Page 4 of To Curse A Knight

Aaron’s brow furrowed in confusion, but he waited, expectantly.

My business partner was always the most patient man in a boardroom, waiting for others to confess their sins while he silently stared into their souls. Watching him apply this tactic to Kellan would have been amusing in different circumstances.

Instead, I stood between them with knots in my stomach, wordlessly counting the number of secrets I was going to have to manage between the three men.

Kellan sighed and the noisy burst of air forced his cracked lips apart. He scrubbed his large palms over his dirty face.

“Fuck it,” he murmured as his gaze dipped to the rough floorboard beneath our feet. He lifted his eyes, steely resolve darkening the rich blue to navy, as he stared directly into Aaron’s caramel brown slits.

“I’m a double agent with the FBI. It’s a long story, one we will likely never get into, but now that I’m fucking responsible for your life, too”—he threw an unnecessary glower my way—“you should know what you are getting into. I’ll do my best to protect you, but I can’t guarantee it. I can’t guarantee my own life with Alvarez and Antonio about to go head to head.”

To his credit, Aaron’s face remained an unreadable mask, save for a micro-crinkle of his left eyebrow I had learned was his tell. His emotionless stare drifted to mine for a brief moment, then resolution entered his own gaze.

Steel entered his spine, and he rose to his full height, now within an inch of Kellan. He stuck out his palm in an extended handshake, the image of a formidable businessman ready to enter a company shakedown. “Nice to finally meet you,hermano. Let us take down the devils that siredus together. Keep me hidden, and I’ll use my networks to avenge us both.”

Kellan’s poker face all but evaporated. His eyebrows shot up in surprise, eyeing the offered hand with incredulity. Aaron didn’t concede, leaving it awkwardly hanging in the air between them.

“You’re a relentless fucker, I’ll give you that.” His lips twitched in the faintest ghost of a smile, then he clasped Aaron’s hand within his own rough palm. “It’s a battle ahead, brother. Death is a more peaceful alternative.”

“One I will face once my parents have filled their own coffins.”

Raw power emanated from within Aaron’s bronzed skin, encasing the three of us in a cloud of bitter determination. He and Kellan exuded the earned confidence of men who had built a legacy of destruction and sin.

I stepped back, needing distance from the overpowering layers of emotion.

“As much as I’m thrilled to see you two getting along”—I grabbed my sweater from the floor, feeling the sharp sting of chilled air now that the adrenaline had worked its way out of my system—“we need an actual plan for the week. Aaron—two days maximum, okay? Office and home, no deviations. I don’t trust Antonio not to have a contingency plan.”

Kellan grimaced in agreement.

“Get your affairs in order, move what you can over to my office and pack a bag. Tell no one—not even Jacques—where you are going. I’ll have Joey deliver you to my safe house, and we will work out the details this weekend, okay?”

This really was a terrible plan. My safe house apartment was in the basement of my private, heavily secured warehouse. Aaron wasn’t privy to my after-hours activities, and Alec’s cell on the upper level would have to remain a secret—for how much longer, I didn’t know, but I wasn’t willing to reveal everything tonight—no matter how much I cared about him.

Still, I wouldn’t be able to secure another piece of real estate close by in just two days, even with all my connections. It was probably safer, but I selfishly didn’t want Aaron leaving the state, if it meant I couldn’t keep an eye on him. This seemed the best option in a sea of really shitty ones.

Aaron reached for me, and with a light tug on my wrist, drew me into his arms. He stank of iron and salt, but the underlying scent of his familiar body wash—sandalwood and vanilla—still clung to his skin like a comforting blanket. I sank into his embrace. The recent memories of being held in the quiet of his office brought me a rare sense of peace. I closed my eyes for a brief second, listening to the muted thump of his heartbeat against my cheek.

He gently kissed the top of my head, then nuzzled me backward to stand next to Kellan once again.

“And text me when you get home. Both of you. Please,” I tacked on, no longer in the mood to issue orders that affected yet another man’s fate. I was desperate to get to my condo, have a shower, and crawl into bed.

My already waning mood turned sour when I realized I would have a house guest for the foreseeable future.

“You can deliver Lucky to my guest suite tomorrow evening, Viking. I’ll deal with him then.”

Not waiting for his response, I pulled open the dented metal door that had just changed the trajectory of my entire life and stepped out into the damp night air.

I hoped Sammy found me a new playmate this week. It was time to let off some much-needed stress.

Fuck.

My body felt like I’d gotten railed by a steel rod up my arse through to my skull. Ol’ Conan musta had fun with me after he’d shoved a tranq in my arm.

Last thing I remembered, I was handcuffed to Kellan’s seat and then—a vicious slash of a sexy-as-fuck Viking mouth before I was injected with a tasty little cocktail.

Kinky fucker.

Even kinkier—my eyes were covered by a hard leather blindfold, and by the feel of things, it was attached to a harness strapped around my head. Not my first rodeo with BDSM toys, not by a long shot, but not quite what I was expecting from the brute.

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