Page 14 of A Twisted Arrangement

Scarlet’s holding a purple key pass in her hand that only our security has.

“Sorry, boss.” Our six-foot-four bouncer comes rushing in after her. His hand covers his nose, where it’s leaking blood. He’s looking down at Scarlet like she’s a viper and not the elegantly dressed woman that she’s projecting.

He looks almost as scared of her as he is of us.

I lean forward, captivated by her. She’s wearing a red dress that perfectly contours her curves, showing off the dip in her waist and the roundness of her hips. Hell, I even love the little softness showing in her stomach.

I had full intentions of tracking her down, but I’m enjoying the fact that she came to me.

Bash smiles up at her. Those two have a special relationship. They aren’t close, but he’s made sure it’s no secret that anyone who messes with her has to deal with him. Hell, all the Everette brothers have.

She marches right up to me, hands on her hips. To anyone watching, they’d see the adoration written across my face, but she’s blind to it. She’s sexy as fuck, standing inches away, chest heaving with her breaths. It’s clear she came here for a reason, and I’m dying to find out what my Scarlet needs.

This is the first time she’s actively sought me out since I was an asshole to her at sixteen, and I’m quickly realizing I would have caved to her immediately if she’d asked.

I lean back, opening my knees wide, enjoying how she steps between them without seeming to notice. There’s a pull between us that I’ve been fighting for years, but I’m done with that, and I’m more than willing to succumb to it now.

Scarlet came back from the West Coast, fierce and determined to take the world on her own. The way her blue eyes narrow on me has blood rushing to my cock.

She has no idea how close she is to me losing control.

“How can I help you, Little Sparrow.”

Her eyes widen briefly at the nickname before a wall closes, blocking out her thoughts. “I need you to do something for me.”

I cock my head to the side, loving the sound of that, but I also want to see how this plays out. There’s a lot of power in a favor.

I stand, crowding her back until she’s trapped in my stare. “What’s that?”

Pure blue eyes meet mine, the shield she just put up instantly gone. Curiosity, heat, and hurt swirl around her pupils as she studies me, weighing whether it’s worth the cost of asking. “The guy who proposed…”

A muscle ticks in my jaw. I definitely thought she’d have gotten rid of him by now. I’m fully aware that they’d only gone on a few dates. He just so happened to propose the day I planned to dispose of him.

I tilt my head to the side. “What about him?”

“He has a security camera video of me killing my father, and he’s trying to blackmail me with it.”

“Oh shit,” Xander and Bash say in unison. There’s a pang of jealousy, knowing they’d been there to witness my girl finally get her revenge.

The muscles in my neck strain, and my teeth grind together as I process what she said. A lot went down the night the Everette brothers eliminated the Laurents. None of which we want records of. Not that we couldn’t bury them if they ever did surface. I don’t tell her that. It’s much more fun to see how this all plays out. I rock back on my heels and grin.

“Is that all the help you need, Scarlet?” I move closer until the scent of her perfume fills my lungs with every breath.

“Y…yes,” she says barely over a whisper, her chest rising and falling rapidly.

She’s temptation incarnate with red-painted lips that are begging me to take them. I got around in my youth, but I haven’t touched anyone since her, and like hell I’m having my first kiss in ten years in front of my brothers.

I’ve saved it for her all this time. I can wait six more days.

“Consider it done.”

“That’s it? You’ll just take care of it?”

“Of course not.” I chuckle. “You’ll owe me.”

“What?” Her mouth curves in an adorable frown.

I run my thumb along my bottom lip, thinking of all the ways she can repay me. “I’m sure we can think of something in time.”

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