Page 49 of Sinful Negotiations

“Come with me.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her from the bed when ironically, all she wanted to do was hide in her room for the remainder of the day.

Chapter 41

Marco Dentzi

Psychological warfare required gentle finesse and patience, but he’d wanted her from the first time he’d seen her photograph. Light-blonde hair with hazel eyes lent her a beauty he found alluring, more than any woman in his past…and there had been many. The fact she fought him when most women would kill to be in her position fascinated him.

There was an underlying submissive quality to her he wanted to tame, but a burning flame that seemed resistant. The two qualities were intoxicating. And her body…damn, she knew how to turn him on. Other men watched her, and it only increased his infatuation for her and possessiveness.

Her small hand in his own sent tingles slithering along his arm, and he savored her taste still on his tongue. She was beginning to bend to his will, see him as more than an adversary, trust him. He saw it in her eyes, knew how to recognize those tell-tale signs. True attraction existed between them, and he wouldn’t stop pushing until she writhed beneath him.

It didn’t hurt she was worth millions, although he didn’t need the money. The knowledge gave him an edge, a truth she didn’t know when her entire world had been filled with lies by her uncle, and information withheld by the FBI.

Once she accepted a seat in front of his desk, he moved behind it and sat in his office chair. A manila file lay on his desk, and he flipped it open. Tessa remained quiet but studied his every movement. He wanted her to ask, and patiently waited for her to succumb to her own curiosity.

“Why am I in your office,” tumbled out within five minutes.

“There are details about your life you should be aware of. Would you like the bad or good first?”

Tessa crossed her arms over her perky breasts and lifted her chin. “Say what you wish. It doesn’t mean I’ll believe it.”

He leaned back in his chair. “I have no reason to lie.”

“What could be worse than being sold to cover my uncle’s debts?”

Marco flipped turned the first page over. “Bad news it is. I received word yesterday your FBI agent passed away at a hospital in Lexington due to complications.”

“That’s a lie,” she hissed, even as tears streamed over her high cheekbones.

“I’m sorry, Tessa. I know you cared for him.”

“Go on,” she said with a choked voice.

“Your aunt and uncle have gone to prison, and James Advertising along with everything they owned has been seized by the FBI, or your American government.”

Tessa inhaled a deep breath. “And?”

“Your uncle has lied your entire life. I’m certain he had your parents murdered. They didn’t die in a car accident. The police report on file is false. He also deliberately kept knowledge of your inheritance from you. At age eighteen, you were to receive a six-million-dollar trust. It seems your grandparents left their entire fortune to you, instead of your uncle. That amount has almost doubled with time. He has tried to gain access to it but was denied. He did, however, spend your parent’s life insurance rather quickly.”

“My grandparents didn’t have that kind of money.”

Tessa trembled, but he continued. “They invested in several stocks that did extremely well, life insurance policies, oil, and owned properties which were sold upon their deaths. Your grandmother revised her will at the last minute leaving it all to you.”

“Why are you telling me this, Marco? To hurt me. To use me for money like they did. More deception?”

“I don’t need your money. I thought you finally deserved the truth.”

“Yet you were involved with my uncle?”

Marco deeply sighed. “He came to me almost one year ago. I loaned him money, and he funneled money for me, but he also stole from me, and his wife, your aunt, was a cocaine addict. When he couldn’t repay, he offered you as payment.”

*****

Her heart raced out of control, and nausea turned her stomach over. It was too much information at once. How did one process it all? Everyone, including Aidan, left her. She had no one…completely alone in this world with only memories and regret.

A sob welled from the pit of her stomach, rose with each ragged breath until her throat clogged. Tessa bent at the waist with her arms around her midsection, trying to find some comfort, some sane way to grieve and be angry at the same time. Everything she knew and thought was a complete lie. The people she thought loved her deceived her.

Everything Marco said made complete sense, except Aidan. She couldn’t, wouldn’t believe he died. He said he’d come for her. Was that a lie too?