I shrug innocently, “Next time let me wake up on my own time.”
He grumbles something about there not being a next time, but I know he’s full of shit. There’s going to be a next time, and when there is, he’ll be in my bed all night. This may be new, and we may have decided to move slowly, but him being in my bed at night is now non-negotiable. I slept so peacefully this morning with him. Like someone else had my back while I was asleep so I could actually rest for once. A man could easily become addicted to that.
17
Chapter Seventeen
Declan
It’s been a week since that morning at Jake’s, and I’ve spent the night in his bed every night since. Well, I guess that’s not completely true. Technically I spend every morning in his bed. I wake up around the time that I know he’ll get off and meet him at his house. We go in the house and crash out until I have to get up and come back home to get ready for work.
It’s not a perfect system by any means, but the few hours of sleep I get in his bed before I have to wake up and make my way back to the estate is the best sleep I’ve ever gotten. Sometimes we make out before bed. Sometimes we don’t, and we just go to sleep holding each other. He’s turned my world upside down, and honestly, I have no complaints.
Unfortunately, right now I’m not with Jakob. I’m not withmy brothers or my nephew and niece. No, right now I’m in what I consider the seventh circle of hell. I’m in an old worn down building, which looks like such a contradiction to the ones my brothers and I own and use for our less than legal operations. This used to be some sort of theater before it was gutted. Now it’s just a concrete floor where the stage once was. The seating room is only in the first three rows and up in the balconies. There’s a long white line spray painted on the concrete floor telling us where we can’t go past. Hundreds of people fill the space to watch this happen.
I look up to the balcony just in time to see her standing like an evil queen watching over her peasants. I’m supposed to throw the match tonight. It’s part of her game. She rigs these fights. They’re KO only, so I have to let motherfuckers that I’d typically kill in my sleep beat the fuck out of me until they knock me out. The problem with that is, one, the bruising on my face that I have to come up with an excuse for, and two, once I’m unconscious her men bring me up to the office she has. What happens in that office haunts me. It’s why I need to move practically at a snail’s pace with Jake.
I can’t do it anymore, though. I can’t come to and see men standing over my half-conscious body pleasuring themselves. I can’t handle Natasha telling me if I fuck her again that she’ll stop. She won’t. I’ve already tried that. More than once. I can’t listen to one more threat on my family or Jakob. She only has power until I stop playing her game. I’m not throwing shit tonight.
The guy that I’m up against tonight matches my broad body type, but he stands about three inches shorter than me. I wrap my hands before these fights to attempt to lessen how bruised and swollen my knuckles get. It’s probably a mootpoint, but the more I can do to shield my brothers, the better. My opponent is quick, I’ll give him that, but I’m quicker. I’m not in the mood to play games tonight. I want to get out of here and go get in bed with the man that makes my world spin. I strike out before he can even see it coming. With one hard and fast hit, my fist tags his temple and down he goes.
Lights out, motherfucker.
The outrage is instantaneous, and Natasha’s men grab me in the next second. I try to fight their hold, but the unmistakable cool metal of a gun presses into my bare back. My body locks up on instinct.
“Okay, okay. I’m cool.” I walk with them up to her evil lair, the entire time trying to figure out how I’m going to get out of this shit.
They push me inside of the office, causing me to stumble into the room as they follow me in. She’s sitting at her desk with her fingers steepled in front of her and her chin resting on the tips. She looks me over like I’m a disobedient dog.
“Sit.” She nods to the chair in front of me. When I don’t move fast enough, Mikhail does it for me.
After I’ve been forcefully placed in the chair, I give her my most unimpressed look.
“You cost me a lot of money tonight, Declan.” Her tone is void of all emotion, which has me on edge.
Natasha is a lot of things, but at the very top of that list in glitter gel pen with stars surrounding it is emotional. So her lack of emotion right now has my stomach dropping. She picks up a remote and turns on the large TV mounted to the wall behind her. The screen comes alive, and as my eyes take in what I’m seeing I can feel bile rising in my throat.
On the screen is a video of Kieran and Nix from earliertoday walking into the doctor’s office. Whoever is filming them follows them all the way until they walk into the office. The video changes, and next Mac and Lee are dancing in what looks to be Z13. Flynn’s sitting at the bar nursing a drink, and Rowan holds Clara close while moving her around the dance floor. When the video flips again, it’s the inside of Knipe, Jakob’s bar. He’s at the bar talking to Sully and Elle. No one is looking towards whoever is filming, and slowly a gloved hand raises into view and makes a finger gun before mimicking shooting each of them.
“This one’s live.” She says with glee in her voice.
I can’t help the tears that come to my eyes or the way my heart practically beats out of my chest. I’m so distracted by the horror on the screen that I don’t even notice the restraints being locked onto my wrists until it’s done.
Goddamn it.
“Stop. What do you want from me?” I roar.
“Oh, easy now, Declan. We wouldn’t want you to piss me off when the person recording this for me definitely has a gun on them, and a single text will give them the go ahead.”
I shut my eyes and will myself to calm down just enough to get the hell out of here and get to them. I’m locking this city down the second I round everyone up.
“What do you want from me, Natasha?” I try again, but this time, quieter.
“Thank you. What I want is simple. I want you to marry me. I want to reclaim my rightful spot as Queen of the head Bratva family, and I need someone with power to help me do it.” My stomach clenches in fear while she strategically pauses before she sighs dramatically. “I know you won’t do that, Declan. At least not yet. So until you come to yoursenses and stop fucking your ex best friend, you’ll throw fights when I damn well tell you to. This is your first and only warning. Am I clear?”
“I’m not fucking anyone. I don’t know what sources you have, but they’re wrong.” I growl out, but it holds little malice. My desire to piss her off has dwindled now that I know she has a fucking hit man stationed with Jakob and my baby brother.
“You mean to tell me you’re pulling up to his house all hours of the morning, staying for a few hours then leaving, and you aren’t fucking? What do I look like to you?” She scoffs, irritation clear in her posture and tone.
