Page 13 of A Twisted Arrangement

Making him my best and likely only shot at neutralizing Liam’s threat.

I hop down from the ring and grab a white towel to wipe off my face and go to follow Mark out when Coach stops me.

“You were sloppy out there by the end. Got something on your mind?”

“Nothing a little time on the mat can’t fix.”

He hands me a bottle, and the water’s cool on my tongue.

“Want to talk about it?”

“Not particularly,” I grumble. A part of me would love to lean on him. Over the past several months, he’s become somewhat of a father figure—a slightly grumpy one that makes me run my ass off if I mess up but caring when I need him.

I can’t though. He’s not in the Order of Saints, and no matter how much it’s tried to take away from me, I’m still at least somewhat loyal. Things have definitely improved since the Everette brothers took over.

Which is why I can’t very well tell him I’m being blackmailed into marriage. My family had tried to force me into a loveless relationship with a pedophile pervert. That man was at least ten years older than my father. I’m never going to let anyone attempt to coerce me into marriage again.

I’m just not quite ready to speak to the person who can fix it, and that’s assuming he’ll even let me get that close.

Not that I’ll give him a choice.

Chapter 7

Matthias

“What’s gotten into you?”Bash asks me, his voice bouncing off the polished black walls of our private room in the Elysium club. He’s sprawled out on a leather lounge chair, a crystal glass filled with whiskey dangling precariously from his fingers.

His sandy-blond hair is disheveled, falling loosely over his eyes, covering the gleam in them. He’s the youngest Everette brother and somehow the loudest. Xander sits beside him, his hair several shades darker, perfectly styled off of his face. At only eleven months apart, they’re thick as thieves. Xander’s the more sensible of the two, but Bash never fails to drag him into trouble.

The two of them are several inches below where I partially rest on the back of a chair. There’s too much energy running through my veins to allow me to relax.

Tinted one-way windows line one wall, overlooking the dance floor below, the noise from the club muffled in the soundproof room. We’d purchased the club several years ago, and Xander handled all the contracting to make it perfect, including this room designed specifically for my three brothers and me.

I glance up from my phone, where I’ve been looking at a picture of Scarlet leaving the gym Oliver sent yesterday. Herwhite shirt is see-through where her damp hair rests on her shoulders, and I can’t decide if I’m turned on or pissed off about it.

Things have been slow ever since the Ricci family’s failed attempt at a coup that nearly cost both Misty and Damon their lives.

We stripped the Ricci family of their seat in the Order of Saints, completely wiping them from existence, Sending a clear sign of what would happen if anyone else thought they could fuck with us.

My two youngest brothers are bored out of their minds and the bane of my existence. In the next few years, they’ll have to step up and take an active role in our family, but for now, I want them to have the freedom that was denied to Damon and me.

“You’ve definitely been distracted lately,” Xander adds, taking a sip from his amber-filled glass.

I’ve always been distracted by Scarlet. I’ve just been better at hiding it, but as the days tick down and I get closer to everything I’ve been waiting for, it’s been harder to keep from them. At least Damon’s still too preoccupied with his wife to give me a hard time.

“The both of you can fuck right off.” I flip to the next picture, done caring that I look obsessed. It’s about to become insanely obvious anyway.

“Come on, big bro. You can’t leave us hanging like this. The way you’re staring at your phone has me dying with curiosity. Do I know her?”

“Who says it’s about a girl?”

Bash snorts, and Xander smirks, giving me knowing looks.

I crack my neck. “Yeah…you know her.”

“Hmmm, that’s surprising…I haven’t seen you interested in anyone…unless…” Bash’s eyes go wide, mischief filling them. “It can’t be?”

For a little brat, he’s become more observant. I’m still debating how much I’m going to let them know when the door crashes open.

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