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Her eyes ide and she wanted to screa up just like her nant”

He pulled out a bowie knife and held the e to her throat “I don’t care If ht now, I’d kill you here You cost us far too much trouble”

“Margery”

“We’re tying her up We don’t need her,” he said “It’s more hassle than it’s worth to dispose of a body, but I wish the boss didn’t want you so badly,” he said, grazing the blade over her skin until she felt blood well up on her cheek “We’ve all wanted a shot at you, and soon maybe we can convince him to let us have it”

“No! You can’t!” she said, kicking at hied to get

his shin Her triumph was short lived because then there was a sharp pain in her temple as his fist struck her

Then there was only darkness

Chapter Nine

“Sir, the newest earning reports fro the sheaf of records on his desk “I think you have a lot to be proud of The revenues are astounding and the property, fro better than ninety-five percent of the casinos and other resorts in town”

“The servants’ scuttlebutt?” he asked, his tone maudlin

Although, it felt like everything was maudlin these days Ever since Amanda had fled fro tasted like sand, everything s It felt as if his world were only in grayscale It didn’t make sense He’d never once felt that connected to another huain, it wasn’t about the physical passion that had brimmed between them for a short weekend It was about the honesty He had a feeling that Amanda didn’t often talk about her insecurities with her reporting career and that, at first, she’d had no intention of telling hiation Yet she had Similarly, he never talked about Farana—that pain was forever an open sore in his heart With A his soul

But her sudden departure and the firestorossip that had folloasn’t what bothered hi Aery Simmons, very closely His lover had been quick to brush off the possible threats from a senator as powerful as Jackson; she was far too sure that he would only stick to ruining her reputation Amir didn’t believe that, not in his heart He’d known too ry leaders in his time, thankfully not within his own family, but more than his fair share So he’d made sure she was protected even now, even if she’d never asked for it It turned out that Ao had confir to an OB-GYN It was possible the pregnancy was related to their one night, but highly unlikely Maybe she’d fallen back with an old boyfriend or had quickly found someone else after her humiliation

Even if she were soest burn of all—that Amanda had a life and a child without him, and he had to watch from the shadows

“That’s good”