Page 3 of Fatal Temptation

“He won’t know unless you rat me out,” Addie said.

“And what kind of brother would I be if I got my precious baby sister in trouble?”

He sat down on the couch next to her, poking her in the ribs.

“Hey,” she exclaimed, slapping his hand away.

Technically they weren’t siblings. Adelyn was his brother’s adopted daughter. His brother and brother-in-law were pseudo-parents to him, though. They’d practically been his parents for the past four years despite him being an adult. There was something to be said about him never having had a real childhood, though. His mother had tried to shield him from his father, and she’d been somewhat successful the first few years, but Kaito hadn’t appreciated it. He’d killed her before Akio’s sixth birthday. He barely remembered her, but he hoped she would be proud of how far he’d come along.

He put his feet on the coffee table next to Addie’s and snatched the remote out of her hand.

“So, what’re we watching?”

Addie groaned and dropped her head back against the couch.

“I hate when you’re back from college,” Addie grumbled.

He could only grin at her because he knew she was lying. The two of them? They shared a special bond. When she’d shown up a few years ago looking for Diesel because he was the only one who’d made her feel safe in a longlongtime, she probably hadn’t expected to end up in a family of four. Diesel had saved her and a bunch of other kids from some traffickers. Well, his and Diesel’s father’s traffickers to be exact. Because that was the kind of thing a Yakuza boss did. That’s what Kaito had been. He’d been a horrible father, too.

Diesel and his mom had escaped Kaito when Diesel was just a kid, but Kaito had found Diesel again. At that time, Diesel was already a member of an outlaw motorcycle club that Chris had been undercover in. Obviously, Chris had ended up choosing a side. Or, choosing Diesel, really.

Kaito had kidnapped them both and when Akio had seen them, he’d been scared and angry. There was the brother he’d been compared to his whole life. The brother that had escaped. He’d never told Diesel, but he’d been afraid that Kaito would decide to kill him because he had finally gotten Diesel back.

Kaito had sent Chris off to find some money his late brother had stolen from him. When Diesel and Chris’ MC brothers had come to save Diesel, they hadn’t come alone. Chris’ ex-fiancé Lucas, who was also an FBI agent, had been with them. A firefight had ensured in the parking garage of the hotel they’d been at. He wasn’t really sure if he’d seen a way out or just an end to it all when he’d picked up that gun, but he was glad it hadn’t been the end. He wouldn’t have gotten to experience what it was to have a family. To have people in his life who actually cared about him.

He’d shot his father, but Diesel had finished it. Most likely so Akio wouldn’t have to live with having killed someone. Even someone as terrible as Kaito.

He’d been in a bad state himself and had been in the hospital for a little while. Lucas had been there a lot. He liked that. A little too much if Diesel’s glaring had been anything to go by. His brother sure wasn’t a fan of Lucas or the way Akio looked at him. Whether it was hero worship or something deeper, he didn’t know. No. That was a lie. He knew. He just didn’t want to think too hard about it. It wasn’t as if anything would ever happen between them. There was more than ten years between them. Lucas was a federal agent, and he was the son of a dead Yakuza boss. Oh, and Lucas was his brother-in-law-slash-pseudo-father’s ex. It was never happening. No matter what his heart tried to tell him.

He heard the front door open and close and then Chris walked through the living room toward the kitchen with a grocery bag in each hand, and without sparing them a glance, he said, “Feet.”

Akio shared a glance with Addie and then they both lifted their feet off the table, knowing Diesel wouldn’t be far behind Chris.

The second Diesel entered the room, he gave them a knowing look. He stopped, staring at them as he crossed his arms.

“What have I told you two about feet on the coffee table?”

Akio pressed his lips together but wasn’t the least bit surprised when Addie didn’t keep her mouth shut.

“You’re worried about feet on the coffee table when you’ve fucked Dad across the kitchen counter?”

Diesel’s expression didn’t change.

“Good luck getting out of that one,” Chris said, leaning a shoulder against the doorway to the kitchen, a sparkle in his eyes as he looked at his husband.

Diesel spared Chris a dark look before snapping his gaze back onto Addie.

“You can putyourfeet onyourcoffee table and fuckyourhusband wherever you want when you get your own home that you pay for yourself,” Diesel said, voice smooth and his smile sweet. He walked closer, grabbing Addie’s backpack off the floor and dropping it in her lap. “For now, you do as you’re told which includes doing your homework.”

Addie’s loud sigh had a snort of laughter escaping Akio.

“Buzzkill,” Addie muttered, rolling her eyes at Akio.

“Now, Addie,” Diesel snapped.

Akio watched with a smile as Diesel walked toward Chris, the man’s wicked smile telling him to get the hell out of there before he heard things he couldn’t unhear.

He followed Addie upstairs with a light laugh while she grumbled the whole way. The second they entered her room, he closed the door behind them and she connected her phone to her speakers to blast music that might drown out the horndogs downstairs.

---