Page 51 of The Kingpin's Call Girl

“What the hell,” she says, momentarily dropping the blank act.

She moves the dress to stretch a different part over the bowl, and I erase that part, too.

“How does a guy like you know a trick like this?”

“We all know this trick, Edie.”

“A lot of wine spills?”

I keep up my precise operation until it’s gone.

She raises her gaze to mine. “Why are you doing this for me?”

“Hold it up for me to see.”

She holds it up for me, trembling. “Wow. Thank you.”

There’s a knock at the door.

“Yeah?”

A woman’s voice. “Polkov.”

I hand the wet dress out, exchanging it for the garment bag labeled Polkov’s Dry Cleaning.

“She’ll finish it up for you. This is something in your size. No guarantees on style.”

“What kind of dry cleaner is open in the middle of the night? Did they open special just for?—”

“I care for what’s mine,” I say.

“That’s very kind of you.”

“It’s not about kindness.”

She pulls off the plastic bag. The dress is simple. Pale blue. Her size, best I could guess. And I asked for a soft color. I suddenly don’t like her in the loud colors.

“This is a really nice dress. Wow. Thank you—that was so kind.”

“Kind? We’re in a transaction, not a relationship. Your ass is mine to use as I please, and you crying doesn’t do it for me.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. You’re right; making sure my dress wasn’t ruined isn’t kind. You don’t have a good bone in your body.”

“That’s right.”

“You learn that wine trick in military school?”

I slide my finger over her cheek, and she comes alive with a shiver. Her whole body is probably goosebumps. “Somebody’s been googling me.”

“A girl likes to know who she’s dealing with.”

I study her face. A different man might think she’s here gathering information. Maybe she is gathering information. It doesn’t matter. I’ll be gone in a few days.

“It wasn’t a military school, and the trick isn’t for wine.”

And there it is—that edge of judgment as she processes that bit of information and realizes it’s for blood. “Oh.”

“Tell me again what you think of criminals.”

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