Page 51 of Illicit Heir

I skip the niceties, stating, "I need ya to do something, and it needs to stay between us."

Silence fills the air.

I add, "You understand?"

"Brody know? What about Alaina?" he questions.

I flat-out lie to him. "They do. And they don't want ya talking about this to anyone, including them. Do ya understand, or do I need to spell it out?"

The line goes quiet again. He finally asks, "Why do I get the feeling they don't know?"

I reply, "Ya know what? I'll find someone else to do this and report your insubordination to Alaina and Brody."

"No, don't be stupid!" he replies.

"They don't want ya to talk to them or anyone but me about it. This is a test. Can you pass it?" I lie again. But everybody knows Alaina and Brody have been testing many clansmen lately to see who's loyal and can follow orders.

"Of course you can trust me," he answers.

My heart races faster. "Good. There's a lass who runs The Confessional."

"Lauren," he interjects.

The hairs on my arms rise. "Aye, ya know her?"

"Sure, everyone does. She's Caleb's woman," he states.

The disgust I felt when Alaina first told me fills me again. My stomach flips until I feel nauseous.

"Hello," Samuel asks.

"Aye. I'm still here." I refrain from blurting out that she won't be Caleb's for long, even though I know there's no way I can be with her. Yet everything within me tells me I'll be damned if Caleb gets her, not me.

So against everything in my gut, I order, "I want ya to monitor her. If Caleb goes near her, I want to know immediately."

9

Lauren

Six Weeks Later

Four men secure the mirror against the wall. It's the final piece of the rebuild. We had to special order the glass, which was supposed to take a few months. Yet it miraculously arrived today.

Pride fills me as I assess the pub. It makes me happy to see everything back in place and even better than it was before. And ever since I created the new rules, people have been on their best behavior.

There was only one incident where someone started getting out of hand, but Ronin stepped up. All he had to do was give one warning and, to my surprise, it stopped. My mum's even secretly happy, although she still won't admit it.

The head installation guy holds a clipboard in front of me and says, "I need you to sign here."

I scribble my name next to the X, stand back, and put my hand on my hip, staring at my reflection.

Mum states, "Looks beautiful, doesn't it?"

"It does," I confirm.

"I guess ya finally spent my money," Caleb's voice booms, and a chill runs down my spine.

I spin and snap, "What are ya talking about? This isn't due to your money."

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