Page 39 of Hidden Empire
“Clara, don’t be dense,” Gabbie snipes. “You know you just made her hotter to, like, more than half of the guys here, right? There’s nothing a made man likes more than being the only one to ever touch his wife. They quite literally pay for it.”
“And then they get mistresses to fuck them because their frigid wife can’t suck cock like they’re used to,” she argues, smirking.
“That’s when you step in then, huh?”
Okay, can we stop talking about this now? The pointless conflict is giving me a tummy ache.
“Who decides who wins?” I cut in, willing to play if only to make all this end.
Clara lifts her chin, nodding to a group of guys not far away. “Colton, Javi, and Cole can judge.” She doesn’t ask them, just assumes they’ll agree.
Colton Wyatt, Javier Cabrera, and Cole Knight. None of them are my family’s enemies, so I can’t exactly object on the basis of bias. If anything, she may have just given me a leg up. Colton is friends with my brothers. Javier, or Javi—not sure which he prefers—is a guard, and The Outfit is on great terms with the Spanish business. Cole Knight is one of Ana’s step-brothers. As a member of The Kings, he’s also on great terms with the Morettis.
However, these three might have been good options to pick as my partner if she hadn’t chosen them as judges. I imagine that was her thinking. Judges that favor me won’t help if I can’t muster up the ability to ask someone else to play with me. I have to be careful about who I talk to and who I trust. It seems that she’s smart enough to recognize that. Her biggest advantage here is experience. She knows people, and I don’t.
“Good luck,” she taunts with pity. “I’m sure you’ll do great.”
I seriously do not like this girl.
Helplessly, I watch as Clara flags the guys over to us. Not knowing how to act, I remain still, looking lost while she explains the game and the terms. Once they agree to be our judges, Javier sets a timer on his watch, and she turns, assessing the party to decide who she wants.
I sort of freeze, not running off right away.
Colton leaves the side of his friends and comes closer, nodding down at me. “You alright?” he checks in, looking like he might help me flee if I requested it.
Lifting my chin, I ask, “Any chance you’ve seen Dmitri tonight? Or Ivan?”
He arches a sculpted brow, lips spreading into a lopsided grin. “Russians, huh?”
“Hey!” I hear my competitor shout. “No help from the judges.”
Colton answers her before I can. “Lay off, Bell. We’re chatting about perfume.”
“You’re such a liar,” she huffs.
Holding his hands up in mock surrender, he flashes a smirk. “Sorry that Jade smells like I could lick her and taste ice cream. A man could get used to that sort of thing.”
I hold a hand over my mouth to hide a laugh, and she stomps off. If my existence alone is enough for her to dislike me, that’s on her. She can compete with herself because I want nothing to do with whatever psychological game she’s trying to play.
I won’t fight her for status, but I’m sure as hell not going to let her think that she’s making me give up. Morettis aren’t quitters, even in silly little challenges. If she wants to win, I won’t make it easier for her because she’s mean to me.
“Run along, littlest Moretti,” Colton encourages. Lower, he tells me. “I’ll be watching, so don’t be scared. Armani would kill me if I let anything happen to you.”
My heart warms, heat radiating from the center of my chest to my lungs. I can see why my family didn’t hire anyone. Friendship means something in this world. Colton just met me today, he wasn’t even given a heads-up about me, in fact. And the man is already telling me that he has my back.
“Thank you,” I say quietly in return. “It means a lot.”
He nods, his kind eyes flashing.
Unfortunately, I find out pretty quickly that I don’t know enough faces here. And the people I do recognize, I’m not supposed to approach. There’s Thiago Oliveria, Heir to The Spies. A nice guy, according to Matteo, but not to be trusted. You can’t trust spies unless you’re paying them. This honestly has me considering paying him to be my partner, but it would be mega embarrassing to be turned down while offering money.
Ares Gabris is here too. I recognize him, thinking that Matteo must have pointed him out earlier, but don’t think he’s a good option either. The man is betrothed, and though I don’t know his fiancée or their relationship, I couldn’t do that.
And then there’s Dustin Wyatt, Colton’s younger brother. I’d approach him if he didn’t look like he’d rather be anywhere else. He’s in his own little world in the corner of the living room, taking in slow drags of a cigarette. Familiar with the hope of being invisible before, I shake my head and leave him be. He might agree to help me just to be nice, and that would feel worse than losing.
It’s beginning to look like Miss Rude-For-No-Reason is going to win. I can’t crush her spirit without anyone to participate with me.
“Come on,” I mumble under my breath. “Somebody help a girl out.”