“I’m sad about it too,” Amber said, and though her face was not streaked with tears like the other girls, they were in her throat, choking her words. “I can’t believe he’s gone. It felt like he was just here yesterday, telling me I should leave Theo for him. It felt like he was just here, teasing you. Maybe we both should have taken the rodeo just to see what it would have been like with him.”
And that was enough to make Honey break down as tears fell from her eyes harder. No, she shouldn’t have taken that rodeo with Nikos. If she hadn’t, then he would still be here. He would still be alive, and that was something she wanted now more than anything.
“I knew that you and Nikos worked more closely together than he did with the other girls. But I must admit I didn’t think you would be this distraught about it. You’re crying more than Sweetie and Allison,” Amber said, looking at her sadly, but when Honey did not respond and only continued to cry, Amber’s eyes widened with shock before she came over and pulled her into a tight hug, rubbing her back through her sobs.
“No wonder Nikos hasn’t done anything else with the girls lately,” Amber said with tears thick in her throat. “He was with you.”
Honey sobbed as she clutched Amber tighter. “He killed him, Amber. That psycho killed him because of me.”
Amber froze mid-rub and pulled back, looking at her with shock. Honey knew it wasn’t something she should have told anyone. Antonis hadn’t told her not to, but with men like Antonis, these things could just be left unspoken. If you saw a man like him kill someone in cold blood, unless you wanted the same to happen to you, you wouldn’t say a word. But Honey felt like if she didn’t tell anyone, it would eat her alive.
Amber didn’t even bother with asking who the psycho was because they both knew there was only one person she would refer to as that. Amber’s tears fell harder before she pulled her back into a hug again.
Amber’s hot tears fell against her neck, and Honey’s tears fell against hers as they cried until they heard a clack against the ground. Usually, Honey would never be caught in this place looking so vulnerable, knowing how much of vultures the other girls could be, but right now she didn’t care. But when she turned to the left to see where the noise had come from, she realized the sound had come from Antonis’s cane. He stood near them in the hall with a heavy frown on his face, and Honey wanted to slap him. He wouldn’t even allow her to grieve in peace.
Amber and Honey stepped apart as they wiped their tears.
“You can go. I need to speak to Honey alone,” Antonis said, and Amber looked hesitant to leave, like she feared that Antonis would kill her too. But Honey knew now that Antonis would only kill those around her who wanted her. She would be fine physically, even if she wouldn’t be mentally.
“I’ll meet up with you later,” Honey said, and Amber nodded. Once she was out of hearing distance, Antonis spoke.
“Your performance was unacceptable.”
“Usually when someone is mourning the loss of a loved one, their bosses give them leave,” Honey retorted, not quite giving a fuck about what was acceptable or not. What was unacceptable was forcing her to come out on stage after he told her that he had murdered Nikos last night. He was cruel, and yet he wanted to preach to her about what was acceptable. If he had remotely any heart, then she wouldn’t be here right now.
“A loved one?” Antonis repeated with disgust.
“Yes, a loved one,” Honey repeated, defiantly. She and Nikos had never put any titles to their relationship, but right now, she knew she could use those words to describe what she felt for him. She wouldn’t be feeling this sad if Nikos were anything less.
Antonis took a step closer, but this time, Honey didn’t cower in fear because she was that angry. She was ready to face him toe to toe. She was ready to take Antonis on at this moment.
“If you have a problem with my performance, fire me,” Honey taunted. She wanted him to. She wanted him to break this hellish connection between them once and for all, so she could be free from him.
“I won’t fire you, ever,” he promised to her disgust. “Go home and mourn your loss because he’s gone, and he’ll never touch you again.”
Ready to storm off, Honey tried to move past him, but he grabbed her arm, stopping her in her tracks. Honey tried to tug herself away, but Antonis only gripped her arm tighter. “Take a break, and two days from now, we’re going to dinner together.”
“I don’t want to go to dinner—”
“I already told you. It doesn’t matter what you want anymore. You will be going out to dinner with me,” he told her before loosening his grip, and Honey snatched her arm away and left.
C H A P T E R
46
TWO DAYS LATER, IN THE DIMLY LIT RESTAURANT IN MANHATTAN, Honey sat stiffly, looking and feeling akin to a living doll. She wore an expensive red bandage dress, one that she wouldn’t have chosen herself. But it was the dress that Antonis had one of his men drop off the night before, instructing her to wear it for tonight. If it had been up to her, she wouldn’t be wearing a dress at all. But these past few days, she realized that the choices she had before, she didn’t have anymore.
“And what will you be having tonight, miss?” the waiter asked her after taking down Antonis’s order.
Honey stared at him as if he had two heads. “Why are you asking me what I want when it doesn’t matter?”
The waiter’s eyebrows rose in confusion before his eyes whipped over to Antonis, who sat on the other side of the table, chuckling. Honey glared at him. She didn’t find anything amusing about this situation at all. She wished she could chuck the candle on the table at his face, so he would burn and vanish from her life.
“She’ll have the filet mignon steak with roasted potatoes and asparagus,” Antonis told the waiter. The waiter stiffly took it down, his eyes shifting between them and the two rough-looking men who stood behind them until he left.
“You should like it,” Antonis told her, but Honey didn’t respond, lost in her own thoughts, wondering how she found herself there. Ever since Antonis came back, he had changed.
He had always been too pushy, crossing too many of her boundaries, being relentless in his pursuit of her, and making it known that if she ever wanted to make more money, then she would have to be with him. But she hadn’t realized until now that he hadn’t crossed all her boundaries.
