He leaned forward, steepling his fingers, taking me a bit more seriously now. “Let me be honest. This is not personal. You’ve found yourself here because you have a heart I want. I’ll stop at no cost to have it. Actually. I already consider it mine. You, darlin’, are mine. End of story.”
“I—” I took a deep breath, releasing it silently, forcing my voice to come out even “—will never marryyou. And if you even think about hurting my—”
Before the words were fully out, Cash had drawn a gun from underneath his desk, and with a blast that sounded like a bomb going off inside of my heart, shot my brother. He hit the wall and slid down it. I fell to my knees beside him, running my hands along his body.
“Oh my God. Oh my God,” I chanted, frantically feeling for my brother’s pulse.
“I’m all right, Kee,” he said, his voice strained. “My shoulder. He hit my shoulder.”
“Then why did you fall?”
Harrison narrowed his eyes at me. “I got hit with a bullet, Kee. Out of nowhere.”
I shook my head, applying pressure to his arm. Even though he assured me that it was just his shoulder, he was my big brother, and his wound hurt me as much as it hurt him. I looked up into light eyes that pierced through the darkness that had settled around me.
“Fuck you!” I spat out.
“Later, after I hear your vows.” Cash grinned at me.
“Kee.” Harrison’s voice brought me back to him. “Say no. The boys would want you to do the same. Say no. Run.”
“Why?” I said to Cash, feeling the closest thing to weak that I’d ever felt. My brother’s blood stained my hands. “Why me?”
“It’s not personal,” he said causally. “It has nothing to do with you directly. I don’t want your body. I’m takingyou.”
“Stealing me,” I whispered. “Why?”
“Because I can.” There was something in his eyes—knowledge. He knew. He knew that only after meeting twice, not counting this time, he’d gotten underneath my skin.
“No!” Harrison roared, about to get to his feet.
I stuck my finger in Harrison’s wound, making him stay put, because the animal had scented blood and he was ready to shed more. Harrison growled again, the pain making all of the color drain from his face, and I looked the marauder in the eyes.
“I’m going to kill you regardless.”
“You kill me.” Cash shrugged. “My brother will continue to kill your family.”
Our eyes held, and something told me he was bluffing, but I couldn’t take the chance. He had shot my brother like it was nothing, like it was something he did every day, and maybe he did. I knew he’d kill my brother in front of me, and the more trouble I gave, the further I’d run and hide, the more he’d go on a spree and kill the people I loved the most.
I didn’t have much time to figure this out, because I didn’t trust him enoughnotto shoot my brother on his other shoulder, waiting for me to agree to whatever he wanted from me. He’d said that I was his already, he’d already decided, but the question kept stabbing me. Why?
Why me?
He didn’t want my body. I highly doubted he wanted my love.
What else?
What could he possibly want?
Something about a heart.
My heart?
How can someone steal a heart and not expect to love?
I almost growled in frustration.Think, Kee. Think!
I couldn’t.
