Page 216 of Forced Vows

The SUVs block the view from security cameras in the area. That doesn't mean we're not going to wipe them. Always better safe than sorry.

I nod to Allessio, who is holding one of the two younger men. "Keep him still."

Lowering Róise to her feet, I guide her arms into the suit jacket's sleeves and then roll them up so she has freedom of movement before buttoning the jacket.

There's still too much of her showing, but she needs her moment, and her needs supersede mine.

Not that I will hesitate to gouge out the eyes of any of the men around us who looks at her with lust. My men aren't that stupid.

The AOG bastards though…we'll see.

Róise pulls her kobutan from her pocket.

I shake my head. "These idiots let you keep it?"

No wonder she was able to get out of the zip ties.

"They didn't search me for weapons. The only thing they were worried about was my phone." She glares at the men. "They dumped it somewhere between Uncle Brogan's and the boathouse where we surfaced."

It's the first time she's referred to the mansion as her uncle's home and not her own. Something inside me settles.

"I'll get you a new one," I promise.

"But I liked that one. You got it for me."

"And that matters to you."

"I'll probably hoard every little thing you give me until the day we die. We might have to get a storage unit just for my sentimental memorabilia," she warns.

"Whatever you want, but I didn't notice a bunch of keepsakes in your things. Did your uncle's staff not collect all your belongings?"

"They did." She sighs. "I stopped saving things after my dad died."

Because the memories hurt. And she's willing to start collecting keepsakes again. From me.

That atrophied organ in my chest fills with fresh blood that feels a lot like joy.

"What the fuck is this lovey-dovey talk? Our militia will take you fuckers out if you don't let us go right now," one of the two younger men mouths off.

"Watch your fucking mouth in front of my fiancée," I snarl. "You are already dead. After I execute your leader and that fucking asshole Jed for daring to lay claim to the woman who has given me her heart, I will raze the goddamn AOG to the ground and scorch the earth over their bones so it will never sprout again."

"I never said I love you." That's mi dolce fiore putting her oar in the water.

I scowl down at her. "You will."

"You kind of look like a demon right now." She winks at me. "It's sexy."

Fuck. This woman.

"You whore! The man you are flirting with is a criminal. You heard what he just said! He threatened to kill us." The other younger man spits at Róise.

I shift her out of the path of his saliva before backhanding him. Hard.

My ring leaves a gash on his cheek and the demon inside me revels in the spill of blood.

"What the fuck do you think a man who kidnaps a woman is?" Allessio demands.

He's furious with himself that they got Róise on his watch. If we had not gotten her back, I would have taken more than a finger for his failure. But she is here and safe.

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