Page 21 of Caged Bird

I spun on my heel and glared at my brother. “Are you for fucking real?” I should have known he was up to something when he’d taken too long to come in. Should have known that even with a limp, it didn’t take that long to walk from where I’d parked the truck to the house.

But I’d been too distracted by Fawn.

Eddie pointed at the table. “Sit down and eat the lunch Fawn so graciously made for you, Zane.”

There was nothing else for me to do. Eddie’s house was in the middle of fucking nowhere. Without a vehicle, I wasn’t leaving. And I somehow doubted he was going to loan me his.

Fawn held a plate of food out to me, a tiny flicker of pity in her eyes, before it hardened again.

I took the food and ate it silently, not listening while Eddie explained his plans for my takeover of his crew.

All I could think about was how I was just as trapped as Fawn was.

And how just maybe, it was exactly what I deserved.

6

FAWN

I’d never seen Zane drink before. But after realizing what Eddie had done to his car, he’d knocked back beer after beer until between him and Eddie, there were as many empty beer cans littered around the living room for me to clean up as if they’d thrown a party.

I resented each and every one of them, snatching them all up and tossing them into the garbage bag I carried around, refusing to let Zane help.

Eddie talked about his crew, filling Zane in on each of the guys he ran with, their strengths, and more importantly, the weaknesses Eddie liked to push on to keep them in line. Weaknesses Zane would now get to prod at, since he was taking over from his brother.

Disgust rose inside me with every exploitative word. I had no love for any of Eddie’s crew, but they were still people. And Eddie had no morals. He had no hesitation in threatening the lives of his men’s children. Their wives or partners. Their parents. And if they had no living relatives, Eddie would stoop to threatening a man’s dog. It was clear to me he only worked with people who could be easily controlled with the threat of violence.

It made me wonder about Zane. Who his pressure point was? His mom? Was she still around? Or did he now have a wife or a girlfriend? One who’d given him kids of his own?

A sick feeling swirled in the pit of my stomach just thinking about it.

But of course he’d have a partner. I glanced over at him, somewhat enviously. His skin was a warm, sun-kissed bronze. His light-brown hair was long enough to flick out from beneath his baseball cap. And those eyes…

Were all too focused on me.

I looked away, heat blooming on the back of my neck. It was a foreign feeling. That rush of attraction. One I hadn’t felt in so long I’d almost forgotten what it felt like.

To distract myself, I glanced outside, searching the yard for Otis, who was smart enough to be outside when his daddy was inside. I found him happily playing with some old metal trucks in the dirt, next to a pretty patch of purple-and-yellow wildflowers.

“Come here, Peach,” Eddie slurred, reaching an arm out for me.

I cringed at the sound of his voice but knew better than to disobey, especially when he’d been drinking. I went to his side, and he pulled me onto his lap.

He yelped when my weight landed on his injury, and pushed me off again.

“I’m sorry,” I mumbled, even though it was his fault.

Eddie let out a string of curse words beneath his breath, rubbing over the bandaged-up wound, like that somehow might ease the pain. It must have worked because a minute later, his hand had moved to rub over his groin area instead. His gaze focused on me again. “Gonna have to blow me instead, Peach. Can’t take any weight on that injury right now.”

I stepped backward, embarrassment burning my cheeks. “We have company.”

Eddie’s gaze skipped right past his brother, who looked anywhere but at the scene Eddie was making. “What company? Zane? He doesn’t count as company.” He undid the waistband on his pants and lifted his ass enough to pull them down. “Besides, Zane’s been watching you with a boner ever since he got here. He needs the reminder he’s only here to take over my business. Not my bed.”

Zane’s cheeks were as red as I was sure mine were. He stood. “I’ll leave.”

Eddie pinned him with a glare. “You’ll stay and be reminded of what you’re allowed to touch and what you’re not.”

Zane’s mouth pulled into a firm line of displeasure. But he sat.

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