Chapter 44

Dawn bled through the hotel windows, painting the room in a sickly orange. Selene’s voice, raw and ragged, trailed off with the last of her tears. Josh’s ultimatum hung in the air, a thick fog of dread. ‘He called again three days ago. Said if I don’t pay up by the end of next week, he’d fly to Danning and tell my parents everything. Even show them the…the pictures.’ Selene bowed her head. ‘I... I can’t let him do that.’ Dashiell remained frozen, a shadow sculpted from moonlight against the bar. His silence pulsed in the stillness. Finally, his voice emerged, rough and low. ‘Why didn’t you tell me?’ A humourless snort escaped Selene. ‘Tell you what? That I was a reckless idiot? That I was in over my head? That I traded my pride and my body for quick fixes and ended up playing catch with loan sharks?’ She buried her face in her hands, her voice cracking like a twig underfoot. ‘How could I? What would you think of me, knowing...what I did?’ ‘So you just ran back to Danning, buried your h