Page 38 of Dark Obsession
Jenna.
I should just run. I had to run from her. Or force her away from me. What a bastard I'd been. Walking around dreaming about the pretty girl being more to me than a fantasy or a quick fuck for a night.
She deserved so much more than I could ever give. Or rather, more than I would ever be. What would she think if I told her that I was a murderer? That I'd snuffed the life out of a friendly young billionaire four years before? There's no way in all of hell that she'd stay with me.
So don't tell her.
"You close with your dad?" The guy's voice brought me out of my thoughts.
"Not particularly." I glanced down at the dark liquid in my glass, hoping he would move on from the topic.
"Paul? Can you come here, honey?" Daniella's voice reached us, and I held a sigh of relief behind my teeth.
"Sure, honey." He moved from the edge of the couch across from me. "I'll be right back. The bourbon is over there. Help yourself to it. Make yourself at home. You're family now."
"Thank you, sir." I took another drink and waited until he walked from the room to stand up. My stomach ached at the thought of these good people having a clue who I was, or better yet, who the fuck Ashley was. It was sickening all around. And yet... I'd keep doing it until something better came up.
Poverty hadn't left me untarnished, and I would sell the veins from my arms before going back to it. Being poor meant not having the power to fight back when the wolf showed up at your door. And I bent over and ate dirt when he fucked me and mine.
Never. I wasn't ever tasting that kind of weakness again. I'd kill every rich bastard in the city before I did. I'd rot in the state penitentiary and beat mother fuckers from sun up to sun down for coming near me.
"Never again," I whispered and rolled my shoulders before tossing back the rest of the liquor and letting it burn my throat.
I couldn't hear voices down the hall, but leaving the office and wandering around the house seemed a little too cocky for even me. I forced myself across the room to check out the various pictures the DA had hanging on his wall.
"Of all people in New York City." I ran my hand down my face and set my glass down on the counter near the liquor. There were tons of pictures, most of them of Paul and some famous person who'd come to New York for something from what I could tell.
The one on his desk was facing away from me, but my curiosity got the best of me. I wanted to know what Darek looked like. Was he better looking than me? Better in bed than me?
I scoffed at the thought and picked up the picture as the DA walked back in.
"Oh, that's my family. It's about four years ago, but everyone looks the same." He moved up beside me and pointed at the faces, covering them up as he said their name.
"That's my wife, Daniella, here is Darek, and my beautiful girls. Kayla and Jenna."
My heart almost stopped in my chest as he moved his thick finger off the face of the girls. I pulled the picture closer as my blood ran cold.
"These are your girls?" I forced myself to sound normal. Natural.
"Yeah. Kayla stays here with us, but my Jenna... she wants to make the world a better place all by herself. She refuses our name, our money and most of our invitations to come to dinner. I love her so much, but I wish she would stop fighting against the grind and let me help her."
I couldn't find enough air in the room. "Does she work for you now?"
"Me? No." He chuckled and took the picture from me before placing it back on his desk. "She works at De Luca. It's this little-"
"-shitty hole-in-the-wall coffee shop. The coffee is terrible." I reached out and gripped the edge of his desk.
"Yeah." His brow contorted. "Hey, you okay?"
"Yeah. I just need to go to the restroom. Something I ate last night is-" I rubbed my stomach and followed him out into the hallway, my eyes wide, my senses on full alert. Was Jenna in the fucking house with me?
No goddamn way we offedherolder brother. No way.
"It's just right down here. No rush, okay? I'll check on you in a few minutes, and-"
"Is Jenna here?"
"Um. Yeah. She was." He glanced around and turned back to me. "Do you know her?"
