Page 7 of The Secrets We Share

His arms encircle my waist, as his chin rests on my shoulder. “What’s got you all pissed off, little one?”

Dropping my head back on to his shoulder, I let the soft chuckle pass between us. Of course, he could read that from one word. “I’m tired of it, Harkin.”

“It’s almost over.”

“Is it, though?” I ask indignantly, turning to face him.

His rough, callused hand comes up to settle around my throat. He doesn’t squeeze, just holds me in place, his thumb pushing up against my chin to maneuver my gaze to his.

“He’s not only back. I found him, too.”

I let a gasp fall between us. “When?” I whisper.

“Come into the other room, and I’ll share the news with everyone.”

His fingers tighten around my throat, pulling me forward until my body is pressed firmly against him. I love this side of him. It disarms and settles me. Makes me want to relax and throw my cares away. Give all the stress and worry over to him, but the anxiety of his news lingers regardless of all that.

“I’ve got you, sweetness.” Another promise, as he claims my lips and dispels any other thoughts from my mind. I melt into him, wanting more, but he pulls away too quickly for my liking. Whining in protest, I push myself into his palm, choking myself in the process. But I make it back to his lips and it’s worth the difficulty to breathe.

When his teeth nip at my bottom lip, a moan builds in my chest.

“Are you guys coming or what?” Stace yells from the other room, followed by something muffled I can’t make out.

“Tell them to leave,” I beg him, opening my eyes and seeing my lust reflected in his dark stare.

“I’ve created a monster.” He chuckles and shakes his head. Dropping his hold on my throat, he grips my hand and pulls me from the kitchen, dragging my electrified and needy body behind him.

Girls get blue balls too.

“Jesus, what took you two so long,” Stace says without turning around on the couch. I don’t miss the tight squeeze of James’s hand on her thigh, the silent warning blatant for my eyes to see.

Harkin drops into the leather wingback chair that reminds me of the ones from his office. I don’t bother finding my own seat. Instead, I follow him, dropping into his lap and pressing my ass into his hardness, wiggling just enough to get his attention.

If he wants to leave me wet and desperate, I plan to make this conversation as painful for him to get through as it will be for me.

“Keira.” His low timber sends shivers down my spine. “Behave.”

“Never.”

FOUR

HARKIN

Blood//Water - grandson

“Domenico’s been spotted in the city.” I break the silence hanging over the group. Keira stiffens in my lap, even though I just told her in the kitchen. It’s been months of dragging the internet and using all my contacts to locate the man. In the end, my system pinged him, spotted by multiple cameras in the city. The ease with which he moved through his trip made me realize he was done hiding. If I’d found him, he wanted to be found. He was back in the game and ready to play.

The only problem was we still didn’t know his endgame. If it was just for Alina’s profit, why all the theatrics? Keira would have been open to helping her sister without being kidnapped. She didn’t need to be put through the shock of finding out her father had been watching her. And certainly not that the twin she so desperately wanted to have a relationship with growing up was still alive. Alina showed her true colors immediately, and those dreams that Keira had held tightly were crushed.

“So, what do we do now?” Keira asks.

I look over at James. I'm grateful that his cold mask of indifference is set in place. It’s time to tell Keira about my results, but not in front of everyone. I don’t know how she’s going to react.

“We watch and wait. If you want to contact Alina, we can figure that out. It hasn’t been hard to keep an eye on her and Sofia.”

“But if I do?—”

“Yeah, she’s likely to tell Domenico. Or shit, she probably wouldn’t even have to. I’m sure his men are watching over her like a hawk. At least Marcello is.”

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