Page 11 of Tastes Like Misery

“Considering she was moments away from riding my dick, I doubt the little vixen is beholden to loverboy over there.”

Dane threw his head back and laughed, “She stopped as soon as she saw me. I’ve got that pussy wrapped around my finger. Vivian will fall in line and watching her will be spectacular. You saw how she pointed that gun at me with no hesitation. I have no doubt she would have pulled the trigger. It was fucking glorious.”

“You’re delusional,” I muttered before straightening to my full height. “You all but admitted she would have killed you. How the fuck are we supposed to trust someone who wants you dead?”

“But she doesn’t want me dead now. I gave her a better option,” he again waved me off as if the seconds from his life ending were nothing.

“Finn,” I tried, “You know damn well this idea of his is wrong.”

“She wants out of here. Desperately. Can’t say I blame her. A woman like that, who is like us, would do anything to stop from feeling like this place is suffocating her. We all saw the way she had no fear despite being completely alone with three men who could take her down, one of us already having set her up to go to jail.”

“She wouldn’t have gone to jail. He wouldn’t have even called the cops,” Dane corrected Finn.

“Yeah, but she didn’t know it,” he shrugged before adding, “I talked to her before you assholes showed up. She gave me more information in that short time than I’d gotten baking in the sun all day. Without me asking for it. If she was in on it, a part of this gang, just imagine all the information she could give us. She grew up here, knows these people. You can’t get that kind of intel sitting behind a computer screen.”

“Exactly, she knows them,” I argued. “You really think she’s going to turn on the people she’s known all her life? When it comes down to it, she wouldn’t pull the trigger like she would have with Dane, a stranger.”

“I think after the night we had, I’m no stranger to Vivian,” Dane’s eyes went dark, and I knew he was thinking of their night together.

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I let out a growl. Common sense wasn’t getting through to my friend, and it seemed Finn was taking his side. They would fuck it all up and we’d be in jail for the rest of our lives. If we made it out. I gave up arguing, stomping out and slamming the door behind me.

The darkness shocked me, and it took a few minutes for my eyes to adjust to only the bright stars and moon to light the path. It was a far cry from the neon lights I was used to. Trying to calm my rage, I inhaled a breath, only to cough as the smell of shit assaulted my nose.

It was eerily quiet, with no other humans for miles. The horses had long been locked up in their stalls by the ranch hands and probably sleeping. Well, if horses did, in fact, sleep at night. I had no idea how these farm animals worked. All I knew was that they were quiet. The men would be here in the early morning hours and that’s when this silence would be over. I almost looked forward to it. The lack of noise was unnerving.

I missed Vegas, the hustle and bustle, the noise, the predictability. Everyone wanted something, and no one could be trusted. Hell, I didn’t even trust Dane or Finn, and they were my best friends. How the fuck they expected me to trust some chick was beyond me. Sure, she was hot, but so were thousands of other women in Vegas. Flash a little cash and their panties came off. Like hell, I was jealous of Dane and his little one-night stand.

Kicking a stone, I heard the back door open and footsteps head my way. “I’m not in the mood to talk about this chick,” I sighed heavily.

“No, but you can listen,” Finn answered gruffly. When I didn’t say anything, he continued with his rational bullshit, “I spent a couple hours with her talking before you two showed up. She hates this place and wants to get out, but is stuck. It seems she doesn’t like anyone here. She has this fire in her, something like what I saw with Dane when I started training him. Vivian would be good to have in our little gang. She smells better than you fuckers, anyway.”

I whipped around, knowing exactly what he was about to do with her, and I would snap some sense into him. “Yeah? And what the hell is that going to do? You think Dane is going to let you touch her? Everything we’ve planned will fall apart if either one of us does anything he doesn’t like with her.”

Throwing his hands up in the air, he raised his voice, “Come on, Ollie. We’ve all fucked the same girls, and it’s never been a problem. Dane doesn’t do jealousy when it comes to pussy.”

I laughed hollowly, “We’ve never seen him so interested in a woman before either. We all fuck and dump. That’s our style. But this one, he is almost obsessed. He’d burn the world down for her after one night. What do you think will happen if she’s initiated into our group?”

“Bullshit.”

“I saw the way he tensed up when we walked in on you two in the bar. He was one step away from pummeling you,” I retorted, as an idea formed in my mind. “If you both are so fucking insistent on this, fine. I’ll allow it, but on my terms.”

My boots kicked up dirt as I sauntered back to the house, a wicked smile blooming on my face as I approached Dane. He was sitting in a large stuffed chair with a bottle of whiskey in his hand, staring at the pictures above the unlit fireplace. Whatever was on his mind had him in a stupor since he didn’t look up as I approached, just taking a swig straight from the bottle with a murderous look on his face.

“I have terms for Vivian joining us,” I announced, and his eyes flashed to me. Finn spread out on the couch, kicking his feet up on the table, eyeing me with distrust.

In a bored tone, Dane’s voice could barely be heard, “And what are your demands, oh wise one?” Without taking his eyes off mine, he took another swig and waited.

Clearing my throat, I grinned. One of my best plans yet, “Absolutely no sensitive information goes to her until I decide she’s ready and willing to be initiated under my terms. Those terms are that she has to become close with all of us to ensure she doesn’t spill her guts if she’s caught.”

“Close how?” Dane tried to keep his voice steady, but I could hear the growing jealousy in it.

“I know Finn wants to fuck her. I wouldn’t be opposed, but I haven’t spent any time trying to find out if she’s worth the effort for more than a one-nighter. But seeing how she melted both of your cold, dead hearts, it seems I might enjoy something more with the woman.”

Finn shot up, trying to intimidate me with his height, except I knew the game too well to back off. Still, he tried, “She’s not a prostitute for us to use like that.”

“Defending the lady’s honor already,” I chuckled before crossing my arms over my chest. I would not bend on this and he was about to get a shock. “Back in the day, you know how some of the most vicious gangs would allow a man’s girlfriend in his life?”

“No,” Finn’s jaw dropped as he realized what I was asking for.

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