I shoot him a small grin. “Not even Carter?”
“He’s my husband. I love him and I trust him, but I’ve had your love, trust, and loyalty from day one. It didn’t have to grow like with him. I trustyoumore than anyone. Don’t ever forget that.”
“Thanks. Same for me.”
Kai squeezes my shoulder once more, then heads over to the treadmill. I clean down the mat, give him a salute, and head upstairs.
Like at Carter’s old house, the gym is in the basement, with top-of-the-line equipment, a bathroom with a large shower, lockers, and a panic room that leads to a tunnelsystem. When the Fensters destroyed Carter’s old house, the tunnel system saved most of us. It was a no brainer to have another built.
When I push open the door into the foyer, I almost run chest first into Carter. He looks at me and dips his chin, that tough exterior he usually has not as hard. Maybe it’s because he’s home and doesn’t have to put up a front, or maybe it’s because he’s starting to like me just a little. I don’t care either way. I treat him the same as I always have—with respect, but I’m not exactly warm toward him.
Standing beside Carter is Declan, a scowl on his face as he looks at me. I grin and up nod him. “Hey. This a family reunion?”
Carter’s lip twitches. “No. I just wanted to see my brother, that’s all.”
“Even if it were, it’s none of your business,” Declan follows up.
“Yikes,” I say. “Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed today.”
“Chill,” Carter says to his brother when he opens his mouth to retort. “You two always go at it when you see each other. I thought after he took you home last week, you’d at least pretend to like him.”
Heat flares in Declan’s eyes, but I don’t think Carter catches it. Yeah, Declan showed me just how much he likes me when he fucked me over his kitchen island. My cock throbs at the memory. I can’t wait for a repeat. Or a flip fuck. I’m not opposed to either.
Declan grunts. “Fine, I’ll be civil.”
“Sweet of you,” I say, my hand over my heart as if I’m touched.
He rolls his eyes. “Why are you all sweaty?”
I look down at my shirt that’s sticking to my chest andabs. “I was sparring with Kai and hitting the bag. Wanna join next time?”
“Hitting the bag because the bag doesn’t hit back,” Declan grumbles.
“You wanna try to hit me?” I taunt.
Carter chuckles. “This I wanna see.”
Declan looks back and forth between us, then removes his suit jacket and his gun holster, handing them to his brother. “Don’t write a check your ass can’t cash.”
Grinning, I set my water on the stairs. “Yeah, yeah. Show me what you got.”
Declan walks further into the foyer, so we have space to move around. His face is set in a blank mask, though there is a flicker ofsomethingwhen his eyes roam down my chest. My dick chubs up and I have to think of every disgusting thing on the planet to get it to chill the fuck out.
“We can always go downstairs,” I tell him as I check out his form. “There are mats. Don’t want to mess up that pretty face.”
His eyes flicker, but he covers it with a scowl. “Stop talking.”
“You don’t like my voice?” I ask, a call back from our time at the club.
Declan shoots me a sarcastic grin. “I can’t wait to shut that big mouth of yours.”
It takes effort for me not to tell him to fill it with his cock instead.
Before I can think of a witty—and PG-13—retort, Declan throws out a left hook, then a right cross. If I didn’t see his face change just a fraction, he would have connected. But I dance out of the way faster than he expected, duck behind him, and grab one of his arms. I push him back, making him slide a few inches across the floor.
“Not bad,” I say. “But you’re too uncoordinated. Hands up higher and drop your shoulders.”
Declan doesn’t listen, coming at me with the same berserker energy he had when he threw the first punches. I let him think he’s getting close, then duck and slap him across the face. Not hard, but with enough force to get his attention.
