HAN: Her Ruthless Mistake: 50 Loving States, Delaware

By Theodora Taylor

This ruthless crimelord's kindness comes with a price. Possession. Complete and utter.

JAZZ: I'm a determined dreamer--at least I used to be. I put all my dreams on hold and withdrew every penny from my savings account to pay the debt my ailing father owes to a local gang.
Except, according to the gang's slimy leader, even my life savings won't be enough to pay the enormous debt my dad's accrued. And his leering gaze lets me know exactly how he wants me to pay the balance.
A ruthless stranger offers to pay my remaining debt. He's a tattooed crimelord, a cold, beautiful animal who regards me with dead eyes. The price for this kindness? Possession. The complete and utter kind.
You're mine, he informs me when I ask him why he did it, leaving me to figure out....
Is he my unexpected savior or my ruthless mistake?

HAN: I learned from a young age that women aren't worth much. They don't stay. They're not loyal. They weaken you, then disappear at the first sign of trouble.
That's why I don't do relationships--especially with good girls who have no place in my criminal underworld.
I should stay away from her. Let her pay me back some other way.
But I can't. She's golden sunshine wrapped in a sexy little package, lighting up all the dark parts of my heart. And when she asks me why I did it, two words rise without thought or reason.
You're mine.
She thinks I'm the mistake, but it's the other way around. I don't do relationships. I don't even let women spend the night. But this one...
She has me breaking all of my rules.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Theodra Taylor
• Release date: Oct 27, 2021
• ISBN: 9781942167761

Book preview

1

JAZZ

BRAD: Are you coming or what? Dad’s got places to be, and I have to pack for a flight out tonight.

My heart crumpled as I read the text.

I’d been so excited this morning. I’d woken up with a bright feeling inside my chest—like I could do anything and that my future was as wide as the ocean. I’d finally saved up enough to buy my old coach’s surf school and camp. But then….

I’d come home after my morning surf class and found my father lying on the floor of our living room. Bruised and battered and embarrassed as hell.

Jazzy, I made a terrible mistake with all that money your sister gave me to cover the bills. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry….

You coming in or what? I don’t have all day.

A hard voice asked nearly the same question I’d gotten on the phone from my ex-boyfriend, Brad, the son of my old surfing coach. And I looked up to find cold, hard reality disguised as a bouncer.

Behind the reality mountain stood the Aloha Ballers Gentlemen’s Club. A two-floor white stucco building, it had a giant neon sign on its street-facing wall that featured a hula dancer gyrating against a stripper pole. So, you know, classy!

Just a couple of years ago, if any of the squeaky-clean brands I used to work with caught me standing outside this place, it would’ve lost me a few sponsorships.

But tonight…

I shot off a quick apology text to Brad:

Something came up. Can’t make the deal. Tell your dad I’m sorry.

Three sentences. Three sentences were all it took to kill my hopes and dreams. My stomach twisted, threatening to cave in as I pressed the send button.

But then the bouncer said, In or out. Make a decision.

His tone was awfully rushed for a guy sitting on a stool outside of a strip club with no line. But his lack of patience was probably a mercy.

It reminded me that I didn’t have time to regret my choice. It wasn’t even a choice, really. If I wanted to save my father, I had to go inside.

Enough stalling. I shoved my phone into the back pocket of my cut-off shorts, thrust my chin into the air, and told the bouncer, I’m here to see K Diamond.

HAN

Me and the guys have been talking about it. This job is so easy. My father didn’t even have to send you. We’ll handle it ourselves. Just give us the names of the targets, and you can go back to the mainland.

All the eyes in the bar area of the Aloha Ballers Gentlemen’s Club shifted to Han after Kris K Diamond Kuang said this, their stares pressing into him like red targeting lasers on guns. The men standing behind Kuang Jr. hovered their hands near their guns in anticipation of Han’s response. And the handful of men Han had brought with him to Oahu did the same.

The Hawaii arm of the 24K might favor a much more casual look than The Silent Triad—they wore baggy shorts and tees while Han’s gang sported suits. But their weaponry was just as sophisticated and three times as lethal since they outnumbered Han and his men three to one.

Moreover, Han doubted that Kuang Jr. had also outfitted his men with silencers as The Silent Triad did as a matter of policy. So, if this request wasn’t handled with the utmost care, this situation would get noisy and very messy. Lives would be lost, and jail time would most definitely be served.

This was why, despite Kuang Jr.’s claim to the contrary, Han knew the son of the 24K’s Dragon couldn’t handle the job the older Kuang had sent him down here to do.

Which was a shame because he was just as annoyed about having to come here as Kuang Jr.

The Silent Triad didn’t traffic anything that could breathe. That was the policy Han had insisted on before agreeing to his brother’s proposal to found their own triad. So, he would’ve gladly handed over the mission to hunt down and discreetly kill all the possible witnesses in the sex trafficking case the state of Hawaii was bringing against the 24K. If it were up to him, he’d give Kuang Jr. the target list and catch the first flight back to Rhode Island.

But it wasn’t up to him. Coming down here had been a personal request from the 24K Dragon himself, The Silent Triad’s most valued business partner. He hadn’t believed his son could handle the matter discreetly, and standing in front of the son now, Han couldn’t disagree with the older Kuang’s assessment of the situation.

Kuang Jr., as The Silent Triad called him behind his back, didn’t appear to be in any way acquainted with the word discreet. All of the men in both their triads sported tattoos, but Kuang Jr.’s were garish and a little too American. Topless women sleeved both muscled arms hanging out of his neon yellow sleeveless tracksuit jacket, along with a mishmash of Louis Vuitton symbols and roses dripping blood.

Where did one buy such an ugly jacket anyway? Had the young snakehead cut the arms off himself, or had it come that way? In either case, he wore no shirt underneath it, which put the guns and roses tattooed across his chest on full display underneath two lengths of gold chain.

If K Diamond was willing to start a conversation that could lead to a gunfight in a public space while dressed in that outfit, Han highly doubted that the entitled snakehead could take out all the targets on his father’s list without it getting splashed all over the local media as soon as he did it.

But unfortunately, the little shit wasn’t just the local snakehead. He was also the son of the 24K’s Dragon.

So, Han had to keep his tone respectful as he said, I’d be more than happy to back off and leave it to you. Just have your father give me the word. Otherwise, I’ll need you to clear out a room for me here to use as an office.

Kuang Jr. regarded Han, his eyes blazing with hate and frustration. He even brought his hand to his gun, which he kept in the waistband of his matching neon yellow track pants like a cartoon version of a mafia leader. But he stopped just short of pulling it out.

Going against Han would mean going against his own father—the father who was known for putting down anything and anyone who stood in the way of his business.

Maybe Kuang Jr. would get a pass for being the Dragon’s only son. But he and Han both knew it would cost him. If the 24K Dragon didn’t kill him, he would most definitely resort to the old ways to make sure his son fell in line. Was losing a finger or possibly a whole hand worth saving face in front of his crew?

If Han were Kuang Jr., he’d probably have a hard time with this decision himself. But, then again, if Han were Kuang Jr., he wouldn’t have put himself in a no-win position like this in the first place.

Han supposed that was why Kuang Jr. was the little boy who’d been left to play down in Hawaii by his father, while Han was the real man who’d been sent in to handle their real mafia business.

Han stuffed his hands in his pockets, making himself the very picture of unbothered as he waited patiently for Kuang Jr. to realize he’d already lost this battle and back down.

A few more tense seconds passed. And finally, Kuang Jr. jerked his chin at one of his men and instructed him in Cantonese to clear out the manager’s office for their guest.

Then he grinned at Han as if they were old friends—not someone he’d met for the first time five minutes ago.

We should party tonight, he offered. Pick whichever girl you want, and she’ll go down on you in the Champagne Room for as long as you need.

Han stilled.

And Chen, one of the men Han had brought with him, let Kuang Jr. know, The boss doesn’t mess with prostitutes.

Kuang Jr. jerked his head back, looking much like a Hong Kong matriarch who had just been told a restaurant that looked perfectly respectable on the outside didn’t serve tea.

We got the most beautiful girls on the island dancing for us, he said, tilting his head so far to the side, it was almost comical. You trying to say you don’t want a taste?

Irritation simmered inside Han, along with grudging respect.

Kuang Jr. was smarter than he appeared. Someone must’ve told him beforehand about how Han felt about prostitutes. That he didn’t touch them. Ever. Hard boundaries like his weren’t exactly a thing in their world. So now Han was the one who found himself in a bad position.

He’d either have to deny his host an explanation—which would be taken as an insult—or he’d have to go into his tragic back story—which Han bet his 1970 Mercury Cougar Kuang Jr. already knew. Both options tasted sour in his mouth.

But then, as it turned out, he didn’t have to decide.

Which one of you is K Diamond? a voice asked.

And they all turned to see a woman standing at the transition strip that separated the bar area from the rest of the club.

She was small but not necessarily thin. A baggy T-shirt and long cut-off shorts covered but couldn’t hide entirely, the curvy body underneath. And above that…

Han found a face that held his attention and sent a rush of adrenaline, unlike anything he had ever felt before crashing through him.

Real. Everything about her struck him as real. From her long sweep of lashes to the full lips a few of his past dates had paid doctors to replicate. Her beauty was fresh and untouched. She wasn’t wearing even a speck of make-up as far as he could tell.

She licked her lips, possibly an unconscious gesture, but every thought Han had prior to her arrival emptied from his head, leaving behind only one question, which K Diamond asked a few tense seconds after her arrival.

Who are you?

2

JAZZ

---

Who are you? one of the men demanded, staring at me.

I hesitated, all the righteous anger steam fading out of my body. I’d walked into the bar area at the back of the strip club expecting to find one man but got a whole gang instead.

No, not a whole gang, I realized after scanning the men gathered before me. Two distinct gangs. They were all of Asian descent, from what I could tell, and they all sported tons of tattoos. But one gang was dressed casually, and the other wore lightweight suits. No ties and open collars, but this was Hawaii, so they looked choke formal. They put me in mind of sharks in an ocean filled with marlin, sleek and sharp, and definitely out of place. And even though the casual side outnumbered them, they somehow seemed way more lethal.

The whole situation felt ripe with potential violence. The leaders of the two separate gangs had been standing face-to-face with their crews gathered behind them when I walked in like they were just waiting for something to pop off.

But now, every single one of the criminals on both sides of the situation was staring at me. A thump of panic rushed through me, but I pushed it down. It didn’t matter if I was scared. I had to do what I came here to do for my father’s sake. Then hopefully, get the hell out.

"I said, who are you, girl?" the leader in the neon yellow tracksuit demanded again. I was pretty sure he was K Diamond. He looked exactly like what I imagined when my father described the heartless bookie who’d sent his thugs to our house to beat up an old, disabled vet. And he talked like a wannabe rapper from the mainland.

So he was probably the one I’d come here to see.

But I couldn’t help but stare at the rival standing directly across from K Diamond. He was tall and insanely gorgeous with tattoos that crawled up to his hairline.

I’d choose China if somebody asked me to guess his country of origin. But he had that lean muscled look that I often associated with the Japanese surfers.

One thing was for sure. He was not from around here. He was pale and sharp-featured in a way that made his beauty cutting instead of pretty. His eyes were completely mesmerizing, so dark and black. They shone like onyx inside his beautiful face. Jewels that regular people wanted but couldn’t afford.

I hadn’t had much time for reading lately, but the sight of him threw me back to my high school days when I was obsessed with young adult novels featuring regular humans who somehow got thrust into other dimensions filled with ethereal fae. His beauty was so preternatural. He could be the king of some High Fae court who’d somehow ended up here in Hawaii.

Yet the Fae King didn’t seem all that concerned about the argument I’d interrupted. He looked me up and down from head to toe and back again. And though I was wearing way more than the women I saw dancing on the front stage when I entered the club, his heated gaze made me feel naked and exposed. And it released a kaleidoscope of butterflies into my stomach.

Stripper auditions aren’t until Wednesday, one of the guys standing behind K diamond called out to me, pulling me out of my strange trance.

I’m not here to audition, I answered, clearing my throat.

I forced my eyes away from the beautiful Fae King and fixed my attention on the guy I figured was K Diamond. I'm here to pay my father’s debt so that you don’t send any more of your thugs to our home to beat him up.

Oh yeah? K Diamond looked me up and down, just like his possible rival. But his gaze didn’t set off any butterflies inside of me. It just made my skin crawl.

He glanced over his shoulder to ask the guys behind him, Who all did we collect on today?

He had so many people beaten up, he couldn’t keep them straight? Anger buzzed, frustrated and futile inside of me as one of K Diamond’s minions answered him in a language that sounded Chinese.

K Diamond nodded after the guy finished. Oh yeah, that Lakers-Golden State playoff game. He bet six figures because he heard a rumor Lebron had an injury. Stupid…

He laughed and shook his head, like sending his thugs to beat up an old man was some kind of joke.

I ground my teeth. I don't understand why you would let anyone bet that much. Especially a vet.

K Diamond rolled his eyes and repeated in a mocking tone, "I don't understand why you would let anyone bet that much. Especially a vet—strange how nobody ever comes around here asking me that question when the guy wins. And who cares if he's a vet? Half this damn island got service on their records. Your father ain’t special."

The urge to punch him was riding me so hard, but I couldn’t let myself lose my temper. These guys were too dangerous, and my father’s life was at stake.

So I just thrust the bag filled with my life savings at him. Here, it’s everything he owes you.

This was all the money I’d saved up over the last two years, ever since Brad’s father announced that he would sell his ramshackle surf school when he retired at 60. A few hours ago, I’d fought off tears as I painstakingly withdrew it from my account in blocks of cash.

But K Diamond barely spared the small duffel a glance.

Count that, he said to someone over his shoulder, pointing at my duffel.

K Diamond stroked a hand over his knuckles and winked at me as one of his guys stepped forward to take the bag from me. So, what are you? You mixed? Like, Black and Chinese or something like that?

Even if what are you? wasn’t one of the most loaded things you could say to a biracial person, I wouldn’t have bothered to answer his question.

I wasn’t there to chitchat, and I was very aware of the rival Suit Gang still standing there, like a Saints Row video game on pause. I did not want to extend the time I had to spend here with a beside-the-point Q&A.

Unfortunately, K Diamond’s slimy gaze stayed on me. You a dime piece, ain’t you? You got a man?

I clamped my lips. At this point, I couldn’t trust myself to so much as open my mouth without cussing this dude straight out.

Unfortunately, K Diamond took my lack of answer as an invitation to keep asking me questions. Where are you working? One of the hotels? Bet you would make more here.

He stepped forward. So close, I could taste the overbearing bro scent of whatever cologne he was wearing. Then he grabbed my face and looked me over like I was some kind of product he was thinking of buying. "Yeah, put you in some makeup and heels, and you could rake in that good-good kala."

He was all up in my face and touching me. Revulsion turned my stomach. All I wanted to do was shove him away. But…

He's dangerous, I reminded myself. Probably carrying a gun.

So I forced myself to stand there. To tolerate his touch.

But I couldn’t keep the strain out of my voice as I asked, Is he done counting the money yet?

K Diamond threw me an irritated look—guess he didn’t like that I refused to answer any of his questions. But he released my face to ask the guy counting my money at the bar, Is it all there?

Yeah, the guy answered, filling me up with relief. But then he added, Everything except the interest.

My stomach dropped. What interest?

Five percent starting the first of the month after payment’s due, K Diamond answered with a shit-eating grin. Your dad didn’t tell you that before he sent you out here to me?

No, of course, he hadn’t because my dad didn’t send me. He didn’t even know I was here. As proud as he is, I doubted he would have told me what happened if I hadn’t walked in on the aftermath of his beatdown.

I inwardly cursed. That playoff game was back in June, and now it was August.

Five percent a month? I raised my eyes to do the math.

But K Diamond cut off my efforts with, Five percent a day.

A day? My stomach dropped with a sickening thud.

I once again tried to do the math, and this time K Diamond let me do it without any interruption, as the Future, J. Balvin remix of MC Fioti’s Bum Bum Tam Tam played overhead. The song wasn’t the only thing issuing booms. My head just about exploded when I realized the interest basically doubled the amount I just paid him.

The world swirled around me, and my breath shallowed.

These assholes! I shook my head. That's not fair. We don't have that kind of money.

Not my fault your dad made that bet knowing he didn’t have enough money to pay up. K Diamond cackled like the troll he was underneath that stupid tracksuit. But tell you what, baby. Don’t you worry, I’m going to show you how to pay me back.

Horror clogged my throat like a huge gulp of salty ocean water. Was he…? Was he insinuating that I’d have to pay him back with sex? Like a hooker?

Not just insinuating.

As if to answer my unspoken question, K Diamond leered at me and grabbed me again. But this time, his hands landed on my ass. He pulled my crotch into his and humped his hips against me while cackling over his shoulder at his guys.

They all laughed and called out encouragement to him in Chinese and English.

Disgust erupted in my belly so fast, I couldn’t control my reaction. All the laughter abruptly came to an end when I slammed my fist into the side of K Diamond’s face.

That got his hands off my ass.

Fucking bitch! K Diamond screeched, stumbling sideways.

He glared at me, his muddy brown eyes outraged and petulant—right before he delivered a sharp punch to my chest.

I’d made him stumble. But his hit sent me flying back to land on my butt.

I’d rather have the floor on my ass than K diamond’s hands, but man, the fall hurt. My tailbone stung, and when I tried to catch my breath, it felt like my chest was on fire.

For some inexplicable reason, I looked toward the Fae disguised as a gang leader. He just stared back at me, his expression icy and completely unmoved. Maybe he really was a Fae King, cold and uncaring about the lives of us regular humans.

It didn’t matter. Nothing was broken, so I had to get up. I could hear my former drill sergeant father’s voice in my head telling me that broken bones were the only excuse for staying down when I fell. So I climbed to my feet, but it wasn’t much of a victory.

K Diamond had hurt me a lot worse than I hurt him. And no matter how satisfying the hit had felt in the moment, it changed nothing. I still owed him more money than I could possibly get in such a short time.

And K Diamond knew it. Be happy I didn’t fuck up your face. Now let’s talk about this money you still owe me.

He paused, waiting for me to protest again. But this time, I was smart enough to keep my mouth closed. I just stood there on trembling legs.

And K Diamond rewarded me with an approving grin. Tell you what, you can come work for me. We’ll start you out on one of the side stages. See how you do there. Then, if you act nice, I’ll let you do some shifts in the champagne rooms—that’s where the real money gets made. You could earn back what your father owes in a few months. But first, I’m gonna need you to apologize.

A few months…

Getting rid of this unexpected debt in a few short months did sound appealing. But I hated the thought of dancing on that stage, of putting my body on display for men like K Diamond. Of having to act nice when they grabbed me without permission.

And just the idea of apologizing to the bookie who’d taken my life savings without blinking an eye filled my mouth with invisible dirt.

But my parents couldn’t sell the house. They took out a second mortgage on it earlier in the summer to pay the high cost of an uncovered but completely needed experimental drug treatment for my father. And my sister had already donated her entire paycheck to keep their heads above water while we waited for dad’s insurance to agree to pay for his treatments.

What I’d taken out of the bank was all the money I had in the world. And sure, I could maybe get a job at one of the other gentlemen clubs in Oahu, but there was no guarantee I’d make the same kind of money.

Everyone knew Aloha Ballers was the most popular strip joints on the island, the place where both rappers and CEOS came through, along with higher-end tourists who could afford to make it rain at the club. And with my lack of dance experience, who knew if other clubs would even be willing to hire me?

It took everything inside of me not to panic and run. But then, what good would that do? They’d just come after my dad again, and the debt would keep accruing. I tried and tried, but I couldn’t think of another way out.

What other choice do you have? I swallowed down a huge lump of pride and opened my mouth to agree to his terms—

But then the Fae King in disguise said something in Chinese.

Something K Diamond didn’t like.

He whipped around and said something I couldn’t understand to the Fae King. His expression was threaded through with anger, and he shouted in a whiny tone like a child denied ice cream.

The Fae King’s voice, in contrast, remained mild and even. His expression barely changed as he calmly answered whatever questions K Diamond had shouted at him.

They went back and forth like this for a couple of rounds, K Diamond all but screeching, and the Fae King looking largely unbothered. It was like they were having two different conversations. And unfortunately, whatever they were saying went way beyond the few sentences of Mandarin I kept in my back pocket to teach tourists from China.

In the end, K Diamond turned to glare at me…then he stepped aside.

That was all the warning I got before the Fae King stepped forward and told me in mildly accented English, I paid your debt. This means you belong to me now.

3

HAN

---

You paid my debt? Why? The woman Han had just paid a substantial sum of money to purchase blinked at him. Why would you do that?

Taking time to answer that question would be unwise. Han didn’t know why he’d felt compelled to step in himself. Yes, he knew where the deal Kuang Jr. was about to make with her would lead, but it wasn’t as if he’d made a habit of protecting women from this fate. So he was just as baffled by his intervention as her.

But none of their questions mattered right now. He could feel Kuang Jr.’s glare on his back, waiting for any excuse to renege on the terms they’d set. Their deal was done, but it wasn’t finished. Not yet. Which is why Han needed her to cooperate.

Han kept his expression neutral as he held out his hand to her. Come. We will talk in the VIP Champagne Room.

She’d looked interested in him earlier, scanning him as Han scanned her. Checking him out, as he once learned to say in the dating chapter of a textbook for one of his ESL classes. Han could tell she would’ve found him appealing as most women did if they had met under different circumstances. So perhaps she would come with him quietly, then Han could—

You must be out of your mind if you think I’m going anywhere with you. I don’t know you, and you don’t know me.

This woman appeared to have what his fellow Dragon Phantom called too much personality when he really meant a perspective bed partner was too crazy to bother with for a one-night stand.

Behind him, Kuang Jr. and his crew fell out laughing. Hope she was worth the money! the snakehead called to Han in Cantonese.

Han gritted his jaw. For the second time that night, he was in severe danger of losing face.

He would not allow that to happen, so new plan.

He gave up reasoning with her and simply picked her up and threw her over his shoulder.

What the hell do you think you’re doing? she demanded, banging her fists into his back.

As small as she appeared, she was surprisingly heavy. And her round bottom was packed tight with muscle, not plastic surgery as Han might have assumed before he pressed the hand against it to anchor her to his shoulder.

Han could see now how she’d sent Kuang Jr. stumbling, and he imagined if she weren’t hanging upside down, her fist would pack quite a punch.

She cursed at him all the way to the VIP Champagne room, which was located down two hallways at the

Reviews for HAN

[Anna · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Han and Jazz enter their entanglement by way of a debt and as retribution Jazz teases and torments Han in steam worthy fashion. In the end, it is wonderful to see this noncommittal man become unraveled when he discovers his love for her. Excellent read set in Hawaii. Another one of my TT favorites!