Page 10 of Gilded Caresses

“I see.” Santi fists a handful of the man’s hair and pulls him to his feet. “Threaten my friend’s family and you might as well be threatening me. Since your parents didn’t teach you manners, let me remind you how to behave in another man’s home,pedazo de mierda.” Piece of shit.

I rarely hear Santi fall into his native Spanish tongue so that’s a very important clue for Snake Eyes about just how pissed he’s gotten his boss.

Santi drives a fist into Snake’s mouth. Once and then again. “When you speak to a lady in our house, you watch your fucking tongue. You have issues. You come to us. Got it?”

Fresh guards come off the elevator and my cousin signals toward the two worthless ones still looking like statues.

Cassius jerks his chin toward each of the offenders. “Take him to the lower level. Leave him in a waiting cell. And these two. Put them in there with him. I’ll be down momentarily.”

Ooh shit.I forgot to mention the holding floor. A discreet level only the unlucky ever find out about. Sucks to be them.

All three pale but hey, karma, right?

I raise my chin and hold my attacker’s hatred-filled gaze as he’s shoved toward the elevator, my blade still in his wrist.

Cassius’ lips part with a sarcastic smile when he comes to check my throat. “You just can’t have a normal day at the office, can you? Always the trouble maker,” he teases tugging at the ends of my hair. Something he’s done from the first day I met him years back.

I smirk right back. “You know me. Action at every turn.”

Not really. My life is as mundane as it can get. Wake. Breakfast. Sign contracts. Shuffle millions of dollars around. Bed.

Santi joins us and clips my jaw in a playful tap. “You’ll have a few bruises,hermosa, but I think you got the upper hand.” When Harlon couldn’t watch over me his childhood friends were there to help. The concern in Santi’s tone and Cassius’ touch is brotherly and welcomed.

Cassius winks at me, bends, and collects the items I dropped along with Snaky’s blade.

My throat feels bone dry and tender so I just nod and tuck my trembling fingers around the ledger and my now cracked phone he retrieves from the floor.

I guess I was right about today being a real ass-dragger.

I didn’t see him at first, but a man in a leather cut is leaning against the reception desk with his feet crossed and lookingbored. He turns to say something to Lexi and that is when I see the familiar flaming skull across the expanse of his back.

Harlon finishes with the guards and joins us, his fingers automatically straightening his immaculate cuffs.

Good-looking, confident, and observant. Reminds me of the men of Genesis. His name comes to me after a few moments. Riot. A brother of the Sons of Bratva Savages. His being here means trouble is on his ass.

Now what?

I don’t have a lot of fucks to give at the moment so I don’t put any effort into my tone. “Why the hell is a Savage here?”

Four

Sapphire

Santi and Cassius move to my left and right while Harlon leads the Savage brother in my direction.

He moves with a smooth confident gait with little attention to spare the runners still waiting for me to pay them. Albeit with a little more respect in their eyes when I connect my gaze with theirs.

Cassius rests an arm around my shoulder and leans in. “He’s looking for someone. A lost wife if you can believe that shit. He needs our help. Yours specifically.”

Got it. That’s not so bad.

“Riot, this is Sapphire. You remember her from the baby announcement party a few weeks back?”

My memory clicks over the events and his face comes to mind. Thinking back on that night I don’t recall him looking as haggard and worn out as he does now. He might look put together in clean jeans, polished boots, and a crisp Henley under that leather cut, but the shadows under his eyes speak volumes.

I search his face for an ounce of something other than tired and pissed off. But all I get is an ugly mixture of rage, anger, hurt, and fear that leaves his otherwise handsome face in a deep scowl. Calculating eyes, strong chin, and unmoving presence. He’d be a hard opponent to take down.

I’m not here to solve the world’s problems, I remind myself. Contract, The Society, and get as many free margaritas as I can handle. All in that order.

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