“Don’t gettoofriendly,” he said, running his eyes down over me. “I’m being amiable for King’s sake. You get too close to him, I’ll cut off your fucking balls.”
And that, right there, wasexactlywhat King saw in East.
He might’ve been young; he might’ve been a brat. But he was a ballsy motherfucker, and he would fight for his man.
I liked that for King. It made me…happy.
And with that thought in mind, I smirked and leaned down to say by East’s ear, “I’d like to see you try,littleprince.”
16
THEO
KING DIDN’T LOOK up as I strolled into the kitchen. He sat at the long table quietly, cutting into his omelet, not looking at all ready for what I was about to throw at him.
What had Shep said on the way over? Try to stay calm so I wouldn’t immediately put King on the defensive and actually make some headway.
Obviously that went against every instinct I had, because going over there and throttling him was what my brain was telling me to do.
That wouldn’t solve anything…butit would make me feel better.
I took a deep breath to bank my rage and stopped in front of the table. “We need to talk.”
King lifted his steaming mug of coffee to his lips and took a long sip.
It was infuriating the way he took his time with things when it suited him, and I was about ready to say fuck having patience when he finally nodded.
“We do. Why don’t you take a seat, Theo.” He gestured to the one across from him, but I ignored it.
“I’m fine right here.”
“Suit yourself.”
I scoffed. “Yeah. Yeah, I willsuit myself, and I don’t need your fucking permission to do it.”
King sat back in his chair and didn’t say another word, just cocked his head like he was giving me space to let it all out.
I didn’t need his goddamn permission for that either.
I stepped forward, my thighs hitting the table as I towered over him where he sat. “You know, the first thing you should’ve said when I walked in here was ‘I’m sorry.’ You should be begging for my forgiveness for being such an obstinate shit. I’ve had your back for years, Tyrone. And I thought you had mine.”
“I do?—”
“You didn’t. Not when it mattered. You should’ve known that video of me blowing up a building was fake the second you saw it. You know me. You know my character. Youchoseme, so you know I’m not that fucking stupid.” I swallowed, my emotions hitting me harder than I’d expected now that I was here voicing it all out loud. “Tell me why you were so quick to believe something so fucked. I need to know.”
King shook his head. “It wasn’t about you. It was about looking at the situation logically?—”
“Bullshit. Logic would mean believing one of your own. Believingme.”
“You weren’t exactly forthcoming about being in Istanbul in the first place, were you? Perhaps you’ve forgotten you removed your tracker and broke our trust by doing so.”
I stopped short, remembering that little detail, but then brushed it aside. “Yeah, I did that. I own up to it. That’s the difference between you and me. I apologized. I don’t even know if you understand the meaning of the word.”
“What is it you want an apology for, Theo?” he said, leaning forward, elbows on the table. “For not blindly believing your reckless behavior could’ve caused you to make a rash decisionin Istanbul? Or for walking in on you and Shep hiding your relationship? One that shouldn’t be happening under our rules in the first place?”
Putain. There it was—the unfiltered rage. It was back, pumping through my veins so hard I thought smoke was going to come out of my ears. I felt my nails dig into my palms as my fists clenched tight, and before I knew it, I swept my arm across the table, sending all the dishes crashing to the floor.
King flinched, not something I’d ever seen him do, and then I leaned over the table, in his face.
