Page 39 of King of Wrath

“Come have a sip. It will make you feel better.” I reach down to touch her but stop, not sure if I’ll make things better or worse.

“I don’t think coffee solves this problem,” she answers, but she stirs under the covers.

“It’ll help.” I rest my elbows on my knees, using my index finger to rub that spot between my eyebrows.

I know what I want from Nia. What’s become less clear is the consequences of taking information from her. I’m trying to find my path forward. Which way keeps me from following in my brother’s footsteps? Helps my nephews? Betraying Nia or protecting her?

I’m starting to feel as stripped bare as she is. “New story,” I murmur my eyes still closed.

I hear the covers rustle.

“Three years before my brother died, my father just disappeared. At that point, he was in his sixties and not really part of the business anymore. He was never found. One day there, the next day…poof.”

She gasps and I open my eyes to find her just peeking out from the covers, her red-rimmed blue eyes staring at mine. I reach over and stroke my thumb over her cheek.

“What happened to him?”

“Don’t know,” I shrug. “We have no idea if it was an old vendetta, a random act, an accident, or a decision to just leave.”

“How did you feel?”

I don’t talk about my feelings. Ever. But this is about trust and giving to get, and I know I have to tell her the truth. The moment I started pushing my agenda, she shut down. “Our relationship was complicated, but he was my father. I hate not knowing…”

“I can imagine.”

“And that’s the thing about this morally bereft life. Eventually, it swallows us all, I think.” I don’t tell her I’m trying to get out. But before I do leave Vegas and all its trappings behind, I’ll do the job I know my nephews don’t have the darkness to complete. My heart speeds up in my chest and I rub at my breastbone.

“You think it will swallow Toni too?”

The fact that she’s talking about Toni is perfect. And I get far more information out of her for sharing about myself, but I feel the bonds between us tightening. “Sooner rather than later.”

I need to remember why I’m fighting, and she needs to know it too. If Nia is going to help me, she’s going to volunteer what she knows, I’m not going to extract it.

“He always seemed invincible to me.”

“No man is invincible. Three years after my father disappeared, my brother was gunned down.”

She nips at her lip, her hand sliding up my biceps in a clear sign of comfort. I meet her eyes then, wanting her to understand. “And Mason, he came to us with a plan to make us legitimate. No more guns, no more violence. It wasn’t that simple, but we’ve mostly lived it. And I honestly thought it might save us. Me and my nephews.”

She stares at me.

“And then,” I whisper, leaning closer. “Vendetti bombed Mason’s building while Charlotte was inside.”

Nia gasps, and I slide my fingers into her damp hair at the base of her neck.

“And little Anthony put a gun to Kim’s head.”

Her eyes go wide. “And that’s when the rules changed. BecauseKim and Charlotte, they are our family now. Our women. And we are their soldiers.”

She nods like she understands. I lean close enough that my forehead comes to hers. She doesn’t pull away. If anything she leans into me, our breath mingling. “And when a woman joins our family, she gets the full weight of our protection.”

I kiss her lips and she doesn’t skirt away. Nia needs to feel protected. Safe. Who can blame her? But that’s how I win her. I don’t even question why I want to win. Is it my war or her betterment?

Instead, I kiss her again. “I offered to marry you, sweetheart. If you accept, you get the entire Kincaid family as your soldiers. Understand?”

She nods, this tiny movement.

I draw in a deep breath. I’m so close…so close to attaining what I’ve wanted all this time. But I can’t even think about it now. The fresh scent of soap and the soft slide of Nia’s skin fill my senses. Am I hurting her? Making her real promises? It’s all twisted together.

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