Page 30 of Crown of Smoke

"That's not how this works." She stops, crossing her arms, her blue eyes blazing. "Our working together doesn’t mean I’ve become your property. I make my own choices."

"Like the choice to let that piece of shit put his hands all over you?"

"I was handling it."

Fucking hell! I close the distance between us, backing her against the car. "Were you? Because from where I stood, you looked scared." My voice drops lower. "And I won't let anyone make you feel that way."

Her breath catches, giving me a moment to feel I’ve won this battle. But then her eyes narrow and her chin lifts. "I don't need your protection."

"Too bad, because you've got it." I brace my hands on either side of her. "I'm not letting you go, Lucy. The sooner you accept that, the easier this will be."

She glares at me. "You're impossible."

"And you're mine." My fingers trace her jaw. "Whether you want to admit it or not."

I hear the words coming from my mouth and wonder, what the fuck? First, my actions and words aren’t all that different from every other dickhead around here. But second, I’ve got other shit to deal with. Ten years of careful planning, of staying in the shadows, of focusing on nothing but bringing down the bastards who murdered my family, and I'm risking it all for a woman I barely know.

The memory of Lucy's soft skin under my hands in that bathroom, the way she trembled when I touched her, how perfectly she fit against me… it's driving me insane. But it's more than just desire. The thought of anyone hurting her makes my blood boil. It’s as intense and acute as the murderous rage I feel for the Keans.

The smart move would be to cut her loose, keep her at arm's length while I focus on the mission. But the thought of pushing her away… well, I can’t seem to do it. Left to her own devices, she’s going to get herself killed. If I abandon her and she ends up dead, that would be on me.

Maybe I can have both, revenge and Lucy. The voice in my head, the one that sounds like my brother Ash, reminds me that love makes you vulnerable. And vulnerability gets people killed.

She pushes me back, and I decide to change tactics. I open the car door for her. "What did you find out tonight?”

She slides into the passenger seat. "The Keans' rise to power, it wasn't just luck or strategy. Or at least not business strategy. Someone betrayed the Ifrinns. They were?—”

“I know who the Ifrinns were.” Every muscle in my body tenses.

"I overheard two men talking about the fire," she continues, pulling out her phone where she no doubt put her notes. I hope to hell no one saw her. "Someone helped the Keans get past the Ifrinn family's security systems. Led them right in."

The night my parents died flashes through my mind. The smoke, the screams, my brother pulling me through the chaos. A traitor. All this time, we thought it was just the Keans, but someone inside our family had helped them.

"Did you catch any names?" I keep my voice steady despite the rage building inside me.

"No, but he said he thought the person works for the Keans.”

I scan my brain for anyone who worked for my father who survived the fire and is working for the Keans. But there is none. None that my brothers and I have found, anyway. Most of my father’s men are dead, in prison, or they left town.

It’s possible this news is just a rumor, but deep down, I think it’s true. It has to be true. No one could have gotten into the house without help. The question is, who is this person and do they really still work for Kean?

She's good. Damn good. In one night, she's uncovered what my brother and I have spent years trying to piece together.

“You did good," I murmur, glancing at her as I drive.

She smiles wide, her pride in her work shining through. “I told you I could help.”

“But Lucy, this kind of information could get you killed."

Her smile falters. “Why do you always have to ruin things with doom and gloom?”

“Because it’s the reality of our world?—”

“Our world?” She turns her body toward me, her eyes like lasers on me. It makes me feel like she can see inside my mind. “Do you mean our as in you and me or you and the Keans and Ifrinns?”

Fuck. I can’t seem to control my mouth and the shit I say. “The world is a dangerous place, Lucy, and you’ve chosen to enter the most dangerous parts, just like I have.”

“Who do you work for?”

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