“You think he’ll try to negotiate for too much money?” he asks, dragging his hand through his hair.
I nod. “You race down here enough to know how stuff can get on this side of town. Maddy has said it a dozen times—people from here like to hustle.”
He lowers his hand. “Well, I think you’ll just have to play it out. There’s probably a way around negotiations.” He wavers. “I still can’t believe the shit Noah got himself into. He’s such a dumbass.”
Instinctively, I open my mouth to agree, but then I close it. Maddy’s words replay in my mind. She told me I should get Noah’s full story and also said that perhaps there’s more to what’s going on than I understand. She could be right. The Noah I used to know would never do something like this.
“What?” Finn asks as his gaze dissects me through the dark.
I lift a shoulder. “Maddy told me to hear Noah’s story before I judge.”
He rubs his lips together. “And after everything he’s done, you’re going to?”
I shrug again. “I’m considering it.”
He studies me. “You like her a lot.”
“Maddy?” I play dumb.
He gives me a look that shows he thinks I’m an idiot. “Yes, Maddy. Who else would I be talking about? You’ve liked one girl.”
“Only because I wasn’t supposed to like anyone except for my betrothed,” I mumble as I check the address on the GPS. It’s showing we’re about a mile away.
“And yet, even after all that trying not to fall for someone, you couldn’t stop yourself from having feelings for Maddy.”
“What’s your point?”
“There must be something about her that you can’t resist.”
My mind wanders to when I started to fall for Maddy. If I’m being real, it was the moment I laid eyes on her. That wasthe first time I felt like someone else knew what it was like to constantly feel as if they were falling into an abyss.
Then I got to know her, and I was a goner. There’s no going back from Maddison Averly. I want her so badly it aches inside my soul. It’s something I haven’t ever felt before.
But I haven’t talked to Maddy about my feelings for her. Technically, we’re only fake dating, and she seemed uncomfortable when paparazzi was taking photos of us. Even if I asked her to date me, would she even want to? Especially when I can’t promise her anything long-term?
Unless I can find a way out of my arranged marriage.
“You’re about to miss the turn,” Finn announces, yanking me back to the present.
I blink and then brake, the tires squealing against the asphalt. I turn right into the parking lot of a building.
“This is the place?” Finn dubiously eyes the building as I park the car close to the front entrance, beside a truck with tinted windows.
A few lights are on inside the building, but many of the windows reveal that darkness blankets most of the interior. It makes me wary to get out, but conclusively, I do.
I close the door and lock the car. I’m not a fan of leaving it out here, but there’s no other option. Also, I’m not exchanging cash for Maddy’s freedom. I’ll use a transfer app, because bringing cash here is way too risky—they could jump us and not follow through on their end of the deal. I mean, they could, anyway, but it’s a risk I have to take.
“Just so you know,” Finn whispers under his breath, “I brought a knife with me.”
I resist a sigh as I lift my hand to knock on the door. “From what Maddy’s told me, I have a feeling these guys aren’t knife sort of people.”
“I know, but I had to bring something.” He stuffs his hands into the back pockets of his jeans.
A light bulb beside the door shines through the night, and it’s bright enough that my retinas sting. But I refuse to look away, keeping my eyes on the door as it opens.
Standing on the other side is a bulky guy with dark hair. He’s wearing worn jeans, a black T-shirt, and a shit-eating grin on his face. He looks familiar, and a moment later, it clicks. Drew. I saw a glimpse of him that day in the city when Finn and I helped Maddy escape him.
I remain composed as he measures Finn and me up. Then he crosses his arms and slants against the doorframe. “So, you two are the idiots willing to buy Maddy from us?”
