Bones groans and rubs the bridge of his nose. “Please stop talking.”
“Might be too late,” I say cheerfully. “I think I felt myself ovulate.”
Maverick lets out a low chuckle, shaking his head.
“Focus,” he finally says, smoothing the front of his jacket with the ease of a king preparing to walk into war.
“Right,” I nod. “Business first. Flirt later.”
“Skip,” Bones warns.
“Oh, relax,” I say. “I only flirt with two types of men: the ones I want to fuck and the ones who are so powerful they might murder me for fun. Maverick happens to be both.”
Maverick lifts a brow, amused and dangerous all at once.
“I see,” he says. “And which category does Eli fall into?”
My entire mood shifts in a heartbeat.
“Neither,” I say, smirk gone. “He’s my future.”
Maverick studies me for a long moment…Don mask firmly back in place…then nods once.
They all know my flirtatious nature is harmless, but I make a mental note to tone it back some. I don’t want Eli ever thinking he’s not enough for me.
“Then let’s make sure we all live long enough to see it.”
“Poor Cortéz made a mistake when he attacked your estate and harmed your family,” I say, sweeping my gaze across the room full of armed-to-the-teeth killers. Maverick’s and ours. “He might’ve survived if he’d just left you alone.”
“Negative,” Maverick growls, the word sharp enough to cut steel. “The Shadows are my fucking family, too. Cortéz signed his death warrant the moment he targeted you.”
Maverick steps forward and lifts his chin with that terrifying, regal confidence. He doesn’t shout, but his voice is loud enough to be heard by everyone around us.
“And what fucking happens when you mess with Don Moretti’s family?”
The response is instant…explosive!
“WAR!”
The sound is so loud it rattles the walls, shakes dust from the beams, vibrates in my damn bones.
Hell, I’m pretty sure the entire Valley just felt that quake.
Maverick smiles.
A dark, lethal, Don smile.
“The threat against my family was enough to grab my attention,” he says, voice cold enough to frost steel as Spike steps up beside him. “I’ve had men digging for months to uncover everything they could on this fucker and Los Fantasmas. But then he attacks my estate. Kills members of my family in the home I promised them would be safe. Innocents. Children. My oldest friend.”
His jaw flexes. His fingers curl. His eyes go dead.
“He wanted my attention,” Maverick continues, a slow, dangerous rumble. “Well, now he has it. Except we’re not just going to dismantle his entire fucking cartel…”
He leans forward just slightly, the entire room holding its breath.
“We’re going to do it very… fucking… painfully.”
A ripple of raw, feral energy rolls through the men…our guys, his guys…it doesn’t matter. In this moment, we’re all predators with the same target.
