Page 81 of Declan

Taking a deep breath, I snap a few photos of the documents and send the text:Tonight at half past midnight.

The reply comes back almost immediately:

If this isn’t right, they’ll come for you, Piccola.

Isn’t my father just a charmer? I give him exactly what he wants, and I don’t even get a “thank you” or a “be careful.” Figures.

“Your father is a piece of work,” Connor says with a chuckle as he gathers the map and papers.

“Her father is a piece of shit, you mean,” Declan snaps, his voice sharp.

He isn’t wrong. My father has always been the type to ignore emotions. That’s why my mother suffered so much. She was my rock, and I was hers; it was us two against the world. But when she died, the world turned pitch black. If my father didn’t care much about me when she was alive, it got so much worse after she was gone.

Honestly, the idea of Declan killing my father when this is all over doesn’t bother me as much as it probably should. The man did try to have me killed, didn’t he? It’s only fair. And he deserves it. He killed Elva, too. So why is there this ache deep in my chest?

The hours crawl by. We’re all gathered in the living room. Flynn arrived about an hour ago and has settled at the round table near the bar with the others.

Meanwhile, I’m lying on the black leather couch, remote in hand, zapping through channels nonstop, trying not to overthink. Midnight comes and goes. I grip the remote so hard my knuckles turn white, glancing at the clock every few seconds.

“I can help take your mind off the clock,” Declan murmurs, leaning down behind me, his breath warm against my ear.

I smile softly. “No need, but thank you.” I’m too worried about all of it, and the last thing I need is my father calling mid-orgasm.

He brushes his lips against my hair before walking back to the table, his reaction making me melt. This side of Declan has been so unexpected.

At 12:45, Kian’s phone rings. The voice on the other end is frantic, shouting, “They blew the shipment!”

My heart leaps, and I jump up so fast I trip over the rug. Flynn catches me before I hit the floor.

“Easy, sweetheart,” he says in his usual calm, controlled tone, almost soothing. “Everything’s going as planned.”

I look toward Declan, desperate for confirmation. He meets my gaze with a confident smirk, nodding once.

“Our men don’t know the full plan. That’s why they’re panicking,” Flynn explains, his calmness infuriating me even more. “We had to keep it that way. It’s the only way to make this believable.”

Meanwhile, Kian is keeping up appearances, yelling and cursing into the phone. “We’ll be right there!” he shouts before hanging up. The second the call ends, the brothers share knowing grins.

“You’re staying here with Flynn,” Declan says, grabbing his jacket.

“I’ll keep her safe if anyone tries to come here,” Flynn promises, his expression hardening into a mask of deadly focus.

“Declan,” I say, stepping in front of him before he reaches the door. My heart pounds in my chest, and I feel like I’m grasping at time itself. “Be careful.”

He stops, tilting his head down as I stand on my tiptoes and press my lips to his. I close my eyes, memorizing the feel of him, the faint scent of cologne and danger wrapped in one.

“Don’t worry, firecracker,” he whispers, his lips brushing my forehead.

I look out the window as the brothers climb onto their black bikes, their helmets hiding their faces. The roar of the engines deafens the quiet night.

Chapter 26

Declan

We arrive at the docks, and it’s like stepping into the pits of hell; the air is thick with smoke, my eyes feel the burn, the flames illuminate the dark sky like fireworks, the shipment was completely blown to pieces, and there are fragments scattered all over the water.

The heat from it is intense, making me remove my leather jacket before it melts to my skin. Our men ran around trying to salvage whatever they could, but there wasn’t much to salvage to begin with.

Firefighters shout orders as they try to extinguish the flames. Poor guys, all this work for nothing.

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