[Darcy]I put my bag on the couch and sat down. Tonight's events were completely unexpected. I was almost free from my big problem. I could be free from that humiliating job and live a normal life again.However, I couldn't do that without my son. My eyes heated up. I wanted to leave that job as soon as possible. But I needed a job to get my son back. Leaving Sinclair's club without a job was suicide.My friends abandoned me. They wouldn't give me a job no matter how low the level. How could I survive without working? I didn't want to beg or go to social centers. I could survive without other people's pity.Sean coming and redeeming me was unexpected. What was so lucrative about the mayor's position that he would throw away fifty million dollars for me? Had Bridget not committed that crime against me, none would have happened.Feeling my chest hurt, I dragged my feet to the kitchen. I grabbed the breast pump. Sadly, I wasted a lot of milk I should have given to my son. But I wouldn't
I came to the park to calm myself and escape my routine. My thoughts went back to my son and the pain of our separation. I didn't know if we would survive not seeing each other for three months.A woman came over when I was sad thinking about my baby. She looked at me with a happy face with the baby in her arms, making me jealous. Oh. The woman's face was familiar, but I couldn't remember where I met her.“I knew you wouldn't recognize me. My name's Lydia Tonkin. I'm a dancer at Sinclair's club,” she said, introducing herself.“Oh. I'm sorry.” I was stunned. Gosh. I said the word sorry.“I understand. You're a new dancer and don't know all of us yet.” Lydia glanced at my side. “Are you alone, or will someone be sitting there?”“Oh. Please.” I moved my bag to let her sit beside me.“Thank you.” She sat down and put her big bag on her right side. “I should make some milk before my daughter wakes up. She may be hungry.”The baby was small. She might be about four or five months old. The
The motorcycle tires screeched. My heart pounded loudly, deafening my ears. I almost stopped breathing because death was so close. I didn't want to die. My son needed me. If I was gone, who would raise him?Realizing I was okay, and the bike was still upright, I opened my eyes. Wesley took his hand away from my back. He wanted to continue, but a woman got out of the driver's side of the car and blocked his way.Another woman came out of the passenger side. She gave me a sharp look and stopped at the back of the car. Seeing the serious expressions on their faces, I sighed. They wouldn't leave until I complied with their wishes.I got off the motorcycle and took off my helmet. Thankfully, my legs weren't shaking anymore. “What is it?” I asked, challenging their piercing gazes.Wesley held out his hand, shielding me from Jean. The woman approached me with a fierce face. She was wrong if she thought I would be afraid of her with that expression.“Shut up and stay out of this, Wesley. Or I
[Sinclair]After texting Enzo the dancer's name that Dustin wanted, I put my phone in the inner pocket of my jacket. I stepped out of the car into the hotel lobby. After mentioning my name to the restaurant's front desk, she appointed her colleague to escort me.The woman led me to a room. She knocked on the door before opening it. A man inside stood up and extended his hand to me.“Sorry, I'm late.” I shook his hand.“You're not late,” Errol said. He let go of my hand and pointed to the chair across from him. “Have a seat. Let's order some food before we talk.”Errol Fiander was a well-known hotel owner who was constantly expanding his business. That ambitious man had borrowed a considerable amount of money from my company. He didn't let me down by repaying the debt on time. I used half of it to buy shares in his hotel.It was the right decision because the profit sharing was huge. Hans' business gave me more than Errol's hotel, though. I knew why he asked me to meet. He needed a loa
Only Enzo could contact me through my phone when I wasn't at the club. Other employees had to report to my assistant, who passed the report on to me. Felicia was different because she was in charge of a special person.“Speak,” I said.“Someone injured Darcy. I need access to the camera footage in the training room,” Felicia reported. She sounded serious and urgent.“You should have told Enzo, not called me. Only the security guards, Enzo, and I can enter the security room. So, report it to my assistant,” I ordered.“Sin,” Felicia said. Her voice turned soft and pleading. “What happened to us?”I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Did Felicia seriously ask about us? What happened to us? I didn't understand. We were being professional towards each other. Why was she suddenly asking about us as if we had a special relationship?One dance. I only had one dance with Felicia when she accompanied me to an event. We didn't have any relationship or sleep together. She didn't mention the inc
Other women didn't ask. They wished I danced with them or stared at them. They would let me touch and kiss them whenever I felt like it. Darcy was different, of course.In the heat of the dance, she didn't get carried away. She outwitted me with her touches and moans. I thought she would surrender to my kisses. Instead, her mind was alert, and her eyes stared at me.“Dance with you,” I answered.“Kissing isn't dancing.” She glanced at my lips.“I always get what I want.” I kissed her lips when she was caught off guard.I put my hands behind her head when she tried to distance herself from me. Darcy pushed against my chest, but her strength wasn't strong enough to keep me away from her. When she bit my lips, I caressed her chest.She moaned, releasing my lips. I took advantage of it by deepening my kiss. Her husband died a few days ago, but they hadn't slept together for a long time. I knew she wanted it but denied her need.I didn't care why my body responded to her temptation. When I
[Darcy]Sinclair came out of the practice room carrying a medicine box. I looked over at my hand, which he had bandaged. His work was quite neat. He had probably tended to wounds many times. The incision marks on his forearms were both a frightening and concerning sight.I didn't know what happened, but I prepared to go home. I took the towel to the locker room and put it in the dirty clothes basket. After grabbing my bag and cooler, I turned off the lights and closed the practice room.Wesley waited on his motorcycle when I went out the back door. He accepted the cooler and helped me onto the back seat. We arrived at the apartment and parted ways before my unit's door.I quickly cleaned the breast pump and cooler. Waiting for the pump to dry, I went to my room. I took off my clothes and washed up in the shower room. After drying off, I was stunned to see my reflection in the mirror.My lips were swollen and reddened. Bite marks covered my neck and the top of my right breast. I sighed
My heart skipped a beat. Did I hear it right? Damn it. Why didn't I carefully read the contract? I missed an important point about obeying his orders. How could I have passed up the point about dancing without clothes?No. I remembered it well. There was no point in vulgar appearance. I was a dancer, not a striptease. Sinclair didn't hire me to be a stripper at his club. I would rather die than show my private parts to the public.“No,” I refused.He whispered in my ear. “That's the reason you're performing as an opening act. Didn't you see your partner do that?”My heart pounded. I couldn't believe it. Sinclair couldn't have done that, but I had promised to do the job to pay back the debt. Oh, God. My son would hate me if he found out.I didn't care about other people or what they thought. I was worried about how Keane would feel if he saw it when he grew up. I couldn't bear to look into his disappointed eyes. I wanted my son to be proud of me.“You're shaking.” Sinclair sat me down
[Darcy]“This yard is too exposed. You should talk at home,” Scott scanned around us. He signaled for my cousin and me to walk to the porch first.I complied. It was quiet, but that didn't guarantee there wasn't someone somewhere pointing a gun at me. We walked up to the front door. A man opened it. He smiled kindly at Taylor and me.Scott cleared his throat when the man frowned at him. “Lionel, let me introduce you. These are Darcy Wyndham and Taylor Bailey.”I extended my hand to the man. “Darcy Bailey,” I corrected.Lionel smiled as he returned my handshake. “Lionel Dupont at your service, Mrs. Sinclair Wyndham,” he said.Taylor chuckled. “Darcy Wyndham sounds sexier,” she teased.“Shut up, Tay,” I said irritably.“Would you like to see your room?” Lionel asked.“Not now. My cousin and I need to talk. Is there a room where no one will disturb us?” I looked around me.The house was magnificent and modern on the outside. The inside was equally fashionable. It looked like Sinclair rep
“I'm not dealing with former employees.” I glanced at the door. “Is he waiting outside?” After Neil nodded, I continued, “Tell him to leave.”“Okay, boss,” Neil replied. He walked out of my office, but Wesley forced his way in.I knew he wouldn't give up that easily. Looking at his neat appearance and no facial injuries, he escaped Joaquin's house without fighting with his men. How could he do that? He came alone without a partner to protect him.“Boss, please listen to me first,” Wesley persuaded.“How dare you set foot in my office,” I said.“I'm not your employee anymore. I didn't violate the prohibition against club employees being in your main office,” he argued.Although people knew about my dirty business, they didn't discuss it. Employees and customers at Wyndham Finance didn't notice that SW Group was mine. And I wanted to keep it that way. I didn't want to lose customers who thought I funded the company with dirty money.“I can find that woman without your help.” I glanced a
[Sinclair]Darcy was smart. She was used to dealing with cunning and manipulative people. It would have been easy for her to discuss a prenuptial agreement when she had the upper hand.However, I didn't let that happen. I teased and took that woman's mind off the prenuptial contract. Because she had so many problems, she had a hard time focusing her mind. She struggled between taking her son or saving her parents.I didn't expect her to choose George and Diana over Keane. Her parents were evil. They borrowed money and couldn't pay it back, plunging Darcy into the nightlife. Yet she chose to save those two criminals.“Four,” Darcy whispered. “That's enough, Sinclair.”“Sin,” I corrected.She didn't respond. I look at her face. She was fast asleep in my arms. I turned her to lie on her back. Her face shouldn't hit the surface of the pillow. Seeing that her skin wasn't red, the doctor's medicine was working.Her face was much better than on Sunday night. Had she not left the house on Mond
“You'd better eat before we sign the contract. Mason and I had breakfast.” Sinclair glanced at the plate of food before me.“I'll eat in the car,” I refused.“Now,” he ordered.I sighed. Arguing with Sinclair was a waste of time. I quickly finished my breakfast. He or the waiter put a full breakfast menu on my plate, but I ate it in less than ten minutes.“Can we start now?” I asked after my mouth was empty.Mason placed a folder in front of me and Sinclair. “Please read the agreement carefully. I've revised it according to the results of your discussion,” he said.“We didn't discuss anything last night,” I complained.“I have included your conditions. Sin will protect your parents while in prison,” he reported.I was stunned. “Where are the conditions?” I asked.The contents of the agreement letter were the same as what I had read last night. So, I skimmed it, and nothing had changed. Only one part of Sinclair's obligations added up. He would protect my parents.I couldn't be with Ke
I put the document and envelope on the table. “I've told you. I don't want to marry you. Go ahead and kill me or my son, but I won't be your wife,” I refused.“What do you want?” Sinclair asked.I pressed my lips together. The pounding of my heart was so loud it deafened my ears. Oh, my God. Sinclair knew how to control the situation the way he wanted to. Of course, I had many wishes that I would never be able to fulfill.I wanted my son back in my arms. I wanted my parents to serve their sentences in peace. I could get out of debt by selling the house Cullen gave me. But I couldn't do that. That house was his only gift.“I will only grant one wish. Nothing more,” Sinclair continued.“I—” I mumbled.Oh, my God. My whole body was shaking. I didn't know who to choose. My son was precious to me, and I feared for his well-being if we were away for too long. I also loved my parents. They only had me to help them escape the wicked people in prison.However, Sinclair only granted one request
After storing my stuff in my locker, Lydia took me to the training room upstairs. I didn't know there was another practice room other than the one on the same floor as Sinclair's office. Remembering him, I realized that he didn't stay overnight.That was strange. Sinclair didn't miss a single night of sleeping at my place after we slept together. Did my facial state disgust him? I didn't care what he thought of my appearance, but I needed the money to pay off my debts.Dancing on weekends wouldn't do much to increase my income. The club's birthday had passed. Patrons wouldn't be as generous on a festive day when tipping me. Besides, they'd get tired of me if there were new dancers.“What's her name?” I asked.“Kirsten Green,” Lydia replied.I performed alone in my first four performances but was confident I could dance with other dancers. I was more experienced in group dancing than solo. I didn't mind sharing tips, especially since I only had thirty million dollars left.Raising twen
[Darcy]I took the object out of the box. A few keys were attached to a keychain with a capital D: D for Darcy. My eyes heat up. There was only one person who knew my dream. I only told him about it.My tears fell, touching the keys in my hand. I glanced at my phone. The house was huge, white-painted, and had a small courtyard at the front. The front faced east, perfect for enjoying the sunrise.I put the key and the chain into the box and saw a piece of paper at the bottom. I picked it up and opened it. My heart almost stopped, recognizing Cullen's handwriting on the paper. My guess was correct. The house was a gift from my late husband.“My dear Darcy,” Cullen greeted me in the salutation.“Today you're exclusively breastfeeding our miracle son. You sacrificed so much of what you loved for him. You lacked rest, put your work aside, neglected your friends, and even lost your beautiful body.“I want you to know: I'm proud of you. No matter how much I say thank you, the words won't be
I didn't let anyone dictate to me. My parents knew my nature and never tried to persuade or force me to do their will. What did a fired employee like him know about my father's killer?“Joaquin wasn't just the mastermind of your father's murder. He was also the one who threatened your mother's best friend. The woman who should have comforted your mother after losing her youngest son called her a failed mother. Paige Wyndham didn't die of deep sorrow, Sin,” Wesley added.I took out my gun, fired at the three security cameras in the hall, and aimed one bullet just above Wesley's head. Since I was using a silencer, there was no sound of gunfire, only the shattering of the cameras and the impact of the bullet on the wall.The large room was suddenly silent after the sound of camera fragments falling to the floor ended. Everyone held their breath. Their eyes fixed on Wesley before slowly turning to me. Their faces were deathly pale, including Joaquin's.“Aargh!” the woman at Wesley's side s
[Sinclair]Fortunately, it wasn't me who fell to the floor, but him. The man lost to my sniper's speed. His comrades drew in a surprised breath. They were well-trained people. No one screamed in terror, seeing their friend die before them.Whether the man was nervous or surprised, he shouldn't have pressed his gun's trigger. I didn't come to spill their blood. My enemy was Joaquin, not his stupid men. Neil opened the door to the house for me.“Drag his wife and children into the hall. We'll wait until Joaquin comes. Let him know. If he doesn't arrive within thirty minutes, I'll kill his family one by one, starting with his first son,” I ordered.“Okay, boss," Neil said.I could hear his satisfied tone. The bloodthirsty man must have missed that tense atmosphere. We hadn't been at war with any group for a long time. I purposefully played it safe because it wasn't time to go all out.I would have taken Joaquin out and left his family living on the streets, but it wasn't the right time.