Page 23 of Coal
Only when I was happy that we were secure did I start the meeting. Banging the gavel on the table, I state, “Meeting’s now in session.”
Immediately, everyone settles down and turns to look at me. “This meeting is to bring Tinman and Sterling up to date, as the rest of you were with me.”
I lay out what happened while we were in Ireland, the shift in leadership, and why I married Thea, although my reasons formarriage were shifting as the days passed.
When I was done, Sterling asks, “What do you need from us, Pres? I’m assuming that Thea is a wanted commodity.”
Rubbing my hand over my face as tiredness pulls at me, I’m not sure if Thea’s aware of how much danger she’s in or not, but her brother had pulled me aside after we got married and told me that there had been attempts to kidnap her over the years. But as nobody knew where she lived and that she rarely left the family property, it had been easy to stop the attempts.
“She is, and I’m not sure if she realises how much. We haven’t had that conversation yet. Her brother has covered up our marriage, but I’d like you to wipe anything out that you can find to make sure there’s no trail leading to us. She’ll need to be covered wherever she goes. My wife has talents that are not easy to come by. Once I’ve spoken to her to find out how much she knows and that she’s aware of the danger to her, we can make a plan to keep her and Shea safe. I find my wife is a very reasonable woman, and I doubt she’ll mind any security measures we put into place for them. The one good thing that her father did was keep her unregistered as his daughter, and he homeschooled her. She evenhad Shea at home, and she’s unregistered, too.”
“Do you want me to put paperwork in place with your name on it?” Sterling asks.
I don’t have to think about my answer. I nod, “Yeah, brother.”
Sterling nods, “Consider it done, Pres.”
I didn’t want to know how he’d do it, but I have full faith that he would.
“Appreciate it, Sterling. Next order of business. Thea needs somewhere to work. She asks that it be away from the main buildings, as she has to do tests, so the building will need to be soundproofed. Blue, do you think you can ask the O’Sheas who we can use? They’d have to keep their mouths shut.”
Blue nods, “Of course, Pres.”
“Tinman, can you find somewhere that you think is suitable, and we’ll get Thea out there to have a look at it? She’s brought her most important tools with her, but I imagine she’ll need more. With that in mind, how are our funds looking?” I turn to Nickel and ask.
Nickel flicks through the tablet on the table for a minute before his eyes widen and he clears his throat, “We’re looking pretty damnhealthy, Pres. Crow Investments have grown our earnings exponentially, and that doesn’t include the money we’re laundering through the businesses. We’ll have enough. I’ll get it all up to date and share it at the next meeting.”
“Excellent. Any questions?”
The brothers shake their heads as most of them had been with me. They were already up to speed. My attention is drawn to the screen in the background where Thea sits chatting with my mom and Opal, who is sitting on the floor playing with Shea. The need to get them to my home fills me with urgency. Picking up the gavel, I tap the table.
“Meeting ended. Enjoy the night off. We’ll start planning tomorrow.”
Chairs scrape back as the brothers stand up to leave. I wait until they have all filed out. My eyes flit to the words on the wall that the Cursed Skulls had inscribed. The words make me feel better, knowing that we weren’t alone in this war. Because that’s what it was: a war against the darkest, most evil people that lived.
The brothers appear on the screen, some going towards the bar, others to the kitchen where I knew Mom would have laid food out. Myimmediate family gravitate towards the women in the corner, and my lips kick up a little as Nickel bends and swoops Shea up, flying her over his head and making her laugh, but what caught me was the soft look on Thea’s face as she watched them. Bolt sits down next to her on the arm of the couch, and she turns and smiles at him before turning her attention back to Shea, who’d been passed to Copper.
She’s tough, my woman, but she had to be missing her family, as close-knit as they are. We’re strangers to her, but she’s fit in seamlessly, as if she were made for this. She throws her head back and laughs at something Bolt says to her, then presses her forehead to his arm, her shoulders shaking with laughter. He says something else, and she slaps his arm, making me grin and wonder what he’s telling her. With Bolt, you never could tell. The need to get my hands on her overwhelms me. Pushing my chair back, I stand, switching the screen off. I walk out of the room, securing it behind me.
The common room is loud with laughter and chatter as I walk towards Thea. Tugging gently on a curl, I lean over the couch as she tilts her head back to look at me. All traces of tears have vanished, and she’s smiling wide, brown eyesclear and happy. Lowering my head, I brush my lips to hers. The slight hum she makes in the back of her throat has my cock hardening in my jeans.
“Are you ready to head home?” I ask her.
“If you are,” she replies with a smile.
“I’m ready, baby,” I reply, standing up. “We’re out,” I tell everyone, reaching towards Copper. I pluck Shea from his arms. She immediately snuggles her head into my neck.
“We’ll see you tomorrow,” Mom murmurs. “If you need anything for Shea or for the house, make a list and we’ll get it done,” she informs Thea.
“I will, Maggie, thank you,” Thea replies with a smile as she stands, walking around the couch towards me.
Snagging her hand, I wrap my fingers around hers as we walk out of the clubhouse. Thea waves as everyone calls goodbye. I make straight for her vehicle and get Shea situated and strapped in, closing the door before turning towards Thea, who is waiting by the open driver’s side for me.
I’m not sure what the fuck is wrong with me, but the need to get my hands on her overwhelmsme as I wrap my hands around her neck and tilt her face up to mine. My thumbs caress the sides of her cheeks. My cock pulses in my jeans when she turns startled brown eyes to me. Her hands come up to grip my wrists, but not to remove my hands. No, she tightens her grasp on them, keeping my hands where they are.
Scratch that; I knew exactly what was wrong with me. I’d seen this my entire life with how my father was with my mother, then Red and his Old Lady, Cash and Lizzie, and more recently Maestro and Stacey. Possessiveness that I hadn’t expected flows through me. I can’t wait to have my cut on her back and my name tattooed on her finger.
“Fuck, baby, I can’t seem to keep my hands off you,” I groan, pressing a hard kiss to her lips before continuing. “My house isn’t far; it’s just down that road hidden behind those trees,” I motion with my chin towards the road lined with the static mobile homes that the brothers live in.
