“Fake girlfriend.”
He scoffs, looking at me from the corner of his eye. “Sure.”
“Don’t be getting any smart ideas about any public appearances where we have to put on a show. I can be your fake girlfriend from the comfort of your home just as easily as holding hands down the street or locking lips at the local bar.”
“Are you that opposed to kissing me?”
I am opposed to anything which involves touching you.
His lips curve up, and there’s a promise of sin in his eyes, urging me to throw caution to the wind. I set my jaw, staringat the leftovers on my plate. Eve wasn’t tempted because it was sinful. She was tempted, and ultimately fell for, the devil’s trap because of a promise of what could be. What would forbidden fruit taste like? Why was it forbidden?
Charlie huffs and licks my hand.
“What do you want?” I ask.
Hunter chuckles. “Attention, Eleanor. He’s a sucker for an ear scratch and a belly rub. He’s also loyal but exceptionally stubborn. He won’t move until you give him some love.”
“He’s literally you in dog form.”
Hunter hums. “You mentioned you were tracking Jonathan.”
I look at my screen, still seeing no hits from my software. “Always.”
“His retreat isn’t scheduled for another month, meaning he… what? Goes underground until then?”
I shake my head. It’s taken me a long time to put together the model Jonathan constantly changes, to examine the common threads and make predictions with high confidence in my accuracy.
“He’s about to host a wellness conference.”
Hunter snorts. “Seriously?”
“What do extremely rich people have in common? What is their biggest fear and ultimate downfall?”
“Rich people struggle to engage with anyone not on their financial level.”
“Correct.”
“Their fear is split between their money not filling whatever hole in their life they have and being taken advantage of by others.”
“Also correct.”
“They’re always chasing the next thing. Sex. Drugs. Crime. They test boundaries that stretch much wider because of theirwealth and influence, and their downfall is either snapping that boundary or taking themselves out in a blaze of poor choices.”
“You are very astute.”
“I’m very rich and self-aware.”
Unusual combination. “Jonathan has positioned himself as someone who is able to offer support and guidance to these people. He promises a life of enlightenment and a cushion of support for people who join him. He preys on rich women, specifically ones who lack a support network and have been burned by people pretending to love them.”
“What about the men?”
“They are recruited for their darker urges. The rich women ultimately hand over the reins of their finances to Jonathan and his team for a life free of stress and worry. Many of these women become poster people to draw in more and more with each intake. He makes the wellness retreats super exclusive, five to ten spots for each month-long immersion. He is a master manipulator. During the four weeks, these women are assessed for their susceptibility into his cult. If they are deemed easily influenced, he keeps them and draws them deeper and deeper until they no longer know themselves. They are wholly dependent on him for their decision making.”
“Is that what happened to your mom?”
I press my lips together and frown at my plate. “No. Back then, his cult was a fledgling organization barely off the ground. Jonathan knew he had influence. He knew he could manipulate, but he focused on people lost in their world. My mom was pregnant with a child conceived out of wedlock with a boy my grandparents didn’t approve of. She overheard them discussing slipping abortion meds into her drink and ran. She didn’t stop running until she met Jonathan. He provided safety and shelter for a very pregnant, very scared teenager. Once she realized what was happening, it was too late.”
“Do you speak to your grandparents?”
