Chapter 8
8
E lodie
I gape at the blond. He looks so much like his brother, it’s disconcerting. Identical twins. Like Jaeger, he’s scarily hot. But while Jaeger inspires comfort and lust, this man, with the same face, only makes me feel terror. I’m shaking as I lean against the wall outside the bathroom.
“What do you have to say for yourself?” He’s standing too close. Jaeger’s up in my space all the time, but I’ve gotten used to it. I even long for it, whereas my body reads this guy as a pure, unadulterated threat. We’re in a dark hallway where only fellow members of Fraternitas will hear a cry for help.
“Hmm?” Jaeger’s brother prompts.
“I didn’t.” I squeak. Me, trap Jaeger? More like the other way around. But how can I explain that to him? Fear is twisting my stomach so much I want to puke.
He lifts a hand, and I cringe, only for him to stroke the gold stubble on his chin. His skull ring sits prominently on his middle finger. The shadows in the eye sockets go down forever.
“Kaiser.” Jaeger appears at the end of the hall.
I can’t stop the forceful flood of relief at the sight of him loping toward me. He lifts me into his arms, and I cling to him. Kaiser glares at me, but I’m safe in his brother’s arms. I have the feeling that the only reason he hasn’t snapped my neck and left me for dead is because Jaeger is here. It makes me grip Jaeger tighter.
“This is Elodie,” Jaeger says. “Elodie, this is my brother, Kaiser.”
Kaiser and I say nothing to each other.
“She should not be here,” Kaiser tells Jaeger while still staring at me like he hopes his gaze will incinerate me. I don’t even try to stare him down. A rabbit can’t stare down a wolf.
“She’s with me.”
Kaiser transfers his glare to his brother. There’s another intense staring match. This time, the opponents are equally matched. I can only hope the twin holding me wins.
“She belongs here,” Jaeger says, and it unsettles me. I feel like he’s talking about more than us having lunch here this one time.
“We’ll see,” Kaiser says and walks away. His shadow stretches down the corridor. At the end, he slams a door.
Well, that’s not ominous at all.
“Are you all right?”
I clutch him harder. I’ve never been the intense object of hate of someone I’ve just met.
“It’s all right. Kaiser would never hurt you.”
I can’t be so sure.
Back at the booth, our table is full of food. I sit and wring my hands as Jaeger inhales a steak the size of a dinner plate.
“You’re not eating.” He frowns and pushes a dish of mashed potatoes my way.
I shrug.
“Here.” He leans down and grabs a black briefcase, sliding it across the table. “This will make you feel better.”
I open it, half expecting to see plastic baggies filled with tempting little pills. Instead, it’s stacks and stacks of hundred-dollar bills.
“What is this?” I ask stupidly. I have the crazy feeling I should snap the case shut and hide it in case the Feds are watching our illicit trade.
“Your payment.”
I do some mental math, but my mind blanks. This is way more than ten thousand dollars.
“One hundred thousand,” Jaeger says helpfully. “You can count it. St. James won’t be offended.”
St. James. Right, that shark is involved in all this. The less time he spends thinking of me, the better.
I close the briefcase and push it away. “I didn’t make it until dawn.”
“Didn’t you?” He smiles when I stare at him.
Does he mean, ‘Did I survive him?’ I guess I did. I lived until dawn. He didn’t kill me and leave me in the woods.
I know, deep down, that had been an option. But somehow, I’ve avoided that fate. In that sense, I did earn the money.
All of a sudden, I’m not afraid anymore. I’m mad.
I take the briefcase and set it at my side, holding his gaze the whole time. “With this money, I could leave you.”
“You could try,” he murmurs. “You wouldn’t get far. You’re hurt, remember?”
“I won’t always be hurt.” This is reckless, but I’m past caring. I feel the same way I had in that moment in the woods, when I was sick of running and stopped to challenge him.
“You’re right. You’ll heal up fast.” He leans close enough that I can pick out the dark striations in his stormy eyes. “That’s when you’ll find out if you take more than a few steps away from me, I’ll hunt you down. And you know how good I am at hunting.”
My heart trips and adrenaline careens through my body, flipping every switch to give it a turbo boost of energy. But my pussy thinks it’s go-time. Jaeger’s lips are close to mine, his wintry scent suffusing my lungs. Arousal pounds in my core, leaving me soaked.
“You can’t get away,” Jaeger taunts, a happy look on his flawless face. He looks almost angelic with his serene smile and gilt hair.
“Fuck you,” I say loud enough for the men at the bar to turn.
Jaeger’s blue eyes light up. “Definitely. That was always the plan.”
Jaeger
My bunny refuses to talk to me the whole way home. I thought she’d be happy at being handed such a healthy sum of money, but it only brought more worries.
She’s used to worrying. Life has not been kind to her. I hope to be a shield for her, a safe place in the storm.
I carry her into my penthouse, ready to strip her down and fuck her. A nice, hard fuck always makes her feel better.
As soon as the lights come on, illuminating the apartment, she gasps. There are a few new additions to the place, starting with two blooming orchids on pedestal stands on either side of the entryway.
“Where did these come from?” I pause to let her touch one of the orchid’s soft purple petals.
“Do you like them?” She said she wanted to make changes to the penthouse. I paid the shop to send their best decorator along with the home goods purchases she made. The decorator had free rein to add a few of their own touches as well.
Judging by the awestruck look on Elodie’s face, it was worth it.
“They’re beautiful.” I wait until she’s looked her fill and carry her into the living space. The space is transformed. There are more plants—ferns and shit like that—placed in corners, and scented candles cast a soft light over the space. The three throw pillows Elodie picked out are arranged on the couch, with more throw pillows on each chair and fuzzy blankets draped over the arms of the chairs.
Elodie’s eyes are alight. I set her down, and she clutches a pillow to her chest, taking it all in. “When did all this happen?”
“While we were at lunch. I had the shop deliver it.”
She wrinkles her nose. “How?”
I drop a kiss on her forehead. She’s too adorable. “Money.” Money can do anything. “Do you like it?”
“I do.”
Her mood seems lighter, so I squeeze the back of her neck, holding her still as I claim her lips. This is all for you . I need to tell her that she can make any changes she likes. This is your home now.
A text, followed by a rap on the door, tells me Atticus is outside. I let him in and bring him to Elodie. I’m still carrying the briefcase full of Elodie’s cash, so I leave them to it and head to my nearest safe. I have many of them around the penthouse and more scattered throughout the city, filled with caches of weapons, jewels, alternate identities, and money in several denominations.
“I meant to come this morning, but there was an emergency,” Atticus is telling Elodie.
“It’s fine.” She holds out her arm and lets him swab it for a shot. He convinced her to allow him to give her an infusion of vitamins and painkillers, a healing cocktail of his own design.
I sense her gaze on me and turn to show her the safe hidden behind some wall paneling. “The password is your birthday.” I set the briefcase inside. She can access it at any time.
If she uses it to escape me, she won’t get far, but it will ease her mind to know it’s there.
When she’s more settled, I’ll show her the options she can invest in. St. James runs several hedge funds under different shell companies. He’s the reason Fraternitas has real wealth. With his help, the brotherhood has been transformed from a back alley gang to a real power in the city with diverse and legitimate enterprises. He’s structured the organization so everyone in Fraternitas shares in the profits, which makes us all multi-millionaires.
St. James can do the same for her. Investing in his companies will increase her savings to a few million in just a few years.
But there’ll be time to explain all that. My bunny is skittish in her new habitat and needs time to adjust.
I sink onto the couch next to Elodie, careful not to jostle her. As she and Atticus talk, I play with her curls.
“I still recommend you stay off the ankle,” Atticus says. “It’s looking better, but you’re not out of the woods yet.”
Elodie’s shoulders tense. “What about work?”
“I talked to Lucy,” I interrupt. Lucy runs Inferno. “She’ll hold your job until you’re healed.” After I claim Elodie, she’ll have no need for a job, but she seems friendly with the other waitresses. I don’t want to disrupt her whole life or interfere with her relationships.
I just want to be the only man in her life. And make her happy.
Elodie frowns. “You had no right,” she says.
“Lucy likes me. And you seemed stressed about it. I thought I’d explain things for you.”
She sighs but doesn’t say any more. She’s starting to learn how it’ll be from now on: when life is rocky, I’ll do anything to clear obstacles out of her way.
“Sounds like you have the all-clear to rest and heal,” Atticus says. “Avoid any activities that would stress your ankle.”
“What about sex?” I ask him while watching my bunny closely.
Elodie’s mouth falls open, and a flush creeps over her freckled cheeks.
Atticus is unruffled. He treats all manner of wounds, from the fight club members to the dancers at Inferno, not to mention the club submissives at the Lodge and St. James’ other BDSM club, Club Empire. “Sex is fine.”
I’m enjoying the ripe red glow of Elodie’s blush, so I add, “Anything we should avoid? Like spanking?”
“That’s between you and her.” Atticus gives me a level look. “As far as I’m concerned, she can spank you as much as you like.”
Ha. Ha. I give him a cold smile. He smirks, tossing a bunch of condoms on the coffee table, along with a few packets of lube. “Have fun,” he says. I walk him to the door and lock the door behind him before prowling back to Elodie’s side.
She’s frowning again. “We need to talk.”
I pounce. “Later.” I strip off her sweater before she can fight me. “I’m going to make you feel good.”
“Jaeger,” she growls, and I kiss her neck, feeling her pulse jump under my lips. Thumbing her nipples through her new satin bra, she shivers. I plant kisses from her throat to her breastbone and stroke her soft belly.
“I’ve missed this.” I unzip the side of her skirt and peel it down enough to release her scent. Her perfume blooms around me, making my mouth water.
“Missed what? We’ve been together.” She gives me a surly look. “All day.”
“My bunny doesn’t like change.” I kiss between her breasts and scrape my stubbled chin on her tender skin until she squirms. “She needs to feel safe.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“No?” I rise and pull a small velvet pouch out of my pocket. I shake the ring she wanted into my palm, and she gasps. I take her hand and slide it onto her left ring finger.
I’ve never cared for tradition or ceremony, but there’s something satisfying about collaring her in this way. The pink stone gives off a subtle gleam in the setting of sparkling diamonds. Mine.
“You bought it.” She’s awestruck again, staring at the ring.
I shrug. “You wanted it.” What my woman wants, she gets.
She fiddles with the ring as if she’s reluctant to accept it but likes the look of it too much to remove it. She clutches her hand to her chest and worries her lip. “I can pay you back.”
I rear back. “No.” I glower at her, offended she would offer. “You’re my woman. You don’t pay for anything. Ever.”
“I’m… your woman?” Her brow furrows. She’s back to twisting the ring around her finger, thinking hard. “Is this payment?”
“What?”
She holds up her hand, showing off the ring. “Is this my payment for sleeping with you again?”
Anger suffuses my chest so quickly I’m speechless.
She raises her chin. “What will I get if I spend the night? Another ten thousand dollars?”
“I’m not paying you,” I grind out. “I’m not hiring you.”
“Then—”
“You are my woman.” I take her hand and check the ring, making sure it’s secure. Her soft hand in mine calms me. I press a kiss to her palm and release it. “Ask for anything, and it’s yours.”
She blinks a few times. “Like the throw pillows.” She lifts one to demonstrate.
“Yes.”
Her eyes narrow. “Helping my sister. Making sure she and the kids are safe. And that she has her meds.”
I nod. “Done.”
“And this ring. You think this makes me yours.”
“You are mine.” I set my hand at the base of her throat. “I’m not asking. You don’t have a choice in this, baby.” I lean close enough to hear the catch in her breath. To smell the sweetness of her sex as she starts to cream for me. “But I will make it good for you. You’ll want for nothing from now on.”
Elodie
I stare into Jaeger’s eyes, glittering more brilliantly than any jewel.
He bought the ring. He bought the ring!
“I’m not for sale,” I blurt, desperate.
“I’m not buying you.” The weight of his hand around my throat is comforting. “I’ve claimed you. You’re already mine.”
He wants to claim you. Honey had told me, but I didn’t want to listen. He wants you to be his elita .
Newsflash, Honey, he thinks it’s already happened.
He’s upset at my confusion. As if my being here, belonging to him, was a foregone conclusion.
Today he took me shopping and bought everything I’d need for a life with him. I mentioned once that I didn’t like his home, and he redecorated everything. Immediately.
He’s acting like we’re a couple already. On some level, I knew this. It’s likely why I got weirded out by the ring.
But then he gave me a briefcase with a hundred thousand dollars for services rendered. My eyes dart to the wall panel where he put my money in the safe.
He follows my gaze and my line of thinking. “The payment was for one night, an exchange between two independent parties. There’ll be no more payouts. We are no longer independent parties. We are one.”
I shake my head slightly, and his hand tightens until I can’t move. I’m the poor, helpless prey caught in a trap.
“You’re not independent, little red. You’re mine.”