In Wicked Chains (The Wicked) Read Online Free PDF Page A

brief what-if moment. In the end he discarded it. He wasn’t cut out for it, for commitment, love.
    His cell vibrated under his pillow. King groaned. Why in hell was he suddenly so popular? He pulled out the damned thing and checked the caller ID.
    Blocked number.
    Damn it! “Hello?”
    Heavy breathing sounded again.
    “All right, obviously this isn’t a one-off, hmm?” He rolled his eyes at the continued heavy breathing. “I’ve got time. We can do this all night.”
    The breathing quieted. He counted in his head. One, two, three, four.
     
    Click. Yeah. King scrolled through his contact list, found the number he wanted, and hit the call button.
     
    Maysin picked up on the third ring. “What’s up, King?”
    “I need you to do something for me.” He explained about the calls. “Can you find where they originated from, or who made them?”
    “Don’t know, but I can try.” Maysin was silent for a beat. “Can it be an ex?”
    “I don’t have exes, Mace. Just jump-offs.”
    Maysin chuckled. “Well, can it be a jump-off? You go through a lot of them, you know.”
    “I didn’t know that,” he replied with heavy sarcasm. “Thanks for pointing it out.”
    His friend laughed. “Hey, I’m just saying. You do keep a steady rotation.”
    “Seriously? When did this turn into a discussion of my sex life? Do I call you on your, ah…obsession?”
    “I have no obsession.”
    King grunted. “Uh-huh.”
    “Just consider what I said, okay? It can be one of those women you insist on fucking and dumping.”
    “Yeah, whatever.” King waved a hand. “What do you need from me to do this?”
    Maysin signed. “I’ll need your cell. Maybe I can install a chip or something to track the calls.”
    “When?”
    “Soon would be good.”
    “Cool, I’ll stop by on my way to the club later.”
    “Alright.” Maysin hung up.
    Kingston turned his phone off and placed it back under his pillow. He settled down to sleep, warm chocolate-brown eyes dancing behind his closed eyelids.
     

 
     
     
    Chapter Three
     
    Elina dialed Sasha’s number as she crawled into bed. Her face hurt from smiling, but she couldn’t stop grinning or pinching herself. Now all she needed was Sasha to talk her out of running over to Kingston’s place across town and throwing herself in his arms.
    She wasn’t ready. After all this time she still needed to think it over, run the pros and cons in her head.
    “Hey, El.”
    She swallowed the Pavlovian guilt she’d never be free of. “Hi, Niko.”
    “Are you okay? You sound…weird.”
    She shook her head. “Yeah. No, I’m fine. Just tired, I guess.”
    “Take care of you, El.” His deep voice rumbled in her ear. “How’re your kids?”
    Her kids. The children she took care of in the day care center, her little loves. “They’re perfectly rambunctious.” For the first time all day the smile on her face had nothing to do with Kingston.
    Niko laughed. “I’m happy to hear that. Happy to hear you’re okay.”
    “Me, too.”
    “Good, let me get Sasha.”
    Elina listened while he shouted for his woman. Envy pinched her chest. She wanted what those two had, so much.
    “Hey, El?”
    “Yeah, Niko?”
    “You know I love you, right?”
    She blinked moisture from her eyes. “I do and I feel the same way.”
    “Good.” He chuckled. “Here’s your girl.”
    Sasha came on the phone breathing hard. “What’s up?”
    “I need your help.” Her voice broke, panic setting in again.
    “What’s wrong?’
    “Kingston came over. He-I…We’re going to make a move,” she whispered.
    Sasha giggled. “Why are you whispering?”
    “Um, I feel weird talking to you about this,” Elina confessed. Settling back against her pillows, she brushed a lock of hair from her face. “You’re my best friend and here I am crushing on your brother.” She shook her head. “You should be cursing me out or something. Hating me.”
    “Oh, is that what I should be doing?”
    Elina pictured the sarcastic