With that information in hand, Carson had returned to college after the spring break he’d spent on his investigation, and added forensic psychology to his course load. He knew then and there he was heading to the FBI. Finding missing people, uncovering the facts surrounding their disappearance, allowing others to close chapters of their lives, this was his greatest mission in life.
He solved some of the biggest missing-person cases for the FBI, from the missing sixteen-year-old girl in the Midwest, to the one right before he got out, where he found and turned in the biggest white-collar criminal to date, the one who’d stolen billions from his clients.
This was who he was, and he wasn’t going to let a little slime-ball fan torture Sienna, nor was he going to walk around with his thumb up his ass not knowing what her fucking deal was.
Carson ran his hand through his hair and stopped at his neck, massaging to ease the tension a notch. Of all the women in the world, he had to make a run for one who needed FBI vetting. Christ, he was a dumb fuck.
That was what he told himself as he walked out to his car to make a few calls before going back into the club for the night.
SIENNA LOCKED her dressing room door as soon as she got back to the club. So what if Carson or Mike or Ash are mad? Let them be mad all they want.
She knew they were all going to argue with her over being out on the Strip without a security detail, but Carson was able to do that, right? Carson didn’t know all the facts, but that shouldn’t make a difference. He could keep the crazies away.
She was never going to tell Carson the truth, so it was a worthless argument. Actually, Mike was in the dark, and he loved her unconditionally without knowing every detail of her past. He’d never let anything happen to her, so it was safe to assume she could be safe with Carson without him being completely in the know.
Yet she didn’t have time to dwell on all the men in her life because one man, Sam Charles, was insistent on turning her life upside down. She’d made such a great life as Sienna Flower, and now she had to consider her options all over again. She was fairly certain she’d been discovered and revealed to Elon, so she needed a new plan. A new life, which was hard to digest because she loved her life as a stripper.
She might not have much, but she adored the little circle she had created in the underbelly of Vegas. She even loved her fans at the club. They showed her more affection and praise than her husband ever had.
Ugh, and Asher. Asher, my beacon of light, my sword of strength.
How could she leave him? She was in a bad position, no matter how she looked at it. She was in deep with Carson, but not deep enough to exorcise demons from her past.
Sienna decided to burn through her nerves with cleaning her dressing room, except she knocked over more makeup than she straightened when she went to organize her vanity. Her shaking hands could barely line up the perfume bottles.
With her door locked and no one to witness her meltdown, she secretly considered going back home, seeking a divorce, and losing herself in Carson. That was a fairy tale, though, because there was no happy ending for Lila. If she went back, Elon would never grant her a divorce.
Oh, she could get a civil one, but the religious leaders wouldn’t accept it. All this was best-case scenario because she knew damn well if she went back, Elon would beat her to a pulp. She might not even make it out alive to ask for a divorce if she showed her face back there again. Their community would surround the wagons, cover it all up, and no one would know what really happened to her. The culture she came from didn’t need any more bad publicity. They were already viewed as strange since they refused to conform to societal norms. They would never allow anything negative to go public about their community.
Furthermore, she knew her family and neighbors would never suspect what kind of person Elon actually was. Even worse, she was sure her family wouldn’t back her up either. Her mom and dad would never risk being disgraced in front of the community, the church, and their friends. They were devout, followed every commandment, and turned a blind eye to anything that would tarnish their reputation among their fellow worshippers.
She whipped through her clothing rack, pulling hangers out like they were the enemy and shoving them around, color-coordinating her clothes in an OCD fashion.
Stop. This was all dependent on the notion Carson actually wanted more from her. Lots more. Not just more sex.
Sienna only allowed herself to indulge in a few minutes of this kind of happily-ever-after thinking. She wasn’t going to have one. Not that she didn’t believe she deserved one, but she needed to put staying alive over a fairy-tale ending.
She flopped herself onto the chaise in defeat and covered her face with her hands, hiding her tears from the sheer emptiness and isolation of her dressing room.