Page 57 of A Forbidden Love (Fraser Crime Syndicate 3)

Her words seem to surprise her brother. Kane looks at her as if she has lost her mind. I’m wondering the same. I will never allow her to give up her family for me. She needs them, and I won’t be the reason she doesn’t have them. “You’d take this dirty little fucker over your own family?”

“I don’t want to choose at all,” she says quietly. “I love you, Kane, and I love Zeke, and I love Lucas, but I also love Ryan.”

Kane strikes out like a snake snapping at its prey. His hand wraps around my throat, and he slams me against the wall behind me. It’s enough to dislodge the air from my lungs and make it hard to take in a breath. I don’t fight him, even as he squeezes my windpipe. I stare at him defiantly, knowing where I stand on the side of the argument, and knowing what I will do to fight to keep my woman.

Aurelia tries to pull him off. He does even react to her attempts. Instead, he fixes his angry gaze on me.

“You were trusted.” He slams his fist into my side. I let out an ‘oof’, my body trying to twist out of his reach. “We gave her to you to protect, not as your plaything.”

He hits me again, and Aurelia screams. “Stop it! Leave him alone!” He slams his fist into my gut again. He hits me hard enough that it feels as if he’s tickling under my ribs. Aurelia pulls at him, doing everything she can to free me. I shoot her a look to stay back. I don’t want her to get hurt. She ignores me.

“How long has this been going on for?”

“More or less since I moved in with her.”

He clamps his jaw tight, murmuring the word fucker under his breath. “How far has it gone?”

“That’s none of your fucking business,” Aurelia snaps at him. “Let him go.”

Kane shrugs her off, his movements a little rough. It pisses me off. He can want to kill me, can even try, but he doesn’t get to touch her in anger.

“You’re going to hurt your sister,” I warn in a low voice. If she is so much as bruised, I will lose my fucking mind.

Leaning into me, Kane gets inches from my face as he hisses, “Have you fucked her?”

“Kane!” Aurelia gasps.

“Have you?” he roars in my face. I’ve never seen him lose control. Kane is usually the epitome of calm when he’s delivering justice. A tingle of unease whispers through me. Not for me, but for Aurelia. I don’t think he would intentionally hurt her, but the look in his eyes tells me he’s not exactly collected at the minute.

“Yes,” I admit. I won’t lie. I took her to bed, knowing the consequences. At some point, this moment was always going to come. We were always going to be standing in this position, Kane wanting to rip my fucking head off.

“I’m going to gut you for this. I’m going to rip your intestines out through your fucking mouth.”

There’s a knife in his hand suddenly. I see the glint of metal before it’s placed under my chin. He presses it against my skin, and I feel blood start to dribble down my throat. Aurelia is crying. I hate hearing her so upset. She tries again to pull him away, her eyes wide and afraid.

“Stop! Kane, please, stop!”

“What the fuck is going on?” Zeke demands, stepping into the room. Luke is on his heels, his expression just as confused.

Kane doesn’t release his hold on me. He doesn’t even unlock his eyes from mine. “This little slimy fucker has fucked our sister.”

I don’t dare look in Zeke’s direction. Of all the brothers, he is the one I’m closest to. I was his bodyguard for a long time, had his back more times than I can count, and we developed some kind of friendship. What I did with the Aurelia was the ultimate betrayal of his trust. He gave me over to his sister’s protection because he trusted me to be an honourable man. I do feel some guilt over what I’ve done, but my love for her is too strong for it to completely overwhelm me.

It seems as if the room takes a collective intake of breath. Zeke’s eyes narrow on mine. “Is this true?” The timbre of his voice tells me how upset he is by this.

Before I can say a word, Aurelia steps between me and her other two brothers. “If you lay a hand on him, I will never forgive you.”

“What the hell were you thinking?” Luke asks, and I’m not sure if he’s talking to his sister or me. “You had to know this was never going to end well.”

I watch as her chest heaves up and down, panic making her eyes dart around. “Why bother to free me if you’re only going to dictate my choices anyway? I might as well have just married that stupid old Lord.”

“Did he force you?” Zeke demands through gritted teeth. It’s a smack to the gut that he would even think me capable of that.

“Of course not,” Aurelia snaps. “He was there for me when I needed someone. He helped me, made me realise that I am more than just what my mother believes me to be, more than what you believe me to be too. You can be angry all you want, but I found a man who treats me with respect, who will never demand that I am nothing more than his whore, who won’t pass me around his fucking friends and assault me in front of strangers. I found a man who loves me. A man who would give his life to protect me. And yet you think he coerced me? Do you honestly think, Zeke, I am that incapable of my own thoughts that I would just allow a man to force me into bed?”

Luke’s nose wrinkles at her words. “Fucking hell, I do not want to imagine you in bed with anyone.” He rubs at his temple as if he’s getting a headache.

Zeke grabs her arm. I see red. I don’t care that he’s not hurting her. He has his hands on her. I haven’t tried to fight Kane, but in this moment, I unleash my full potential. In a quick move, I grab the knife from Kane and unarm him. I don’t want to hurt him, but I slam my fist into his gut, making him stagger back. Then I reach out and shove Zeke back, pulling his sister behind me.

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