Page 68 of Cassio (Belles & Mobsters 3)

“Mom said you guys wanted me over earlier.” My eyes darted to the mantel where I knew he kept a clock and then as if Hunter was my magnet, my eyes flicked his way again. “Am I too early?”

It was almost six in the evening.

“No, no.” He tried to force a smile onto his face. He was trying not to alarm me but something was definitely wrong.

“Say no one more time,” I joked, though it felt forced to my own ears, “and I will know for sure everything is wrong.” My eyes darted past his shoulder to Margaret. “What’s going on?”

Flickering a gaze back to Hunter, I had a bad feeling about this. A really, really bad feeling. A tight knot formed in my stomach but my mind kept ignoring it.

“Áine, go find your mom,” Jack replied with a fake nonchalant. He was trying hard to maintain his control. “It’s just business here.”

“Then why is Margaret crying?” I said, locking my eyes with him.This is bad, something whispered in my ear.So, so bad.

“Please, kiddo.” Dread pooled in my stomach. Something was definitely wrong. Jack only called me kiddo when he was worried about me.

“Okay,” I said and saw relief wash over his face. “Margaret can come with me though. It’s clear you guys are upsetting her.” And I had to get the scoop on what the fuck was going on here. And why was Hunter here talking to Jack?

Jack closed his eyes but not for long. Just long enough for him to take a deep breath in and exhale. I couldn’t help but compare him using breathing techniques to rein in control the same way I used it to rein in my fear. Jack had a bad temper. So did I. Thankfully, my mother was the reason in this family.

“It’s just some business stuff I’m handling,” Jack grunted. “Now off you go.”

I cocked my eyebrow. He must be out of his mind if he thought I’d scatter now.

“Well, your business stuff is upsetting her. She can come with me and you guys can figure out yourbusiness stuff.Or you can tell me what the fuck is going on.”

I could feel Hunter’s eyes on me, lingering, burning me. As if he was commanding my eyes to be on him. It has been over six weeks since I’d last seen him. Through our text and phone conversations, I thought I got to know him, but now I wasn’t so sure. I wasn’t sure of anything at this very moment.

A magnetic pull and something unexplainable had my eyes searching Hunter out again. His heavy gaze met mine. My eyes dropped to his lips, though at this moment my sixth sense was warning me that I had no right to his lips, his hands, his body.

“Umm, Áine,” Maggie’s voice pulled my attention back to my cousin. “This is the guy,” she tilted her head at Hunter, “I’m supposed to marry.”

I turned my gaze back to Hunter, feeling slightly nauseous. My hands were clammy, my nails digging into the palms, and I realized they curled into fists. I struggled with the revelation that my chance at a normal relationship flew out the window before it even had a chance. Even worse revelation was that I wasjealous.

The frustration at the useless feeling snaked beneath my skin, spreading the ugly green monster through every inch of my body, until it felt like jealousy would eat at me alive.

No, no, no. He’s mine!The voice inside my head was vehement. The intensity of my feelings should scare the shit out of me. It didn’t. The alternative scared me more, the possibility of reverting back to never feel a man’s touch. Hunter’s touch.

My eyes traveled back to Hunter’s dark brown eyes and thick, dark lashes that gave him an intense, brooding expression. My heart skipped a beat and then resumed its rhythm, but it kind of felt different. Like it started all over, to beat just for him.

Jesus. What. The. Hell?

He was Margaret’s fiancé. It was the worst kind ofbetrayal. On my part. On Hunter’s. I swallowed hard. That would be a hard pill to swallow. And the fact that I’d slept with him… Yeah, that would be an even harder pill to swallow. For Margaret.

God help me! It would seem I was fooled. For Christ’s sake, I didn’t even know his last name! I had no fucking clue who Hunter was. Did he know? How could he not; he certainly didn’t seem the type to allow someone else to make arrangements for him.

Oh, sweet Jesus!I felt a horrible headache coming on.

“Áine, Margaret has done something to jeopardize the business arrangement I had.” Jack’s voice held the tension and the slightest clench of his teeth. My spine rigid, I forced my eyes away from Hunter.

Jack’s words sunk in and I frowned. It made no sense. My step-father was adamant about not pulling women into his business. So how could she have jeopardized the business?

“Care to elaborate a bit? Because I’m either leaving with her or not at all.”

I could be just as stubborn as Jack was. When Mom married him, she worried we’d butt heads. Surprisingly, we got along very well. Although there was no shortage of disagreements.

He took a deep breath in and exhaled again.

“Kiddo, it is not regular business stuff. Now is not the time to explain my business arrangements.”

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