Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 91266 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 456(@200wpm)___ 365(@250wpm)___ 304(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91266 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 456(@200wpm)___ 365(@250wpm)___ 304(@300wpm)
“That’s irrelevant.”
His dismissive tone rankled. She glared. “I don’t think it is.”
“The important thing is that I know where you come from, and I know what you’re up against. You need me. I can keep you safe—keep you free.”
She searched his face. “You must be joking. I don’t know a single thing about you, which was perfectly fine when I was under the assumption that we were strangers. You’ve been lying to me this entire time, and now you’re…What? Offering me an ultimatum? If I say no, are you going to hand me over to either my family or our enemies?”
“What? No.” Jude cursed and shoved to his feet, towering over her. “You’re missing the point.”
“I don’t think I am.” She knew letting him into her bed was like playing with fire, but the pleasure had been worth the risk when he was just a man who happened to live next door to her. Discovering that he seemed to be something else altogether made her sick to her stomach. He’d set a neat little trap, and she’d blithely walked into it, fool that she was. She pressed her hand to her chest. “Did you orchestrate that condom being torn, too?”
His eyes went wide. “Why the fuck would I do that?”
“I don’t know! Who are you, Jude? You know who I am, where I come from, but you haven’t given me a single piece of information about yourself, other than this offer to keep me ‘safe’ which, forgive me, sounds like a crock of shit. Tell me the truth, or I walk out of here right now, and I’ll be gone by morning.” She didn’t want to leave, but if Jude was somehow connected to her past, she had no choice.
“Sloan…”
She saw him searching for a lie, and took a careful step backward. “Good-bye, Jude.”
“Wait.” He cursed, long and hard. “Fuck, you don’t make this easy, do you?”
The fact he was accusing her of being the problem was downright laughable. She started for the door. “Tell whoever sent you that I’m not going back. They should save us both a load of trouble and stop searching for me.”
He stepped in front of her, keeping a careful distance between them. “I didn’t want to do it like this.”
Do what? Kidnap me? When I compared him to James Halloran, I thought I was reaching. I didn’t realize how close I truly was. She fought to keep her voice from wavering. “Then don’t.”
He ignored her. “We’ve never been properly introduced. Sloan O’Malley, I can’t say you were part of my plan, but it’s been a fucking pleasure to meet you.” He held out a hand, the move screaming arrogance. “Jude MacNamara.”
Chapter Sixteen
Where were you?” Aiden made an effort to keep from massaging his temples, though he could damn well feel a headache starting. At this point, the pain was almost welcome. Anything to distract him from the bullshit he was currently dealing with.
His youngest sister crossed her arms over her chest and lifted her chin, the move so like Carrigan’s that his heart actually ached for a moment. Keira narrowed her eyes. “Last I checked, I was over eighteen and can do whatever I want.”
“And last I checked, one of our sisters is missing, and our enemies are multiplying by the second. Stop slipping your security detail or—”
“Or you’ll lock me up?” She kicked her feet up onto his desk, her combat boots looking ridiculously massive on her thin legs. Everything about her was thin these days, to the point where he suspected she had more alcohol and coke in her system than actual food or water. Keira laughed harshly. “Or are you going to shuttle me off to a nunnery? You can’t hold me. None of those places can. You might as well just deal with it.”
There was no just dealing with it.
Aiden already had blood on his hands in his efforts to keep the power base stable and his siblings safe. He didn’t like it, but he’d do the same thing over again. A transfer of power, even to someone groomed for it, was fraught with potential difficulty. He couldn’t afford to be weak.
Letting Keira have the run of the place and disappear to God knew where was fucking weak.
He steepled his hands, and then stopped the move when he recognized it for one their father used. “Keira, this isn’t a game.”
“You think I don’t know that? Carrigan is gone, God knows who has Sloan, and Devlin is dead.” Her feet hit the floor with a heavy thud. “You don’t have to tell me a single fucking thing. Leave it alone, Aiden. We’re all dealing with this shit the only way we can, and if you lock me up, I’ll put a gun in my mouth and pull the trigger. Simple as that.”