“I knew it,” she spits, shoving her ankle into my throat. Choking, I grab her knee, throwing her away. She stumbles over her feet and I use it to my advantage.
Tackling her to the ground, I use my forearm to pin her neck, my size and weight capturing her legs. She’s not done though, pushing against me, rocking her hips to throw me off. Maeve catches me in the groin, clipping me and I have to fight to surrender.
She’s fucking on some shit tonight, not just ready to fight but to cut out my tongue, my eyes and my nose just for spite
“Easy, Maeve.” I cough, rolling to the side. She hates being pinned. “What the fuck is your problem?”
“You’remy problem,” she spews, body flushing from rage and exertion. Her chest heaves, eyes wild. “All these years, taking on protection duty without any complaint. Do you know how many guys used to bitch about following her? A few of them I had todispatch. But you never said onedamnthing. I thought it was because you cared—because they wereour family. But no, you did it to get toher.”
Confusion and disbelief paint my face as I release her. She scurries away, a shiver of fear skating down her spine.
Swallowing, I say, “I’m not?—”
“Am I interrupting?” Killian asks, leaning against the far wall. Clad in nothing but a black crop top and sweats, his arms are crossed, bits of inked flesh peeking through his clothing. He eyes us both but doesn’t make a move to stop.
“Christ, you’re everywhere.” I glare at him, temper snapping. “This is a conversation between us, not you, reaper. Get the fuck out.”
“No, I’m done,” Maeve huffs, fists clenched, still sitting before me. We’re both dripping sweat, bodies sore. “Just tell me how long. Howlonghave you been screwing my sister behind my back?”
I glance to Killian, trying to understand what the fuck is happening. I’ve never touched Collins—never screwed her. And trust me, I’ve wanted to. I’ve had nightmares about what she’d sound like, feel like, taste like. How her quick wit full of venom and sass would turn sweet with the right touch.
Collins doesn’t want me like that. If she did, things would be different. But out of respect for her, for Maeve, I keep to my station.
Hell, even if she did, she wouldn’t want someone as broken as me to touch her.
Killian tilts his head, assessing me. He sees something in my gaze, that deranged smile growing and I glare.
Fuck.He’s up to something.
“Maeve, I’m not?—”
“Must have been for a while,” Killian calls out, moving closer, yanking Maeve to her feet. “After all, you’reengaged.”
“Engaged?” I rush to stand, heart slamming in my chest. From confusion, fear and excitement. “Wait?—”
“You didn’t even have the balls to tell me yourself,” she spits. “I had to find out fromher.”
From her? Collins told Maeve we were engaged?Why would she do that?
And why does everything in my body tighten with need, though my mind knows this is dangerous territory.
“And after I gave the order,” she whispers, exhaling slowly.
Maeve was abused as a child because her father allowed it—facilitatedit. When she took over, her first act was to protect her siblings—no one was allowed to speak, touch, or be in the room as one of her siblings without her permission.
A few guys didn’t think she was serious. She chopped off their hands and deposited their bodies into the burn pit for their arrogance.
“Whatever.” She clears her throat, ripping away from Killian. “I’m done.”
At the door, she looks back at me, a flash of vulnerability before it’s gone. “I’ll be looking closely at your relationship. If it’s not up to my scrutiny, you’re out.”
Out. As in, kicked out of the clan.
My stomach sinks. Bruno was never my home, it was a place of secrets, of hurt and trauma, a place where I was expected to be a good boy and lay down to take whatever shit a new man of the night gave me. Here, I was respected, I had a friend, I had ahome.
Killian watches her go, drinking in her legs and I don’t think, grabbing him by the throat, pinning him to the basement wall. The man goes without much fuss, allowing me to slam his head into the concrete. I smile when he blinks against the pain.
“What thefuckdid you do?” I seethe, fingers digging into his neck. The urge to kill him now is almost too good to ignore.
