Free Ambition: A Dark Billionaire Romance Anthology by Lauren Landish, Lauren Landish

after getting out of the life, I worked in bars and around places that some of these Confederation guys would go to, and towards the end there, some of these guys started talking about one of their own who turned on his bosses, and had sworn to take them down. This guy, I never met him, he's about three or four years younger than me, and by the end, he was damn near mythical in terms of his aura. They say that even now he patrols through some of the neighborhoods, taking out the trash and keeping the city clean. That, combined with what Marcus Smiley started doing, kind of were the sparks that started to lift the city out of the crap it was drowning in. So when Harry Vickers was caught up in the ruckus, I just thought that it was my turn to start making a difference. I went around to the guys I knew, the folks in the area who didn't think I was a total loser, and found that more than a few of them were willing to sign the petition I needed to get signed to get on the special ballot. Gene, the GM of the Spartans you met yesterday, actually was my first donor, giving me the money out of his own pocket to pay the registering fee, and the rest, well, I'll be honest it's so crazy I can barely keep track of it all in my mind. I know I've done a lot of talks on street corners, attended a few prayer breakfasts and school PTA meetings, stuff like that. The funniest was when I somehow wrangled an invitation to talk to the members of the Nation of Islam Mosque over in Filmore Heights. I think I was the first person of Irish descent to speak there in years, if ever."
    I laughed, and realized I was enjoying my lunch again. "I bet. Not too many McCafferys in the NOI. How'd that one go?"
    "Pretty good, once I relaxed. They even had me as a guest for their luncheon afterwards, although I didn't get any donations cash-wise," Patrick said laughing. "Put it this way, I'd rather have the NOI come by my office than the visitor I had after our little press event."
    "Oh, who was that?"
    "Francine Berkowitz. Let's just say she's a lot more dangerous than some of the Confederation people I used to run with."
    I nodded. "I've heard. Marcus told me he had a few run-ins with her, but he honestly didn't give a damn. Then again, he only has to worry about money, not vote counts or public polling."
    "Exactly."
    The rest of our lunch went on with a relaxed, casual feeling, and by the end, we were both giving each other little glances. As we finished the last fortune cookie, I noticed that it was already nearly two o'clock, and that Vanessa had knocked on the door frame twice, dropping off things on my desk. "Wow, the time," I said, setting my drink aside. "I'm sorry if I kept you from any appointments."
    "No, I cleared my calendar mostly," Patrick replied as he also scooted backwards to stand up. "Uh, I know this isn't exactly business professional, but I was wondering, would you maybe like to get together some time?"
    "You mean like a real date?" I asked, trying not to laugh. "I'd love to. But, one rule."
    "What's that?" Patrick asked.
    "We never, ever go to a restaurant called Mar de Napoli. Bad memories," I said, shivering.
    Patrick gave me a concerned glance, but shrugged it off and smiled. "No problem. We'll do Thai or something. Tell you what, let me see what I can pull together, and I'll give you a call tonight. Say around eight or nine?"
    "Make it nine. I've got a workout scheduled with my housekeeper after work today, and they like to push me hard. I'll need it after this feast."

Chapter 7
Sophie
    T hat evening , when Tabby came in from work, she was practically floating. It’d been a long time since I'd seen that look in her eyes, and the warning lights in my head immediately started flashing. I didn't get to see much of what Tabby had looked like when Scott Pressman had seduced and then screwed with her head, not until he already had her all messed up inside. But I'd seen that look before.
    "Uh-oh," I said, setting aside the laundry I was