“Chavez,” he said, propped on his elbow. “The emergency I had to tend to in Vegas was because of Chavez.”
I tucked the sheet around my body and rolled to face him. “What do you mean?”
He blew out a loud breath. “Paulie and Duane sent someone deep undercover into my father’s lair. He flew to Vegas for protection. He has evidence proving everything my father has done and what my brothers are meddling in. And,” he paused, clearing his throat, “a confession that my father did put a hit on your father because he wanted to tap into sex trafficking, and yours didn’t. You were right. Eddie didn’t want to put his children and wife in danger.”
My stomach flopped, but I remained quiet. Wednesday jumped onto the bed and settled between us. Subconsciously, we both pet her. She rolled onto her back, giving us her soft belly to rub.
“And Chavez is still helping them. He’s playing double agent, collecting from me after runs while also transporting women and children.”
I chewed on my thumbnail as I processed this information. “I want to kill him.”
Maverick grabbed his phone from the ground, where it’d lain forgotten since stripping down. “One of those surprises I said was awaiting you… is this.” He showed me the screen, and I gasped. Chavez sat bound to a metal chair in a bare concrete room, seemingly shouting at nothing and yanking on the ropes binding his wrists and ankles.
My naughty little brain recognized those knots immediately. The kinky man in bed with me had made me no stranger to that. It took everything in me to not ruin the moment and say that, though.
“You see, after I knew the whole truth and I got home, I had Chavez restrained. He’s been sitting here with the bare minimum to survive while I waited to bring you to him.”
“Finally,” I whispered, the taste of vengeance bittersweet on my tongue.
“I don’t want to stop at this, though. I want to take down this whole empire, Sophie. Keep the story ours so we control the narrative. After what they did to your dad, what my family has done since… it needs to come to an end.”
I sat all the way up, crossing my legs and re-securing the sheet around me. “What are you saying?”
He joined me, his eyes meeting mine. “We take it back, and eliminate the threats.”
“And save them all,” I added, my resolve steeling. “The women and children. The ones impacted by your family’s involvement.”
“Exactly. And we’ll do it from the shadows, on my side of the law.” His voice was a commanding whisper, sending shivers down my spine. Seeing this side of him so openly, making dark plans with me… it was home. It was us.
“But how will we convince everyone to fall in line? Sure, there are people loyal to my family, but the rest? Who’s to say they’ll believe our truth over the lies that have been fed to them all these years?” I questioned, tracing the tattoos on his chest.
He pet Wednesday casually, then dropped a verynot casualbomb. “We could always get married. Make it official.”
His words hung between us, playful yet potent with possibility. A vision of Maverick sliding that ring from Vegas onto my finger—a future where my insecurities were conquered, and we were building a reality woven by our own rules.
“Marriage,” I echoed in a still-teasing tone, collapsing back down on the bed as I thought about it. This would mean no more running. I no longer had a reason to be worried—what with Callie accepting all of it.
Hmm.
The silence stretched between us.
“I’m sorry,” I blurted into the quiet room. “You were right. I should have told you how much I was struggling with my eating disorder.”
Maverick shifted, carefully moving Wednesday up to the pillow above his head before pulling me closer. “I wish you would have. I would’ve taken it easier on you because I know how physically exerting certain… sexual acts can be.”
I sighed. “Well, honestly, even if I’d known what your plans were, it wouldn’t have changed anything. I have to snap out of those benders on my own, but putting you in the middle of it wasn’t fair. Neither was leaving.”
“I hope you enjoyed yourself. I appreciate all the rewards you’ve racked up for me.”
My hands flew to my face as I curled into his chest, groaning. “Oh my God. I’m so sorry. I was being childish.” My voice was muffled, my face hot as I recalled all the expenses I’d put on his credit card.
He simply laughed, dragging a hand lazily down my back. “It was entertaining to watch from afar. But seriously, don’t worry about it. I have too much money to spend. I’d rather someone use it at their leisure.”
“So humble, babe.”
“It’s all yours anyway.” I tipped my head back. God, I missed him. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
I started to answer when a loud knock sounded through the penthouse. “Are we expecting someone?”
