Page 6 of Burning Bridges

I raise a brow, showing my obvious surprise. Since her brother died and she started paying us monthly rent for her shop premises, she’s never missed a payment. Maybe Gator wasn’t as full of shit as I originally thought, and things have gotten a little rough at the old Acevedo house of late. I almost feel sorry for her. Almost. Then I remember the hell her family happily put mine through, and my sympathy vanishes. She could have saved herself a great deal of heartache if she made the right choice when she had the chance.

"I’ll give you until tomorrow," I reply with a twisted smile playing on my lips. "I’m feeling generous tonight." She turns her body to face me, and it’s hard not to notice her ample cleavage bursting out of her child-sized dress. At least it could be with how short the hem is. Part of me hopes she selected this attire with me in mind, thinking she can drop in here and flaunt her tits and long legs to capture my attention. She’s not wrong. My cock certainly appreciates the show.

"What happens if I can’t come up with the money by tomorrow?" She bats her long lashes and stares up at me like a sweet damsel in distress. A lesser man would fall for her bullshit hook, line, and sinker. It’s why she does it, because she knows what her assets are worth. Too bad I know this girl better than she knows herself, and I know how she uses her body to manipulate men into getting what she wants. She’s very good at it, but I won't fall for her ruse. Even if there is a small part of me that’s tempted to see how far she is willing to go.

"Don’t play dumb, Piper. You know what happens when people can’t pay. You and your brother came up with the rules to this particular game." I know that for a fact, because until he died last year, I was Tony's right-hand man, following orders and participating in whatever consequences they dished out.

She stares back at me like she's dumbfounded I didn't bend further for her, like she assumed I would. She must really be in a bad way if she is this desperate or so drunk that she’s lost all sense of reality.

"Things must be really bad, hey?"

She pushes the bar stool back and stands. Her six-inch heels don't do her any favors, and she's still forced to look up to me. Like she should be. "Don’t act like you care now. You’ll have your money tomorrow," she spits at me, her words filled with fury. Yeah, she hates me.

I smirk back at her, pleased she still has some integrity left. Maybe she’s just having a bad day. She places a delicately manicured hand on my chest, and she smiles up at me, her crimson lips menacing. "When I’m back on top, I’ll make you pay for the way you have treated me since Ace died."

Her threat is meant to cut deep. But her family is the reason she's in the shit she is now, not me. "I look forward to watching you try, Princess." I place my hand over hers, removing it from my chest. "See you tomorrow."

The scowl that last comment earns me makes the whole interaction worth it. Contrary to popular belief, I don’t take pleasure in watching others suffer, not most people anyway. But anyone with the last name Acevedo can rot in hell for all I care. Pretty Princess Piper included. She made her choice, and she has to live with the consequences, just like we all do. I had thought today might be the day she would be forced to beg me for help, but her pride and stubborn nature have gotten the better of her once again. It’s a shame; watching her down on her knees groveling at my feet would be one hell of a scene.

She strides from the bar, letting the door slam on her way out, causing two old guys at a table in the front to curse in her direction and mumble their disapproval for her interruption to their conversation. I take a seat at the bar, shaking my head. "Anything else I need to know about tonight, Mick?"

"Pretty uneventful till you walked in." He laughs, amused by our interaction.

"Good." I spin to face the large flat-screen TV hanging from the side wall. There's a replay of an MMA fight on the screen from at least six months ago, with two middleweight guys competing for a title. One of them is Hammer who will be taking on my brother later this month.

I take a swig of my drink, letting the smooth whiskey calm the tension in my body after that altercation. Piper was put on this earth to torture me, I'm sure of it. Her perfect body and smart mouth were made for me. But since her dad destroyed my family, she has been on my shit list with the rest of the Acevedos. The girl I watch from afar because there is no way I can let myself get any closer. Tonight was nearer than we've been in a long time; I can still smell her sweet perfume in the air around me. It’s intoxicating. Normally our interactions are brief; she hands me an envelope full of bills, I count it, and the two of us go on our separate ways. Sometimes we don't even say a word to each other, so nights like tonight are extra special, where I get something more out of her. The only problem is, the more I get, the more I want.

“This is a good one. The way he knocks out his opponent in one quick shot.” Mick acts out the punch like he’s in the octagon himself.

“Sure is.” I hope Jett is ready for him. Last time he came up against Hammer, he lasted three rounds, tapping out in the third from a chokehold. He needs to beat him if he wants the title I know he desperately craves. “Kobe in?”

“Out back.”

"I'll have another." I throw back my drink and take the replacement, then head to the back to check in with Kobe. Every one of our establishments has an office area in the back. It's necessary for the type of business we're in. Unfortunately, this place only has one, so the three of us share it when we're in. Kobe claims it most of the time, because unless I have to be here, I choose to work out of Queen of Hearts, one of our more exclusive clubs.

I push open the door, expecting to find him working, but when the first thing I hear is a girl squeal, I realize I have just walked in on him with a chick. "Fuck, Kobe, get a room, or at least lock the door when you're at work," I mutter, unimpressed.

"You could knock." He laughs, not caring a bit about what I just walked in on.

The girl grabs her top from his desk and pulls it on, scowling at me; she's a little less impressed. He helps her off his lap, and she drops her lips to his cheek, kissing him with a quick peck. "Call me when you're free," she tells him on her way out the door, choosing not to look at me again. Probably for the best.

I take a seat on the tan couch at the back of the office, making myself comfortable. I need to fill him in on what Jett found today.

He fixes his pants and comes around the front of his desk, leaning against it, a massive grin on his face. Why wouldn't he be happy? He's the youngest of the three of us. Kobe is all about maximizing fun. He somehow got the cheerful outgoing personality, just like our father, but that skipped both Jett and me. "What are you doing here? I wasn't expecting to see you until our gym session in the morning."

"Had a little business meeting with Piper Acevedo. I'm surprised you didn't know she was here. She's been drinking at the bar for the last two hours." I look over his disheveled state. "Did you know she was here, or were you too busy?"

"I don't keep tabs on her like you." He smiles at me smugly, trying to imply I watch her more than I should, but he's wrong. She needs someone keeping an eye on her.

"You shouldn't be fucking your staff, Brother. You know how badly it ended last time," I warn him. I swear he never learns. I should keep out of it, but I have been raising my brothers since our dad died when Kobe was only twelve. Old habits and all that. If I don't keep him in check, no one else will.

“I work twenty hours a day. If I didn’t do it at work, I would have to go celibate like you,” he says back, but I can tell from his cheeky grin that he's not all that bothered by my taunting him. Kobe is the lighthearted one of the three of us, always up for a good time, but he also works his ass off between the clubs and bars he runs, on top of his vigorous training schedule with our middle brother Jett. He also knows I’m not celibate. I just hold higher standards for who I like to spend my personal time with. “What was the princess herself doing in my bar tonight, anyway?”

“My guess is waiting for me. She was trying to get out of paying this month’s rent.”

His forehead creases in surprise that she would try something so stupid. “You must be losing your edge if you let her walk out of here in one piece. You going soft in your old age?” he mocks.

“I’m thirty-three, that’s hardly old age. I was in a good mood, so I gave her till tomorrow,” I tell him, knowing deep down that it wouldn't have mattered what mood I was in when it comes to her. I bend more than I should. I also don’t want to do things the way the Acevedos did, otherwise I’m just as bad as them. Yes, the threat has to be there or chaos would reign, but truth be told, my brothers and I have our own way of doing things, and until now, it has worked.

---