Not. A. Problem.
I might’ve wanted to get out of the frigid air that had just descended inside the house, but I wasn’t stupid enough to go traipsing off through the jungle.
So for now, I’d risk the psychotic monkeys and mosquitos the size of my head, and let the two inside hash out whatever issues they were both trying so desperately to pretend they didn’t have.
39
SHEP
IKNEW THINGS were about to get contentious when Theo was willing to risk being in nature alone to get away.
I wanted to tell him he didn’t need to leave, that anything King had to say, he could be there for, but the words didn’t come out. So many different emotions were boiling inside me, and I didn’t know which one would burst out first. Being rash never helped anything, and I tried to just breathe and get a hold of my emotions before lashing out.
As the door clicked shut, a tense, taut silence fell between King and me, both of us ready to snap at any moment like a rubber band stretched past its limits.
He didn’t move from where he stood with his arms crossed, dark eyes narrowed on me. Anyone else would’ve cowered under his intensity, but I’d been on the receiving end of his displeasure on too many occasions to back down now.
For a long time, neither of us said a word, but I knew King so well that I could practically count down the seconds until he finally spoke.
“I trusted you.”
That was all he said, but those three words were weighted, calculated to make me feel guilty. Like I was the one who’d done something wrong.
Fuck that.
“You were right to,” I said. “Theo’s safe. That was my task.”
“By getting him into your bed.”
“I don’t remember us discussing the terms. Or my methods.”
His eyes narrowed to daggers that could kill. His disapproval and anger radiated off him as he began to prowl the room, like a dangerous animal on the hunt.“You think this is clever? Two Kings, under my roof.”
“Ourroof. This house belongs to all of us.”
“Do you know the fractures this could cause within?—”
“Don’t say it.”
“I’ll say it, and you’ll listen,” he said, moving closer but stopping himself from invading my space. “You two being together complicates everything. We have enough on our hands right now. We can’t afford to break the fuck apart.”
“Then maybe you should trust that I know what I’m doing.”
“I don’t think you even know. Where’s your head, Shep? Because you’re not thinking with the one on your goddamn shoulders.”
I bristled at that, my rage winning out. Fuck him if he thought I wasn’t capable of making my own decisions, or that I would do anything to tear apart the organization we hadallworked so hard to build.
“You know what, Ty? Fuck you. This isn’t about the Libertines at all. This is about you. You don’t approve of this, and you want to dress it up like it’s about safety and control.Bullshit.”
I caught the flicker of surprise in the usually impenetrable King’s eyes at my pushback, but then he growled in the back ofhis throat. “Control is the only thing keeping us alive, Shep. You should know that better than anyone.”
“You think Idon’tknow that? Everything in my life revolves around our work, so don’t you dare talk to me like I’m some incompetent fucking minion and not your second-in-command.” I didn’t give him the chance to speak, the pent-up words inside me continuing to rush out. “And for the record, I don’t need your permission or approval when it comes to who I decide to let into my private life. You gave up the right years ago.”
“Shep—”
“No.” I held up my hand when he started toward me. “I don’t want to hear it. I know it’s killing you that you don’t get a say in who I choose to be with anymore, but too fucking bad. It’s up to me to make that decision. Not you.”
If anyone else had spoken to King that way, he would’ve had them on the ground writhing in agony. But he simply stared at me with a mixture of curiosity and skepticism, clearly not expecting this version of me.
