Page 10 of Surrender (Angels Halo MC Next Gen)

“My name is Samara,” she corrected without malice, even though I’d felt her tense ever so slightly when he called her “honey.” “And I am more than happy to review everything to date if you need me to, Mr. Kepler.”

She had more patience than I did with the bastard. For the next hour, I listened to her go over everything, from our initial meeting and my original design, to the weeks of adjustments and add-ons, up to that morning and the ideas we’d come up with together.

A few hours working on one project that was more than half complete, and I could already tell we were going to make a great team. I’d never clicked so effortlessly with another intern—hell, another person—so quickly. I couldn’t wait to see how we handled a client together from start to finish.

Which made me realize I only had twelve weeks with her as an intern. Then she would return to NYC to graduate. Move on with her life.

Time had never mattered before, but now it felt like it was rushing past. Like trying to hold back a broken dam with nothing but my fingers.

Shaking that image out of my head, I focused on the present.

If all I got were three short months with her, then I’d make do. We could have a little fun, I’d burn off whatever chaotic need seemed to be gnawing at me, and then she could get back to her life as the Vitucci princess.

Right. I’ll just let her go. Definitely won’t chain her to my bed until she agrees to stay.

A firm knock on my office door had us lifting our heads from the latest prints I was working on for Kepler. Mom opened the door with a frown. “I thought you two would have left by now. When I was on my way out, I noticed both your vehicles still in the lot.”

Popping my neck to relieve some of the strain, I glanced at the clock. Samara groaned. “I had no idea it was that late. I’m supposed to meet Reid for dinner in fifteen minutes.”

I snapped the pencil I was holding in half with my thumb, past the point of irritation, crossing into unfamiliar and unwelcome territory. “Reid probably isn’t done at the site yet. If he even remembered.”

She picked up her phone that she’d switched to silent earlier in the day, a smile teasing at her full lips. “He texted me. Said he’s on his way to Aggie’s now.” She laughed at whatever she was reading and spared me a quick glance. “Do you need me to stay? I can.”

“No, no,” Mom rushed to assure her when I opened my mouth to tell her yes, I needed her to stay.

Stay the fuck away from my damn brother.

“You go on, sweetheart. Have a good time. I can’t remember the last time Reid took a girl out to dinner.”

“That’s because the only place Reid takes a girl is to bed,” I groused. “He doesn’t date. He fucks around.”

“And you’re any better?” Mom shot back with a huff. “Between the two of you, I’m never going to get a daughter-in-law. Rory and I are going to be the only ones without grandbabies to spoil if you boys don’t find someone to settle down with. I swear, I thought you would settle down before Max, but he’s been married for well over a decade now. He gave his mother a sweet daughter-in-law and a grandchild. Who will take over this place when you boys are gone?”

Samara lifted her hands, her eyes wide. “Whoa. This is just dinner,” she laughed but couldn’t completely hide the panic in her eyes.

“Fucking better be,” I muttered under my breath, tossing the broken pencil aside. Pushing my chair back from the table, I stood. “This can wait until tomorrow. I’m starving. Aggie’s sounds like a perfect idea to me. I need some country-fried steak and mashed potatoes.”

“You had red meat yesterday when we grilled at the clubhouse,” Mom called after us. “Chill with the cow. Maybe eat some chicken. And would it kill you to eat a vegetable that isn’t mashed or fried every now and then?”

Samara giggled at my side, the sound heating something in my chest, the sensation rapidly spreading outward. “I’ve missed her so much.”

“We’ve all missed you too, baby girl.”

So fucking much.

CHAPTERFIVE

samara

I steppedinto Aggie’s just as I saw Elias pull into the parking lot. Fighting a giggle, I glanced around in search of Reid. If I had more of a conscience, I might have felt bad about using him to make his brother jealous, but when it came to getting the man I wanted, I’d learned quickly that I didn’t give many fucks about anyone else.

It wasn’t hard to spot Reid, even during the dinner rush. As I did, a flash of red caught my attention. My fellow runner from that morning. She was sitting with a group and was, hands down, the most beautiful of the other girls. Relief that she’d made it through the day hit me like a fist to the sternum.

She laughed when someone said something, but then blue eyes caught mine when she noticed my gaze and gave me another chin lift that I returned. It was easier to ignore the urge to make sure she was safe this time, and I was able to focus on my prey.

Reid’s hair was slightly shaggier than Elias’s, but the same shade of raven’s-wing black. He kept his facial hair short, whereas his younger brother tended to keep his neatly trimmed. Reid was bulkier, proof that he spent most of his time doing hard labor. He was an architect, electrician, and a certified contractor. With the MC cut on over his simple white T-shirt, he gave off an alpha aura that had people glancing his way.

But in my eyes, there was no comparison. Elias was the better catch, the better brother. The better everything.

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