Page 114 of Brutal Kingdom

“You say it like it’s a job interview.”

“These are the people who will have to accept you into the fold, so, it sort of is.”

* * *

I’m nervous, walking into Bella’s home. Not because of these people, but because of what I have to do. Telling Simon I could handle it over the phone is one thing. Going through with it is another.

Dixon squeezes my hand. “Relax. They won’t attack as long as you stay with the group.”

That’s the problem. At some point I need to get away from the group. I’m not sure how to make that happen, but hopefully something will come to me. Dixon’s parents come over to greet us, before pulling him away to speak to some people. I smile in encouragement and he assures me he’ll be right back.

I’m off to the side of the room, out of the way, watching the crowd. I turn to look, sensing movement behind me.

“Jordy?”

An immediate calm comes over me. On instinct, I move closer.

“What? What are you doing here?”

“Dixon invited me.”

He glides his hand down my arm. “You-”

“Tell me you didn’t bring your whore to this party.”

I cringe. It’s the sound of Bella’s voice and not the name calling that irks me. She called me a whore loud enough for the people standing close by to hear. They move away, scandalized that I had the nerve to show my face.

“A whore? You must be mistaken. I fucked him for fun. You’re the only one using her pussy for money.”

“Jordy.” Logan warns, reminding me that I’m not supposed to engage.

“You’re right about one thing though, I shouldn’t be here.”

“You’re here because I invited you.” Dixon walks up, putting his arm around my waist. “And you’re staying, even if our host is acting so rudely.”

Now people are staring at Bella. The tiny vein in Logan’s forehead is throbbing, but he can’t do anything about Dixon’s hand or his fiancé’s loud mouth. Not without causing a scene. I let Dixon drag me away. When we get to the other side of the room, I excuse myself saying I need a minute, then slip out into the hall, heading to the office Simon told me about. The hall and the room are empty. I slip inside the study unseen, hurrying over to the desk.

I plug in the drive and press the power button, waiting for it to boot. Sending a quick text to Simon to let him know it’s running.

It’s taking longer than I thought. There’s nowhere to hide in this room. If the door opens, that’s it. The laptop beeps one more time and the login screen pops up. I type in the password he told me to use, and watch as it finishes logging in to the home screen. Then drag and drop the file from the thumb drive into the utilities folder before unplugging it and powering off the computer. I’m at the door when I hear someone in the hall. Shit, I make it to the end of this caper, and now I get caught?

I peek through the crack in the door and see Bella and Tabitha. “What is it that couldn’t wait, Tabitha?” Bella snarls.

“It’s my mother. She said she was coming and you remember what happened the last time she and Kendall Donovan were in the same room together.”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

“Bella.” Logan’s voice sounds like smooth whisky. Soft and charming. I hate hearing him talking to her like that. “Your father has someone he wants us to meet.”

“First, he sends me to grab something from the study, now he wants me to meet people.”

“I think this trumps whatever he has in his study.” He holds out his hand, waiting for her to take it. I swallow the lump in my throat, as I watch them stroll back towards the living room, holding hands.

When the coast is clear, I step into the hallway.

“Next time you go sneaking around, you might wanna take someone as a lookout.”

“Tabitha, I-.”

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