Page 35 of Battling Aries

“Rory’s mine,” I confirm, fury rising inside me at the mention of her being someone’s property. She’ll end up with a cut that says ‘Property of Aries,’ but that doesn’t mean she’s physical property. Just means she’s damn well mine.

Izaiah nods. “She’s a lovely woman, your Rory. I’ve heard her sing many times over the years, and I’ve got to admit she’s very beautiful. I think her looks rival your friend Kevlar’s Rosemary.”

I bite back the need to curse. We need to know what he knows, and telling him to shut the hell up and go fuck himself isn’t the way to go.

“Can we get past the provoking and get right to what we want to know?” Wolf growls impatiently.

With a snort, Izaiah finally gets down to it. “Roger asked that I work with him. That I help him, in return, he’d see to it that my business isn’t hit with any blowback with our cutting ties.”

My stomach tightens as these words leave his mouth. If he set us up . . .

“I told him to give me a day to think about this. That I needed to speak with others.” He snorts and shakes his head. “I don’t have to speak with anyone. I make the decisions, and my partners get their money, simple as that. I run this place, and I wasn’t going to let him grab me by the nuts to do what I’m doing. Just before you got here, I informed my partners that we were officially cutting those ties. I made a deal with another launder to handle the money for us in house rather than us outsourcing.”

“Good plan,” Cyprus grunts. “What else did fuckwad have to say?”

“That he needs her back. She’s his prize, and he refuses to lose her too as he claimed.” He nods in my direction, “He wasn’t losing her to some son of a bitch. That he worked too hard to make sure she was his, and if he didn’t get her back, then others were going to pay the price.”

Others were going to pay the price?

I let those words circle in my head. Who the hell will he go after for them to pay the price?

The answer comes to me, freezing the blood in my veins as it does so. “Fuck.” I jerk my phone out of my pocket, find Cordelia’s number, and touch the phone icon as I pull the phone up to my ear. It goes straight to voicemail.“Call me back, Cordy.”

I yank the phone from my ear and search for Fox’s number. I won’t be able to get ahold of Tempest. She refuses to carry a cell phone, even though she has one. No matter how many times I’ve told her she needs to carry it ‘cause you never know what the fuck will happen.

Dialing Fox’s number, he answers on the second ring. “What the fuck you calling me for now?”

“You talk to Tempest or Cordy?” I ask, ignoring his snarky attitude. “Cordy’s is going straight to voicemail, and you know Tempest.

“Cordy’s fine,” Fox remarks. “She’s out doing a photo gig right now. Got a man on her. Tempest is fine. She’s gone off hunting.”

Great. She’s out hunting, which means no one will be able to find her until she’s ready to be found.

“Right.” I hang up on him, not bothering with anything else. He answered my questions.

Jerking to my feet, I look at Viper and the others. “We need to get back to the clubhouse. Now.”

“Why?” Viper demands, getting to his feet along with the rest of my brothers.

“Because Roger is going to make sure others pay the price. It’s not Cordy or Tempest he goes after, it’ll be the next best thing.”

“Your brothers?” Wolf growls, sounding nearly animalistic with the fury filling his voice.

I shake my head and tell them all, “Their women.”

CHAPTER 21

RORY

Sleeping in is something I’ve never been one for. I haven’t done that in so long, but it feels weird waking up and seeing how late in the day it is. I might have worked at night, singing, but I was always awake early in the morning. There was no sleeping in for me. If the sun was up. I was, as well. Okay, so I probably did this because I didn’t want to take chances when it came to Roger.

With how late it was I shouldn’t be surprised I was waking up alone in bed, but then again, Aries had woken me hours ago. He’d taken me and given me two orgasms. I ended up falling right back into a sex-induced slumber. Maybe it’s because of that I ended up sleeping longer.

Getting out of bed, I head for the shower. My body was sore but not like it’d been in the past. It was a delicious kind of soreness. One I wouldn’t mind feeling again, so long as it’s at the hands of Aries.

While the water heats up, I wrap my cast up to keep it protected before checking the warmth of the water. Satisfied that it won’t be a chill on my skin,I step in and draw the curtain closed. The water hits my skin like a lover’s touch. A moan leavesmy lips as I close my eyes and tilt my head back, letting the water wash over me.

Using my good hand, I reach up and massage my scalp, imagining it was Aries who was doing it rather than me. I wish he were in here rather than wherever he went. I do my best to shove away the negative thoughts that want to creep in and try to consume me. Aries said he didn’t want any other women, and I want to believe him. I really do. I also get that I can’t and won’t be the center of his world. He’s got the club . . . a life, and honestly, I don’t want to be the center of attention. I just want him to be mine. It’s as simple as that. No one else’s.

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