31. Riley
I slipinto the bathroom upstairs and lock the door behind me, surprised when I notice my face in the mirror. My cheeks are still rosy and pink, both from the slap Dante gave me as a parting gift and from the sex and countless orgasms. The smile I was hiding from him breaks across my face, the red nose ring he gave me flashing in the light.
God, I really needed that. Sex has always been one of the best ways for me to destress and blow off steam, but sex with Dante is next level. Even if the shit he said afterward threw me for a loop, I can’t really regret what we did.
It almost makes me want to skip the shower I came in here for, to keep the feel and smell of Dante on me a little longer as a reminder of tonight. The world’s been so shitty lately, and being with him felt like the antidote to everything bad.
Trying to hold on to those feelings would be stupid, though, so I turn away from the mirror and flip the water on, adjusting the handle until it’s a decent temperature.
I shower quickly, letting the water rinse off the drying cum on my stomach and between my legs, then washing my hair as steam fills the bathroom.
I hear a door slam as I’m heading back to my bedroom with a towel wrapped around me, followed by the rumble of voices downstairs.
Dante didn’t tell me where Maddoc and Logan were tonight, but they’re clearly home now, so I toss the towel on the bed and quickly dress in some of the new clothes Dante picked out for me.
I’m half tempted to just call it a night. With the whiskey still lingering in my system and my muscles loose and relaxed from being fucked into a state of bliss by Dante, I could probably crawl into bed and be asleep in less than five minutes. And honestly, I’m not sure I’m ready to look Maddoc in the eye after last night, especially since I’m pretty sure he knows how his punishment affected me. And whatever fragile peace I built with Logan this morning got blown up when I asked him about his scar, so I’m not really keen on dealing with him right now either.
But then the voices downstairs become more intense and urgent.
I can’t make out any actual words, but I can tell by the way the men are speaking that something is up.
That settles that.
Abandoning the idea of bed, I head out into the hall instead, curious to know what’s going on.
They’re all gathered in the living room when I get downstairs, and my footsteps slow as I enter. There’s a tense sort of energy in the air, and it occurs to me that maybe the raised voices were because they realized that Dante just fucked me in this room.
Shit. Maybe I shouldn’t have come down.
But Dante shoots me a look, giving a subtle shake of his head before shifting his focus back to Maddoc.
“So you got something from Club Prestige?” he asks, resuming the conversation they were having when I walked in.
“Yes, we did,” Logan says, looking more animated than usual. He dips his chin my way and adds, “Thanks to her.”
“What?” I glance between them, my heart lurching in my chest. “What are you talking about?”
Logan lifts one shoulder. “Your distraction came in handy.”
“My distraction?” I blink in confusion, and then my stomach drops. “You mean me trying to help Chloe? Did you… plan that? Did you know she would be there?”
“No.” The blond man shakes his head, looking supremely irritated by that fact. Being caught unawares by something probably goes against that manic need for control he seems to have. “But the commotion you caused turned out to be useful. When everyone rushed over to you, it gave me an opening to plant a bug under the table Austin was sitting at without anyone noticing. I’ve been monitoring it ever since, and—”
“You got something?” I blurt, hope rising hard and fast. “Something about Chloe?”
Logan looks irritated by the interruption, but I’m too excited to let his demeanor scare me.
I glance at Dante again without meaning to, and he smiles at me. “You did good, princess.”
I start to smile back before something occurs to me, and I turn to Maddoc, narrowing my eyes. “Wait a minute. You knew Logan planted the bug while I was trying to help my sister?”
“Of course I knew,” he says calmly, staring me down.
My ass burns, and not metaphorically. “And what was your plan to get the bug planted if I hadn’t caused that commotion?”
He shrugs one shoulder, his gaze hooded. “We would have improvised. Logan is very good at what he does.”
“So basically, you didn’t have a plan.”
That finally gets a rise out of him. “Our plan was to confront McKenna, give him a chance to deescalate, assume he fucking wouldn’t, and then make sure we used the opportunity to install our surveillance device.”
I cross my arms over my chest, matching him glare for glare. “So basically, you punished me for something that turned out to be useful. How the fuck is that fair?”
“What you did was risky. It could have gotten you killed.” He shakes his head, slicing his hand through the air as he adds, “It could’ve gotten us all killed. You needed to learn a lesson about stepping out of line like that.”
His words catch me off guard. I knew he was pissed at me for putting his people in danger, but from what he just said, it sounds like he was worried about me being in danger too. Is that true? Would he really have cared if something had happened to me?
The comeback I was ready to throw in his face dies on my lips, and instead, I just end up staring at him in silence.
“It’s all right, princess,” Dante says, breaking the moment between us. “Logan got something good.”
With effort, I drag my gaze away from Maddoc’s harshly beautiful features. “What is it?” I ask. “What did Logan get?”
“Tell her, brother,” Dante says, pride glinting in his eyes as he jerks his chin.
Logan nods sharply. “There’s a deal going down between West Point and Capside. The drop has been set up for tomorrow night.”
“Capside?”
I’ve never heard of them, although that doesn’t mean much.
“Another crew,” Dante informs me.
“Drug dealers,” Logan adds, his pale blue eyes boring into mine. “Dangerous ones.”
I rub my hands on my thighs, my palms suddenly feeling sweaty. I assume a lot of gangs deal in drugs, and I figure it’s a given that they’re dangerous, but something about the way they’re talking about Capside puts me on edge.
I lick my lips. “And? How is this useful? Are they your enemies too?”
Maddoc scoffs. “This is war. Everyone is an enemy. Even our allies.”
I don’t acknowledge what he said. I can’t. Logan hasn’t broken eye contact, and I realize that’s why I’m on edge.Usually, his gaze is unnervingly blank, but this time, if I didn’t know better, I’d almost think it holds a hint of pity.
“How is it useful?” I ask again, my voice slightly raspy as my throat goes tight. I need to know, but I’m not sure I want to hear the answer.
“Capside is dangerous,” he repeats. “And West Point is planning to send Chloe in to do the drop.”