Page 52 of With This Ring

One of Carter’s men, an older guy that probably worked under Dominic for ages, steps forward, looking like an angry bull, his face a puce shade. “I ain’t gonna listen to the younger Whitlock when the older one ain’t proved to be an effective leader. Now, I say?—”

Whatever he wants to say is cut off by Declan’s gun discharging, hitting the man in the center of his forehead. He crumples to the floor, blood pooling around his head. Declan looks calm, as if he just came from a relaxing walk.

“If anyone else has something to say, speak now or forever hold your peace,” Declan says, holding his still smoking gun at his side. Some of the Whitlock men look unhappy, but the display of not showing favoritism seems to have endeared Declan to my guys, at least for right now.

Carter rolls his eyes. “You and you,” he says, pointing to some lower-level men of his, “clean this up. And send his wife a dozen roses.”

When the body is moved away, I look around at everyone assembled. “Anymore questions?” No one speaks so I say, “For now, your directions are to keep your eyes open, but don’t get in our fucking way. This is your only warning.”

With that, we break down the new rules for the new regime of the St. Clair-Whitlock family.

CHAPTER 18

KAI

Aweek after we blended our families against our wills I’m startled awake by my ringing phone. I grab it blindly and look at the number. It’s unknown. I think about letting it roll into voicemail, but many people I do business with don’t have listed numbers.

Carter pulls his arm from around my waist and sits up, rubbing his eyes. He looks adorably rumpled, his hair all over his head and lines on his face from his pillow. His curious glance flashes in the low moon.

“Who’s calling at this hour?” He picks up his phone from the nightstand on his side of the bed and groans. “It’s three in the morning.”

“No clue.” I show him the phone just as it stops ringing. But it starts up again almost immediately. “Whoever they are, they’re fucking persistent.”

Carter growls in frustration and throws the blanket from his legs. I watch his naked ass flex as he pads to the bathroom. Since we’re up, I wouldn’t mind feeling his dick inside me again. He fucked me thoroughly before we went to sleep, but I’m always up for another round.

Hoping to get the mystery caller off the line quickly so my husband can dick me down, I answer with an annoyed, “This better be fucking good.”

A pause. Then a voice I didn’t think I’d hear since he’s been ducking my calls for a meeting. “Good morning, Kaison St. Clair. We need to meet,” the head of the Petrov family, Vlad, says in his smooth accented voice.

I sit up straighter, shock rocketing through me. The Russians and Fensters have been avoiding our calls and requests to meet for the past few months. I’d given up having a halfway civil conversation with either of them, figuring we’d solve whatever issues we had with our guns.

“Vlad,” is all I say. I reach into my nightstand and pull out my gun and sheath with my knife. Then I walk over to the closet I now share with Carter and start pulling down clothes for both of us.

Since I got my concussion and spent a week in here, I haven’t slept in my room. Slowly, I started bringing my clothes here, and now I have my side of the closet, as well as a few drawers in his dresser.

“There has been…a wrong done to me by your family. You need to make it right.”

“The fuck are you talking about?” I ask, sliding on my pants. Carter comes out of the bathroom, and I put the phone on speaker and toss it on the bed while I finish getting dressed.

“Not over the phone,” Vlad growls.

“Line is secure,” Carter says, an edge to his tone that would make a lesser man piss himself. “What’s the issue?”

Vlad pauses again. “Whitlock. Since you both are here, allow me to tell you what a cocksucker in your organization did.” I bristle but allow him to speak. “They kidnapped a boy from my old neighborhood. No more than eighteen. Tortured him for information about this war someone wants with you. He knewnothing but was killed anyway. His body was left on his mother’s doorstep with a dozen roses. I know that is your calling card. I would like answers for this.”

Carter and I look at each other, anger flashing across his face. We told everyone to stand down so we could figure this shit out. So we wouldn’t be getting fucking phone calls like this at fucking three in the morning.

Asking the question that’s been running through my mind, Carter asks, “Why call instead of seeking revenge? I know your family doesn’t take too kindly to shit like this.”

“We can talk when we are alone. I do not trust this open line.” Carter shakes his head and finishes getting dressed.

“No offense, Vlad”—full offense to Vlad— “but we don’t trust you. One of our guys killed one of yours. What’s to say you won’t try to get revenge when we’re alone?”

“Here is what I propose. You pick the time and location and bring as many men as you would like. I will bring my son and only my son. As you know, he is an only child. If we both die, the Petrov family will fall. I have no intentions of dying, so I will not cross you.”

We stare at each other, having a silent conversation. It’s a good compromise. We can have the meeting on our time and at whatever location we like, leaving Vlad at a disadvantage. If he tries to backdoor us, there will be St. Clair and Whitlock men there to cut them both down. And we’d have one less family to worry about.

Carter nods once and I agree. “Okay, Vlad. Give us some time to find the sonofabitch that did this, and we’ll give you a call back.”

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