Page 36 of Gilded Kisses

Kill Drake, kidnap his daughter, and then live happily ever after. Cause a war that will span border to border. go down in a blaze of rage and fire.

“Go back to Rio, maybe. I like the heat and the slow pace.”

“Do you ever?—”

I shake my head and cut in. I already know what he’s going to say. “We are not good for her. We weren’t back then and now, much less. We left her. She won’t ever want to see our faces again, and Drake will see us under six feet of dirt if we try. Do we want to risk him hurting her to get back at us?”

“You think he would hurt his own girl? I know big talk but actually fucking kill his own flesh and blood?”

I grunt with disgust. “Would you risk her life to find out?” I ask.

We are animals, mother fuckers who don’t blink at ending life when the men staring down the barrel of our guns deserve their ending. But we have lines. Drake does not. “Do you remember what he did to the daughter of the rival family moving in on his territory when Aster was about twelve?”

“He had no remorse at delivering the body of the poor thing who looked just like his daughter,” Viper cuts in from behind us.

Viper leans his weight against the frame of a door and crosses his arms over an expansive chest. His chin juts high and you would never know that he got wasted last night to the point of passing out to help dull the pain.

He smoothed out his long black hair and made sure his jawline was clean and his clothes were wrinkle-free. But I know the man and one look at the swirling storms in his golden eyes tells me he’s hurting just as deeply as Luther and myself.

He’s a few years younger than me, but a few years behind bars a decade and a half ago does things to a man’s soul. Creases have appeared along his forehead to match mine and I haven’t missed the ones on either side of his eyes. Age gets us all, but the three of us wear it well.

He can put up a great front, but my friend lives in a constant state of anxiety over Aster.

“He put a bullet in the girl’s head, let his enforcers do things no man should do with a corpse all before he dressed her like a doll before sending her body home as a message.”

Viper’s animalistic growl claws up my spine and the beast in me wants to roar alongside him.

It takes a lot of effort to keep from falling down a rabbit hole of guilt for not being in the country at the time to keep it from happening. I nod slowly and stay focused. “That’s the one. So yes, I believe Drake would hurt Aster.”

“We should have offed him then and a lot more people would be alive and happy. Including us. When Drake’s brother went to prison and Harlon took over, something broke in Drake’s brain. He was already fucking nuts, but?—”

Viper’s phone rings, cutting him off. A minute later he hangs up and reaches for his suit jacket from the back of a chair. “We’re on.”

“About fucking time,” I curse, ready for this night to end so I can get to the bottom of my bourbon bottle.

I finish my glass and follow my crew out the door.

Women in everything from latex dresses that look painted on to others wearing heels and nothing else are everywhere I look. Every scent imaginable permeates the halls and large ballrooms where shows are being performed. The Society’s version of Rio’s Carnival is in full swing. Theme night sounds fun, but I want to sign on the dotted line, hand over the cash, and leave Viper to mourn Aster under the willow tree.

“Hey, Mr. Moretti. Alone again tonight?”

A server moves toward me. She’s everything this place sells. Sex and sin. Black feathers fan both sides of her face from a mask hiding her identity. Glitter covers most of her body like it is an acceptable alternative to clothing and long legs end in a pair of stilettos.

“Are you finally joining in the festivities tonight?” She glides up to me and presses her body along my side. Hints of jasmine and honey hit my senses and take me back to Aster, and I suddenly feel the urge to sink to my knees.

This woman has no idea the suffering her touch causes.

I put my hands on her hips and gently guide her toward Viper, who looks at me like he doesn’t know what to do with a woman.

“Ms. Sampson, I think you have some members in need of fresh drinks.” Viper ushers her in one direction while we continue on toward the back of the club where the head offices are. A security guard passes us through a set of locked doors.

It’s like stepping into a Faraday cage. Metal clicks behind us and the silence is fucking fantastic. On this side of the door, another server greets us, wearing all her clothes.

“Mr. Builtworthe will be here shortly. He’s asked me to show you to his office. Follow me.”

Clad in fishnet, leather and feathers, the blond guide opens a couple of doors and leaves us waiting in an office that has nothing personal in it. A blind man can see that the owners of the place don’t spend time here. I mean no one even knows their full names so I’m not really surprised by the lack of personal items. I can’t imagine they have any emotional connection to the place beyond the monetary value.

“Did Raja tell you anything about the owners we don’t already know, Viper?”

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