Page 99 of Illicit Temptation

All eyes land on me, and I fear Lachlan will hurt Traceuntil I notice him and the warden trading glares. A foul snarl ghosts my bodyguard’s lips, buthe’snot on duty right now. Trace’s reaction is the pure possessiveness of a husband.

Lachlan moves to Cormac, his back going ramrod straight, his chin jutting out in defiance. Darragh takes up position alongside Lachlan. They’re whispering and arguing with the warden.

This is crazy, I feel so helpless just standing here with my brother a few feet from me. I can’t touch him. Hug him. It’s selfish, I know. Six others will smother me if I let them, and the only one I want is the one I can’t have.

Turning to Trace, I say, “Do you know the warden?”

“Aye,” he answers quickly.

With years in the Irish military and then as a security contractor for the government, Trace Quinlan has tangled with plenty of unsavory men. This one has made the hair on the back of his neck stand up and my curiosity can’t resist. “An old friend of yours?”

“Hardly.”

“Where do you know him from?”

“Nowhere. Forget you saw him.” He fidgets. “And I need to get you out of here as soon as possible.”

“What’s happening?” I turn to him, feeling like he’s my only friend.

“I don’t know.” His jaw looks so tight, it might crack. “Let me find out and—” His words are cut short when my brothers return to the table. All three of them.

“Be quick about it, Cor,” Lachlan says.

“Quick,” I say and break away to hug my brother. The tension I cut through is palpable. Something’s happened. “We can’t even sit and catch up? I have photos of JP.”

Cormac’s throat bobs, his neck tattoos dancing over the taut muscles. “It’s too painful to see my son right now. I’m sorry.”

“What’s going on?” I ask my brothers, desperation gnawing at me.

Cormac tugs me aside. In the corner, he speaks quickly. “I’ve been accused of stealing meds.”

“What?” The room starts to spin. “When?”

“Ten fucking minutes ago.” He scrubs a hand down the back of his neck.

“Ten minutes?” I shake my head. “We’ve been here an hour.”

Cormac’s eyes bore into me. “You’ve been here an hour?”

I nod and swallow harshly.

“It’s all bullshit. I’ve lost all my visiting privileges, and starting tonight, I have to finish out my time in D-block with a new batch of fucking monsters who were just dumped here from places the guards won’t even name. I won’t get a hearing until next month.”

My heart lands in my stomach. “A hearing?”

“Aye.” He stays strong but gets closer to me. “This is not the place Kieran thinks it is anymore. It’s crawling with terrorists and nearly every guard is on the take.” He swears in Gaelic under his breath. Callingthemmurderers, too.

“I thought it was a private internment.”

“Not anymore, not with this charge hanging over my head.”

My eyes slip closed. “Please,” I whisper. “Can’t Lachlan talk to someone?”

“He did. He doesn’t have the same influence here. And it’s got to be killing him.” Cormac breaks a soft chuckle, dealing with this the only way he knows how I guess. Looking over my shoulder, he whispers, “What’s with you and Quinlan?”

I gasp. Our gazes lock, and I don’t want to lie to Cormac. But clearly, now is not the time for that confession. “Nothing. Um...”

“Trace looks ready to detonate. How does Lachlan not see it?”

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