Breaker's Point Bad Boy Billionaires Boxset (23 page)

“I said I wasn’t going to pay for your food.” Riley grinned and dropped a few bills on the table next to his plate before heading for the door, leaving Stuart to quietly fume.

H
olly started awake
, her body cramped and cold against the stone floor of the basement. It had not been a pleasant experience and the short snatches of sleep she had managed to get weren’t enough to properly function on.

But it had been the sound of the lock twisting that had woken her this time. Heavy footsteps started on the stairs and Holly instantly recognised the all-too-familiar tread of Victor’s boots.

Gripping the wall, she used the rough stone to pull up into a standing position. Her limbs felt heavy and stiff, making it painful to actually force herself to straighten up.

“You’re awake?” Victor said, reaching the stone floor and coming to a stand-still in the centre of the basement.

His face was a mottled mixture of black and purple bruising and one of his eyes was a grotesque bloodshot mess. Holly could only imagine how painful it must be and yet he showed no signs of discomfort.

“Sleeping isn’t really an option down here.”

“And yet when I checked on you earlier you were asleep.”

Victor’s statement sent a cold shiver down her spine that had nothing to do with the chill in the basement. She’d always known him to be heavy-footed and a little awkward, so how was it possible for him to have checked on her and found her sleeping?

“I didn’t hear you…”

“I was very quiet,” he said, and there was something in the way he looked at her that instantly set Holly on edge.

She’d certainly never trusted him before but he’d now revealed himself to be even more dangerous and untrustworthy than Holly had ever imagined.

“Is he releasing me?” She chose to change the subject, focussing instead on the reason she was down here.

“He wants to see you upstairs.”

“What for?” she said, fighting back the urge to shudder.

Victor shrugged but Holly could tell from the guilty look in his eyes that he knew more than he was telling her.

“Fine,” she said, stepping towards him and the steps.

Victor moved, one minute standing in front of the steps and then suddenly in front of her, his hand reaching out towards her.

Holly froze, her breath catching in the back of her throat as his fingers brushed against the side of her face, tilting her face towards the light.

He was gentle, his large hands sliding across her skin and down to her neck. Holly studied his face, watching as the look in his eyes softened.

“He shouldn’t have touched you, you weren’t supposed to get hurt.”

Holly struggled to hold still. If she jerked out of his grip the way her body screamed at her to, she’d insult him—make an enemy of him and that was the last thing she needed. The more friends she could surround herself with, the better. Despite her mistrust of Victor, having him as a friend seemed like a good idea.

“If you hadn’t intervened he’d have done far worse. He’s dangerous…”

Victor’s steely gaze settled on Holly, his eyes searching for something in hers.

“We need to go,” he said, grabbing Holly’s arm hard enough to make her wince.

Whatever he’d been looking for in her face had obviously not been what he found.

M
arcus sat
in one of the plush armchairs, a petite blonde curled in his lap. Holly tried not to gag as she watched them kiss. If one could even call it kissing. To her it looked far more like he was trying to suck something out of the back of the blonde’s throat.

The grunting and moaning noises coming from them made them seem even more like animals rutting.

Holly turned away. She didn’t have to stand and watch such a vulgar display, but one look from Victor told her otherwise.

Anger tingled along her spine and she whirled around to face Marcus. This was her father’s house,
her
house. She’d agreed to marry him to save Niall but that didn’t mean she had to become little more than a prisoner in her own home. And if what Victor had said was true, if she wasn’t to be hurt, then what did she have to lose? Without her, Marcus had nothing.

“Did you want to speak to me, or is this just another of your childish games?”

Marcus drew back from the woman sitting on his lap. The grip he had on her hair looked painful, but from the look on the woman’s face she seemed to be enjoying it.

Disgust welled within Holly as she noticed the saliva glistening on Marcus’ chin. He really was an animal and the sooner she could figure out a way to be rid of him once and for all, the better for everyone.

“I see a night in the basement didn’t teach you any manners. I’d hoped it would help you to gain some respect, some perspective…”

“You’ll never have my respect, Marcus, you’re not worthy of it.”

The look on his face darkened and the woman in his lap let out a pained whimper. The sound was enough to draw his attention and he released her suddenly, violently pushing her out of his lap. She hit the floor with a heavy thud.

“Come here, Holly,” he said, his gaze never leaving the woman on the floor at his feet.

Folding her arms across her chest, she stood her ground. Marcus slowly lifted his gaze to her face and the look of pure malice Holly saw in his eyes filled her with dread.

“When I hit you last night, did I damage your hearing?”

“No.

“You can tell me whatever you need to tell me from there. I’m not a dog, Marcus, I won’t come just because you demand it.”

There was a fine tremor in her voice and in that moment Holly would have given anything to sound as strong and as sure as her words made her seem.

He stood, jerking upwards and lashing out with a kick. The sound of his booted foot connecting with the stomach of the woman on the floor was enough to make Holly nauseated. The blonde cowered on the floor, curling her body into the foetal position as she started to wail, her cries ripping through the final shreds of Holly’s determination to stand against Marcus.

She went to him, reaching his side before he could land another blow on the woman whom just moments before he was kissing.

Holly struggled to wrap her head around the man Marcus was. His moods were fluid and constantly changing, making it almost impossible to gauge his reactions.

“You don’t like to see me hurt others, do you, Holly?” Marcus said, dropping his voice, making his question sound almost tender.

Holly shook her head, her voice deserting her as Marcus trailed his hand against her cheek. She flinched away from him, disgusted by the proximity of his hand to her body.

“I like that about you, it makes it easier to manipulate you.”

Holly bit down on her tongue in order to stop herself from blurting out her hatred for him.

“But last night taught me a valuable lesson. I know now that I’ve been too easy on you, given you far too much wriggle room.”

“You can keep me locked in the basement all you want, Marcus, I don’t care. As long as you keep your end of the bargain and leave those I love alone, I’ll marry you but that’s it…”

He smiled, a cruel, cold curling of his lips that made Holly’s blood turn to ice in her veins.

“I wanted to hurt you last night, wrap my hands around your throat and watch the life drain from you…”

The sound of Victor shuffling forward had Marcus glancing up at him. It gave Holly the time she needed to swallow back her fear.

“You don’t need to worry, Victor, I’m not going to lay a finger on her now. You were right, George wouldn’t appreciate it, but he did come up with an ingenious idea.” Marcus switched his attention back to Holly, his hungry gaze sliding over her face and down to her breasts. “He told me about a little technique employed in the English royal courts of old. Have you ever heard the term ‘whipping boy’?”

“Yes.” Holly let her gaze drop to the woman on the floor who was still sobbing quietly against the carpet.

“You don’t need to worry about Nessie. She wouldn’t be an effective whipping boy. I need somebody that you’ve got a real bond with—that was the whole point of the whipping boys. And despite your father’s helpful attitude throughout this entire situation, he’s not right for the position either. We need someone who nobody would miss in the area… Can you think of anyone who might fit that description, Holly?”

The fine tremor had grown until it was a struggle for her to control the movement of her body and she wrapped her arms around herself.

“No.” She squeezed the words out from between gritted teeth.

“Your mother was very happy to hear from me, the man you’re going to marry. She was a little surprised that you didn’t contact her yourself, to invite her home, but I reassured her that you were just so preoccupied with all the plans…”

His words took a few minutes to sink in, their meaning twisting through Holly’s gut until it felt as though it was her he had kicked.

She lunged at him, her arms flailing as she lashed out, but Marcus laughed as he caught her by the wrists and pinned them down by her side.

“I can’t keep you locked away and I can’t leave you with any lasting physical reminders of my anger. It’d damage the reputation I’m trying to build by marrying you. But I can do all of those things to your mother.”

Holly struggled in his grip, her sobs turning to strangled screams as he crushed her against his chest.

“Nobody is going to miss her, Holly, nobody but you is going to know she’s here. And if you’re a good little girl and do everything I say, then you won’t have to worry about her, I won’t lay a finger on her… But if you’re not…” His voice had taken on a dark tone as he tilted Holly’s face up towards his.

“If you’re not, then I’ll do everything to her that I wish I could do to you.”

Holly’s vision blurred with tears as Marcus shoved her away from him.

She stumbled, catching her balance as she gripped the side of the couch.

“We made a deal, I won’t marry you…”

Marcus started to laugh and the sound grated on Holly’s ears.

“The deal was that you’d marry me and I wouldn’t hurt Reynolds or your father. You never bargained for your mother and even if you did, it wouldn’t matter. You’ll marry me to keep her safe, to protect her from me.”

Holly wanted to scream, hurl abuse at him, wrap her hands around his neck and choke the life out of him. But there was nothing left in her, no fight, no will to carry on.

What was the point? Every time she went up against him she lost and each loss was demanding a higher price from her.

Instead she watched as he grabbed the blonde he had called ‘Nessie’ by the arm and dragged her upright.

“Get cleaned up. I’m having a business dinner this evening and I want you at my side, you’re after all my bride-to-be. And don’t try anything stupid or your mother won’t have time to settle in before I’m forced to make a painful point.”

He headed for the door, dragging the still-sobbing Nessie after him.

Holly dropped onto the couch and buried her face in her hands.

“Are you alright?” Victor asked.

Holly started and scrubbed her hands across her eyes in an attempt to brush away the tears. He’d been so silent she’d forgotten he was still in the room with her.

“Did you know?” she said, the words coming out as little more than a whisper, an attempt to keep the tremor out of her voice.

“Yes.”

“And you didn’t tell me?”

“You’re not my boss, he is. I don’t owe you anything.” Victor’s voice had taken on its usual arrogant tone.

Holly stood and faced him, balling her hands into fists at her sides as she stared at him.

“I thought you cared for me. Last night…”

Victor didn’t wait for her to continue, cutting her off before she could finish.

“You thought wrong. I intervened last night because I know how important you are to Marcus’ plans and, in turn, George’s. If Marcus fails, it’s a setback for George that he doesn’t need.”

Holly started to storm past him. Clearly she’d misread the situation entirely. Victor’s hand closed around her arm, jerking her to a halt.

“Just don’t do anything stupid. Do as he asks and everything will be fine… Please?” Victor’s voice was soft, and his normally cold grey eyes were filled with an emotion Holly had never expected to see there.

Tenderness.

It was strange to hear him plead with her and the moment seemed to pass as quickly as it’d arrived.

Holly pulled out of his grip and started out the door, her legs picking up pace as she held the torn and tattered remnants of her dress in her hands, keeping it from tripping her on the steps.

If she was to believe Victor, then she’d misread the situation, but the look in his eyes spoke of something else entirely. Something she could use to her advantage.

“
I
was wondering
when you’d show up,” Anderson said, leaning back against the cream leather of his sofa.

Riley shifted uncomfortably against the hard leather of the seat he sat in. He’d never understood why Anderson insisted on having furniture that was more form over function.

As far as he was concerned, just because it looked vaguely impressive did not make it a pleasure to sit on.

“Look, about last night, there’s a lot you don’t…” Riley started to speak but Anderson waved away his words, his expression hardening.

“Don’t give me that crap, Riley. You wanted nothing to do with the situation, a situation you created. You talked me into attending that mess last night only because I thought you’d finally gotten serious about getting Holly back. Instead it was just another way for you to stroke your ego in front of the entirety of Breaker’s Point.”

Riley bristled. Anderson’s words stung and despite the fact that they weren’t remotely accurate, what he was saying was indicative of what the rest of Breaker’s Point thought about him.

“That’s not what happened and you know it. Holly caught me off guard with one of her questions, is all.”

“She caught you off guard? Considering the position she finds herself in, I’d have thought if you really cared for her nothing could have caught you ‘off guard’ as you so aptly described.” Anderson’s sarcastic tone was enough to tip Riley over the edge into anger.

Pushing to his feet, he balled his hands into fists and fought to suck in enough calming breaths to stop himself from crossing the room in order to choke Anderson with the tie he wore.

“You know how much I care for her. I wouldn’t have asked you to get involved if it wasn’t serious and you know that. Now cut the crap and tell me what Marcus had to say.”

Anderson sighed and a look of discomfort flashed across his face that had Riley instantly curious.

“He has some business proposals that he wanted me to look at and when I asked him to elaborate he made a joke about the flesh trade. The worst part is even though he described it as a joke, I think he intended to gauge my reaction from it.”

Riley shook his head, a cold sweat breaking out down his spine, causing his shirt to stick to his skin.

“He’s holding a business dinner and he wants me there. I didn’t flinch over the ‘joke’ and he seemed to take that as a healthy sign.”

“What do you think the business dinner is all about?”

Anderson shrugged. “I have no idea, Riley. All I know is that I want nothing more to do with that man. The sooner you extricate Holly from his grip, the better.”

“Did you accept his invitation?” Riley asked. He struggled to keep the hopeful note from his voice.

Anderson sighed and brushed his hand across his face.

“I had a feeling you’d ask me that.”

“And?”

“Yes, I said yes. I want nothing to do with Marcus but I also don’t like the thought of someone like him moving into the town and starting up different business ventures.”

“I think his ventures are just the tip of the iceberg,” Riley said. He had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach and the more he thought about Marcus and his plans, the more uneasy he became.

“You think his joke wasn’t a joke at all?”

“Well, you said it yourself, it felt like he was testing you more than making jokes. And, well, your family owns most of the shipyards and dock areas around Breaker’s Point. What you control could be highly valuable to someone like Marcus.”

Anderson seemed to contemplate Riley’s words, his brow furrowed as he stared out the window.

A moment of silence passed before Anderson finally seemed to recover his thoughts. Riley watched as he pushed up onto his feet and crossed the room to a dark oak cabinet sitting in the corner. He pushed his hand against the centre panel and it lifted away to reveal an impressively stocked drinks cabinet.

Anderson pulled an almost full bottle of scotch from one of the glass shelves and gestured in Riley’s direction.

“I need a drink, are you having one?”

Riley shook his head, his stomach shifting uncomfortably as he recalled his behaviour from the night before.

“After last night, I think I’ll pass.”

“It was that bad, huh?” Anderson smiled as he poured a generous glass for himself. He swallowed it down before pouring a second one.

“It wasn’t something I was proud of.”

Anderson nodded before returning to his seat on the couch.

“So how do you want to deal with the dinner?”

“Well, he can’t exactly turn me away if I turn up with you. It wouldn’t look particularly professional in front of everyone else.”

Anderson grinned and sipped at the scotch in his glass. “Are you sure that’s wise? It’s his house. What if he won’t even let you in the door?”

It was Riley’s turn to smile. “And if he does that, he’ll also be turning away you. At least we’ll get a read on how important the port and docks are to him. I just find it hard to believe that Marcus could do all of this without some sort of outside guidance.”

“Yeah, he doesn’t exactly come across as a shrewd business man. And yet his move to marry Holly is quite clever. Niall is a mess but his name still means something in this town.”

Riley nodded. Anderson was right, Marcus’ move to marry Holly was a shrewd one and went against everything Riley knew Marcus to be. As time passed it was becoming increasingly more urgent to work out what his true goal was.

“I don’t care how clever he thinks it is, I’ll do everything in my power to make sure his plans don’t come to fruition. And, as soon as Holly is safe, I’m going to pay him back for everything he’s done to her.”

L
eaving Anderson’s house
, Riley had contemplated going straight home but the sound of the waves crashing against the shoreline drew him to the path that led down from Cliff Road onto the beach.

The breeze was cold against his face but the sting of the salt air against his lips was exactly what he needed to help clear his head of the last remnants of the night before.

He hung his head as he crossed the beach to the shoreline where the water met the sand. The rhythmic slap of the waves only made his already tumultuous thoughts more hectic.

The one clear thought in his mind was that of Holly. She wanted answers from him and he couldn’t blame her for that.

She deserved answers.

She deserved far better than he could ever give her.

And yet he knew if given the opportunity he would take her in his arms and never let her go. He’d been a fool and he wasn’t about to let history repeat itself.

Of course it was far more likely that once she found out the truth from all those years ago that she wouldn’t want anything more to do with him. And if that was the case then he’d have to just accept her decision.

It wasn’t a thought that sat well with him and he had the overwhelming desire to push it aside completely and make her his no matter what it took to earn her trust back.

His cell phone buzzed in his pocket and he pulled it out and stared down at the screen. Stuart’s name flashed across it as the phone continued to ring. He pushed his thumb against the accept button and pressed the phone to his ear.

“Riley?” Stuart sounded stressed and it instantly set Riley on edge.

“Is there something wrong, Stuart?” he said. Stuart was a hot-head but he was good at camouflaging his true feelings, so the fact that he’d allowed enough emotion to leak into his voice so as to be noticeable didn’t fill Riley with confidence.

“No, not as such. I did what you asked and contacted an old buddy of mine. He said he’d be more than happy to help.”

“So why do I feel like there’s a ‘but’ coming?” Riley said, turning away from the ocean and making his way back up the beach.

“It’s going to take him a few days to get up here. He said he’s already got a job that he needs to get finished on.”

“Stu, I’m not sure if I can afford to wait a few days, I want to get Holly out of there now.”

“I told him that but his hands are tied. If we can’t wait, we’re just going to have to find another way.”

Riley nodded before he remembered he was talking to Stuart on the phone and his brother couldn’t see him.

“I’m going over there tonight. I’ll see what I can do.”

“Riley, the last time you went there he beat the crap out of you. You can’t go barging in there, not without his guards finishing what he started.”

Riley couldn’t help but laugh. It was strange to hear concern over his welfare in Stuart’s voice. All the years they’d spent apart after their parents death had made Riley feel as though a relationship with his brother was completely impossible.

But now everything had changed and Riley couldn’t help but feel grateful that he had a man as determined as Stuart on his side.

“I’ll be fine, it’s not a surprise. Anderson has an invite to dinner and I’m going to tag along with him.”

“Do you need me to come as backup? I wouldn’t mind getting the chance to wipe that smirk from Marcus’ face.”

“No. This is strictly all business tonight. There will be no violence and anyway, Marcus is mine once the time is right. But, that can’t be what’s really bothering you, so spit it out.”

Stuart sighed on the other end of the line and Riley could practically imagine his brother pushing his hand back through his short hair.

“Griffin is back in town.”

It seemed like such an innocent statement and yet it had the power to send Riley’s blood pressure spiking

“Are you sure?” he said, hoping more than anything that Stuart was wrong. It didn’t matter that he knew it was impossible for Stuart to have made an error; he could still hope.

“Yeah, I saw him in town after you left the diner. He didn’t see me, though.”

“He always did have the worst sense of timing. Now is not the time for dealing with his drama.”

Stuart chuckled but Riley knew it was just his way of covering his true feelings over their younger brother’s arrival in town.

“As long as he leaves before I have to see him, everything will be fine,” Stuart said, his voice quickly losing all signs of its previous good humour.

“You’re going to see him sooner or later. He’s your brother, Stuart.”

“We’ll see,” Stuart said, and Riley sighed.

His brother was hard-headed and stubborn and nothing short of a miracle would change that about him.

“Let me know if you can get your friend to get up here sooner.”

“Fine.”

The line went dead and Riley was left staring down at the blank screen. The thought of going home now was the last thing he wanted to do. If Griffin was back, then Riley knew his brother would be at the house and who knew how many ‘friends’ or groupies he’d managed to drag back with him.

Staring down at the phone, he contemplated calling his driver. He didn’t have to go home yet. He could go out—go anywhere—and clear his head before he had to face Griffin.

With a sigh he shoved the phone back into his pocket and started down the beach. Putting off seeing his brother would only lead to a bigger mess and there was far too much at stake to risk it. Damage control was the only way forward and, where Griffin was concerned, the more the better.