Page 111 of Crimson Tears

Just the reminder of how much he wounded her every time he dismissed her, like she would never be good enough for him, has me seeing red.

Before I can blink, the blade in my hand is buried into his thigh as he screams out. His wailing is so loud it echoes off of the walls, but I don’t hear anything. I just watch as a little bit of strength seems to come back to my girl.

Then, I do it again. And again. And again. Only watching her.

In fact, I don’t stop until Damien wraps his hand around mine and steals the miniature sword that practically chopped off the guy’s leg. He’s clearly dead now, having bled out at some point. But I don’t look back or acknowledge when Damien whines about one of the jewels being loose, and Alexi assures him he will fix it.

I just walk up to my girl and wrap her in my arms. She squeezes me back hard, and some of the anger and pain in my chest subsides with her touch.

When the red fog clouding my mind begins to clear, we walk out of the room. Boris tries to pull Nessa to him, but I keep her close.

“You got her on your lap for however long that just took. It’s my turn.”

He shakes his head. “You are so petty.”

I chuckle as Nessa rolls her eyes.

“I agree,” I say. “I am pretty.” A broad smile touches my lips as I press them to her forehead.

“I saidpetty.” Boris draws out the word as if I didn’t hear him perfectly the first time.

“I am aware of what you said, I just chose to change it so that it fit my narrative better.”

Damien laughs behind us and fist bumps me.I’ve decided that he’s pretty awesome after all.

“This one might give you a run for your money, Daddy B.”

Nessa lets out a loud cackle, and I can’t help but follow her in it while Boris shakes his head, ever the disappointeddaddy.

He has no idea.

Chapter 31

Damien and Alexi head upstairs to deal with business for the night while Evie stays back.

“I think we need to talk to Laney and Arrow,” Havoc suggests. I nod in agreement.

“Can we not say anything about the kidnapping and stuff yet? I want to talk to her myself.”

I feel bad for not talking to her right away. She and Evie have been my go-to people for a while, but now that I have Boris and Cillian, I feel like I don’t have to disrupt their lives as much.

Although we’ve all grown close and know we can depend on one another, I feel like I am always intruding. Especially when they have life partners that they have to share their time with.

“I won’t lie to her if she asks how I spent my evening, even if the little brat is lying to me right now.”

I tilt my head to the side in question, and he frowns at me as he rolls his eyes.

“She thought she could torture a man here tonight,alone, and that I’d be oblivious.”

Evie snorts along with me. Laney is the least sneaky of us all, but I doubt any of us could pull off something like that without our men finding out.

It’s weird thinking about that.Our men. We all have our own little version of a family while still being a part of a bigger one all together. I kind of feel like I belong even more now.

Havoc is older, though not as old as Boris. And his boyfriend, Arrow, who is also Laney’s boyfriend, is older as well. That is one thing Laney and I can always joke about. The age difference and the fact that they all have this weird crush on Whitney Houston.

“Go help your girl and pray no blood is involved. In fact,” I wipe a little off of his cheek, and he grins in a way that reminds me of Cillian, “you’re kind of a mess.”

Right as I say that, Arrow comes down the stairs, flashing Havoc a message on his phone.

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