Page 36 of Under His Control

“Wrong.” Dante took Nina’s hand and held it tight, offering her his support no matter what. Through the good times and bad, my uncle would always root for her. It was that kind of partnership and love that I worried I’d never find. A strong man to stand up for a strong woman.

“That MC was trying to stir trouble with us even before I ran into her and learned about this bet. They’re a new power here, and from day one, I’ve been clear that they can’t mess with the Constella organization. And that will always remain true.”

“What I don’t understand is why they’d target Liam,” Romeo said. “He’s not one of us.”

“Not officially,” Franco said.

I watched Liam as he glared at them both. He was mad, rightly so, but I worried things would be said that no one could take back.

I’d witnessed countless arguments and plenty of fights. I was no stranger to violence. Since I was a child, I’ve seen many men wounded—bleeding, bruised, and even missing body parts and gruesome gashes from torture. I cared about each and every man in this family, my relatives and all the soldiers and capos in the organization. Seeing Liam so hurt was harder, somehow. It pained me to know he was hurt, and through no fault of his own.

“Would you like me to help compress the bleeding?” I asked, hating how quietly and carefully I measured my words.

“No.” He scowled, caught up on other details. “Idon’twork for you,” he reminded Dante.

“But you’ve been here,” Romeo said. “If anyone’s been watching, they are aware that you’re a guest here.”

“Fuck,” Tessa mumbled, shaking her head. “I never wanted to invite you to danger.”

Liam scoffed, “Not like it’s been much different from being in the army, Tess.”

“Maybe they’ve spotted you here,” Franco said, “or word is out that you were shopping with Eva that day and protected her.”

“Son of a bitch,” Dante growled. “Those fucking bikers could’ve been the ones to put the hit on her to attack us. To take her out. If they hired the goddamn sniper, they’d know firsthand that he protected her.”

“But Idon’twork for you,” Liam repeated. “This is bullshit.”

“What did you do?” Romeo asked.

Liam scowled at him. “Nothing. I went for a ride and stopped at a random bar. Some old vet was talking to me about how hard it is to adjust after getting out of the military and said he enjoyed being in an MC.”

“The Devil’s Brothers?” Franco asked.

“No. He didn’t say. I left, and a bunch of them followed me to a gas station. They claimed I was ‘trespassing’ and picked a fight.”

“You leave any of them alive?” Dante asked.

“Yes. I only shot them to deter them from chasing after me, and I came here.” He stood, slamming his fist on the table. “Where I got the association of being an enemy without even realizing it.”

The sound startled Olivia, and I hugged her close, shushing her as I rubbed her back.

It didn’t help. She was scared, dropping her empty bottle and breaking into a fit.

“Shit. Dammit. Liv…” Liam groaned as he walked closer, reaching out for her. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

I didn’t keep her from him, but as he took her, she didn’t immediately calm. She cried, her face turning red as he held her against him, but I didn’t step back. He was steady on his feet and not falling, but I couldn’t be sure he wasn’t too wounded to hold her for long, much less walk with her.

He wouldn’t put her at risk.If he was hurt to the point he couldn’t hold her, he wouldn’t push the issue. “Come on.” He groaned, heading toward the other end of the room to leave us. “We can talk about this more tomorrow,” he said.

I glanced back at my uncle and cousin, then Franco. No one walked off like that. No soldier would tell them how it was. But as I hurried after Liam and Olivia, Dante nodded at me, like giving me permission to follow them.

Liam wasn’t a soldier. He wasn’t a Constella employee, but a guest. He wasn’t trying to disrespect my uncle. He was simply mad and coming to terms with all the danger we were too used to and desensitized to.

“Liam, wait.”

I rushed after him all the way to the room. My heart cracked and broke with every cry little Olivia let out, but I wasn’t sure I could be any better with her in this state.

“Liam.”

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