Page 85 of Love Thy Brother
Rubi rolled his eyes and turned to Alexei. “Your ex-boss won’t put a hit out on you for that?”
Alexei was silent a moment. He glanced at Cam, then shook his head. “I can help you. It will keep me occupied while the rest of you make a big and noisy mess out of something simple.”
Rubi touched his chest in mock outrage. “Noisy? Moi? How very fucking dare you?”
Cam cleared his throat. “What about Viktor?”
Who?The name meant nothing to me. But whoever he was caused a stir around the table.
A stir inAlexei. He daggered Cam with a glare that made me sink back in my seat. “What about Viktor?”
Cam spread his hands, a placating gesture that did nothing to ease the ice in Alexei’s grey eyes. “I’m just wondering how he’s gonna fit into all this, seeing as he’s popped up in everything this past fucking year and I’m sick of the goddamn sight of him.”
“That will not be a problem. Viktor is operating—how do you say?Upnorth, as if English people do not know which direction that is.”
“I’m Irish. And how the fuck do you know that?”
“Elves spoke to me. Seriously, biker boy. Who do you know that has eyes and ears in the north?”
Cam cut his gaze to Saint. “You never told me.”
Saint ignored him, typing on his phone.
Alexei laughed. “Perhaps you shouldtalkmore when you’re together.”
For fuck’s sake. I’d signed up for an hour of being reasonable. Not to watch my brother and his lovers fuckingflirt.
I moved to stand.
Big hands held me down.
Rubi’shands. He’d moved and I hadn’t noticed.
Fucking weed. Couldn’t deny I dug the eerie calm inside me, though. For the first time in forever, my soul felt smooth, as if the bitter cracks had healed over. Wouldn’t be long before they fissured open again, but I’d worry about that later.
I’d worry abouteverythinglater, just as soon as Rubi’s palms weren’t scorching a hole in my skin.
“All right.” Cam reached for the gavel my dad had rescued from a skip in Kilkenny. “Alexei’s gonna handle Timmersons. That leaves the rest of us to sort this shitshow in Porth Luck. Nash, call Martel. Em, you need to go to the clubs and put your ear to the ground.”
Embry brought the front legs of his chair to the floor with a crash, distaste curling his lips. He didn’t protest, but I’d heard enough council gossip to know he didn’t enjoy hanging around strip clubs.
“What about me?” Mateo asked.
Cam shook his head. “You’re benched.”
“The fuck?”
“You have a kid in school and another on the way. This shit ain’t in your job description anymore.”
Mateo opened his mouth.
I cut him off. “I’ll take his place.”
“Hell to the fuck no,” Rubi growled.
But Cam held up his hand. “Fine. Whatever. But right now, that means doing nothing until we have more information. If you can’t do that, or anything else I ask you to as long as this bullshit strings out, I’ll fucking bench you too.”
He pounded the old gavel on the ancient table and walked away before anyone could argue with him, leaving awkward silence in his wake until Nash left too.
