Page 191 of Tattooed Love

“Guessing you don’t want to be overheard?” he said over his shoulder.

“You’re right.”

He cracked open his bedroom door and then held it open for me.

“They wouldn’t dare come up here if they want to keep breathing,” Troy said, and gestured for me to head in.

So, how do I go about this? How could I say that one very large underworld figure wanted to go into a partnership with me? That he wanted to share his business with me? His men? His money? Everything? He basically was offering me everything he had.

As if we were entering into marriage.

Troy sat down on the edge of the bed next to me, and I suddenly felt more nervous.

“Ok Amber, you have my attention. Tell me what’s wrong,” he said calmly, like he had all the answers to my problems.

Ok… time to explain my situation.

***

Troy stayed quiet as I told him everything. Every detail. Starting with who Tae was and then everything else just tumbled out somehow.

I had just finished telling him about the partnership, and I was waiting for his words of wisdom. God, I needed him to say something! Not just prompt me to keep going and explaining.

“So, Jax knows?” Troy finally said something!

“He knew I was working for Tae, yes.”

“Explains our gun deal and why he was so firm on it.” Troy dragged his hands down his face and sighed. “Well, have you told him about the partnership?”

“Tae said I could tell my brothers. When it comes to Tae, a detail like that is important.”

“So, you aren’t going to tell him?”

Why was he so focused on whether I told Jax or not? “Why does it matter if he knows?”

“Because he loves you,” Troy said matter of factly. “More than I thought he was capable of.”

I swallowed hard. Hearing Troy say he thought Jax really loved me, well that had my head spinning for a second. “Still doesn’t impact the decision.” I tied my hair up.

“Tae is basically offering you marriage, Amber.”

“It’s a partnership, not marriage.”

“You told him you didn’t do relationships?” Troy said, arching an eyebrow at me.

“Yes.”

“This is Tae’s way of getting you to be his wife, without being his wife. This is his way of locking you down on his terms.”

I didn’t think of it like that. “He said it was just business.”

He scoffed. “It isn’t business and a man like him doesn’t just offer a deal like that. Unless...”

“Unless what?”

Troy looked me in the eye. “Unless he is in love with you.” He groaned. “Why do you attract bad men!”

“I really don’t know.” I was dumbfounded. I had no idea why I seemed to always fall in love with men that had the power to hurt me, but I didn’t love Tae, did I?

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