Page 145 of Indulge
“I ran from London six months ago,” Bella says. “My ex found out about the debts, and I had to disappear. I need work—anything that pays well. I need to disappear ideally.”
She’s improvising beautifully. But whether Eve believes it is another thing.
The woman leans back, legs crossed, cigarette perched between crimson lips. “So tragic,” she purrs. “Girls with your face always end up here one way or another. What makes you think you can handle my kind of business?”
My pulse spikes. I can practically feel Reggie vibrating beside me.
“Come on, baby,” I whisper under my breath. “Don’t give her too much.”
Bella’s smile is perfect. So innocent. Just what she would be looking for. “Because I’ve done worse,” she says. “And I’m tired of men deciding what I’m worth. I just want to make money. Real money. You tell me where that is, and I’ll go.”
“Jesus Christ,” Reggie growls. “She’s pressing too hard.”
“Yeah,” I mutter, eyes glued to the screen. “But she’s getting her talking.”
Eve’s laugh cuts through the audio feed.
“Oh, I like you,” she says. “Desperate. Pretty. A touch of fire. We could use that energy in one of our sister venues.”
“Sister venues.” I catch Reggie’s glance; there it is. Confirmation. Another location that could get us closer to The Preacher.
“Ask which one,” I whisper, even though she can’t hear me.
Bella tilts her head. “Which one would pay best?”
“Depends,” Eve says. “How much of yourself are you willing to sell?”
I feel my knuckles crack around the armrest.
Reggie’s breathing gets heavier. “If she touches her?—”
“She won’t.” I say to calm him.
The feed flickers again as Madame Eve stands, walking behind Bella, fingers brushing the back of her chair. The smile never leaves her face.
“I could make you a fortune, darling,” she says, voice dripping with honey. “But the best money? That’s earned off loyalty. And loyalty… must be tested.”
My chest tightens.
Drago looks up. “You want me to pull her out?”
Reggie’s voice is rough, raw. “Not yet. She’s close. But let’s start our extraction plan now to be ready.”
I can’t look away. Bella’s playing her role to perfection, but every muscle in my body’s screaming to break that door down.
Because I know what it means when a woman like Eve says tested.
And if she hurts my girl, I won’t be able to stop myself from going in there and killing that bitch myself.
70
BELLA
The air in Madame Eve’s office feels thick enough to choke on.
She circles behind me, heels clicking slowly against the marble floor, every step deliberate. Like a predator pacing a cage she already owns.
“You say you’ve done worse,” she says, her accent purring against the back of my neck. “I find that hard to believe. You’re adorable.”
