Page 160 of Collateral Damage
“And you’re rich white guys, so what’s your point?”
Lance’s smile turns razor sharp. “We didn’t actually bringyouhere to negotiate. We already know you don’t have any power. We only brought you here, because we need Cooper.”
My stomach drops.
If there’s one person Lance King wants revenge on right now, it’s got to be Cooper.
Maybe the gun’s not for me after all.
I grit my teeth, hating that I fell for this trap.
“Speaking of which,” Lance says smoothly, “he just arrived.”
My heart slams against my ribs, and tears prick my eyes. It doesn’t matter that I’m mad at Cooper—I love him, and I don’t want him to get hurt.
Lance grips his gun tighter, like he knows damn well he might have to use it.
A security guard deposits Cooper into the room, closing us inside, and those eyes I love so much sweep over the scene—first going to me, then to the gun, then back again.
In less than a second, we have an entire conversation without saying a word. He’s telling me to stay calm and not to do anything stupid, and I’m telling him he never should’ve come here, that this was a mistake.
A big one.
Cooper, still standing in the doorway, turns on Vale. “What do you want?”
“Cutting right to the chase, I see. Alright. I want my rightful and well-earned position at the top of Laurence, but if that’s not possible, then I want your father to step aside and give me King as my consolation prize.”
He’s out of his mind. I’d laugh if I wasn’t so scared.
“And if you don’t get your way?”
“You don’t want to know,” Jonathan interjects, and Cooper shoots him a glare.
“Don’t interrupt the grownups,” Cooper snaps.
Jonathan’s eyes go wide. “How dare you speak to me that way.”
“Shut up, Jonny,” Lance says. “For the love of God, let me handle this. I promised you’d walk into a high-power job after graduation, so let me make that happen.”
Jonathan sinks into himself, pouting like a child.
“And if I don’t get you into a position I have no authority over?” Coop barks out a laugh and strides farther into the room, sitting in the chair next to me.
“Hey, baby,” he says, leaning over and dropping a quick kiss to my lips, leaving me completely speechless. “Missed you.”
Vale slams his fist onto the desk, grabbing the gun. “Is this a joke to you? Pay attention.”
Cooper turns on him with a raised eyebrow. “Put that gun down if you want to talk. You think I’d be stupid enough to come here without informing someone first? The police will arrive soon if my father doesn’t hear from me. So why don’t we get this over with, so I can take my girl home?”
Vale’s eyes bulge. “You don’t think I’ll hurt her? I warned you I would if you?—”
“I know you’d hurt her,” he growls, leaning across the desk, seemingly unaffected by the gun pointed at his chest. “I know you hired muscle the night Sybil got attacked. Tell me, were you trying to kill her, or are you a sick fuck who enjoys battering women?”
A jolt of shock collides with memories of that night. Vale hired that man to hurt me? “Oh my God,” I whisper. “You tried to have me killed.”
Vale frowns. “Of course not.”
Cooper’s voice doesn’t waver. “Don’t lie. I know it was you. I saw the transaction and?—”
