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  TWISTED LIES 2

  SEDONA VENEZ

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  TWISTED LIES 2

  A Dirty Secrets Novel

  SEDONA VENEZ

  www.sedonavenez.com

  One Wish Publishing

  Copyright © 2015 by T.L. Clarke

  All rights reserved.

  First Edition: May 2015

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  No part of this work may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form.

  TWISTED LIES 2

  “Oh, what a tangled web we weave. When first we practice to deceive!”

  —Sir Walter Scott

  ONE

  CORE

  Pushing aside the contracts on my desk, I absently traced the scar across my brow while staring at the Manhattan skyline. My mother’s killer was New York City’s mayoral hopeful Bigsby Calhoune—and I wanted him dead. But killing him fast would be too easy. I planned to ruin him, stripping away everything he held dear—his wealth, his trophy fiancée, his political career, and his freedom.

  Bigsby was a dirty criminal underneath his slick, cleaned-up politician veneer. He might have a new identity and life, but he was still the power-hungry thug who had killed my mother and left me to die.

  “He’s going to pay for what he did,” I hissed.

  Bigsby was unfinished business, business I’d been waiting to resolve for far too many years. I had thought of nothing but revenge. It’d consumed me. Just thinking about the night when the unknown assailant wearing a ruby and diamond-encrusted horseshoe gold ring had shot my mother and left me choking on my own blood fueled my hate fire. My mother had died, but I survived.

  I’d finally found the owner of the ring—Bigsby. What are the odds of that? I had been searching for that ring for years, and it was right under my nose.

  But what’s Sinthia’s connection to Bigsby?

  It was something I was determined to find out. It hadn’t taken Kevin long to do a thorough investigation, but he hadn’t found anything linking Bigsby to her. However, Kevin had dug up some interesting intel about Bigsby looking into Sinthia Michaels’s business. If Bigsby was interested in Sinthia, there had to be a sinister motive, which was why I needed to acquire her business fast. Kevin had searched through her background again, looking for anything that could be used as leverage. Surprisingly, Sinthia was squeaky clean and free of scandal. Frustrated and running out of time and options, I had found a chink in her armor—money.

  She required money, and I had lots of it.

  That was when I’d swooped in with the assistance of her friend Tabitha Thorp, who had helped me get close to Sinthia. Tabitha had convinced Sinthia of the value of getting an investor—specifically, me—to help her expand her business.

  I leaned back in my chair, smiling coldly. Now Bigsby would have to deal directly with me.

  My jaw tightened as I glanced impatiently at the watch adorning my wrist. What the hell is taking her so damn long? Sinthia should have arrived fifteen minutes ago.

  I’d give her five more minutes before hopping into my car and driving over to her house to lay down my number one ground rule. When I called, she’d drop what the fuck she was doing and haul her sexy ass to my designated destination or there would be hell to pay.

  Ram, my business partner and friend, opened my door and stepped into the office. “Security just informed Fiona that Sinthia Michaels is on her way up.” He strode in, closing the door behind him.

  I sat forward. “She was supposed to be here fifteen minutes ago!” The words rushed from my mouth like an angry roar.

  Ram arched one dark eyebrow. “What the fuck is up with you?” Sitting down in a chair, he propped his feet on my desk, much to my chagrin. “You need to relax, Core. If you bark at her like that, you’ll send her ass running out of here, fucking up our plans.”

  “Do I look like I give a shit?” I retorted, eyeing him coolly.

  Ram looked at me as if hinting at something. “Yes, you do,” he replied so calmly it raised my ire.

  My temper flared. “I don’t give a shit about her!” I snarled.

  Ram grinned like the idiot he was. “Yeah, okay.”

  I pressed on the bridge of my nose and took a deep breath, pissed that I’d been intrigued by her since the night we met at my club. I’d spent the last couple of days semi-aroused, and it was fucking with my head. The nights were fucking worse, and more than once, I’d woken to a raging hard-on with her name on my damn lips.

  It was a real fucked-up predicament. I had no business thinking that way about a woman I was using as bait.

  Sinthia was an addictive distraction.

  Ram loudly cleared his throat. “Kevin showed me a photo of her. Damn, she’s smoking hot.” He grinned, leaning back in the chair. “Tell you what. I’m more than willing to take her into my office and show her we mean business… kinky business.” He suggestively wiggled his brows. “I wonder if she’s into handcuffs.” He pursed his lips. “Shit, I would love to bend her over my desk, cuff her, and frisk that ass like she’s under—”

  I put my hand over my face, sighing loudly, and Ram stopped.

  But when I looked up again, I had a wicked smile on my face. “You’re fucking crazy.” I laughed. “But you always know how to calm me down.”

  “That’s what friends do,” Ram said.

  Ram was more than my best friend. He was the brother I never had and the only one I trusted besides Max and Rocco, my enforcers, who roughed up my enemies and kept my business associates in line. And Kevin, who handled the financing and accounting for all of my businesses and my private intelligence gathering efforts. Ram and I had been through hell and back together. Rising quickly in the world of organized crime, we’d built our empire from the bottom. There were times when I’d thought we’d never make it out alive, but we had. We’d decriminalized our business and turned our lives around.

  “Okay, so how do you want to handle this meeting? Good cop/bad cop scenario?” Ram asked quietly.

  I took a deep breath and let it out. “No, I’m going solo with this meeting.”

  Ram gaped at me. “What the fuck do you mean, solo?”

  For the first time in my life, I opened my mouth and nothing came out.

  Ram’s eyes widened. “You want to fuck her?” he asked, shaking his head. “I can’t believe it.”

  I grimaced as the knots in my stomach grew. It took me a good minute or two before I finally managed to get my thoughts together. I gritted my teeth. “Sinthia Michaels is all business, and I’m willing to destroy her business in order to take down Bigsby,” I retorted.

  I needed Sinthia Michaels as bait, and if that meant she might become a casualty in my war against Bigsby, then so be it.

  “Uh-huh.” Ram’s gaze held a hint of amusement. “We’ve been friends for a l
ong time. I’ve learned to read you like a book. You want her.”

  I leaned back. “I don’t need the complication.” My life was difficult enough, and I didn’t need any distractions, especially now that I’d found my mother’s killer. Besides, I wasn’t relationship material and I never would be. I’d fuck women and then show them the door.

  Ram’s lips twitched. “Yeah, well, that’s a damn relief.” He pointedly looked at me. “I would hate to have you complicate this mission by fucking her.”

  Damn. Little did Ram know, shit was already complicated between Sinthia and me.

  The phone on my desk rang twice, signaling that Sinthia was waiting to be guided into my office. Excitement raced through my veins as if I were some high schooler waiting for my prom date.

  Damn. What the hell is wrong with me?

  Annoyed, I glared at him, my patience gone. “Just escort her in.”

  Shooting to his feet, Ram gave me a mock salute. “Aye-aye, fearless leader. Let me get my game face on, showing Ms. Michaels that I—” He grinned slightly. “I mean we mean business.”

  I snorted before turning my swivel chair around to face the window. I stood up and clasped my hands behind my back, staring at the Manhattan skyline.

  I heard the huge office door open.

  Ram coldly greeted Sinthia. “Please come in, Ms. Michaels. Mr. McKay is waiting.”

  “What’s going on?” she asked.

  There was utter silence.

  “I asked you a question, Mr. Steele,” she snapped.

  Ram heaved a long-suffering sigh. “Ms. Michaels, a word of advice—if I were you, I would play nice with him. He’s in a real fucked-up mood today,” he said, his voice clipped, before closing the door with a decisive click.

  The soft tapping of heels against the Carrera marble floor alerted me to her approach.

  “Sinthia Michaels,” I said in a low-pitched voice, “have you brought my money?”

  There was a slight pause before she responded, “Money? What money?”

  I turned from the window and looked straight at her. My mouth went dry. Lust slithered through my body. Sinthia Michaels was sexy as hell, wearing skintight leather leggings that accentuated her voluptuous curves and a body-hugging black T-shirt that dipped in the front to reveal her tempting full cleavage. My hands could probably span her tiny waist.

  Sinthia squared her shoulders as if daring me to say something negative about her attire. She wouldn’t get any flak from me. I thought she looked smoking hot.

  “You’re Core McKay?” She took a step forward, her stare blazing with rage.

  My stare was unrelenting. Sinthia was absolutely gorgeous. She wore her hair pulled back into a tight ponytail, emphasizing her high cheekbones, bow-shaped full lips, and tip-tilted nose. I felt a strange stab of longing deep inside, a strong magnetic pull I hadn’t felt about anyone since Maya’s death. That loss had devastated me both mentally and emotionally, and it was the reason I’d stayed single and kept my relationships brief with no strings attached.

  “Good to see you again, Ms. Michaels.” My booming deep voice resonated throughout the office. “Have a seat. We have a lot to discuss.” I pointed to the chair nestled in front of my desk.

  She bit her lip as my eyes traveled from the top of her head down her curvy body. Sinthia hesitated, her gaze locking with mine. For a moment, I believed she’d stand her ground, but in an abrupt movement, she conceded, taking a seat.

  “Fine.” She lifted her shoulders in a shrug. “Listen, I’m going to cut to the fucking chase,” she said. “Why the fuck am I here?”

  I regarded her for a long time and then sat in the chair behind my mammoth desk. Sinthia shifted, and her jasmine scent wafted into my nostrils, making me want to bury my face against her neck. My cock stirred and stiffened against my pants.

  Shit. I had to get over my undeniable attraction to her and fast.

  I smoothed the sleeves of my tailored shirt before running a hand through my hair. “Unfortunately, some disturbing information has recently come to my attention, and it makes me question your ability to make me a profit.” My words were civil, but my eyes were hard as granite, letting her know right away that I was in charge.

  In a gesture of defiance, she raised her chin and met my eyes. “No offense, Mr. McKay, but my business deal is with MK Partners.” Fire flashed from the depths of her hazel eyes.

  If looks could kill, I was sure I’d be dead.

  I smirked. Just like I’d thought, Sinthia was a fighter, but she was sadly mistaken if she thought she’d win against me. No one did.

  Her eyes widened, her mouth forming a perfect O, when the reality of the situation dawned on her.

  “Yes, Ms. Michaels, MK Partners is my investment company,” I drawled.

  She shook her head. “While that might be true, our agreement was not a loan. I would never take a loan from a man like you.”

  What the fuck? A man like me?

  My jaw tightened. “In your desperation to finance your business, you obviously lowered your fucking highbrow standards,” I ground out. I was disappointed she’d been so judgmental without even digging deeply into the kind of man I really was. “Now, the only thing I don’t own is your company name. Other than that, I own ninety-seven percent of your precious company.”

  Sinthia went completely still, her eyes locking with mine. “Impossible,” she denied, giving me a suspicious look.

  I gestured to the neatly stacked paperwork on my desk. “The impossible became possible, Ms. Michaels.” I crossed my arms as I waited patiently for her to comprehend that I had her exactly where I wanted her—under my thumb.

  She squared her shoulders before snatching the stack off the desk. Folding my hands in front of me, I projected an air of nonchalance I didn’t feel as she slowly scanned the paperwork.

  A thrill of excitement raced through my body. Sinthia Michaels was all mine.

  Come on, darling. Get with the program and recognize the game is over. Checkmate.

  She raised her chin once again. “This is a huge mistake. This wasn’t supposed to be a loan. It was a deal for seven percent of my future earnings.” She shook her head.

  I knitted my brows. “Sinthia”—I tested her name on my tongue—“is that your signature?”

  Her mouth tightened. “I swear, this is not what I thought I was agreeing to.”

  I slightly inclined my head. “Let this be a lesson. Read things thoroughly before you sign.” I looked coldly at her. Her mistake was my gain. “Can you pay back my two million dollars plus interest today?”

  Kevin had given me a detailed report on her finances. She was living within her means while digging herself out of debt. There was no chance in hell she could raise the money to pay me back.

  She sputtered, “What the fuck do you want, McKay? Because—” She stopped mid-sentence as I stared at her with hooded eyes.

  She swallowed hard while I allowed my gaze to rake quite intimately over her. Our eyes locked. My groin stirred.

  Damn, I love her sexy toughness. It made me want to fuck her senseless.

  “You don’t expect me to fuck you so you’ll forget about this whole loan thing, do you?” Sinthia asked, watching me with disgust.

  My lips tilted into a brief small smile. As much as I’d enjoy finding out if she’d be a hellcat in bed, that wasn’t on the agenda—today.

  “Do you really think I have to pay to get fucked?” I replied.

  She ground her teeth. “Then what do you want?”

  Sinthia was trying to bait me, but I wouldn’t let her.

  “Not a damn thing but my money plus interest,” I countered. “I’m not sure you’ll be able to produce a profit, darling. My sources tell me your retailers are getting cold feet about the viability of your collection, and they’re pulling out of your deals.”

  She flinched as if I’d physically slapped her. “Bullshit! I have concrete agreements with each of them.”

  “You really don’t know shit
about contracts. Nothing in business is concrete. That’s what loopholes and a shitload of well-paid lawyers are for.” I shot her an irritated glare. “I can tell you don’t believe the shit I’m saying, so call Lily Sanchez.” I pushed away from my desk and stood up.

  “How do you know Lily?” she asked, disbelief ringing in her voice.

  I bit back a snort.

  Lily was a pawn to maneuver any way I wanted, and she was insignificant in the food chain of New York City power. Lily had been blindsided when her bosses abruptly decided to pull out of Sinthia’s deal. Just one phone call to my shadowy connections—who were wealthy, deadly, and ruthless—had killed the agreement.

  I’d built alliances while doing things like blackmail, coercion, and extortion, and that had made me one of the wealthiest and most feared men in New York City. Billionaires would quake in their custom-made shoes in fear of being exposed by the cache of intelligence I had about their shady business dealings and sordid sexual tastes. That information would ruin them if I chose to reveal it. I was the puppet master pulling the strings and making CEOs, politicians, and the very affluent dance for my amusement.

  I shrugged. “Just call her.” I cocked my head. “She’ll confirm the gravity of your situation.”

  She pulled out her cell. Her fingers trembled as she dialed Lily. “Lily, is everything good to go with my collection deal?” Sinthia asked. There was a slight pause before she jumped up, turning her back on me. “What the hell happened?” she whispered. Her shoulders slumped. “I’m two million dollars in, Lily. My collection is almost complete. That’s months of work. Do you understand me? Set up a meeting with the financial planners,” she snapped before she hung up.

  She turned around with her chin lifted. “How do you know Tabitha?”

  Raising a brow, I met her angry gaze.

  Her eyes widened. “Oh, I see. You’re one of her many fuck buddies.” Her voice was tight with accusation.

  Interesting. Was that a tinge of jealousy I detected in her voice?