Page 6 of Wolf Fated
"I've got a good feeling about this, babe, come on." But his face was full of brooding anger, his nostrils flared, and his eyes narrowed. "I gave you that damn ring, I can take it back." Then as if seeing my shock, he smiled. "I'll buy you a bigger one."
"That's not the point." My lip trembled. How could he think so less of my ring—of our wedding—to do this?
"I'm not asking." He grabbed my wrist, yanking my hand out and pulling the ring off. "Sentimental bitch." Stalking back to the table, he slammed his palm down with my engagement ring onto the table. "There. And if that ain't enough, I've got our wedding rings in my suitcase. Should be a couple thousand for each."
Drake scoffed. "I can tell from here that isn't a diamond, man. Who you think you're fooling?"
Not a diamond? What is he talking about?
"I haven't got anything else."
I turned to leave, but Stephen grabbed my hand squeezing. Under his breath he said, “I’ll buy you a bigger, prettier ring when we win, okay?”
All I could do was nod or I’d start crying. I wanted my ring back, I didn’t need a fancy, expensive one.
"Then you fold?" Nathan uncurled the paper off the end of the cigar.
"Fuck no."
"Care to wager something more precious than diamond or gold or all this money here?" Nathan asked, looking straight at Stephen.
"Anything. What do you have in mind?" Stephen leaned back, his posture belying the waves of unease washing off him so strong I could smell his musky deodorant.
Then Nathan's gaze moved past Stephen to me, followed by Axel's and Drake's. Suddenly it was so hot in the room.
"If you win, then you get everything on the table and you and your girl live happily ever after." Nathan's mouth curled at the sides. "But if you lose, you give us thirty days with Brook, no questions asked."
3
"What?" I practically screeched. "No fucking way."
Stephen held up a hand like I was some petulant child. "Let's hear them out."
A chill wrapped around me. "Stephen—”
"Shut up and let's give them a chance to explain." He didn't even look at me, didn't even wrap his arm around me to comfort me.
"As Nathan was saying." Axel took out a tool from his pocket, snipping off the end of his own cigar. "Let us have your bride-to-be. Her mind, soul, and body for thirty days."
"Rape?" I choked out.
"No." His face darkened.
I backed up a step, swearing that I had the same adrenaline pumping through me that I did when a pit bull chased me ten blocks on my way home from school.
"But if you wanted pleasure, we'd provide."
All three of them?I couldn't ask if he meant the three of them having sex with me at once because my face was heating up so much that I thought I’d spontaneously combust.
"And if I win?" Stephen asked.
"I'm not finished." Axel slammed his hand down on the table and the chips tumbled across the table. "At the end of the thirty days, if Brook still wants to be your wife and you want her, then you both get all of the money you see here."
Stephen laughed. "That's it? All she has to do is have fun with you three and then we take all of this?"
Was he laughing because he was fixing to tell them off or because he really was considering this? I couldn’t believe he’d even give them a second of his time before refusing.
Axel nodded.
