Page 93 of Whips and Chains
Trigger shook his head. “Nah, something went down between the two of you. I can practically smell the secrets.”
I wasn’t giving them shit. I had made a promise to turn up to these meetings and support them in not going on mass murder sprees.
I hadn’t promised to spill my personal business and bleed my heart all over the dirty cement floor.
X twirled a wrench absentmindedly that someone really should have taken off him in case he got the urge to throw it. “I might have locked Levi and Whip in my bedroom. Just to see what would happen.”
A half-grin lifted Trigger’s mouth. “So I was right then? Something went down?” He sniggered in my direction. “Or rather, someone?”
I raised an eyebrow, locking down my cool instead of answering in the heat of the moment like I had initially. “Are you implying we banged in X’s bedroom while surrounded by his serial killer memorabilia?”
Trigger snorted.
But Ace glanced over at X. “What do you have in there? Like, just posters or collector’s stuff?”
Even X ignored him. What had happened between me and Levi clearly a more interesting topic of conversation. He couldn’t keep the laughter off his stupid face. “Aw. Did my emotionally stunted alpha boys have a little moment? Did someone hold the other and whisper, ‘It’s okay to feel things, bro’?”
Levi and I both gave him the middle finger.
I accidentally caught Levi’s eye in the process and then had to fight an internal battle not to show how badly sitting by his side was affecting me. I didn’t miss the way I was more grumpy than usual though. And that only annoyed me more. “Who called the meeting tonight anyway? Can we get on with it, because some of us have places to be.”
“Got a hot date?” Levi muttered.
If I hadn’t known better, I would have said there was a hint of jealousy in his voice.
“What do you care?”
Levi bit down on his bottom lip, white teeth pressing into the pink flesh I’d spent a lot of time kissing just a couple of nights ago. “I don’t.”
I rolled my eyes and turned back to the group, ignoring the fact they were all staring at us with stupid grins on their faces.
“What?” I snapped. “Get on with it before I’m the one who needs to be counselled out of a murder rampage. One I’ll start in this room.”
X opened his mouth, no doubt to make another joke at my or Levi’s expense, if the laughter in his expression was anything to go by.
Grayson shut it down by clearing his throat and giving X that dad frown he had down to a T now that he had a couple of kids of his own to practice on.
X sighed and raised his hand. “I called the meeting.”
Ace rocked back on his chair, the front two legs lifting off the floor. “How many dead bodies did you leave in your wake before calling in this time?”
X screwed up his face. “Ha-ha, hilarious. Sheesh, you go on one little rampage—”
“There were at least three rampages, X,” I threw in dryly.
He threw his arms up. “Fine! Three rampages, one of which was definitely not my fault, because that guy was chewing with his mouth open, and you know I can’t handle things like that. But now you decide you don’t trust me? That hurts, you know? It cuts real deep.”
I snapped my fingers in his direction. “Focus, would you? If you haven’t been leaving a trail of bodies around Saint View, why did you call the meeting?”
X had the decency to look a bit sheepish. “Okay fine. There was maybe one body…”
My groan mixed with those of the others in the room. I scraped a hand through my hair. “Was it at least someone on the list?”
X waved a hand at me dismissively, like I’d insulted him. “What am I? A newbie? I checked his ID. He was on this list.”
Levi squinted as he followed X’s explanations. “So where’s the body now?”
X’s trademark sarcastic grin fit itself back on his face. “He’s just chilling in my truck.”
