002

JORDYN

“Ms. Jordyn?”

Vanessa’s voice wasn’t enough to make me open my eyes, so she snapped her fingers in my face instead.

Slowly, I blinked them open, and the first person I saw after inhaling the familiar scent of cedar wood was… Tyrique.

He stood tall. He was dressed in a tailored tuxedo, looking sharp and slightly different than how I’d remembered. His beard was neatly trimmed, and his hair had gotten darker.

I forced myself to remain composed even though staring into those familiar green eyes brought back so many memories.

Painful memories.

And flashbacks of the times when all that mattered was us… stealing kisses in every corner.

“Y-yes? ”I wore a smile, responding and shifting my gaze to Vanessa.

“Are you fine?” She asked, her eyes etched with concern and curiosity. “For a moment you weren’t hearing anything I said.”

Tyrique looking at me wasn’t making issues easy. His eyes glanced at me in a manner that seemed like there was recognition.

His brows pulled together slightly, like something about me didn’t sit right with him. Like he almost recognized me… but couldn’t.

“I’m fine,” I whispered.

“This is my husband." Vanessa tugged at his arm, pulling him closer to herself. “Tyrique Sinclair. He wanted to meet you before we proceeded.”

I nodded, gesturing at the next open seat, trying not to stare too much at him. My heart was beating loudly, and I feared it was loud enough for them to hear.

“Take a seat, Mr. Sin—‘’

He cut in sharply, his voice void of the gentleness Vanessa had been using since she got here.

"What's your name?” He asked, refusing to take a seat as he remained standing a few feet away from me.

I gulped down a swallow. “Jordyn.”

“Full name.”

My chest tightened. Did he notice something? Had he seen something that gave away my old identity?

My fingers twitched slightly against the table.

“Jordyn Mercer.”

He raked his eyes over my figure, his lips curled up in a little pout. I studied his expression, wondering what was running through his mind.

His gaze lingered a second too long, but it wasn’t in admiration. It was nothing more than the scowl and irritation on his face.

He turned to Vanessa, who’d already taken a seat and was darting her eyes between both of us.

“Is something wrong, honey?" She asked.

Tyrique shook his head, not sparing me another glance.

“Has she given her pitch?”

Vanessa nodded. “Yeah. And it was really good.”

“You’re sure?”

I watched both of them with a racing heart, secretly hoping that he’d drop the tough act and be more lenient with his wife’s decision.

I could already tell from the way Vanessa acted that she’d bought what I’d proposed. The only obstacle was her husband.

“Yes,” she said softly. “Do you want her to restart again?”

I sincerely hope not. Because I might stutter and embarrass myself in front of him.

Tyrique glanced up at me, studying me like a book he was forced to read. I shoved away the fear, the painful memories, and the muffled screams in my head and held his gaze with narrowed eyes.

Until he finally uttered it. “There’s no need. I only came here to be sure you weren’t getting scammed.”

Vanessa chuckled nervously, exchanging reassuring glances at me, and I added a subtle nod.

“Of course not. Ms. Jordyn is really… sweet. And her pitch was really good like I said before.”

That was Vanessa. The same old one. Always quick to trust people but never lenient when they don’t remain loyal.

My fingers moved to my chest as I tilted my head back, accepting her compliments.

“Thank you, Mrs. Sinclair.”

“It’s fine,” he muttered, throwing his hands in the air. “Whatever you say.”

“Does that mean…?”

“You can sign the contract,” Ty said to Vanessa, but his eyes were on me. “All of it.”

I refrained from grinning widely. Watching Vanessa reach for the pen as she scribbled her signature made my uneasiness disappear.

She didn’t know it yet, but that was the beginning of her misery.

But before I could have my secret celebratory moment, Ty stepped closer in front of me, his voice sternly rising after a brief pause.

“If you’re lying…” my breath stilled at the dangerous tone he’d settled for. “I won’t just end the contract.” His eyes locked into mine. “I’ll end you.”

*

“Did you get the deal?” Melissa asked me later that evening.

She was the only person who knew everything that had happened from seven years ago. And she was working with me to get through my targets.

I took a sip from my glass. “Yeah. But there was a problem.”

“A problem?” She inquired with narrowed eyes. “What happened?”

I dropped my glass on the table, exhaling sharply before responding.

“She invited her husband over.”

Melissa’s eyes widened. “Tyrique?”

I nodded.

My mind drifted back to the office after Vanessa had signed the contract. Ty had never acted that scary, and it unsettled me that he’d turned into the male version of his mother.

I saw the fire in his blazing eyes, and there was a contrast between him and the old Ty who was everything to me.

“He threatened me,” I continued, tucking my hair behind my ear. “But I’ve learned not to flinch at things like that anymore.”

I’d remained calm during his speech, only staring and observing what had changed about him. He could bark all he wanted, but that wasn’t going to stop me from driving his empire into the ground.

“I think you need to be careful,” Melissa told me. “He never jokes about anything, especially threats.”

I shrugged, deciding to shove away the discussion and step into the current situation at hand.

“Well, that’s the least of my worries right now.”

We were at the bar section, waiting for my next target. For seven years, I’d planned my revenge on two men who’d been my recurring nightmares.

First, it was Tyrique Sinclair.

And the other? The one I was currently waiting for at the strip club was…

Declan Hawthorne.

Another mafia don. Billionaire. An underground criminal and secret assassin. Even the strongest men were scared to utter his name, and he rarely showed his face except at nights.

Rumors had it that he never said more than one word to anyone. Maybe two—if he were giving an order or grew intrigued.

But he was never intrigued. A very hard man to please. Words on the street had it that you could see a dancing dolphin before Declan’s smile.

“It’s ten-thirty,” I murmured after glancing at my phone. “Are you sure he’s coming?”

Melissa’s eyes darted around the club. “My source said he normally comes around by ten. Maybe he’s running late.”

I groaned softly. “I don’t have the time. I’m meeting up with Vanessa tomorrow afternoon by three.”

Melissa furrowed her eyebrows. “I thought you were done with the deal.”

And I’d done so well that she offered me lunch with them at their official residence in the Sinclair estate. She said it was an apology for Ty’s behavior.

I tried to refuse, but she didn’t leave any room for refusal. Besides, I wanted that opportunity to get closer and have more eyes on what I wanted.

“She wanted me—" I was beginning to say something when Melissa tapped my arm repeatedly, cutting me off.

“He’s here." Her voice was barely above a whisper. “Declan is fucking here. I knew my source was right.”

The music didn’t stop, but the energy did and shifted suddenly. Conversations lowered, eyes shifted, and people began to murmur while a few stood up to leave.

Even the dancers seemed more careful… like a wrong move or dancing too much could get them in trouble.

My eyes trailed after hers, and they fell on a tall, huge, muscular man dressed in all black.

He had five men surrounding him, their guns visible in their hands and on their waists. His hair was slick back, and he was slightly taller than Ty.

He was taller than the last time I saw him.

A cold chill ran down my spine because I remembered him. Not clearly, not fully, but enough to make his face reappear in my mind whenever it rained.

And I remembered him from his side too. The same way he stood now without knowing I was staring was the same way he’d stood that night.

That awful night, the rain had descended without remorse, leaving everything drenched and destroyed with its storm.

For minutes, I sat there staring, my grip tightening around my glass until Melissa jerked me back to reality.

“Aren’t you going to meet him?”

I’d gotten so caught up in the chaos surrounding me that I’d forgotten why I was there. Grabbing my glass from the table, I gulped down the remaining contents of the drink.

A sharp sting burned in my mouth, but I stood up, ignoring the pain and bracing myself to face him.

“Wish me luck.”

Without waiting for Melissa’s response, I dragged my feet towards Declan. He was standing and staring at one of the strippers, a bored look etched on his face.

I took another step forward, but felt something in the air changed.The music didn’t stop, but it felt quieter.

Declan hadn’t looked at me yet… but I could feel it, like pressure behind my skin. Up close, I realized that he looked calmer than how I’d seen him before.

His men moved into a straight line as I got closer, and they blocked me from taking another step.

My throat tightened. “I just want to have a word with him. It’s about an investment plan.”

They exchanged glances, but Declan didn’t even spare me a second.

“Leave,” one of the men growled, his hot breath on my face. “Now.”

I tutted, disappointment crawling under my skin. They were hefty men, not some lanky dudes I could pull through easily. They were huge, with tattoos all over their necks and bare arms.

Even Declan had a tattoo—I’d seen it that night.

Reluctantly, I turned around, seeing Melissa’s hand waving at me from afar. My stomach churned in desperation, but I consoled myself with the fact that I’d closed one deal that morning.

So, I could always try again with Declan.

I’d only taken a few steps when three men approached me. They weren’t the same ones I’d seen guarding Declan. These guys looked like touts who tormented women… and I was right.

One of them grabbed my arm, leaning against me as his nose inhaled my neck.

“Vanilla,” he grunted. “My favorite.”

My breath hitched, and I wriggled my hands free, but the other two pinned me down to a spot. The painful part was the fact that there were people around, but nobody was saying or doing anything.

“Stop touching me,” I snarled.

Their hands tugged at every part of my body at once, pulling the fabric of the halter-neck dress I had on like they wanted to rip it off my body.

“Come with us quietly,” one of them muttered. “And we’ll be gentle with you.”

Their grip tightened, their hands pulling at me from different directions.

“Let go of me,” I snapped, struggling against them, but it only seemed to amuse them more.

One of them laughed, dragging me a step back. I kept struggling, refusing to let them take me away. Before Melissa rushed to me, another voice had already stepped in.

“Leave her.”

The voice came from behind, sounding low and dangerously calm in a manner that made the men freeze instantly.

Like they already knew what would happen if they didn’t listen.

Their hands dropped from my body, and I stumbled forward, catching myself before I could fall.

Thick silence spread around us, and even Melissa froze when she tried to reach for me.

I turned slowly, my heart racing at a breakneck pace as the unfamiliar smell of lavender filtered into my nostrils.

Declan Hawthorne stood two feet away, his hands tucked into his pockets, his expression blank.

My eyes twitched at the sight of him and at his men, who were behind him, lined up without a word.

He didn’t look at me, not once, as if I wasn’t worth the attention. His gaze was fixed on the three men in front of him, and slowly, I watched him part his lips authoritatively.

“Get out.”

The men didn’t argue, and as dangerous as they appeared, their bodies trembled before Declan. They left immediately, disappearing into the crowd like they were never there.

I gulped down a swallow, the fear residing in my stomach slowly vanishing into something else.

Then Declan turned before I could brace myself to say something to him.

Just like that, he walked away without a second glance or a word, walking past me like I didn’t exist, his men following right behind him.

Within seconds… He was gone, and my curiosity grew as I stared at his retreating figure.

Melissa rushed to me after he left, her hands brushing away the wrinkles on my dress.

“Are you okay, Jordyn?”

I nodded, even though my pulse was still racing. “I’m fine.”

“The rumors were true,” Melissa whispered, noticing that my eyes never left the door of the room Declan had entered. “He’s worse than people say.”

But that wasn’t a challenge for me to ignore. Turning around to face her squarely, I ordered.

“Find a way to get me in front of him again,” I whispered. “And make sure it’s when he’s alone.”