Page 11 of Dark Knight

"I think so. I was taken to hurt somebody that cared about me."

"Are you going to ask me to just let you go, so you can be reunited with this person that cares about you?" The way he said it almost sounded like he was jealous, but I knew that was just me imagining things.

"You don't want me to?" I asked, answering his question with a question.

"Well, I think we should talk about repayment of the debt first. After all, I've saved your life if the man chasing you was as bad as you say."

"Your other friend," I began hesitantly. "He seemed to know who was chasing me, so you must know who he was. He called him by a name..." I wished I could remember what the other guy had said.

"You're more coherent than I expected." Dylan grinned, and it was disarming, changing my perception of him completely. His eyes crinkled at the edges and he looked years younger than he had moments before. He reached out and grabbed a burger from the stack, unwrapping it.

"Do you expect me to not remember the orgasm you gave me in the car?" I asked, and Dylan smirked. Hudson just raised an eyebrow.

"I would have been disappointed if you didn't. The last thing I want is to give mediocre orgasms."

I picked up a fry and waved it in his direction. "You don't. I can assure you of that."

He took a bite of his burger and chewed thoughtfully. "So how do you propose paying back your debt? From what I gathered, the man who purchased you paid a pretty penny for you, which means that debt is now on my head. As such, we need to resolve this before you go anywhere."

"What can I do to repay it?" I wanted to add that it didn't look as though he was hurting for cash, but I kept my mouth shut.

He finished chewing the bite of burger he'd taken and swallowed before he said, "I happen to own a few businesses. You could be an employee at one of those for a while if you’d like."

"What kind of businesses? I'm not going to be a hooker, if that's what you're asking. I may have fooled around with you in the car, but that doesn't mean I'd spread my legs for just anybody. As you said, I was high as balls."

Hudson must have laughed or something because suddenly he was choking on the bite of the burger he had taken, which was his second one or maybe even third. The man seemed to have at least two stomachs. Where it all went, I had no idea. Both he and Dylan looked athletic and muscular, clearly not ones for lounging around.

"I don’t intend to make you a hooker. I'd rather explore those skills for myself, thank you." His eyes flashed with desire, the heat in them suddenly making my own skin warm, and I wondered if I was blushing.

I couldn't deny that I dreaded what he would have me do to pay back the debt. A knot of tension formed in my stomach the whole time we talked. Or maybe that was just the burger I had inhaled earlier. If he actually wanted me to work a legitimate job, that couldn't be too bad, could it?

7

Evie

"So you're saying if I work at one of your businesses, which you've yet to describe, that you'll let me go? I can work off this debt?" I asked, pushing for clarification.

Dylan tilted his head to the side slightly. "I never said I'd let you go."

Fear trickled down my spine like an ice cube melting on a hot summer day. "Do you intend to keep me?" The question sounded harsher than I meant.

A cunning smile curled his lips. "I'll keep you until you pay off your debt. Besides, if I let you run around in public right now without any protection, who knows what could happen. That man you were running from, and the organization he belongs to, might very well find you again. And if they take you, then that's me out of the payment for the debt." He shrugged at the end, as if we were discussing whether or not to go out to lunch, not my freedom.

"Would I be allowed to return to school?"

"Maybe in time. It's too dangerous for you right now, though. The organization that purchased you at the auction is not known for its leniency or kindness. They're known more for Molotov cocktails and guns."

I swallowed thickly. Of course they were. "Can I at least go and get my things from my room?"

"Let me think about it for now. Hudson's going to take you shopping. I'm paying, and a portion of it will go back onto your debt. But that doesn't mean I want you to pick out cheap shit. If you're going to be working at one of my clubs, you need to look the part. And if you're going to be wandering around this house, you need to look the part as well. I can't have people thinking that you're a maid or a member of staff."

Hudson wiped his mouth with a napkin before demanding, "Why do I have to take her?" His voice cut through my spiraling inner dialogue. I wasn't sure if I'd gone from the frying pan into the fire or just from one fire to another fire to another fire. At this point, it didn't really matter, either way I was burning.

At least Dylan wasn't being harsh. He wasn't beating me or demanding sex. He was buying me new clothes and feeding me which was nice, even if he was going to force me to live with him while I paid off my debt. I could understand wanting to keep an asset around. It didn't hurt my reasoning that he was easy on the eyes either. I wouldn't mind spending some time watching him, or Hud for that matter.

I hadn't seen Ty since I ran into the three of them at the auction. When the door burst open, I half expected to see him as though he'd somehow been summoned by my thoughts, but it wasn't him. It was someone new.

The man who entered was nothing like what I expected. His shoulders were slightly hunched. Thick-rimmed square glasses surrounded eyes that were cast down, watching the floor as he practically shuffled in. A hoodie covered most of his upper body, and he had the hood up, though it didn't hide his bleached blond hair with dark roots. Baggy jeans covered his lower half, but where I expected to see boots or Vans, I saw slippers.

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