Page 25 of Poisoned Pawn

“You mean Aidan Kavanagh?”

“Yes, my brother—”

“And I’m the fucking Little Mermaid. But to answer your question, they’re fine.”

I let out a sigh of relief, but I know they’ll be going crazy. I imagine Aidan has people out looking for me right now, tearing the city apart.

“Well, you,Ariel, are out of your depth,” I snark back at him.

He takes a sharp right turn and I almost end up in his lap.

“What’s the matter? The Lawler-Kavanagh princess sounds pissed off.”

“Fuck you! I ain’t no princess.”

He slams on the breaks, and the car skids to a halt. “No? Then how about you climb down from that ivory tower of yours and understand that the people trying to kill you don’t give a flying fuck about your sister or yourbrother”—He emphasises the word brother and makes it sound like a slur—“outside of getting whatever the fuck it is they want. And right now, that means you dead.”

He pulls the keys from the ignition and gets out. He leans down to look at me still inside the car. “Time to get out,princess.” He slams the door shut and walks away.

CHAPTERNINE

CARTER

“Time to get out,princess.” I slam the car door closed and head for the house. “Fucking brother, like that shit is going to save her arse,” I mumble, opening the front door and turning off the alarm system as I enter. I look back over my shoulder and see she’s finally out of the car but not moving with any urgency, which pisses me off even more. Spinning on my heel, I march back outside straight to her as she rounds the front of the car. Her mouth opens but before she can say a word, I have her tossed over my shoulder and the only thing that comes out is a high-pitched squeak.

Back inside the house, I dump her arse on the sofa then back track to close the front door and reactivate the security system. The verbal assault I was expecting doesn’t come.

I stop in front of her and hold my hand out. “Bag,” I demand.

She tilts her head to look up at me, and although she might not be verbalising her displeasure, it is more than clear on her face. She shrugs the rucksack off her back and practically throws it into my hand.

“Nothing to say, princess?” Her lips remain tightly closed as she relaxes back on the sofa and crosses her arms. “Have it your way. You’ll talk soon enough.” I stride away, checking the bag as I go. It seems the little princess is packing. Most probably stashed it in my hoodie. That begs the question of why she didn’t use it when I snuck up on her. In my bedroom, I quickly switch out the rucksack for a bigger bag and pack some extra things. Something tells me that I’m going to need it. We won’t be safe here for nearly as long as I’d have liked.

Back at the restaurant, I know that Roxy spotted me going out the back door after I took out the guy outside the toilets. And, if they haven’t already, once they see the security footage from Star’s house, it won’t take them long to identify me.

I send a message to Koda telling him I’ll be going off grid for a while but will be in touch when I can. I don’t tell him where because that would be a rookie mistake no matter how much I think he’s trustworthy.

I try Lev again too, but he’s still not answering. I need to go to my office, but it’ll have to wait. I carry the bag out and drop it near the cupboard in the hall before going back to the lounge. Star is still sitting where I left her, and I watch her for a couple of minutes. She’s got her head down and is picking at something on my hoodie. I don’t like the feeling seeing her in my clothes does to me. I don’t like any of the feelings this girl seems to induce in me.

Feelings are something that I left behind in a bloodbath sixteen years ago.

Instead of heading to the lounge, I go to the kitchen and grab a couple of bottles of water from the fridge first. I hold one out to her as I pass. She startles, only a fraction, but I see it.

“Thank you,” she says unscrewing the cap and gulping down half of it.

“She speaks,” I mutter as I take a seat in the chair opposite her. She rolls her eyes and plants the bottle between her legs. “Tell me something—”

“I’m not telling you anything until you tell me who you are?”

“Someone you don’t want to know.”

“A little late for that, wouldn’t you say.” She raises a brow as she slowly traces a finger around the top of the bottle.

“Screwing in a sex club doesn’t mean we know each other.” She looks away, swallowing uneasily, and a blush colours her cheeks. From her reaction, I can tell sex makes her uncomfortable, at least talking about it. Now that’s a surprise.

“But you know me. My name and where I live, but I don’t know yours. How?”

I push down the urge to get up, to crowd her and push her boundaries and make her squirm.

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