Page 8 of Ruthless Beasts

“Why not?”

He didn’t answer my question, instead waved a hand and moved on. “She’s young.”

“You’re not that old.” I smirked.

“At least ten years on her,” he pointed out.

“Actually, twelve. Ace grabbed her things from the church before he left.” I leaned back again after I delivered that blow.

“Jesus.” His hands went through his hair again. “I’m going to hell.”

“It’s not like you weren’t already going to be retiring there.” I cleared my throat, about to address something uncomfortable. “She didn’t have much. Her church bag had two changes of clothes. She’s about the same size as Elizabeth?—”

“No.” He cut me off before I could even suggest that he part with some of his former wife’s things.

“Okay.” I would not push it. I just thought, well, it had been five years. Five years of her things sitting out like a shrine. If he was going to have a wife, and he wasn’t getting rid of the stuff, then maybe she could use it. “We’ll have to get her some things. It will have to wait, though. I don’t think leaving the property is wise for at least a few days, especially not with her.”

“She goes nowhere.” His voice rose in anger, but not at me.

“That’s the plan, then? Treat her like a prisoner in her home? Because that’s what this is now. It’s her home.”

His chair squeaked as he turned, pretending to do paperwork when we both knew he was only trying to avoid the whole situation. “Until she learns who she belongs to, she goes nowhere.”

“Ah, so sheisa prisoner.” I ignored his glare. “But I’m a little confused. Do you want her, or don’t you? Because the signals are a little blurred. One minute you say she goes nowhere, the next you’re acting like she’s nothing. Which is it? Do you want her protected, or do you want her gone?”

“I wantyougone.”

I snorted. “Not going to happen. I promised you years ago I was here to stay, and I’m not letting you down now.”

“I assure you, it won’t be much of a letdown,” He grumbled, but I knew deep down, there was some sort of affection there. We’d been friends most of our lives. He was stuck with me.

I stood and stretched. “Dinner is at six, don’t be late.”

“It’s my house. I can come to dinner when I want to,” he argued. Always fucking arguing.

“Dinner’s at six. Your wife will be there. I would advise you to be there too, or else Ace and I will be forced to entertain her.”

“I guess you’re left to entertain her then.” He shrugged, but I saw the glint in his eyes, the jealousy over a girl he didn’t care about, except now, he did.

“I guess we will.” I strolled out of the room, leaving him to stew in the madness of his own making while I hunted down Ace and planned our next move. Because we needed a next move. We couldn’t allow him to shut himself in his office any longer. It wasn’t healthy. Forcing him to get that little bit of payback was hard enough, and we’d never predicted he’d have taken it this far. Never predicted he’d come home with a fucking wife.

Two hours later, I was knocking on the girl's door, holding her bag and a stack of clothing I took out of my own closet to hold her over. They’d be big, but there was nothing I could do about that. She was a petite thing. Beautiful, though I wouldn’t voice that out loud. I wasn’t sure how Adam would react if I did so. Did he want her? Did he not? The man couldn’t decide, and the battle that played over his face each time she was mentioned only solidified that.

I knocked twice, and the door remained closed. Twisting the knob, I opened it. “You awake?”

The room was silent. Too quiet for my liking. I stepped into the room, noting that the bed was still made. My stomach sank. Turmoil already threatening to take over.

Had she?—

No, I couldn’t allow myself to think of all the drastic things that she could have done. I wouldn’t. I was already too far in my head about this girl and her wellbeing to let the demons of my past surface.

“Bellamy?” I called, and from the ensuite, I heard a faint noise. I followed it, leaving her things behind before stepping onto the tile of the bathroom, looking around slowly as my heart pounded so fast that it was all I could hear.

Then I saw her.

Her slightly crumpled form was curled in a ball next to the toilet like she had been there the whole time she was alone. Maybe she had.

“Fuck,” I cursed as I went to her, instantly falling to my knees at her side. “What happened?”

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