“This can’t be right.” Liam frowned. Climbing sponsors provided gear and expenses more than spendable cash, but Liam knew for a fact that, like her brother, Jaz had inherited a trust fund from her affluent Hollywood family. Not only that, but she’d had money from childhood modeling and acting gigs. Even if her current contracts weren’t paying as well as he’d thought, Jaz’s savings should have set her up for life. “Where did all the money go?”
“Females of the Future fundraiser,” Aiden said grimly and flipped to the next page in Liam’s file.
“That bullshit scam from two years ago?” The Females of the Future had supposedly been a fund meant to provide a safe harbor to abused, athletically gifted girls from third-world countries. The nonprofit promised to pair the young athletes with US foster parents who’d help the girls reach their potential both athletically and socially. But that wasn’t what had actually transpired. It’d been a scam that poured the supporters’ interest-free loans into personal coffers and heart-tugging advertising. The organizer had been very publicly arrested, and the scandal held the headlines for several news cycles.
“Aye. The lass sank a decent portion of her money into it.”
“And she probably kept it quiet for fear of her family’s name somehow being dragged into the negative spotlight. Could have messed with her parents’ business.” Liam sighed. Jaz hadn’t even told Kyan—though Liam was starting to understand that while the sprite loved her brother unconditionally, she wasn’t quite as open with him as Kyan thought. “But what are these?” Liam pointed at several hefty withdrawals with vague descriptions. These, together with the scam charity payouts, were what had essentially bankrupted her. “Did she send good money after bad, or is this something else entirely?”
“That, I don’t ken yet,” Aiden admitted. “I’ve been attempting to track them down, but she dipped into virtual currency. I’m not sure she wants the destinations of these found.”
20
Jaz
“For a guy on crutches, you still scurry about better than half of Denton Valley,” Jaz said, carrying her and Sebastian’s Frappuccinos to her favorite table. One of the green-aproned baristas waved to her, and Jaz grinned back, saluting the young man with her drink.
“For a girl who grew up with acting lessons, you should come up with better lies.” Sebastian grimaced as he used two hands to elevate his leg on an extra chair. “Now, hand over the drink and the gossip. What’s the latest on McBroody? I’m going to be living vicariously through you for the next few months, so don’t you get stingy on me with the details.”
Jaz wished she had details and gossip, but since returning from California, she’d felt a wall fall into place between her and Liam. While Patti’s presence was certainly putting a strain on Liam, Jaz sensed that the wall had more to do with her brother than Liam’s mother. Or maybe it had to do with Jaz herself. She moved closer, until the background music and low voice could make the conversation private.
“We got somewhat…intimate in Cali.”
“I’d have been disappointed if you hadn’t.” Sebastian frowned. “Was it not very good?”
“The opposite, actually.” Jaz fiddled with the label on her cup. “It was the best time I’ve ever had. I mean, I didn’t even know those levels of sensation were possible. But…he is very…err, controlling in bed.”
“And you didn’t like that?”
“I loved it, actually. He um…tied my hands with my shirt.” She raised a brow meaningfully.
“And that bothered you?” Sebastian clarified. “Or did he ruin your stuff? Are you pissed about the shirt?”
“What? No!” Jaz realized she’d raised her voice and lowered it, glaring at Sebastian. “The shirt was fine. I don’t care about the shirt. And I already told you that I liked it.”
He leaned in, his brows pulled together as if trying to decipher a foreign language. “I give up, Jazzy. What exactly is the problem?”
Heat rose to her cheeks. “I don’t like that I liked it. How can I be yelling girl power from the mountaintops and then get off from having an overcontrolling SEAL tie me up?”
“Oh, my sweet summer child,” Sebastian said sympathetically. “If you think getting tied up with a shirt is kinky, you need to have your horizons broadened. I’d take you for some education myself, but that might need to wait a bit. As for girl power, are you advocating that self-respecting girls limit themselves to missionary? Or that while men can get aroused by whatever the hell they please, girls should limit their pleasures to a list of preapproved topics?”
“Ew.”
“My point exactly. What did you do with your previous boyfriends?”
“Liam isn’t my boyfriend.”
Sebastian rolled his eyes. “You know what I mean. Your previous partners. Did you enjoy them?”
She hadn’t, not in bed. She’d acted like she did—hell, she should probably have won an Oscar for several of those bedroom performances—but not a single man had been able to bring her to real climax. Until Liam.
“It sounds to me like while you were busy saving the rest of the world, you forgot to explore your own,” Sebastian said, with that rare hint of disapproval. “And you’re literally living with an expert guide who you trust with your life. If you don’t lean into that, Jazmine Keasley, you’re a certified coward.”
Jaz spooned some whipped cream onto her straw and gestured at Sebastian. “And you’re a certified manipulator.”
Sebastian leaned in, his eyes sparkling. “Jazmine Keasley. I double dog dare you to go to a kinky club or party with Liam Rowen. This week. Or I will never respect you again.”
“You want me to do what?” Liam choked on his coffee, requiring a short coughing fit to clear his windpipe. Jaz considered smacking him on the back, but given their current discussion, that seemed too uncomfortable.
Yes, because choking to death is much more comfortable.
Fortunately, Liam reclaimed his own airway. He set his mug down on the kitchen island, the sunlight streaming through the window playing over the white porcelain. “Why do you want to go to a sex club?”
Despite having been asking herself that very same question, Jaz felt a pang of indignity when the words came from Liam. “Why shouldn’t I?”
“Kinky play isn’t your thing.”
Her spine straightened. “How do you know what is and isn’t my thing?”
“So kinky play is your thing?” he clarified.
“No!” Shit. Jaz realized the trap he’d laid only after she’d already walked straight into it. Liam raised a brow, and she glowered. “I mean, I’ve never been to anything like that. So I have no idea whether it is or is not my thing. And since when are you the judge of what I should and shouldn’t want to find out more about?”
“Since that part a few minutes ago when you asked me to take you.” Liam crossed his arms, which made his shoulders look even broader than they were. The strong angle of his jaw mirrored the ferocity of his gaze, which now bore into her. Everything about him, from his wide stance and straight back to the way his mouth pressed into a thin line suddenly screamed power—the kind that made heat grip Jaz’s thighs no matter how much she shifted her feet. Liam tilted his head. “You had twenty-five years to scratch your curiosity itch. Why now?”