Page 62 of Mob Saint

“I’m plenty protected.” He stares at me.

“Because you pay them.” I guess Tiera wasn’t done.

“How much are you paying Seamus to pretend to be your boyfriend? We all know it’s in cash.”

I let go of Tiera’s waist and slide her hand into mine as I take a menacing step forward.

“You may have gotten away with insulting her in the past, but there’s nothing stopping me from stopping you. Do not underestimate how protective I am.”

Yeah, that was a dig at Brant, and we all know it. Let it be an announcement that things change as of now. I don’t retreat but wrap my arm around Tiera again to bring her back to my side. I take a step toward his office, moving Tiera and me from behind Brant. We’re closer to the hallway than Gareth, so we lead the way. I know he doesn’t lock the door because he’s that arrogant in his home. I push open the door and let Tiera in first after I scan the room.

I lead her to the sofa in front of Gareth’s desk. I glance down at Tiera and dip my chin. She sits, then I take my place beside her. I cross my right ankle over my left thigh. It lets me press my knee against Tiera’s leg without being obvious. I stretch my arms over the back of the sofa, my right hand around Tiera’s shoulders. It would be bravado if I didn’t know I control this meeting now.

“Sit, Gareth.” I speak when his cologne wafts to me, and I hear footsteps behind us. He could put a bullet through the back of my head since my back is to the door. I hate that part. It makes me hyper aware. But he knows the weight of the entire O’Rourke organization would descend on him and annihilate his entire organization. As much as he hates me right now, he’s not so shortsighted as to act on it.

“Make yourself comfortable, Seamus. You’ve never had manners.”

That’s laughable. Cormac and I are known for having the best manners in the family, and that’s saying something since my parents and aunts and uncles drilled etiquette into all of us. Cormac and I were just the ones who never had to be told to write thank you cards after Christmas and our birthdays. We were the last to call adults by their first name rather than their honorific and last name. The last bit is because we’re also the shyest of the cousins. We've always preferred to be seen and not heard. When we were young kids, it was because we hated standing out as the tallest and biggest. By the time we became teenagers, we realized it was useful.

“What did you want to see me about, Gareth?” Tiera’s not interested in our posturing.

Gareth remains silent as he sits at his desk, staring at us. Tiera leans forward as though she’ll stand.

“If you won’t talk, then I’m not wasting more of my time on you.”

He narrows his eyes at her, but he continues his silence.

“You won’t insult Tiernan in front of me, so that tells me you’re quiet because you have nothing else to say to her. It’s not good for your health that I figured that out.”

“Or I’m not discussing my family’s business in front of you.”

“Either way, this was a wasted trip, then.” Tiera starts to stand again, and I don’t stop her. My knee is still touching her leg. She’s not out of my reach. She’s thinking the same thing I am because she presses her thigh against me.

“Calm your ass down. Fine.”

I lean forward as Tiera eases back onto the couch. “I don’t like your tone or your words. That’s your only warning in here.”

I heard the door close, and it’s just the three of us. I don’t doubt someone summoned guards to stand outside, ready if they hear any kind of scuffle. The thing is, no one will hear me get to Gareth before he can do anything to sound the alarm. I’ll be over the desk in three steps. Two if they’re really wide.

“Calm your ass down, Seamus.”

I crack my knuckles. My mother detests the habit, but Cormac and I developed it as teens because we thought it was the intimidating mobster thing to do. Now people know it’s a sign our patience is wearing thin.

Gareth’s left hand twitches before he leans back in his seat, trying to appear casual. The fucker wants even six more inches space between us because he’s a little bitch.

“Get on with it, Gareth. Seamus and I have plans this evening.”

We do. Her arse and my cock have a date.

Gareth opens his mouth, then snaps it shut. At least he’s trying to keep his head on his shoulders. He looks at Tiera, and I know he’s weighing his words.

“I arranged for you to testify because you had all the information you needed.”

“You forced me down there, but you can’t force what comes out of my mouth.”

There’s something in those words that sets me on edge.

“What do you mean he forced you? How?”

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