“What is it? Is Mom all right?”
Caz sighs, and Theo finally puts his tablet down, scooting forward to the edge of the seat. “She’s okay,” Theo confirms. “But the dynamic has shifted in their relationship.”
“Meaning what exactly?”
“He’s pushing her around a bit,” Saint says. “When she told him the wedding was off, he threatened her.” His eyes drill into mine through the mirror. “And you.”
I slump back in the seat, air whooshing out of my mouth. “Fuck.” I rub at my temples, still feeling so conflicted over the woman who gave me life.
“We won’t let him hurt her or you,” Saint says.
“Don’t make promises you can’t keep,” I hiss.
“Don’t fucking push me, princess,” Saint snarls. “No one is hurting either of you on our watch, and that is one promise I fully intend to keep.”
CHAPTER 16
Harlow
“NICE PAD,” BRYsays, looking around as we walk through the house and downstairs to the basement.
“Thanks. Mom’s anal about the house. She never stops decorating.”
“This is a world away from where I grew up.”
“Save your sob story for someone who cares,” Saint says, stopping in the middle of the two couches and folding his arms. “Sit.” He jerks his head toward the couch on the left. I flop down beside Bry, and Saint glares at me. “You.” He jabs his finger at me. “Over there.” He points at the opposite couch.
I flip him the bird. “You already pissed on me, and Bry knows where we stand, so lose the caveman act unless you plan to sleep alone for the rest of your life.”
He stalks toward me, leaning down, caging me in with his arms. “I would like to see you try.”
“Okay, enough.” Theo grabs the back of Saint’s shirt, and I gawk at him. “Lo is right. We’re deep in shit, and we don’t have time for this. She’s yours. You don’t need to remind her and everyone else of that every second of every day.”
Saint straightens up, whirling around on Theo, ready to pummel him into yesterday. I jump up, grabbing Saint’s face, and I kiss him hard, shoving my tongue in his mouth and shutting him the fuck up. He doesn’t let me down, wrapping his arms around me and kissing me back with the same fervor. After a couple minutes, I pull back, cupping his cheek and staring into his eyes. “Okay?”
He nods, and I drop back onto the couch beside Bry. Saint perches his butt on the armchair beside me. “You’re up first.” He gestures at Bry. “What are your initiation tasks?”
Bry crosses one leg over his knee, leaning back with zero evidence of discomfort. The guy wasn’t the brute force in Dar’s operation for nothing. It takes a lot to rattle him. “It wasn’t a surprise. Find the rat. Eliminate the rat. Help the Saints take The Arrows down.”
“How fast can you find the informant?” Saint asks, and I’m glad he’s lost the jealousy even though I’m sure it’s only temporary.
“It will take time,” Bry admits, scrubbing a hand over his prickly jawline. “And I’ll need to lean on Dar.”
Galen glances at Saint, and Saint gives him a curt nod. “That might be easier than you expect,” Galen says. “He believes our deal is back on and it hinges on him identifying our traitor.”
Bry smirks. “That’s helpful, and I’ll watch him, see if he intends to screw you over.”
I bark out a laugh. “Of course, he’s gonna screw him over. That’s what Dar does.”
I clear my throat, preparing to fess up. I’ve given this a lot of thought in the past week, and I can’t keep the details of my deal with Darrow off the table any longer. There are too many moving pieces, and I don’t trust that asshole not to rat me out to Galen, anyway.
Keeping shit from one another almost killed me last time.
Diesel will probably freak when he finds out, because he doesn’t trust the Saints at all, but I’ll deal with him when the time comes.
“There is something I need to tell you.” All eyes swing to me. “My escape didn’t go down quite how I explained it.”
Saint drills a hole in the side of my head, and his jaw locks up. Caz cusses, Galen sits up straighter, and Theo has his serious face on. Only Bry looks amused. “I know how to play Dar,” I say, ignoring the hostile vibes emanating from Saint. “So, I manipulated him into letting me go.”
