Sweet possession carson.., p.1
Sweet Possession: Carson-Fox Resorts Book Two, page 1
Sweet Possession
Carson-Fox Resorts Book Two
E. K Hunter
Copyright © E.K Hunter2024
All rights reserved.
This is a work of fiction. Names, Characters, Places, Businesses, Incidents, and Events are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electrical or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Cover By: Getcovers.com
Edited By: Hunter Author Services
Created By: Atticus
Trigger Warnings
While this story is not deemed to be a dark romance, there are themes that readers may find upsetting. Please take time to read the following trigger warnings before deciding if this book is for you.
Human Trafficking
Physical and emotional abuse
Childhood trauma
Death of a child
Drowning
Suicide
Implied murder
Sexual abuse (Not physical)
Playlist
Maroon – Taylor Swift
Work Song – Hozier
Kissing In Swimming Pools – Holly Humberstone
I Think I’m in Love – Taylor Acorn
The Night We Met – Lord Huron
Broken – Lighthouse
Superbloodmoon – Holly Humberstone (feat D4vd)
Meant to Be – Bebe Rexha (feat. Florida George Line)
Stargazing – Myles Smith
You Are In Love (Taylor’s Version) – Taylor Swift
Everything Has Changed – Taylor Swift & Ed Sheeran
Starving – Hailee Steinfeld, Grey, Zedd
All Of The Girls You Loved Before – Taylor Swift
Pointless – Lewis Capaldi
Lover (Remix) – Taylor Swift (feat Shawn Mendes)
To all the readers who want to take a break from masked men chasing them through the woods, and want to read about a cinnamon roll mmc who absolutely adores his girl.
You’ve come to the right place.
Daddy Fox is waiting for you…
Chapter 1
Fox
Arnold Diaz was the biggest prick I’d ever had the misfortune of meeting.
Scratch that.
My father was the biggest prick I’d ever had the misfortune of meeting. Arnold Diaz came in a close second. He was an arrogant asshole, but an asshole who held a fair amount of power in the criminal underworld of Las Vegas.
I might not have liked him, but he was someone worth keeping on side if ever there came a time to call on his resources. After all, wasn’t there a saying about keeping your friends close, but your enemies closer?
Which was why I found myself sipping whiskey across from him in one of his meeting rooms at the back of a run-down poker hall on the outskirts of Vegas. Two of his drug runners had been caught trying to flog product in Onyx, the newest Carson-Fox casino, and I was here to politely ask him to refrain from selling his shit in our resorts.
I only hoped I didn’t have to ask a second time. If I did, I wouldn’t be as polite.
But as bad luck would have it, before I could move the conversation onto more important things than what we were talking about right then - his wife finding out about his latest mistress - two of Diaz’s enforcers barged in, unceremoniously dumping a middle-aged man in the center of the room.
“Found him trying to hitch a ride outta the city, boss,” one of the meatheads grumbled, cracking his knuckles. “Stupid cunt even tried to put up a fight.”
The man, whoever he was, had clearly taken a beating from the enforcers. One eye was swollen shut, and a deep purple bruise was forming around the socket. A trail of blood streaked down one side of his face from a nasty gash on his forehead.
“Good work, boys,” Diaz replied, a menacing grin taking over his face. “Fox, do you mind if I deal with Freddy here before we continue our meeting? I’ve been looking for this piece of shit for the past three days, he owes me money, and a lot of it too.”
“Have at it,” I replied, intrigued to see how Diaz would deal with the man for not paying him back his money. It was evident from Freddy’s dirty clothes, stained teeth, and broken shoes that the man wouldn’t be able to pay up.
“Mr. Diaz,” Freddy whimpered. It looked like any minute he was going to piss himself from the way Diaz was glaring daggers at him. “I know the deadline has passed, but I need a few more days to get the money. It’s coming, I promise.”
“I’ve given you plenty of time, Freddy. I warned you of the consequences if you didn’t pay,” Diaz said, leaning back in his leather chair, and crossing one leg over the other. Gone was the relaxed man who’d just been talking to me as if I was an old friend, this was Arnold Diaz in work mode.
“I know, Mr. Diaz, and I will have your money. I need another few days for a deal to come together,” Freddy pleaded.
I rolled my eyes. I had no clue who Freddy was, but I didn’t need to know him to know he was another idiot who’d fallen victim to the Vegas lifestyle. No doubt he’d blown all of Diaz’s money on poker games, telling himself that if he played just one more game, he would win the jackpot and clear his debts.
“I’ve heard it before,” Diaz said, his tone cold. “You promised me two weeks ago you’d have my money. But here we are, and I’m still waiting.”
“I know…but, but it’s different this time. Please, let me show you,” Freddy replied, wincing as he got to his feet, and pulling a small piece of paper from his pocket.
Diaz’s lips pursed but he nodded his head once. Why he was entertaining the fool, I had no idea.
“It’s my daughter,” Freddy said, taking several steps to where Diaz sat on his throne, acting as if he was the fucking king of the court. “I’ve…she’s…well-”
“Spit it out, Freddy,” Diaz barked, interrupting Freddy’s pathetic stuttering. “What’s your daughter got to do with this?”
Freddy’s bloodshot eye flashed to me, the other still swollen shut. “She’s…I’ve given her to the Duke brothers.”
The hand holding my drink halfway to my mouth froze at Freddy’s words. Even Diaz stilled.
As much as Nash and I had reputations for being clean-cut, law-abiding citizens, it wasn’t strictly true. We just made sure any dealings we were involved in that weren’t quite legal were kept under wraps.
The media would have had a field day if they found out half of the things we’d been involved in, like for instance, how Nash stalked and blackmailed his wife, Savannah, into marrying him. Like how we both had a hand in the death of his brother and made it look like suicide.
But Nash and I had limits, and getting involved in the type of organization Zach and Marvin Duke ran was something neither Nash nor I would ever consider getting involved in.
The skin trade.
Freddy had sold his daughter to the wolves, all so he could pay his debt.
I had no words. This was humanity at its lowest.
I couldn’t help but feel sorry for the girl, whoever she was. Her life from now on was going to be fucking miserable. But with a cunt like Freddy as a father, I doubted her life up to this point had been anything but miserable.
“Let me get this straight. You’re selling your own flesh and blood to get me my money?” Diaz said, humor in his voice, and for some reason, that made me want to knock his front teeth out.
Human trafficking didn’t sit right with me.
Freddy shrugged unashamedly. “I don’t have a need for the cunt anymore. I’ve had years of putting up with her shit, she’s fucking useless. The least she can do is fetch me a pretty penny to help pay back the money I’ve spent on her over the years. She can be someone else’s problem from now on.”
I subtly ground my teeth. His words hit a nerve. If I had to take a guess, I would have bet all my money that the girl had been subjected to a similar childhood to the one I had.
Poor girl.
Christ, I was sure, given the chance, she wouldn’t have chosen to have been born into a world where Freddy was her crappy excuse of a father.
Just like I didn’t ask to be born to my crappy excuse of a father.
Diaz snorted before narrowing his eyes on Freddy. “What makes you think your daughter will fetch anywhere near what you owe me?” he sneered, looking Freddy up and down like the piece of shit he was.
“Zach and Marvin were sure she would when I showed them her picture. She’s a pretty girl, look.” He shoved the piece of paper he’d been clutching in his grubby fingers under Diaz’s nose, giving me the briefest glimpse of a photograph. “She turned eighteen last week,” Freddy went on as Diaz took the photo from Freddy. “She’s still a virgin. In fact, she’s never even been kissed. The Dukes said innocent girls like her are worth their weight in gold.”
Fucking hell. This guy was one sick fuck.
“There’s no way she’s your daughter,” Diaz said accusingly.
“She is, I assure you. Her momma was Greek,” Freddy said hurriedly, as if that would explain everything.
Diaz was quiet for a moment, and the longer he stared at the picture, the more my curiosity peaked as to what the hell was holding his attention.
“I can see why the Dukes think she’ll sell well,” Diaz said
He held the photo out to me, and despite part of me wanting nothing to do with this bullshit, I took it from him.
And my world shifted.
Staring back at me from the crumpled photo were big, golden-brown doe eyes, framed by beautifully long lashes, and perfectly sculpted brows. A shy smile played on her rosy pink lips, and a small hand was raised, brushing her bangs off her forehead.
Long chocolate-colored hair trailed down around her slender shoulders, and if Freddy hadn’t said she was part Greek, the olive skin of her flawless complexion would have given it away.
The girl was breathtaking.
As if my heart had just been jump-started, it began to race, pounding hard against my chest as an array of emotions flooded me. Anger at the douchebag standing before me for using his beautiful daughter in such a callous manner. Rage at the Duke brothers for agreeing to sell her to dirty cunts who would violate the angel in such unspeakable ways.
But more than anything was the overwhelming need to find her, and do everything in my power to keep her safe from the monsters of this world.
And there were many monsters. I’d once had the job of keeping someone else safe from a monster, only I’d failed. But as I stared at the picture in my hand, I knew without the slightest hint of doubt that I wouldn’t fail again.
Diaz held his hand out for the photo, and I reluctantly handed it over, doing my best to hide my reaction. The last thing I wanted was for Diaz to realize the effect the girl had on me. He was the type of asshole that would find a way to use that kind of information against me, the same way I would have done against him.
“What’s her name?” he asked Freddy, unaware of the stupor I’d fallen into.
“Cora. Cora Annabelle Clarke.”
Cora Annabelle Clarke.
Her name repeated over and over in my head, only Clarke wasn’t the last name my brain played.
Cora Annabelle Fox.
Fuck.
“Hmm, it’s a shame you didn’t bring her to me as a means of payment. I would have gladly taken her in exchange for wiping your debt,” Diaz said, handing the photo back to Freddy, who looked like Christmas had come early.
My hands fisted in my lap, the sudden need to knock his teeth out again roared to life. In fact, knocking his teeth out wouldn’t have been enough.
I wanted to gut him.
“When is the auction?”
“In two days,” Freddy replied eagerly.
“Very well,” Diaz said after a short pause. “I’ll grant you two days, but I warn you, Freddy, if you disappear or she doesn’t make enough to clear your debt, there will be hell to pay. Do I make myself clear?” The threat in his voice was unmistakable, there was no way Freddy couldn’t have heard it.
“Yes, I understand. Thank you, Mr. Diaz, thank you so much.” He rushed toward Diaz, relief at his temporary reprieval written over his face as he held his dirty hand out for Diaz to shake.
“Get the fuck out of here before I change my mind,” Diaz snapped, refusing to take Freddy’s hand and eyeing him with disgust.
I didn’t blame Diaz, I wouldn’t want the fucker touching me either. How he’d produced such a stunning daughter was anyone’s guess.
Almost tripping over his feet, Freddy backed up toward the door, bowing as he went like a little prick bowing to a king. It was no wonder Diaz believed he was the king of Vegas when he had peasants like Freddy kissing his ass.
When the door slammed behind him, Diaz snorted. “What a fucking idiot that man is. He might make enough to pay his debt off this time, but I guarantee, it won’t be long until he racks it up again, he just can’t help himself, and I doubt he’ll be able to sell his daughter twice.”
“Out of interest, how much does he owe?” I asked, trying to sound casual, and not let on that in my head, I was already putting plans into place.
“Half a mil.”
Christ.
Freddy really couldn’t help himself.
“You know, I’m tempted to go to the auction and buy little Cora for myself,” Diaz muttered almost to himself, making my blood heat to boiling point. “I’d have a lot of fun breaking her in if she’s as innocent as he says.”
I managed to stop the rumble of anger from breaking free of my chest, and giving away just how much I wanted to end Diaz so he would never get the chance to put his hands on Cora.
On what was mine.
Because little did he know, there wasn’t going to be an auction in two days.
Cora Annabell Clarke would already be mine by then.
Chapter 2
Cora
Terrified didn’t come close to what I was feeling. For the past three days, I’d been locked up in a dingy cell with only a small window letting light in to tell me how many days had passed. I didn’t know how much longer I was going to be here though, and as much as I hated being confined in the dark, tiny space, it was better than what awaited me.
I’d only seen one person since I was thrown in the cell, and he scared the living hell out of me. Twice a day he would come to me, once in the morning to bring me breakfast, and again in the evening to bring me dinner. Every time, his lecherous eyes would roam over my body as if he could imagine what I tasted like.
If it wasn’t for the fact that he told me he wasn’t allowed to touch me, I was certain he would have raped me by now.
That said, it was only a matter of time before I would be raped. Dwayne, as he’d introduced himself, enjoyed taunting me, telling me what my future held.
An auction.
Men who wanted to do unimaginable things to me, bidding to win me.
I was to become someone’s sex slave.
Dwayne had taken great pleasure in telling me that because I was so innocent, his boss was going to make a fortune out of selling me. I’d cried solidly the first night I was here, despair and disbelief consuming me that this was to become my fate, all because of my dad.
I always knew he didn’t love me, he told me often enough that I was nothing but a burden, but I never thought he could do this to me.
Yet as the days passed, and no one came to rescue me, my new reality sank in. Any day now, I was going to be sold, and my living nightmare would truly begin.
Footsteps echoed outside my cell door, and dread pooled in my belly. I’d already had my breakfast, and with the sun shining brightly in the sky, it told me it was too early for dinner.
No one else came to see me, I was left to fester in my own filth, with only a bucket in the corner for when I needed to go to the toilet. Something which Dwayne always moaned about when he had to empty it.
So the question remained. Who was coming to my cell now?
There was only one answer, one I didn’t want to acknowledge.
It was time.
Panic shot through me as I bolted off the cot bed and cowered in the corner as if it would offer me protection from what was about to come.
It wouldn’t.
I’d searched every inch of the cell hoping to find a way to escape, but aside from the window which was bolted shut, and too high for me to reach, there was no way out.
I was trapped.
My whole body began to tremble as keys jangled from outside before the clicking of the door reverberated around the cell. I backed further into the corner, praying for a magical door to appear and open so I could run far far away from this place.
Of course, that never happened.
“Hello, darlin’,” Dwayne drawled as he stepped into the cell, his mouth pulled into a malicious smile.
He’d given me that look once before, right before he backhanded me across the face because I couldn’t stop crying. Since then, I’d had a bruise on my cheek that hurt every time I wiped away my tears of despair.
“Let’s go, darlin’,” Dawyne instructed, holding the door open so the bright light of the corridor poured into the cell.
I couldn’t move, my feet were glued to the floor refusing to cooperate because of the danger that awaited, fear gripping me hard.
“Now, princess, or would you like another shiner to match the one you’ve already got?” Dwayne snapped, impatiently tapping his foot.
