Page 58 of Undercover Desires

Bella, still visibly rattled, has gone white. “Hi, Brandon... Kobe... Leo... Jett…” she stammers out a greeting, her voice trails off as she struggles to regain her composure. She’s shitting herself, and she should be.

I lean into her, catching her wrist. “Sugarplum, I think we need to have a little chat. Why don’t you join us when you’refree?” I ask her, my tone low and intimate, with a warning of what’s about to come her way.

“Uh, sure.” She pulls out of my grip and backs away, bumping into a passerby. “Sorry,” she stammers, scurrying back to the bar.

I flag down Ben who’s on the front door tonight. “Kid, don’t let Miss Jones leave the club without me knowing about it.”

We all take a drink. “What exactly is your plan, Kobe?” asks Brandon. I can see his concern for her. He has to know me well enough to know I won’t really hurt her. She’s an innocent, just a pawn brought into this game by Reader. It’s him I have a beef with, not her.

“After tonight she will be working for us, not Reader,” I tell him, hoping it’s enough to assure him.

He raises a questioning brow. “And you think she will be up for that?”

“She doesn’t really have any choice now, does she. It’s that or she goes back to him and tells him she’s failed already. Something tells me she’s not the kind of girl who would handle that prospect well.” She’s a perfectionist, I can see that in the way she wants to please me. Not only that, but this job isn’t her real profession and yet she still works her ass off night after night. She’s one of the best staff we have.

His eyes meet mine, his face more serious. “Don’t hurt her, Kobe. She’s been through enough with what happened to her dad.”

“I’m not planning on hurting her.” I look at my friend, disappointed that he thinks I would do anything to hurt the sweet Arabella. Not in the way he thinks, anyway. I do plan on making her pay for what she has been doing to us, but I have my own form of punishment for that. “I’m going to make her one of us.” I grin, pleased with myself for coming up with this idea.

“What if she doesn’t agree with your proposal?” asks Leo, more skeptical. He doesn’t trust her for a second, but he doesn’t know her all that well either. She’s not a cop, not really, she’s too rebellious. I can see it in her eyes.

“That’s what this guy is here for. He’s her family. She will have to listen to him. Right?” I look to Brandon for confirmation that we have him on our side.

“I will do my best to convince her, but it’s been a long time since we’ve seen each other,” Brandon agrees.

Three rounds of drinks later, the line at the bar is thinning out. She hasn’t been back to our table. The little sneak has traded places with Shelby’s tables. And since it looks like she’s going to avoid eye contact with me for the foreseeable future, I stand and make my way over to the bar. Slipping behind the barrier, I come up behind her and drop my mouth to her ear. “I think it’s time for that little chat now, don’t you, babydoll?”

Her frightened eyes come back to me, and she swallows hard. “It’s still so busy.”

“The girls have it under control. Come on, I’ll walk you to my office.”

“Your office? Can’t we do it out here?” She looks over to table eight.

My eyes meet hers. “Is that what you really want?”

Her eyes shift from the girls to me. She doesn’t want them to know who she really is. I wouldn’t either. “Okay.” She turns to Shelby. “I’ll be back in a second,” she mutters.

I stand back so I can watch her walking by, then motion with my head for Brandon to join us. He falls in line with me. When I catch up to her, she’s already waiting for us at my office. I open the door and let the three of us inside.

Motioning for her to take a seat, my lips turn up at the sides. I want to play with her a little.

She fiddles with her hands, clearly uncomfortable, then glances to Brandon like he might save her, but his face is stoic. He knows we have to do this. There is too much at stake. “That’s okay, I can stand.”

“Take a seat, Bella,” I tell her, my voice more demanding, my glare turning icy.

Tentatively, she sits down.

“Why don’t you tell me what you’re doing here?” I ask, trying to get her to open up.

“You called me in here,” she snaps like the smartass she is. She should be groveling at my feet. Instead, she’s standing her ground, looking at me with so much defiance it makes me want to bend her over my lap and spank the look right out of her eyes.

Brandon chuckles at her sass. I’m glad someone thinks this is funny.

“Start talking, Bella. Or should I say Arabella, since that’s your real name.”

She rolls her lips and swallows. “So, Brandon told you who I am. We’re cousins and our dads were twins. What’s it to you?” She glares back at me.

“Did you really think we wouldn’t figure you out?” I demand, my voice rising.

---