Page 50 of His Kingdom

“Okay, well, we’re going to be up here for a while. You know, girl stuff. So why don’t you go and… I don’t know… do what it is you do before you were forced to babysit me,” I suggest.

“You have a babysitter?” Evie asks.

I roll my eyes. “Louie seems to think the city isn’t safe and that I shouldn’t be walking around alone,” I explain. “Just pretend he’s not here. You’ll get used to it. Now, let’s do this makeover.” I’m hoping my sacrifice of being her personal Barbie doll is going to keep Evie from asking about Louie or his insistent need to give me a bodyguard.

“Yes. Let’s do this.” Evie drags me back into the bedroom. Her bag gets emptied onto the bed, the contents of which spill out everywhere. I stare at all the makeup, brushes, and clothes. “I’ve got everything we need. But we should video call Rachel. She shouldn’t miss out on this.”

“You’re right.” I smile. “Thank you again for coming here. I didn’t know how much I needed you.”

“I know. I’m often underrated. But don’t stress. I’m here.” Evie grins, then it drops. “Seriously, how are you really handling all of this? Have you spoken to Melanie?”

“No, how can I?”

“I don’t know, but she’s your sister. That’s not going away,” Evie says.

“She slept with my fiancé. Even if I was going to call it off, Melanie didn’t know that and she still slept with Owen. How long were they even going at it behind my back?” I ask.

“I don’t know. Ididn’tknow. Or I would have told you right after I killed them both and torched their bodies,” Evie says with a smile. “There is no murder if there are no bodies, right?”

“Right. I just… She was my best friend. Other than you and Rachel, of course, and I honestly thought nothing could come between us.”

“I know.” Evie sits on the bed. “I don’t know what to say, but I do think you’re going to find a way to move on from this somehow. I’m not saying you should forgive her. In fact, I don’t think you should. But I do think eventually, for your own sake, you should talk to her.”

“Maybe.” I shrug as I pick up my phone and hit the video call button next to Rachel’s name.

“Hey! I can’t believe you’re both in Vegas without me,” she answers. “But are you okay? I’m really sorry. I know we don’t like him right now, but he was a big part of your past.”

I look to Evie to see if she has any idea what Rachel is talking about. She shakes her head and lifts a shoulder. I return my focus to my phone. “What are you talking about?” I ask Rachel, positioning the camera so it shows both Evie and me on the screen.

“Ah, Owen. You didn’t hear?”

“Hear what?” Evie chimes in.

“Owen is dead,” Rachel says, using her well-practiced doctor’s tone, “He was found in a hotel room in Vegas. He overdosed.”

I blink. He’s dead. I blink again. No. Louie wouldn’t have done that. But then his words from last night play over in my head:I won’t ever let anyone hurt you, Charlotte.Holy shit, Louie killed him.

“Charlotte, are you okay?” Rachel’s voice brings me back to the present. “I’m sorry. Of course you’re not. That’s a stupid question.”

“I’m fine. Evie is about to give me a makeover. You wanna watch?” I ask her.

“Ah, sure,” Rachel says.

Setting the phone up on the bedside table, I turn to Evie. “Make me as hot as you possibly can.”

I want to look good. If I look my best, maybe I’ll feel my best—or at the very least better about the fact that I’m sleeping with the person who murdered my ex. And worse than that is the fact that I don’t want to stop seeing Louie, even knowing the truth. Or what I’m assuming is the truth…

ChapterTwenty-Five

I’ve been avoiding Charlotte, not because I don’t want to see her. It’s because of how fucking much I want to see her. I spilled my guts last night—early this morning. Told her things I’ve never told anyone, and the fact I did it so easily scares the shit out of me.

What else am I going to spill to this woman? Am I going to admit that I’m exactly the monster she suspects me of being? Tell her all the ways I break the fucking law? Give her ammunition to use against me? I can’t be that goddamn stupid.

I need to remember that as much as I want to keep her, as much as this woman is mine, I can’t trust her with all of my shit. I can’t trust anyone that much unless they’re as knee-deep in it as I am. That’s why Carlo, Sammie, and I work so well together.

There’s an element of trust between us. Not blind trust. I wouldn’t put it past them to stab me in the back. Anyone is capable of that. I don’t think they would, but it’s a possibility I’m aware of. I watch everyone in my life. Always on the lookout for a traitor, someone trying to take what I’ve built.

A text notification has me picking up my phone. My thumb swipes at the screen to open the message.

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