Page 59 of Resisting Royal

CHAPTER 29

ROYAL

There was a moment where I suspected I would get a heap load of shit for lugging an unannounced wife along to our business meeting, until their brown-haired beauty came into the room, setting a plate loaded with sugary treats in the middle of the table. Both Roman and Shaw eyed the girl like she was the treat they wished to devour and I couldn’t hold in the chuckle.

“Have something to say, Russo?” Roman asked, his dark eyes pinning me down trying to intimidate me as if he could.

I shook my head, still fighting laughter. “I see your treats extend past the plate in front of us.”

He reached over, grabbing a cookie in the shape of a rabbit, decorated flawlessly. No doubt the influence of my wife helping their little lady in the kitchen. He bit the head off the cookie, and I fought a cringe, images of Peter hopping about flooding my mind. Ugh, Bianca was ruining me. I didn’t even hate it, in fact . . . I loved her taunting a little too much.

“I’ve not touched her,” he admitted.

I reached forward, grabbing a perfectly frosted cupcake. “Yet.”

“It’s not like that, she’s our employee.”

I swiped my fingers through the frosting. “She’s your employee. Not Shaw’s.”

His hand came down harder than it needed to. “Sharing a woman with Shaw isn’t something I’m a stranger to; you know that. We share, we fuck solo, we don’t fucking care. But that girl, I forbid him to touch her when I am not around.”

“So, he can touch her when you are around?” I asked.

He scrapped his hands over his face. “She’s making me weak, man. Look at her.” Shaw hummed his agreement. “She’s flawless and so damn innocent all I want to do is leave my handprints on her skin while I dirty her up.”

I nodded knowingly. They couldn’t get anything past me, not with a friendship as old as ours. “Are you going to make a move?”

“I can’t do it, man. Shit, just being around all of the men here is corruption enough.” He broke off another piece of cookie and shoved it in his mouth. “Bianca, huh? Want to talk about that?”

“The real story or the summarized version?”

“Give me some of both.” He leaned back, crossing his arms, mimicking Shaw’s stance.

“She was a debt I collected. Her father traded her for the amount of money he owed, she agreed, I kept her.” There, quick little summary.

His knowing eyes assessed me. “I feel like there is more to the story.”

“Isn’t there more to every story?” I sighed. “Look, I’m getting old and tired. I hate to admit it, lonely. Then I saw her, and I wanted her, and I did what I had to to get her.”

“And now?” he prompted.

“And now what?” Now I still had to have her. I spent every damn second of my day dreaming about her and that damn tattoo on her fucking thigh. Just the thought had me licking my lips. “When did we get so grown up where we wanted a single woman instead of three or four at our call?”

“I wish I knew,” they both said in unison.

Roman tapped the table. “This meeting, it’s about Emma, just so you know. Apparently, Krank had his eye on the girl, and he’s mad that we got her first. Her father owed us both money. She’s living here to help work off the debt while also working at her father’s bakery.”

“Sounds familiar.” I snorted. “Why do girls get stuck with such shitty fathers? How serious is the issue with Krank?”

“He’s threatened Emma’s life and our compound. I—I think,” he paused as he worked through his thoughts, “I am positive one of my men is a traitor and assisting him. I need new eyes, help from people I can trust that wouldn’t immediately send warning bells that I’m onto the situation until the situation is handled and under control.”

I rubbed my hands together thoughtfully. “I can help with that. Do you know how long?”

“As long as it takes. I don’t care about the compound, Royal. It can all be rebuilt, but I don’t want a single strand of hair touched on her head. Not one.”

“Understood.” I couldn’t even imagine what they were going through. The thought of anything happening to Bianca, of anyone pushing her into something she feared, caused fury to course through me. Her happiness lay in my hands, and I imagined that the boys felt the same about the little wisp they were lusting after.

After the situation was laid out, we discussed the plans in further detail until everything of importance was worked out, and a deal was made. I would send ten of my guys down to the compound on a volunteer basis. Each one would regularly report with Roman, but have daily contact with me. They would stay on the grounds free of charge, and when it was all said and done, if they wanted a permanent spot, it would be discussed then.

---