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  Logan knew she’d do it. He wasn’t giving her a choice. He wasn’t surprised she knew about the key, which meant he was right about her. He didn’t give her the whole plan. He just gave her the idea, in case he was wrong about her, and she turns around to tell Joel. He’d give her time to get used to the idea before he put it to work. He’d need to make it as easy as possible for her to copy the files, and if she were caught, he’d need to make sure he was there to get her and her daughter out.

  Getting the key from Joel would give him everything he needed. The only way Mia would get close enough to take it would be to give herself to him; he didn’t like it, but it was necessary. Anyone who could get close enough to Joel would be loyal to Joel. Mia, however, wants out of Joel’s control. She has the perfect motivation for the job.

  Everyone had to play their part. Nothing’s free. Especially not freedom.

  Unlike most men in his position, he was true to his word and had mutual respect between the people he did business with. Operation Fuck Joel Clarion was a business deal between him and her, and he didn’t fuck over people who did jobs for him. He’ll hold up his end of the deal with Mia, and then it’s business back to normal, doing what he did best: running the streets he’d taken from his father

  Mia peeked into Paige’s room. The hall light through the opened doorway was enough for her to see her sleeping daughter. Their one bedroom apartment was all Joel was willing to give them. It was nothing compared to Joel’s mansion. The small room, meant to be a den that’s about half the size of the bedroom, was converted into another bedroom for Paige. Since there was no door, Mia had hung a sparkly pink curtain to give Paige’s room some privacy. Not that it mattered, the curtain was always pushed to the side, and Mia’s bedroom door was never closed, but it gave Paige a sense of independence, having her own room.

  Paige looked like her father, but that did nothing to dim the love Mia felt for her. Paige was far from being a regular seven-year-old, always serious—even in her sleep, she didn’t look completely relaxed. Joel’s volatile nature was a constant worry for the both of them.

  Logan was giving Mia a chance to change their lives. If he was true to his word, she’d have a chance to give her daughter the life she deserved. Mia wanted to. She wasn’t worried about the risk to herself.

  No. Mia was worried about what would happen to Paige if anything were to happen to her. She didn’t have anyone she could trust, no one to take care of Paige. Logan offered her a deal. If she helped him take down Joel, he’d get her and Paige out, and if anything were to happen to Mia, he’d added the provision that he’d make sure Paige was away from Joel.

  Could she trust him?

  Chapter Five

  “That’s all you told him?” Joel demanded. The heavily beaten man, sitting across from him, cowers at the sound of Joel’s voice. Mitch was a good accountant, his best accountant actually, but that won’t save him from this fuck up.

  “I swear, Joel. I told him I don’t know anything.” Mitch’s face was so fucked up Joel had a hard time making out what the man was saying. “I told him I don’t know anything about what he’s saying. I’m just counting money. That’s it.”

  “Good.”

  “I swear—”

  “I heard ya, Mitch. You did good.” Joel nodded, signaling he’s done with the man.

  “Thank you, Joel. Thank y—” Mitch didn’t get to finish his sentence. Ray stepped up behind the begging man and snapped his neck.

  “Get him out of here before he pisses all over my floor,” Joel demanded.

  Ray motioned for the men to deal with the body.

  Joel liked Mitch, one of the few he actually trusted, but he couldn’t allow the man to live after he’d lost Joel nearly a quarter of a million dollars.

  “Do you believe him?” Ray asked.

  “I’d say yes, but Mitch would say anything to save his ass. Change the money route. Slade is looking for his money, he’s not going to find it. Find me something on Slade too or his second. That son of a bitch won’t steal from me and get away with it.”

  Ray didn’t bother reminding Joel he’d stolen from Slade first. Ray thought Joel fucked up by not only stealing Logan Slade’s money, but by killing one of his men. Ray had been with Joel since the beginning, taking over other territories, eliminating other bosses, one by one. He was the muscle to Joel’s brain, but even he knew going after Slade wasn’t a good idea. It was too soon; he didn’t think they had enough intel on him to make a move.

  But taking the million dollars from Slade had been easy, almost too easy, so maybe he was wrong.

  If Joel were to believe what Mitch told them, Slade didn’t know who hit him. He’s looking for the closest targets first, and the next territory just happened to be Joel. Maybe Joel should act outraged and call Slade out. That would make him look like he’s on defense.

  “Make noise,” he ordered. “Make the men bitch about how I’m outraged that I’ve been attacked without provocation. Make Slade think he has the wrong man. I don’t want this costing more money than what we took from him.”

  Chapter Six

  Mia didn’t know what woke her, but her instincts sensed danger. Her first thought was to check on Paige. She turned to face the side of the bed as she moved to untangle the blanket from her body, only to stop halfway at the shadow of a man. Her heart skipped in a moment of fear until she recognized him.

  Logan. She didn’t know how she knew it was him, maybe it was the shape of his jaw, revealed by hints of light, coming from outside.

  “Wha—How’d you get in?” she asked as she pulled the blanket up higher on her chest. She wore bikini panties and a cami, her normal bed wear, not expecting someone to break in. Summers were warm, and though her place was a little better off than many places, it didn’t have AC. She kept a fan on to help keep cool.

  When he didn’t answer her original question, she decided it wasn’t important. “What do you want?”

  “Many things.” His voice was deep; the low answer sent shivers through her body. He came closer, sitting at the edge of the bed.

  She moved her legs, making room for him, but she knew it was because she was afraid to touch him. He was alluring. Unreadable. It made her want to know more about him. Wanting more of him makes her want things she can’t have. Not being able to read him at all makes him dangerous to her. How could she protect herself from something she couldn’t understand?

  “But for now, there’s this.” He held up a small square item.

  She turned the lamp on the nightstand on. She shouldn’t have. This was the first time she had a clear view of him.

  “It’s just a face, sweet cheeks.” And what a face. Handsome. Too fucking handsome. He’s used to it, too, by the comment. Either that, or her reaction was over the top. “This is a wireless reader.” He held up the device in front of her. It was about the size of her hand.

  She took the item from him to examine it closer. “How do you use it?”

  “Simple. Just insert the card here until the red light goes on. The red light means its copying. When the light turns green, it’s done.” She’d have to be close, really close.

  “How am I supposed to get that close—” She stopped when she realized what needed to be done. She’d have to sleep with Joel. It made her skin crawl just thinking about it. It’s been a while, almost two years since Joel had last insisted on sleeping with her. “I have to sleep with him.”

  “Freedom has a price, Mia.”

  Logan didn’t like the thought of her with Joel, but it was all part of his Operation Fuck Joel Clarion plan. He wanted Mia, he’d admit that to himself. He didn’t like picturing her being touched…being fucked by Joel. He could picture her naked, underneath that mother fucker.

  He wanted to be the one fucking her. He wanted to be the one touching her skin.

  She’d forgotten about covering herself with the blanket as soon as the light was turned on. The blanket lay uselessly on her lap, while he had a front row seat to he
r braless tits. Her breasts were full and perky, straining against the thin camisole she wore.

  She was busy coming to grips with the idea of fucking Joel, and staring at the little device made special for the occasion, that he had all the time to take her in. Her long black hair had a just-fucked look from sleep. He could picture himself gripping a handful of hair while he fucked her. Normally, he’d fuck women from behind, impersonal and none of their bullshit, but not Mia. He’s going to have her on her back when he fucks her, because he will, there was no way he wouldn’t. He wants to watch everything she felt in her clear blue eyes. She was good at hiding her emotions behind an unreadable face, but she couldn’t hide it from her eyes. He’d seen she wanted him, and he wanted her too. It was just a matter of when.

  Soon. But it didn’t mean he couldn’t have a little taste now.

  “It’ll be easy,” he told her as he reached out to brush her hair behind her ear.

  “He’s going to know something’s up. I’ve done my best to avoid him. I haven’t been with him in over two years.”

  Which meant, she hadn’t had sex in that long. He couldn’t imagine Joel allowing anyone else to touch her. The guy’s a prick with a God complex, he thought.

  “Entice him. Make him want you. That should be easy. Then when he bites, blame it on not getting laid in years. That’ll stroke his ego.” By the look on her face, she didn’t like it.

  “Imagine it’s me.” He caressed her arm, goosebumps following his fingers. “Imagine it’s my skin you’re touching.” He trailed his finger up her bicep and then across her collar bone as he leaned forward, trapping her legs between his arm and body. “Imagine it’s my lip brushing against your skin,” he whispered against her neck, his lips barely touching the soft flesh. She smelled like a sweet dessert. He wanted to taste her. His hand cradled her head to angle it, giving him access to her lips. “Imagine it’s me you’re tasting.” He kissed her.

  Her soft body beneath his was too inviting, and he could easily lose himself in her. He shouldn’t have kissed her because he was having a hard time pulling away. He needed to break the kiss before they both lost their heads. He hadn’t been prepared for what his body wanted. His men were waiting for what should have been a quick meeting.

  His self-control pulled him away from her but it wasn’t strong enough to completely remove himself. Rather than pull her away, he tucked her into his chest, savoring the feel of her while they both came to their senses. He slowly untangled himself from her.

  He avoided looking at her knowing what he’d see—desire he wanted to answer.

  Her lips glistened, a little swollen from the heavy kissing. He could have her now and she’d want it, but that’s not part of his plan tonight. Her blush was prominent, the flush obvious on her heaving chest. He’d have her soon.

  Chapter Seven

  Mia dressed for the occasion. Logan had convinced her the risk was worth it. She’d lost her head at the first man who paid her attention. The threat of Joel Clarion kept men away from her, and she thought she was okay with it until Logan showed her otherwise. She wanted him, the hunger she felt for connection tipped the scale.

  Freedom has a price. And she was willing to pay for it. For Paige and for herself. Logan had reminded her that she was a woman with needs. She wanted to be with a man who cared for her—a man she could have a real relationship with.

  Logan made her feel desire she hadn’t known before. The only man she’d ever been with was Joel. In the beginning, the concept of sex was exciting, but she quickly realized sex with Joel was for his pleasure. Joel had quickly crushed any fantasy she’d had about romance, earth shattering orgasms she’s heard about, and anything remarkably sexy about sex. The attraction to him was understandable but he’s also offering her something no one had ever given her. A choice.

  The safest way she could copy whatever is in the key was to have Joel in her territory, under her control. If she could entice him to show up at her apartment, she could get it. It was a gamble. She knew it would be too obvious to come in dressed for sex one day, so for three nights, she’d slowly worn more revealing outfits to work. Tonight, is the night she’d hoped he’d come. She put all her curves on display and arranged for Paige to sleepover at a friend’s house to keep her away from Joel. If Joel caught her making a copy of his key, Paige would already be away from there. She believed Logan would care for Paige.

  Joel had been watching her all night. Mia made sure to bend over a couple of times when she knew he had a clear view of her, giving him a hint of what he could have. The thought of sleeping with him didn’t bother her as much as it had at first. She’d have to thank Logan for that. Whenever she thought about Joel touching her, she pictured it was Logan instead. It was surprisingly easy.

  When she’d left for the night, she made sure to flash Joel a dimpled smile and her cleavage.

  Mia wanted him in her turf, so she made sure to make a quick getaway so he wouldn’t stop her and try to have sex with her in his office. She needed him in her bed, where she would have control of the situation.

  Once she got home, she prepared the drink. It wasn’t anything fancy, just whiskey in a small glass with dissolved sleeping pills. If he died from it by accident, she wouldn’t mind. It would take a little bit of time for him to pass out from it, but it would do the job. Her plan was to get him to drink non-tainted alcohol while she pretended to drink the tainted one, to get his taste buds shot enough that he wouldn’t notice the slight taste difference when she gives him her laced drink. Joel hated to waste anything. She knew he’d finish her drink.

  As expected, Joel arrived less than a half an hour later. That was faster than she expected. She could see the eagerness in his eyes, and the way he licked his lips as he looked her up and down. The revealing, body-hugging top, and micro mini skirt got his attention.

  “Joel…” she greeted casually. She couldn’t act excited.

  “You look good tonight, Mia.” He entered the house before she could invite him in. Typical. He walked in like he owned the place… He technically did since he was paying for rent.

  “What do you want?”

  He gave her that look he always did when she gave him an attitude— a glare that told her he didn’t like her tone.

  This time, she lowered her gaze to the ground, pretending to be submissive.

  “Do I ever need a reason to come home?”

  Home? He’d never stayed here unless it was after sex, even then he eventually left to go to his home—a mansion that she had previously stayed at years ago when she’d been his sex toy. She could still remember every punch he threw her way when she told him she wasn’t going to live in that house with their baby. The women, drinking, drugs, and second-hand smoke wasn’t what she wanted her daughter to grow up in.

  “You don’t live here.”

  “I pay for it; it’s mine.”

  “Whatever. What do you want?” She closed the door and moved toward the small table that held the laced drink. She was playing it off like she’d been relaxing with a drink after work.

  “Where’s the kid?”

  “At a sleepover.”

  “Good. We could be as loud as we want.” He didn’t even pretend.

  “It’s been a long night, Joel.” She poured him his own drink, faking indifference.

  He accepted the drink without hesitation, drinking it in one go. “Which is a good reason to fuck, Mia. Release a hard day’s work.”

  She crossed an arm across her body, while holding the tainted drink up for both of them to see. She stared at him, pretending to consider it. It was all part of her game.

  “Fine.” She handed him her drink, and he took it and drank it without much thought, as she’d expected he’d do. He barely dropped the glass onto the coffee table before he’d turned and started walking toward the bedroom. He didn’t bother to check if she was following. By the time she entered her bedroom, he was already half-naked. Shirt was off and discarded on the floor, and he was working o
n his belt.

  On one hand, he could fuck her quick and get it over with. On the other hand, she needed to give the drug time to work.

  “So eager,” she said in a partial taunt.

  “You going to give me problems or are you going to be a good girl?” The sick bastard enjoyed that game. He liked his women young. Just turned eighteen, jailbait type. That’s how she ended up with him.

  “Not even foreplay? I remember you liked that.” She stood in front of him.

  “I’m here for pussy, and maybe, your mouth.” He kicked off his shoes before letting his pants drop to the floor. “Strip for me, Mia. Dance nice and slow while you take off your clothes.”

  “Joel, I’m not a fucking stripper.”

  “Fine, then just get naked. Let me see those perfect tits, Mia, and that pretty pussy.” She rolled her eyes as she worked on her clothes. She unzipped her skirt, let it slide down to the floor, and then slowly pulled the skintight top over her head. She hadn’t worn a bra since there wasn’t room for it. By the time she was naked, he was on the bed, naked and hard. His cock was half-erect, and he was lying down on the middle of the bed, legs spread, dick in hand, waiting for her.

  She knew what he wanted. She got on the bed, crawled between his legs knowing he was watching her every move. Once she was close enough, he let go of his dick, expecting her to take over. She was so dry right now she wondered how she’d be able to take him. She stroked his cock, slowly, as she tried to work up an image to get her into it. Afraid she was going to fail, she gripped him a little tighter. “Not so hard, baby.”

  Logan.

  The simple thought was enough to spark her arousal. Mia brought back the memory of the kiss. She’d been wet just from making out with him.

  Think of Logan.