Hot Commodity (17 page)

Olivia’s vision dimmed. Her mother was happy. But of course she was happy. This was exactly what she’d wanted to see. She’d whored her own daughter out to the richest prospect, and Olivia had fallen right into her web. She suddenly felt light headed and feared she might pass out.

This was it. It was all hitting the fan. Vivian shoved her aside so she could glare dauntingly at Cameron, her hands on her hips and her feet braced apart like a gunslinger at a standoff. The performance actually appeared real, too.

The employee, with a master key clutched in his hand, looked scared spitless. He backed from the room and quickly shut the door, leaving the four alone inside. Nolan crossed his arms and legs as he leaned across the closed portal, looking perfectly at home as he prepared to watch the show.

Vivian frowned. "What in the hell are you doing in my daughter’s bed?"

Cameron, brave man that he was—or foolish, Olivia couldn’t decide which—didn’t cower. "Morning, Mrs. Roark," he greeted Vivian pleasantly. Then he yawned and scratched at the five o’clock shadow on his jaw. "And Mr. Roark, I assume." He nodded toward Nolan.

"Banks," Vivian growled.
 

"Hmm?" He glanced her way. "Oh, right. What am I doing in your daughter’s bed? Well, actually, ma’am, I’m technically not in her bed. I’m standing in this fine doorway here."

"Just answer my question!" Her roar caused Olivia to jump and Cameron to wince and grab his no-doubt pounding head.

"Heard ya," he muttered and scrubbed furiously at a spot on his temple as if he could scratch the pain away.

"Then answer me," Vivian growled, lowering her tone, but not her fake anger. In truth, she probably
was
steamed. Olivia knew how she hated snippety responses. And Cameron was throwing them out like candy at a parade.

"I was sleeping," Cameron muttered the obvious and sent Vivian his own irritated scowl. "Until you woke me." Then he folded his arms over his chest as if he expected an apology.

Vivian’s face turned a deep purplish red. "How dare you defile my daughter?"

Cameron laughed and glanced toward Olivia. "She’s pretty good at that performance, isn’t she? She really does look like the pissed-off mother."

"Why, you rutting little bastard," Vivian thundered, stalking forward.

"Cameron!" Olivia cried out in fear.

She could already picture it: Vivian was going to claw the skin off his face, and then Nolan would stomp the remains into the ground, and it would be all her fault for dragging him into this mess. She cringed, already steeped in guilt.

But Cameron’s eyes narrowed as he glanced her way. He didn’t seem to like the anxiety in her voice, because he straightened and uncrossed his arms as he turned back to Vivian. "Stop," he commanded.

Instantly, Vivian came to a halt as if Cameron’s words had thrown up an invisible force field she couldn’t cross. But she snorted a rush of hot air through her nose as she glowered at him. "You will marry her for this."

Cameron grinned. "Sorry. Afraid I can’t do that."

Olivia focused on the bulging vein in Vivian’s head. She’d seen it only three weeks ago and knew exactly how much anger her mother wielded behind it.

"What do you mean you
can’t
?" Vivian demanded, balling her fists as if she would strike any moment. "You damn well
will
marry her, and you’ll do it today."

But Cameron simply said, "Sorry, sweetheart. Still can’t. Polygamy’s illegal in this state." Then he frowned and glanced at Olivia. "Isn’t it?"

Vivian’s face drained of color. "What?"

Cameron shrugged. "It’s legally impossible to marry someone when you’re already hitched," he clarified, drawling out his words.

Olivia gasped. Holy God, he was already married. But she’d just spent the entire night with him. And in Vegas, she’d—

Wait a second. Did this mean their marriage was void? For some reason, that thought made her want to cry.

She turned Cameron’s way, but he never once glanced in her direction. He was too busy having a stare-off with Vivian.

"How could you do this to my little girl?" Vivian demanded and, for once, she looked upset, as if she actually cared that someone had turned her baby into a cheating—

Cameron finally seemed to lose his cool. Still swaddled like a drunken Greek god, he stepped forward and inhaled a large breath through his nose. By the look on his face, Olivia thought he might shoot fire from his nostrils when he exhaled. "How could
you
pimp your daughter out to a complete stranger?"

Olivia’s eyes popped open wide. Oh, Lord, no. He wasn’t going spill everything she’d confessed to him, was he?

"What kind of mother whores out her ‘little girl’ to the richest, fastest rising man she can find?"

Vivian glanced at Olivia with a stunned expression. Her face colored, and Olivia knew the little slap her mother had given her after Vegas would be nothing compared to what she had in store for her now.

Olivia backed up a step, bringing a shaking fist to her mouth.

Vivian turned back to Cameron, looking cautious. "Excuse me?"

Cameron snickered. "Oh, yeah, she told me." He grinned cruelly. "In Vegas."

That stopped Vivian in her tracks. She spun back toward Olivia, looking confused. "Vegas? You met him in Las Vegas?"

Light-headed, Olivia’s face grew pale as she watched the room swim between them. She was going to pass out, she could feel it.

Slowly, Vivian returned her attention to Cameron and studied him skeptically.

"That’s right," Cameron said softly. "She spilled it all, right after we were married."

It seemed to take a moment for those words to sink into Vivian’s brain. She whipped her head toward Olivia.

Nolan stepped away from the doorway, surprised. "Married?"

Olivia shook her head like she could deny the truth, but no one paid her any attention because all eyes returned to Cameron, who had become the ringmaster of this insane circus.

"So, you see why I can’t marry her today," he explained. "I’ve already been married to her for what...three...four weeks now, honey?" Then he grinned proudly. "Elvis married us."

Olivia backed against the wall to support herself. She wondered how she was still standing. Every cell in her body felt like someone was poking her with a hot pin. She was so stunned and scared. What was Vivian capable of doing now?

"You two are already married?" she asked slowly, zipping her confused gaze from Cameron to Olivia.

"Yes," Olivia admitted hoarsely

"So you can save yourself the angry, concerned mother act," Cameron added. "And get the hell out of here so I can put some damn clothes on."

Vivian whipped around to nail him with another menacing look. "What did you say to me, you little cocksucker?"

Cameron sighed as if tired of dealing with her. Olivia couldn’t believe it. He wasn’t intimidated at all. "I told you to get out," he repeated calmly. "And take that creepy old man with you."

Clearly insulted, Nolan thundered a menacing step toward Cameron. Vivian’s face clouded with that mad, purplish-red hue again. Olivia’s eyes shot wide; she just knew someone was going to die, right here, right now.

 
"Listen here, boy," Vivian growled. "Don’t ever think you can tell me what to do. I paid for this room. I can come and go as I please."

Cameron rolled his eyes and let out another exhausted sigh. "Fine," he muttered, more to himself than to anyone else. He shuffled toward the bed, moving slowly because he was still mummified by the sheet. Then he lifted his pants, draped across the mattress. After digging inside for a moment and fishing out a wallet, he extracted all the cash he had on him. "There." He flung the money at Vivian. "I’m paying you back for the room."

Olivia swallowed. She saw at least two hundred-dollar bills, a couple of twenties, tens and fives and ones galore. She had no idea how much cash he flashed, but it more than doubled the cost of the room. Vivian greedily stared at the cash and went to pluck it from Cameron’s fingers. But once she tried to take it, Cameron tightened his grip.

Vivian’s eyes shot to his.

In a steely soft voice, Cameron hissed, "Enjoy it while you can, bitch. Because this is the last money you’ll ever see from me. I’m one son-in-law you can’t control."

He let go of the cash, making Vivian fall back a step. She stared down at the money with parted lips. Nolan moved to her side, taking her elbow as if he wasn’t sure how to help his wife and sought her instruction. She sniffed and jerked her arm from his grasp.

 
"You may be excused now," Cameron said and turned away to pull his shirt off the floor.

The cash had somewhat mollified Vivian. She continued to stare at it a moment and then, without speaking another word to Cameron, she turned and looked at Olivia. Her eyes cast blame. Then she snapped her fingers and glanced at her husband as she pointed toward her daughter. Nolan instantly marched toward Olivia and grasped her arm, hard.

As her stepfather dragged her toward the door, Olivia’s life flashed before her eyes. She had no backbone, she realized. She never would’ve been able to stand up to Vivian the way she’d just seen Cameron Banks do. And now her entire existence felt over.

Vivian was probably going build a basement under their house when they got home, just so she could chain Olivia to a wall down there for the rest of her life.

Olivia swallowed, trying to hold back the tears as Nolan yanked her behind him. When he opened the door, her heart gave a leap.

Barely aware she was resisting, she dug her heels into the floor and braced herself, already wincing at the assault she knew her mother was going to give her for balking.

"Come on," Vivian hissed, pushing her from behind.

"No," she said in a voice that was a hundred times stronger than she felt.

From the corner of her eye, she saw Cameron turn. "Hey!" he called. "Hang on there, Bonnie and Clyde."

As Nolan looked back over his shoulder, Vivian paused and slowly turned around to glare at Cameron.

Cameron looked undaunted. "Where do you think you’re taking my wife?"

Olivia’s spun around. She couldn’t believe her ears. It sounded like he was going to help her. Oh, dear God. Was he going to help her?

"What?" Vivian growled.

Cameron shook his head. "I don’t know where you think you’re taking her. But she’s not going with you two."

Vivian laughed. "Boy, this is my daughter. She does what I tell her."

Cameron caught Olivia’s eye. He studied her a moment until he must’ve seen all the desperation inside her because he softly answered, "Not anymore. She’s my wife now. And she’s not going with you. Livy," he said, making her jump. "Do you want to go with them? Or do you finally want to be free?"

Olivia glanced at her mother with wide eyes. Stunned that she was going to do this, she pulled her arm free of Nolan’s grip. When he reached for her again, Cameron let out a growl, and Nolan immediately yanked his hand back. Vivian’s eyes widened. Olivia stepped toward her husband, her back brittle but straight, all the while fearing Vivian would come charging at her, claws extended.

"There. You see," Cameron murmured, slipping his arm over Olivia’s shoulder. "She doesn’t want to go with you. Now say goodbye to your ‘little girl’ and get the hell out."

Vivian stared at Olivia. "You traitorous little bitch," she hissed. "You’re just like your father." Turning, she ran smack into Nolan. Calling him a dirty name, she pushed him into the hall, then stalked out, slamming the door behind her.