Chapter 2
Quinn
I’m pretty sure Clara doesn’t want to shoot Reid intentionally, but the housekeeper’s hand shakes violently, and the gun she’s picked up off the floor still has the safety off. If Reid tries to disarm her, there’s a good chance I’m going to get covered in brain matter.
This is not how my day was supposed to go. I should have followed my gut about Ridgemont Solutions. I knew something was off, but Strider had checked them out and assured me they were legitimate. My best friend likes to think he’s the world’s greatest hacker, but he’s just been outclassed by Mace Griffin. He’s not going to like that.
As prepared as I was for this job, I hadn’t anticipated this level of interference from the Griffins. I’d assumed they’d want to stay away from the scene of their crime, but maybe the Irish aren’t done with Poulton Springs and are putting pressure on the brothers. This place is quickly becoming a pressure pot ready to explode. It makes me nervous, but I’ve spent a year preparing for this. I need to be here when it all blows up in Ilya’s face.
But it’s Reid I face now. Beads of sweat glisten on hisbrow, and his piercing green eyes are fixed on mine. He’s the youngest of the Griffin brothers – technically a half-brother, and the fourth son of the late James Griffin. From the limited information available on this secretive family, Reid dropped out of law school a year or so ago to join Ash, Hunter and Mace in the family firm. He’s annoyingly charming, which makes it all the more disappointing that he’s chosen to be on the wrong side of history. Sibling loyalties have a lot to answer for.
I’m just grateful he’s lost that infuriatingly smug grin. The pressure of his erection against my stomach has eased too. “I’d do as she says,” I warn.
Goosebumps prickle my skin as Reid peels himself off me very slowly. I miss our shared body heat despite loathing this man and everything he stands for. Maybe the world would be better off with one less Griffin in it, even one with stupidly beautiful green eyes that glance at my exposed cleavage as he rises.
Clara keeps the gun pressed to Reid’s temple as he stands. Her long blond ponytail swishes as she tilts her head back, her arm rising as Reid stands to his full height.
“If you were any other Griffin, you’d be dead right now,” she says, her voice carrying a conviction that belies her shaking hand.
Clara has more reason than most to hate the Griffins. Her late husband was the security guard killed on the night of the fire last year. She has a young daughter to protect, a child who deserves to grow up in a rural town that isn’t crawling with criminal gangs.
Rising to my feet, I grab my gym top and slip it on quickly before helping Clara.
“It’s OK. I’ve got this,” I tell her gently. She’s a yearolder than me, but evidently has less experience handling a firearm.
Barrett’s housekeeper lets me take the gun. “Are you alright?” she asks, surveying my body for obvious signs of injury.
“Not a scratch.”
“This is just a misunderstanding,” Reid tells Clara, his shoulders relaxing. He seems to be under the impression he’s safer with me holding the gun.
“And what kind of misunderstanding leads to you stripping a woman at gun point?” she asks.
Reid turns towards me, quirking an eyebrow as he waits for me to explain that the gun was mine, and the stripping part was an accident. He sighs when I don’t.
“Do you think you could put the safety back on that thing so we can get this wrapped up?”
I keep the gun pointed at his head. “No.”
“Quinn, I don’t have to be your enemy. If you just tell me your real…” His words trail off deliberately.
He wants my real name, and this is a warning that he could start unravelling the story I’ve told my new employer with just a few well-placed comments. The last thing I need is anyone finding out who I really am. I have to remain in Poulton Springs long enough to catch the cockroaches I’m expecting to come out of the woodwork.
Clara’s laugh interrupts our silent negotiation. “You think you aren’t the enemy?” she asks, her words filled with anguish that Reid won’t understand. “I know you’re just a kid, but have you been taken in so completely by your big brother? Ask anyone in town and they’ll tell you the same as me. The Griffins are a plague on us all. You didn’t just burn down a factory, youkilleda community. And if you can’tsee that, then maybe it’s too late for you.” She swallows hard. “I hope I don’t come to regret not pulling the trigger.”
“I don’t know where you got your information, but we didn’t burn down the factory,” Reid says through gritted teeth. “That’s not who we are. I’m proud of my brothers and everything they stand for, and I’ll gladly follow in Ash’s footsteps.”
Clara flinches. “Then I feel sorry for you.”
“I’m not claiming any of us are perfect, but I suggest you pay more attention to what Barrett gets up to.”
“There you go, spreading more lies and poison,” Clara says, her strength leaving her with a sigh. “Does it ever end?”
“It ends when you open your eyes,” Reid grits out. “And when the time comes, I just hope you choose the right side.”
I’m holding a gun to his head, and the bastard still thinks he can threaten us. “That’s it, time to go,” I say.
Reaching for Clara, I make sure she stays at my back as I circle Reid, placing him between us and the exit. Reid turns with me so we remain facing.
