I clamp a hand over my mouth to stop the snort dying to break free. Sinner’s as delusional as ever. Saint squeezes my hand under the table in warning, but I’ve got this. I’m bottling up all my frustration to unleash on him after we make our big revelation.
Sinner straightens up, running his hands through his hair. His features even out, and he smiles, leaning back in his chair, as if he didn’t just throw a hissy fit like a toddler. He lets his gaze roam the table. “An opportunity opened up, and we jumped at the chance to expand our business interests. Right now, we’re testing the waters. We suffered a minor setback recently, but a new shipment will be arriving in a couple of weeks, and we expect demand to grow from there.”
“How will this impact us?” a guy with multiple facial piercings asks.
“It won’t impact you in the short-term,” Sinner says. “But when you become full members, you’ll be expected to help with deliveries.” A revolting smile slips over his mouth. “You’ll get an opportunity to sample the goods, so it’s far from a thankless task. Although no one is permitted to hurt the merchandise. Clients want them young, innocent, and unmarked.” Sinner licks his lips, leaning back in his chair, as he stares straight at me, daring me to challenge him.
I bite down hard on the inside of my cheek to stop myself from throwing my knife into his cold, cruel heart.
The meeting ends then, and chairs scrape as junior members exit the room. Bry stands, ready to leave. “Stay there,” Saint commands, eyeing Bry.
Bry reclaims his seat without question, and we share a look. I straighten my shoulders and hold my head up, preparing for the showdown. The other three board members come into the room, blatantly leering at me, and my skin crawls. I gulp over the bile gathering at the back of my throat and grip Saint’s hand harder.
“You can leave,” Sinner says, peering into Saint’s eyes. “We have some chores for your whore to attend to.”
“Or they can watch,” Baldy says. “Might pick up a few tips.”
I snort, unable to hold stuff inside any longer. “Trust me, my guys need no instruction on how to please a woman. They score an A-plus every time.” I let my full derision show on my face as I look Baldy over from head to toe. “Yeah, there’s definitely nothing they could learn from you. Unless you want to teach them how to be a spineless ugly fuck who rapes women to get his rocks off.”
His chair falls to the floor as he jumps up. “You need to be taught a lesson. Cunt.” He spits on the floor, and I lean back in my chair, grinning. Bry is looking at me like I have a death wish, and I suppose that’s how it must look.
“Shewillbe taught a valuable lesson,” Sinner says, and his clinical tone raises goose bumps on my arms. “Get the fuck out,” he adds, jabbing his finger at Saint. “Lessons start now. You can update me on our other business after we’ve disciplined your whore.” A laugh rumbles from his chest, and the others join him.
Saint whips his gun out, pointing it at his father. The board members laugh again, peering at Saint like he’s a naughty toddler who needs to be put in time-out. “I warned you not to call Harlow that,” Saint grits out, raising his gun and pointing it straight at Sinner’s skull.
Sinner stands, walking toward us. “And I told you, you have no say in this matter. Unless you want your whore to fail initiation, and you know what happens to recruits who don’t pass.”
“You’re not laying a finger on her,” Saint says, brandishing his gun at all the men. “None of you are.”
Sinner grits his teeth as he comes around behind me, placing his hands on my shoulders. “I’ve got my hands on her now. What’re you going to do about that, huh?” He’s baiting his son on purpose, and I almost wish Saint would pull the trigger even though I know it’d end in a bloodbath and not all of us would get out alive.
Saint stands, keeping his gun trained on his dad while he pulls the paper from his back pocket. He thrusts it at his father. “Invoke my right as Harlow’s husband,” Saint hisses.
Sinner grabs the marriage certificate from his son’s hand, his nostrils flaring as he reads over it.
“Now, take your filthy paws off my wife because the only men I’ll be sharing her with are Galen, Caz, and Theo, and the rest of you perverts can go fuck yourselves. Literally.”
CHAPTER 23
“YOU’VE DONE ITnow, boy.” Sinner crumples the certificate in his hand, tossing it on the floor. “You…you…” He shoves at Saint’s shoulders, and Saint stumbles a little, grabbing the back of the chair with his free hand to steady himself. “You dare to overrule me? To deny me my right to fuck her? It’s a fucking initiation task!” he yells, spittle flying from his mouth.
“You’ll pay for this, Saint. You put that fucking whore ahead of your own flesh and blood!” Sinner thumps his fisted hand over his heart. “After all I’ve done for you? You ungrateful little shit.” A muscle pops in his jaw as he visibly seethes. “I thought you were smarter than this. Is her pussy that fucking magical she nuked your brain cells?” He shakes his head, really on a roll now. “You let that cunt trick you into marriage, and now everything’s fucked!” he screeches, his eyes almost bugging out of his head. “You’ve fucked everything up!”
He shoves Saint again, and I’m two seconds away from losing my shit. If he puts his hands on him again, I will not be accountable for my actions.
Galen and Caz get up, standing behind Saint. They’re clearly sharing my thoughts, and they’re primed and ready to go into battle.
Theo and I rise together, and I inch closer to Saint so we’re presenting a united front. We’re a solid fucking team, and it’s about time Sinner realized we’re no pushovers.
“It’s true?” Baldy asks, coming toward us.
“Yes,” Sinner barks. “They’re married.”
Shock splays across Bry’s face as our eyes meet. He’s still sitting, but he’s alert and ready to intervene if necessary. I’d like to think he’d intervene on our behalf, but I honestly don’t know how strong his allegiance is to Sinner and whether he’d stand with him or against him. I haven’t forgotten how he insinuated he was keeping something from us during a previous conversation he and I shared, and while I trust my gut, and my gut says Bry is an ally, I can’t ignore the fact he is hiding something from us.
“Then it’s decided,” a man with sandy-brown hair says. “Your son has spoken, and that’s that.”
“You think I don’t know that!” Sinner roars.
