled with pent-up tension. Hank was already on my radar after their limo call in California, and I’d waited patiently for the right time to strike.

But my patience was fraying, and if he didn’t remove the threat from his voice when he talked to her, I was going to rip his tongue out, patience be damned.

Hank opened his mouth, but it froze into a shocked O when he saw me. To his credit, he stood his ground this time instead of running off like he had at the Vault.

“Mr. Markovic. What a surprise.” He recovered, his gaze sliding between me and Ayana. A curious gleam entered his eyes. “I didn’t realize you and Ayana were so close.”

“We ran into each other earlier, and he was kind enough to give me a ride home in the rain.” She responded before I could. “I invited him up so he could dry off. Now, if there’s nothing else you’d like to discuss, I have a kickboxing class in an hour.”

“Of course. I wouldn’t want to get in between you and your workout.” Hank’s lips pursed. “It’s a shame you’ll be missing Paris and Milan this year because of your wedding.”

A warning noise rumbled up my throat.

He flinched, and he took a small step back before quickly adding, “A wedding which I’m sure will be beautiful.” He glanced at me again. Behind a veil of fear, the gleam in his eyes turned speculative.

I bet he was already spinning a thousand stories about why I was in Ayana’s apartment—stories he would then use to manipulate her into doing his bidding.

I’d met men like Hank before. I’d killed men like Hank before. I knew exactly how they operated.

He must’ve sensed the danger brewing in the air because he jerked his gaze away and left with a hasty goodbye.

Ayana shut the door with more force than necessary. She faced me, a crinkle of irritation digging into her brow. “Sorry about that. I had no idea he was going to drop by.”

Does he make a habit of showing up at your house unannounced?

“No, which is why I was so surprised.” She sighed. “He got wind that I visited a law firm a few weeks ago. They’re known for getting their clients out of iron-clad contracts, and he suspected I had plans to leave Beaumont.”

A cold whisper rattled through my veins. My team couldn’t confirm my hunch about the founder, which worried me more than if they’d proved me correct. Either I was overthinking the connection I’d made with the dossier, or Emmanuelle Beaumont was in league with people good enough to wipe her history clean.

Either way, Ayana was better off without the agency, but they wouldn’t take too kindly to losing her.

Are you? Leaving Beaumont,I clarified.

She hesitated. “I’m thinking about it.” Caution underlaid her words. “There are a lot of considerations at play, which is why I consulted a lawyer. I didn’t mention it to Hank for obvious reasons. If I stay with Beaumont but they find out I’d been thinking about leaving, the career repercussions would be…dire.”

I wasn’t familiar with the intricacies of the modeling world, but I knew that certain agents wielded disproportionate power. Emmanuelle Beaumont was one of them.

I studied Ayana. She’d curled her hand around the doorknob again, perhaps unconsciously, and she met my gaze so steadily it was as if she were forcing herself to make eye contact so I wouldn’t think she was lying.

She wasn’t happy with Beaumont—that much was clear. But based on the few interactions I’d witnessed between her and Hank, I bet she’d already made up her mind about leaving. She just didn’t want to say it out loud yet.

Why do you want to leave?

“Turning the tables on me with the questions, I see.” Ayana’s brief smile faded. “I’ve been with Beaumont my entire career. They’ve done a lot for me, but I think it may be time for me to branch out. Plus, Hank is…Our personalities and working styles aren’t a good match.”

There was more to the story than she was telling me. There always was.

I’d heard horror stories of the way agencies treated some of their models. Perhaps Ayana’s success protected her from the worst of it, but even the biggest names weren’t immune to exploitation and abuse in an industry with so few regulations.

The general public thought celebrities could do whatever they wanted, but many were beholden to their agencies, labels, and other powers that be.

Something dark and insidious stirred in my gut. I needed to dig deeper into Ayana’s relationship with Beaumont, but right now, I had a more pressing question: if Ayana didn’t want her agency to know she was leaving, how did Hank find out about her visit to the lawyer?

“I’m not sure how he knew I met with a lawyer.” It was like she’d read my mind. She dropped her hand from the doorknob and touched the pendant at her throat. “But I shouldn’t be surprised. He knows everything.”

My eyes narrowed.Explain.

Her hesitation lasted a beat longer than normal. “He just has a way of finding things out,” she finally said. “For example, he knew you were with me in California instead of Jordan. He mentioned it during our call, but I hadn’t said a word to him about it. There are other things too—little details about places I’ve gone and people I’ve met outside work. I haven’t asked him about it because I don’t want him to know it bothers me.” She let out a rueful laugh. “Maybe I’m being paranoid, but I feel like if I call him out on it, he’ll double down. And he’ll be more careful about whatever he’s using to keep track of me so I’ll never find out how he does it.”

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