The Dangerous Thief (Stolen Hearts #3)(29)

“Delilah will get you where you need to go.” Stan stood. “Let’s go.”

The car had a name. Come on, Stan. Work with me. Stan White was a bit older than her father, probably in his early sixties, but he desperately hung onto his youth. Between his fake tan and obviously dyed hair, he was practically screaming midlife crisis.

He’d worked with her father for as long as she could remember and that’s about as far as their mutual dislike stretched. It was hard to tell who started it, but she was willing to bet it was him.

They both stood outside awkwardly as they waited for the valet to bring “Delilah” around. “You didn’t really think you could get away from this, did you?”

Willa crossed her arms over her chest and tried to figure out where this was going. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh, I think you do. That little episode with that fed a few weeks back. You should consider yourself lucky that you’re not the one who ended up dead on that floor. Being used like that by an agent. Stupid move, Willa.”

A chill worked its way down her spine. She glanced over her shoulders to see whether anyone heard what he was admitting to, but they were in the perfect spot for him. He could say whatever he wanted without being overheard, but if she tried to punch him in the face, plenty of people would see. There was a chance this was a test. Stan could be seeing how much she was affected by the murder.

So she played the devoted daughter. “Daddy would never hurt me. He knows I never would’ve brought that woman over if I’d known who she was.”

Stan laughed and rubbed at his nose. “Oh, honey. You’re so lucky you have someone like that looking out for you. If it weren’t for him, you’d never make it in this world.”

Just then, a shiny red convertible Maserati pulled up and the valet put it in park.

She didn’t care what role she was trying to play. She wasn’t about to let Stan fucking White talk to her like this. “I think you’d be surprised what I’m capable of.”

He scoffed. “I doubt that. Let’s face it. If you want to make it, you have to have balls.” He looked down his nose at her and added, “Literally and figuratively. Now hop on in and let’s get this over with.”

“At least my face doesn’t look like a pair of balls that was left out to wither in the sun.” She turned on her heel and walked down the street. If she had to get into that stupid expensive car that probably got Stan laid way more than the son of a bitch deserved, she was probably going to claw the man’s eyes out. And considering that the violence really didn’t seem like that bad of an idea at the moment, the walk was necessary.

Damn it, where was James? She debated calling him to come and get her but thought better of it. As pissed off as she was, she didn’t feel physically threatened by Stan. He was just trying to show her who was boss. If James had left, he probably had somewhere better to be and she didn’t want to get in the way.

So she’d do what was expected. She’d go to a club and act like her former self. Maybe by the time she got there, she’d forget what a dipstick Stan was.

A girl could hope.

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Willa decided against going home. If Jadon was expecting her to go out, he would have sent the security detail who was taking over for James to the club Stan was supposed to drive her to. And considering she was trying to convince him that she was okay with his shadier extracurricular activities, she should be trying to act normal.

And clubbing and partying was normal to her. This new club, Sininen, seemed to be the hot new thing. Whoever Jadon’s “cool” sources were, they hadn’t been wrong. Sininen meant “blue” in Finnish, according to the quick Google search she’d done, and the club was wholeheartedly following that theme. The faded azure lighting gave a dark vibe to the crowded room. Even though there had been a long line of clubgoers outside waiting to get in, the bouncer had recognized Willa. The bouncer crowd was surprisingly small and she’d seen him at her fair share of clubs and bars before.

Even though she didn’t believe in bribing the men at the door, she did appreciate the good service and slipped him a fifty after he opened the rope. Okay, maybe it was a bribe. She wasn’t a hundred percent good now that she was working against Jadon. Just better than before. Maybe.

She scanned the room as she stepped farther in. It was dim enough that it was hard to make out anything in a lot of detail. She was sure that once people started to drink or take whatever designer drug was trending at the moment, things would be even harder to make out. Seemed like fun. Unfortunately, she couldn’t really afford to party right now.

She kept on looking for Stephanie or AJ and, she admitted to herself, James. Her dress wasn’t really made for clubbing, but it didn’t make her stand out either. Even with the short skirt, the club was so warm it made her wish she was wearing a lot less clothing.

That was the point, she supposed. People could get all naked and rub against each other until they forgot their problems. There was only one person she wanted to rub against currently, and he was nowhere to be found. She knew she could call him if she really wanted him around, but considering how frustrated she was at the moment, she figured some time to clear her head would be best.