Page 20 of Princes of Carnage

Fuck.

I shove that thought away, not even quite sure where it came from.

It’s not news to me that Quinn is attractive. I’ve thought so for as long as I’ve known her. But it was easy enough to ignore that fact when she was nothing more than the daughter of one of my biggest rivals, Jonah Kent. Even when she became leader of Enigma, it wasn’t all that hard to keep her squarely in the box of an enemy I might like to fuck with but would never be stupid enough to fuck.

Now, though? Knowing that she’s about to become an ‘ally,’ even if it’s in name only? That she might even become my wife?

It’s harder to suppress my physical response to her proximity and the feel of her body against mine, strong and muscled but still soft in all the right places. The sight of her with her cheeks flushed and a lock of hair falling partly over her face from the tussle has the same effect. I can imagine a fuckload of different ways I could have her all tousled and out of breath, and each is more sinful than the last.

I realize with a start that neither of us has spoken for at least a full minute, silence building between us as we stare at each other, our breaths mingling between us.

Quinn seems to be hit with the same realization, her body jerking a little as if she’s snapping out of a daze.

She sneers at me, shoving me away, and I take a step back, releasing the pressure on her throat. There’s space between us now, but I don’t look away. Despite whatever the hell that just was, she needs to know I’m serious about this. It’s not a fucking joke.

“You’re not my husband,” she snaps, her eyes flashing. “And you never will be. I was willing to work with you to protect my gang, but marrying you? Fuck no. I’d rather die.”

I raise one eyebrow, tilting my head back a little. “I don’t think you mean that. Your survival instincts are too strong to give up and die for anything, just like mine are. And did you really think I’d let you in on any of my club’s business without knowing that you and I are linked? That our interests are bound by marriage? I thought you were supposed to be a good leader. I’m protecting my people here, and if you truly want to protect yours, you should want the same thing. It’s in both of our interests to do it this way.”

Her eyes burn with fire and irritation as she glares at me. If I thought I had her pissed off before, she’s fucking furious now—and goddamn, it looks good on her. She’s angry as hell, and I’m sure she’d be happy to kill me right now if she could justify it in her mind, but I can see her working through the logic of my words.

Even angry, she’s sharp, and I like that. She’s smart as hell, that much I already knew from my dealings with her. But more than that, she’s just a sharp person, like a dagger, lashing out with a quick jab of wit.

Or a physical jab, I think, still feeling the soreness in my balls from where she kneed me.

“So you won’t help us against this unknown threat unless I marry you?” she finally asks, drawing the words out. “We either get married to cement the alliance, or the whole thing is off and we each deal with the threat on our own?”

“That’s right.” I nod. “Either we’re allies in this completely, or not at all.”

Quinn makes a low noise of frustration. We’re standing a few feet apart, both tensed as if we’re ready for a fight, although neither of us has reached for the weapons I know we have on us.

“You’re such a fucking pain in the ass,” she grits out. “There are a hundred other ways we could do this without having to get married.”

“Name one,” I challenge. “Name one way that would have the same impact.”

She hesitates, almost as if she’s about to suggest that we could just decide to trust each other, but she must recognize how ridiculous that would sound because she doesn’t say anything. Instead, she just glares at me, her scowl deepening.

“Look,” I tell her, lowering my voice. “This is about more than me and you. You know that.”

“Yeah, of course I fucking know that.” Her tone turns hard. “You think I want my people getting attacked? You think I want to watch the shit I worked to rebuild get torn down by some faceless threat? I’m doing my best here, and I thought working with you was going to help. But it’s just giving me a fucking headache.”

The fire in her is back, and it’s so tempting to put my hand to the flame and see how badly I get burned. But I hold back for the moment, not wanting to push her too far while we’re still hashing shit out.

“I think you know I’m right,” is all I say.

“Fuck off,” she snaps, as if it’s a knee-jerk response by now. But I can tell from the look on her face that I’ve hit the nail on the head. We can talk about trust all day and tell other people that we’ve joined forces—but without a concrete bond, something tying us together, the chances of betrayal are too high.

Besides that, while both of us have done okay on our own when it comes to leading our gangs and defending our territories, combining forces will be a boost to both groups.

A boost we really fucking need right now, if someone from the outside is trying to stir shit up.

“I can’t believe I’m even considering this,” Quinn mutters. “I must have lost my fucking mind.”

I drop my head a little to catch her gaze. “Does that mean you agree?”

“Goddammit.” She hits the final consonant of the word sharply, blowing out a breath. Then she nods. “Alright. If it’s the best way to keep my people safe, then Enigma will ally with Carnage, and I’ll…” She swallows, as if the words are sticking in her throat. “Marry you.”

I grin at her, letting it turn sharp. “I knew you were smart.”

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