“Is that what this is about?” he asked Cade. “Man, put that shit down ‘cause you ain’t about to shoot my brother.”
With a frown that resembled the one I’d seen on Dakota’s face a time or two, Cade tilted his head. “Wanna bet?”
Cade pulled the trigger; the bullet shattered the coat rack and my golf bag in the corner right behind where I stood. This time Sonya screamed, and my arm shot out to push KC’s as he fired. His bullet took down the painting of the beach house in Aruba where my parents were married.
“Get out!” I yelled at Sonya.
“What the fuck, man?” KC shouted at me.
I spun around, pointing at Sonya this time. “You, leave. Close the door behind you and let security know we’re good in here.”
She looked like she wanted to scream, cry, or slap the shit out of each of us, but she nodded slowly instead. Then she hurried out of the office and slammed the door behind her.
KC once again had his gun trained on Cade. And instead of aiming his at me again, Cade now had my brother’s head in his sight.
“Put that shit away, both of you,” I said walking past where they stood looking like a bad action movie scene and sat behind my desk.
Despite the reference, I knew this was a far more dangerous scene than any written in a screenplay. Not only was KC a killer, Cade Donovan with his FBI badge and that silver spoon he was born with in his mouth, was only a few rungs down on the unhinged ladder himself.
“You might rule your little brother over here, but you know damn well you don’t run shit where I’m concerned,” Cade said, still gripping his gun. “And not where my sister is concerned either!” His arm swung from pointing the gun at KC, back to me.
Getting tired of exercising restraint, I sighed. Now I had another man to add next to my uncle for being able to pull a gun on me without getting dropped … at least not this time. Like, Uncle Irv, Cade wasn’t just any man. He was Dakota’s brother and she loved him dearly. He was also a man I respected. I didn’t call him a friend because I didn’t have those. I had my wife, my siblings, and the Ryders. They were all I needed.
As Cade moved closer to my desk, KC shook his head. “Nah, this muthafucka thinks he’s bulletproof. You take another step and I’m takin’ a headshot.”
Cade’s weird ass eyes had shifted to some dark cat-like color, and a deep scowl covered his face. “Then we’re both dying today,” he gritted out, gaze locked on mine.
The rage that had been on brew since Titan told me about my car was on full blast now. Never breaking eye contact with him,I opened the drawer to my right. After retrieving the gun I kept there, I removed the safety. Then I sat back in my chair, letting the gun rest on my thigh.
“You wanna see who’s the fastest?” My voice was deeper, more menacing than the other two men in this room. It was full of the fury that my pops said he saw in my eyes the day I caught my first body. The fury he said would one day make me a great leader. “Or you wanna talk about whatever’s got you forgetting who the fuck I am and walking up in here like your pretty boy ass won’t get carried out in a body bag? Personally, we can take this shit to the streets if that’s what you really want. But Dakota wouldn’t like that.”
I wasn’t sure what specifically he was relating to, or how he found out, but I wasn’t going to lie. I was a grown ass man and could do whatever the fuck I wanted, with whoever I wanted. Him being somebody’s brother didn’t dictate where I put my dick.
“Don’t talk about my sister like you know her.” Now, instead of aiming the gun at me he used it to point in my direction as he spoke. “Matter of fact, I don’t want her name coming out of your mouth. Stay the fuck away from her or youandyour brother can be buried together.”
KC chuckled. “You bold as shit, Cade. I always knew that about you. Didn’t peg you for being stupid though.” Shaking his head, the menacing grin didn’t disappear from his face. “Threatening us is really not what you wanna do.”
“Stand down, KC. Now!” I was certain the other employees on this floor heard the commotion as well as the gunshots. Sonya would be out there smoothing things over or basically telling everyone to sit down and mind their damn business or lose their jobs. But these two needed to calm the fuck down before shit really got messy in here.
With a frown, my brother did as I said. He didn’t put his gun away though, just lowered his arm and took a step back to lean against one of my bookshelves.
Searching for an even tone, because on a very basic level I could relate to what he might be feeling in this moment, I continued staring at Cade. If the tables were turned and I found out he’d touched Maleeka, I would put a gun to his head as well. “Have a seat.”
When he still didn’t move, I couldn’t help but admire him. Cade had heart to go along with a temper he usually kept on a tight leash. He was an educated man born into wealth and privilege, yet he walked the line of legal and illegal just like me. We may have had different reasons for doing the things we did, but there was a kinship here. One that we’d both vowed to uphold the day we signed on to be a part of the Alliance.
“I don’t give a shit who you are on the streets, Fury. You crossed a line, and if you think I’m just gonna turn around and walk out of here and let what you’ve done slide, you’re not as smart as I once thought.” His tone had come down to words gritted through his teeth, anger still churning in his eyes.
Holding his gaze, I waited. There was enough tension in this room to break through the walls. Three men who literally gave no fucks, three guns and the looming knowledge that if any of us died today it would kickstart a war none of us wanted. As members of the Alliance, Cade and I were bound to a thin truce. He couldn’t come after me or the club in his capacity as a federal agent and he had sworn to warn us if there were any investigations coming our way that he knew about. Which had been exactly why I should’ve called him first when I got my hands on that search warrant for the casino. I chose to handle it differently and I wasn’t going to apologize for it. To that end, Cade could choose to handle this situation differently. I didn’t think he would, not with his sister involved.
He lowered his arm slowly and turned to walk to the door. I had no doubt this wasn’t over, so I continued to wait. When he turned and came toward the desk again, his nostrils flared. “Did you fuck my sister? And before you consider lying to me, explain why there are pictures floating around social media of her ass in your hands!”
My eyes narrowed, the fingers of my free hand fisted. “What pictures?”
“Shit,” KC murmured as he came toward the desk. His phone was in one hand, his gun still in the other. “LeLe just sent me this.” He extended his phone and I snatched it out of his hand.
I indeed had Dakota’s ass in my hand this morning as we stood in her doorway kissing. While I was fully dressed, she wore only that black robe. Four pictures, two close-ups of our faces, her bottom lip pulled into my mouth, my tongue sliding into hers; the other two of my hands gripping her ass. My temples throbbed.
“Answer my question,” Cade said. “Did you fuck her?”
