Phoebe.
Blonde-haired Phoebe Mason.
The real Phoebe Mason.
For a few seconds, I was convinced it was a horrible, sick joke. This wasn’t real. This couldn’t fucking be happening. A hysterical giggle bounced around inside my chest and froze there when I realized that Logan wasn’t pushing the poodle-in-women’s-clothing away.
His hand came to rest on her waist, and my entire world came crashing to a halt. Every word, every promise, every touch uttered in the last few days took on a new and horrifying light.
This whole trip, I’d believed I was conning Logan Farraday, leading him on with soft kisses and pretty lies. What a fool I’d been.
Logan Farraday was the greatest con man in existence, convincing me for even a second that he wasn’t the monster I’d expected.
Phoebe extracted herself with a sucking sound worthy of a bathroom plunger. Bubblegum pink lipstick smeared Logan’s face.
A strong urge to punt her into the water fountain on the grounds was thrumming through my veins.
I cut a glare to Logan, whose face had gone blank and unreadable.
“I’m so glad you’re here, Logie-bear!” Phoebe cooed. “You can help us pick between cream and burnished eggshell for the tablecloths!” Phoebe’s gaze flicked to me and she grudgingly added, “You could help too, I suppose. Any friend of Logie-bear is a friend of mine.”
I’d have rather eaten roadkill than spend another moment in her presence. I took a shaking step toward the door. I had to get out of there before I went to pieces on the marble floor. I wouldn’t give the bastard the satisfaction of seeing me cry.
“Can’t,” I forced out. It was a testament to my skill as an actress that it came out as something less than a shriek. “I’m back from a business trip and I’m pretty jetlagged. I came to see Katherine, but as you’re busy, I think I’ll just head home.”
“Mina,” Logan began, a pleading note in his voice. “Mina, stay. We really need to catch up.”
My smile was more of a shark-like baring of teeth when I turned to him. “No, go on. Your fiancée needs you, Logie-bear.”
Before I could shudder from saying the name, I turned on my heel and strode out the way I’d come in.
It was a very long walk back to the front gate and I had no car. Still, I’d rather have dragged myself belly-first over broken glass than stay an instant longer. I took off down the drive, reaching into my bag for my cell phone, hoping Heather would be available.
Heavy footsteps slapped the pavement behind me, catching me as I passed the water fountain.
Logan’s strong fingers wrapped around my upper arm in a vice grip. “Don’t leave. Let me explain–”
“Don’t fucking touch me!” I screamed, yanking my arm from his grip. “Don’t you dare put your hands on me, you fucking liar!” I nearly toppled sideways into the fountain, catching myself on the edge. I was exhausted. Furious. But most of all? I was done.
Logan pressed something hard into my palm before stepping back from me. He looked as weary as I felt. He should have gone into acting school, not the army. He’d have earned a dozen Emmys for this performance.
“It’s the key to the Escalade,” he explained in an undertone. “Take it home, please. You can’t walk back to your apartment. It’s not safe.”
I tossed it into the air and the fob made a satisfying sound when it plopped into the fountain and clinked onto the bottom.
“I don’t want a fucking thing from you. Piss off, Logan,” I snarled.
Three blisters later, I met Heather at the front gate in her shabby little Bug. Her hands fluttered over me when I flung myself into the passenger’s seat. Sometime during the walk, my scarf had come loose, and my bruises were on full display.
Her dark eyes shot wide with concern. “Oh my God, Mina! What happened? Did he do that to you?”
I shook my head wordlessly. The tears I’d been holding back streaked down my cheeks, gathering in the collar of my shirt. How did I explain that the hurt went so much deeper than a couple of bruises ever could?
“I’ll kill him,” Heather muttered, reaching into the back for the baseball bat she kept for defense. “I’ll end that worthless son of a bitch.”
“Just drive,” I pleaded, burying my face in my hands.
The drive to Hustler Headquarters was filled with my quiet breakdown and the incessant chiming of Logan’s set ringtone. By the time we entered the main room at the Hustler house, I had seventeen missed calls and one new email. I focused on the latter, rather than deal with Logan’s no doubt false excuses. I tapped the screen and pulled up my email, stilling when I read the header.
Urgent: For the eyes of Carmina Blakely only.
“Fuck no,” I muttered. “This is supposed to be over. You’re supposed to be gone!”
But there it was, marked as urgent and sitting like a predator waiting to pounce in my inbox. With trembling fingers, I opened the message.
How cute, to think you were rid of me. I’m not done with you, Carmina. Not by a long shot. Remember–six million by the middle of the month or I start killing girls.
Don’t fail me, Hustler.
My vision went dark as unconsciousness beckoned. I nearly gave in to the tempting relief of passing out.
It wasn’t over. Would probably never be over, until every single one of us was dead.
“What’s the matter?” Heather asked. “What did he say?”
“Nothing,” I lied. I took a deep, cleansing breath.
Luciana, Carla, and Aurora were huddled around Bella Newman on the thick carpet, comparing stories and digging into a truly impressive amount of popcorn.
The popcorn smell and the bright, shining faces of my girls served to ground me, reminding me of just who I was and what I’d built. If Logan Farraday and this mysterious blackmailer thought they could end me, they were wrong. I was Carmina Fucking Blakely and I’d been running scared for far, far too long. I wasn’t going to let anyone lay a finger on my girls.
With renewed energy. I walked calmly to my office, confidence in my gait for the first time in days, calculating just how many jobs I needed to schedule before the 16th of July to raise the remaining three million.
When my phone chimed once again, I flicked it off. I didn’t want to hear Logan’s excuses.
I’d been burned one too many times.
I had work to do.
Thank you so much for reading BURNED! I hope you love Logan and Mina. The story will continue and book two is coming out on 1st of August.
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