He studied me for a moment, then pressed his lips together.
"And you should know, with the kind of reach the Gilbert family has in Sterling City's elite circle, the second you say no, your parents back home get evidence that their daughter's been kept as some rich man's mistress. Your brother's school gets a tip that his sister is the industry's public entertainment. And your mother's little shop? It won't stay open."
Everything in me went cold. My head snapped up, and I locked every muscle to keep the trembling from showing.
"How do you know about my parents?"
Clyde shook his head with a small laugh.
"Deidre, you think I didn't run a background check before I picked you?"
"Where you're from, how many people in your family, what your parents do for a living, which school your brother attends, how much debt you owe. I know all of it."
My fists clenched so tight my nails bit into my palms, and the pain was the only thing keeping me conscious.
"So you're threatening me."
"Not a threat. A partnership."
Clyde corrected me. "You cooperate, I pay you, and your family stays safe."