Page 52 of Ruined By a Devil

I look right into his eyes, searching the pale green depth for a flicker of hesitation. He’s lying, he meant every word, even if his pride won't let him admit it out loud. He recognized the cage I’ve lived in my entire life because he knows what it’s like to be locked in one.

“Just playing the part,” I murmur, my voice dropping lower.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

Malachi

“You got yourself a nice place here, brother,” Levi leans back in his chair, a drink in his hand.

“Thank you,” Zeke responds, placing his hand over Riley’s. “I can’t take credit for any of it, Riley was in charge of the interior design.”

“Because if it had been up to you, we would be living in Penthouse 2.0,” Riley smiles.

Ezekiel bought this place right after he married Riley, trading his old high-rise penthouse in the center of the city for somewhere with high gates and actual land. He wanted a fresh start for her, away from the concrete and constant noise. It’s warm inside, bright, and loud, everything the old penthouse isn’t.

We’re sitting around a heavy mahogany table. Ezekiel sits at the head, with Riley on his left while my other brothers, Elijah, Cain, and Levi, fill out the rest of the chairs, leaving Jade and me sitting side by side near the middle.

“Speaking of the penthouse,” Levi cuts in. “Since no one lives there at the moment, I guess you wouldn’t mind if I start using it.”

“Don’t you have your own place?” Zeke raises an eyebrow at our youngest brother.

“I do, but…”

“It’s better to wreck someone else’s place than yours, isn’t that so?” Elijah laughs. “He wants the penthouse for the parties.”

“Hey!” Levi almost jumps out of his seat.

“Is that true?” Zeke asks.

“Yes,” Levi responds. “But you know how important those parties are for our business. It would just be easier to organize them downtown in the penthouse, than at my own house.”

“That makes sense,” I have to give Levi the credit for thinking this through.

“We’ll discuss this another time,” Zeke takes a sip of whiskey, and Elijah covers his mouth to hide the laughter that he’s barely holding in. “We have a guest now.”

“Oh, don’t mind me,” Jade smiles politely. “Please, go on.”

“They can get carried away like that sometimes,” Riley smiles at Jade.

“I’m familiar with the vibe,” Jade laughs. “This place is really gorgeous, though. You did a great job with the interior design.”

“Thank you, Jade,” Riley grins at her. “If you want, I can help you with your place. I imagine Mal’s taste might not be quite your cup of tea.”

“Riley, respectfully, keep your hands off of my interior design,” I say to my sister-in-law and she grins back at me.

“Jade will be the one to decide that,” Riley responds, but then changes the subject abruptly as she gets up from her seat and adds. “God, what’s taking them so long? I’m going to check on the chef real quick.”

She disappears into the kitchen briefly, but then returns with two cooks and the dining room is filled with the smell of rich garlic, roasted herbs, and expensive meat.

“It smells delicious!” Jade says enthusiastically and I don’t even have to look at her to know she means every word.

“Let’s dive in, everyone,” Riley joins us back at the table.

“So,” Elijah says, leaning back in his chair and swirling the red wine in his glass. He has that sharp, irritating grin on his face that usually means he's about to stir up shit. “I called the office at ten yesterday morning to talk strategy on the docks. Mrs. Gable told me you weren't there.”

I cut into my steak, keeping my face completely expressionless. “I had to run some errands.”

“Errands?” Elijah chuckles, looking across the table at Levi. “Malachi Kavanagh doing errands at ten in the morning? You haven’t changed your routine since you were able to crawl. The world could be ending and you'd still be at your desk during work hours.”