Page 12 of Sunrise Malice

“I was only paying you.”

“Don’t touch me again.” I pull the envelope out and lift the flap. A tidy stack of hundred-dollar bills is nestled inside.

“Go ahead and count it.” He walks over to the drink cart and pours another. He tosses it back. “Did you enjoy yourself tonight?”

“Not really.” I put the envelope back into my pocket. “You and your grandfather don’t get along.”

“Grandpère is a controlling, conniving, bloodsucking piece of shit. Henri is correct, all he cares about is the family.” I hesitate, thinking about all the assholes in my own life, especially Cormac. I remember a dozen different nights my brother treated me like shit, all because the family comes first, no matter what. But Julien waves a hand at me. “Just go, your role here is finished. You have your money.”

I open my mouth to ask if he needs me to stick around, but I decide against it.

Instead, I march to the door and pause before leaving.

“We should meet up again soon,” I say, despite myself. I’m tempted to end this relationship here and now. Five grand is a pretty good parting gift. But a part of me wants to see this through if only to stick it to his asshole grandfather. “You know, to discuss where we go from here.”

He gives me a hard look. “I’m surprised you want to after Grandpère’s little temper tantrum.”

“We all have our family shit.”

“Yes, we do.” He nods at me. “I’ll see you again soon then, mon minou.”

“Stop calling me that.” I leave his beautiful house, wondering what I’ve gotten myself into, and if it’s not too late to run away.

Chapter 5

Brianne

In contrast to the enormous mansion where Julien’s staying with his grandfather, the Hayes Group family house is small, comforting, and inviting.

Well, mostly inviting, or at least it used to be. These days I get hard stares from most of the cousins if I get anything at all. Mostly I’m ignored and treated like a piece of fungus growing under a log. Nobody’s outright rude or mean to me, but they’re not interested in having a conversation, and that’s fine.

The Hayes Group hasn’t always been my favorite place in the world. Cormac was obsessed, and Dad was obsessed through Cormac, but I always saw these people as selfish and self-important. They’re a bunch of fancy thugs with a good drug-smuggling business, and they all pretend like they’re blood brothers and family, when really, we’re just a bunch of strangers thrown together to sell coke on the streets.

But at least they pretend like they care about each other. I keep thinking about the ugly disdain Julien’s grandfather showed him and the way Julien stood up for me despite how angry it made the old man. I don’t know why he did it, considering we’re noteven really fake married yet, but it was like a point of pride for him or something.

Ronan welcomes me into his office. I sit across from the young leader of the Group and try to get my thoughts together. I’m anxious and nervous, and I don’t know if I’m doing the right thing by coming here.

“How are you holding up, Brianne?” he asks, and I swear he even cares about the answer. If anyone should hate me, it’s Ronan—my brother’s the one that nearly ruined his life and destroyed his organization. And yet he really doesn’t seem to hold a grudge against me, not like the rest of the uncles and cousins.

“I’m alright. Hanging in there.”

“Your dad’s okay?” He asks it casually, but there’s a vague implication behind the question.

“He’s the same as always.” Still drunk and still a piece of shit. “I don’t want to take up too much of your time.”

He laughs and leans back in his chair. “Honestly, I’ve had a fucking parade of complaints this past hour, and so long as you’re not about to ask me for money, you’re probably my best meeting of the morning.”

I grin at him and shrug. “Well, I was thinking, I could use a few million…”

“Couldn’t we all.” He leans forward again with a sigh. “I’m guessing this is really about Julien?”

I nod and glance away. There’s a picture on his desk of his wife, a beautiful Italian woman named Valentina. Apparently, she’s newly pregnant, and all the aunts are going crazy for the future heir to the Group. I wonder if I’ll ever have a relationshiplike Ronan had with his wife—they seem to genuinely love each other, or at least from what I’ve seen.

“I think I want to move forward with marrying him.”

Ronan doesn’t say anything. He only watches me, and a dozen thoughts drift through my head. I could be making a mistake, or Julien might be as much of a bastard as I think he is, or if I were smart, I’d keep my five grand in cash and run away somewhere and start my life over. This little family doesn’t matter—I don’t have anything to prove to any of them?—

And yet I do. And yet I care. Kim’s a Hayes, and I love Kim. I miss the way things were before Cormac went crazy and got himself killed. I wasn’t hugely into the family life, but I liked coming to the big parties, the holiday gatherings and the summer picnics. I felt like, even when things were bad, at least I had a place where I belonged.

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