Page 19 of The Sweetest Devotion

Cain hadn’t said or done anything weird, but he was still odd. I’d turned him down and he went behind my back and manipulated my father into handing me over. He didn’t even seem apologetic about it.

I set my water on the coffee table. “I ran because I didn’t want to be there, because I don’t want to be engaged to this man.”

Jadyn picked up her cell phone. “What’s his name again?”

“Cain Carter,” I told her. “He’s the newest CEO of the Cartier Casino. He’s been on a few blogs, but he’s super low key. No one knows a thing about him.”

That was what made me uneasy about Cain. The very mystery of who he was and where’d he come from. The illegitimate heir to the late James Carter appeared like a ghost within thin air and he was causing a stir amongst the power circle of all of California and Nevada.

Jadyn began cyberstalking Cain as she sat up and scoured her phone.

“He looks good in a suit,” she observed as she took in a photo of Cain standing outside the Cartier Casino.

“Nothelping,” I pointed out.

“You could have it a lot worse. I mean, they set you up with a fine ass fiancé at least,” Jadyn said with a pitiful shrug.

On paper, Cain was immaculate, wealthy, attractive, quiet, and reserved, but in reality, I wasn’t buying it. “There’s something off about him, Jay. Something…lethal.”

I couldn’t prove it, but I just knew.

Jadyn continued to scroll through her phone, disappointment soon covering her face. “He seems squeaky clean online.” She flashed me yet another photo of Cain at the Cartier. In it, he was standing with some pop legend, one of the many performers who did residencies at their hotel and club.

Cain was about his business. No drama. No legal issues. No major headlines—outside our recent engagement.

By the looks of it, I would be nothing more than a trophy for Cain. A shiny object fit for his ego and image. Arm candy he got to fuck whenever he wanted.

I paused as I sank back against the sofa cushion.

Maybe, maybe I was writing Cain off too quickly. Keith had seemed scary, but then he wasn’t.

God, he wasn’t.

“At least you got options,” Jadyn tried to reason.

Option #1: Put my foot down against this marriage, be disinherited, and be out on the street.

Option #2: Make nice with my parents and become betrothed to Vegas and LA’s hottest eligible bachelor.

Option #3: Drink bleach.

Sure, my final option was purely over-the-top, but it sounded better than my alternatives. Really, I was still holding out I could talk my way out of this. That my parents would see the error in their decision. This alliance could be done withoutmyhand in marriage.

“Yeah,” I said hopefully.

“I mean, thinking positive, maybe he’s not a horrible guy?” Jadyn tried to think on the bright side of things.

“Oh sure, this is a fairy tale all right. The one where the huntsman hands Little Red Riding Hood to the Big Bad Wolf instead of protecting her.”

Jadyn laughed and took a sip of her wine. Soon, she pouted. “I want to be someone’s Darling Nikki.”

Confused, I scrunched up my face. “You want to be…caught self-loving in the lobby?”

Jadyn chuckled. “Okay, maybe not an exhibitionist, but I’d love to be this sexual oasis or goddess. Nikkiownedher sexuality, and I just know she left a mark.Bet you this Keith guy remembers you.”

Iwould remember this sex for the rest of my days. “What about you? Anything new and exciting in your life?”

Jadyn groaned. “Talking to new men is exhausting. They’re either too direct or too dry. There’s never any middle.”

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