Page 183 of Tempting Fate

“Maybe I can offer a suggestion? The Perth lockup is a fine establishment where you’d fit right in,” Joseph says as his lips lift into a shit-eating grin filled with pure victory. The Shamrocks, with fucking Slash of all people leading them, are on their feet in an instant, ready to defend me, even though I just disrespected my patches in front of them. “Ezekiel Asher Miles, you’re under arrest for the murder of Alexander Joseph Maddison Kingsley.”

My responding laughter is heavy with irony.

Pretty sure I’ve just learnt firsthand the true meaning of it.

Fucking Brutus has taken the choice to protect Lily out of my hands.

The bar fills with anger, and my club surges forward.

“Don’t.” I hold out one hand to stay my brothers.

With efficient movements, I strip off my jacket and hang it back on the hook. When I slide my cut back over my shoulders, a little of the tension surrounding the Shamrocks reduces. All of my anger at Lily for letting Slash touch her evaporates. Every single problem I’m facing seems to freeze before my mind’s eye and the haze of uncertainty I’ve been trying to see through for months finally lifts.

I’m left with absolute clarity.

This is the way forward.

This gives me a way to take Brutus down and save the Shamrocks.

This is how I fix things between me and Lily, once and for all.

This is my chance to show my woman how serious I am about making amends for abandoning her.

The painful truth is that my ego drove her into my best friend’s arms, and my stubborn streak refused to see the feelings Slash held for her. He’s made it clear for years that he’d choose her over me if I ever fucked her over. And I didn’t just fuck her over, I destroyed Lily’s soul and everything we shared in my bull-headed pursuit of prideful perfection.

“Have at it,” I tell Joseph. Turning my back to him, I hold my wrists together. “I’ve got nothin’ better to do today.”

“Please think about this?” Lily pleads. “You don’t need to do this. Not for me.”

As one of the cops moves in behind me to zip-tie my hands together, I beckon her over with a jerk of my chin. Lily doesn’t falter. She strides over to me in the next heartbeat. When Brutus tries to stop her, she points the knife I gave her in the chapel right in his face.

“Back the fuck off, Dad. You won’t like what I do if you touch me.”

“Cherub. Just think.” Brutus lapses into silence when Lily shoves past him to get to me. Like an avenging seraph, she circles her arms around my waist and hugs me tight. When Joseph tries to separate us, her father steps up and stops him.

“Let her have a minute,” Brutus demands.

Joseph inclines his head and his men allow Lily to stay with me.

“I’m going to kill him. Maybe not today, but damn soon,” Lily whispers. She presses her forehead to mine. “Don’t do this, Zeke. Please.”

“I promised you I’d fix things.”

“This fixes nothing.”

“No,” I tell her. “This fixes every-fuckin’-thing.”

“How do you figure that?”

“Speak to Cass, sweet thing.” My voice is low as I continue. “He can fill you in with most of it. We’ve been workin’ on takin’ Brutus down for months… he just sped shit up when he resurrected this arranged marriage bullshit.”

“Zeke,” Lily mutters. Confusion clouds her eyes as she declares, “I don’t want you to do this. Let me take responsibility for my own actions.”

“None of this is on you.” I nuzzle her nose with mine. “Plus, sweet thing, it’s only temporary. They can’t convict me for somethin’ I didn’t do.”

“This is all on me… and you know corruption runs rife through the force. They could convict Crystal for this if they wanted to.” When a low growl of disagreement rumbles in my chest, Lily blinks, then shakes herself. “The last time you told me something was temporary between us, we ended up spending six months apart.”

“I fucked up back then. This time is different. You needa let me do this so you can concentrate on keepin’ Sander whole.” With expert precision, I use Lily’s love for her twin—the only person who comes close to eclipsing me in her heart—to stop her from doing something foolish like confessing to Alex’s murder. “He needs you more than I do right now. Every motherfucker here needs you more than me.”

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