Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 72854 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 364(@200wpm)___ 291(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72854 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 364(@200wpm)___ 291(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
Pinching the bridge of my nose, I ignore him.
“Did you go to the club with Jase?” I ask Daniel as I continue down the order of supplies.
“Did you hear me?” Daniel questions me, kicking the office door shut and making his way across the office to sit in the chair opposite me.
“I did. You didn’t tell me anything I don’t already know.” Shutting the laptop computer, I finally give him my attention and for a moment I’m caught off guard.
“You look like shit,” I say, and I don’t hide the surprise in my voice.
My brother’s eyes spark with a hint of humor as he smirks at me and replies, “And you look like a fucking Ken doll. Drug dealer Barbie style.”
A huff of a laugh escapes me as he runs his hand along the scruff on his jaw. “Addison isn’t sleeping. She’s having a hard time with this.”
“With what?” I ask him, feeling a chill in my blood.
“With the shit that’s going on. The war, not knowing who tried to take her or what they were planning.”
“She doesn’t need to know about a damn thing,” I say beneath my breath with every bit of humor long gone. “You shouldn’t have told her anything. We stay on lockdown. We wait for the Talverys and Romanos to trim their own numbers. If you have to tell her anything, that’s all she should know.”
Daniel’s head tilts back slightly and he runs a hand down his face, his body slumped in the chair. “She’s not allowed in the north wing and I don’t want her leaving without me or someone else with her… and I’m not supposed to tell her anything?” he questions me, letting his chin drop and daring to look me in the eyes.
“The women should stay out of this.” He fucking knows better.
“Says the man who started a war over a piece of ass.”
“Careful.” He cocks a brow at my response, but I stay firm.
Leaning forward, he puts both palms on the desk and asks quietly, like it’s a secret, “What’s going on with you?”
I steady my back against the leather chair, letting one hand fall to the armrest, my fingers tracing along the steel nail heads.
“I wish I knew,” I tell him in a breath. “We have to move forward with this and there are some things that will benefit us, but it’s a careful walk from here until the end.”
Daniel nods his head, his eyes never leaving mine. “And when are we getting revenge on Marcus? The man who tried to take what’s mine?”
“We don’t know that it was Marcus who tried to take her.”
“Who else would have done it?” Daniel asks but even as the last words slip out, his conviction wanes. Our enemies are surrounding us. The only saving grace is that they fear us, and they have other wars to fight.
“He has yet to answer any of our messages and no one’s confirmed he had anything to do with it.” Daniel’s nostrils flare as he slams himself back into his seat, making the front legs of the chair nearly come off the floor while he looks past me and out the window.
“So, I’m supposed to do nothing and keep Addison in the dark?” Daniel asks with contempt. “I need to do something. I can’t let him or whoever the fuck it was get away with it.” His frustration is getting the better of him. And I understand. I do. But we have to be smart and know how best to move forward before we act.
“We don’t know who did it. There will be nothing done until we do.” My answer is absolute, with no room for negotiation, and the air tenses as Daniel considers me. A moment passes, and I can’t breathe. My brothers are everything to me. All I have. And they’ve never questioned me. Not until this past week.
I’m losing my grip; I can feel it. And that’s never a good thing.
Finally, he nods once and relaxes his posture, moving one ankle to rest on his knee.
“Can I ask you something else?” he asks, and I rest my elbow on the desk and then my chin in my hand, nodding as I do. He’s going to ask me regardless.
“What are you doing with her?”
“It’s personal.” That short answer already reveals more than I’ve told anyone else, but Daniel shakes his head, a look of disappointment clearly written on his face.
“You aren’t the brother I remember.” He’ll never know the pain that comment causes me.
“Tell me what you remember, Daniel? You never saw anything past Addison.” I practically hiss her name.
“What the fuck does that mean?” His anger is evident, and his jaw tightens.
“You had her and I had no one.” My voice cracks at the revelation. Time marches on as we stare at each other. He has no idea how she saved him. Having someone to love, even if it is from a distance can give you hope. And hope is everything.