You know the man with your friend is not one to be fucked with.”
“Like you.”
“Like me.”
She nodded once, the fear a real thing in her eyes now. She passed me on the step, but before she got too far, I took her arm again, stopping her. “What did you want with me, darlin’? Besides getting me out of your brother’s way.”
Her jaw tightened when I called her that—darlin’. “To find out when you’re going to announce our engagement.”
“You make it sound like a farce.” I grinned.
“It is bullshit.”
Before I could respond, her eyes moved away from mine too quickly, and mine followed hers. Macchiavello had come to stand in the doorway of the kitchen. Harry Boy stood in front of him.
“Shit!” Keely flew past me down the stairs. Lachlan, another one of her brothers, had come to stand behind Harry Boy at the same time she’d made it to him. The two of them seemed to defuse the situation before it got out of hand.
Before Keely could make it back outside, Mari stopped her. She whispered something, squeezed her hand, and then turned to leave with Macchiavello. He looked me in the eye on their way out.
Enough said.
The archer watched as they left and then ducked into the kitchen.
She was on a warpath. Opening and closing cabinets, slamming them when she didn’t find what she was looking for. She hadn’t even bothered to flip the switch back on. The only light came from outside—where bulbs were strung up—through a kitchen window.
“With the amount Harry Boy drank tonight, it’s probably all gone,” I said, standing with my back against the wall.
This was no beer or wine girl I was dealing with. Keely Ryan had whiskey written all over her.
Her hand paused mid-close on another cabinet and she turned her head a fraction to look at me. “You know nothing,” she said, almost hissing at me, “about anything. Least of all me.”
“Ah,” I said, standing taller. “I’ve heard of this game before. It’s called Blame Cash. This is where you get to blame me for every problem in the world. I’ve had much heavier weights placed there, darlin’. A little more won’t bother me.” I shrugged. “Many have tried before. All have failed. I don’t break.”
“This is your fault! All of it.” She slammed the cabinet door and faced me. “Ever since you showed up, so has nothing but trouble!”
I laughed and her neck turned fiery red. “You enjoy feedin’ yourself lies, darlin’? Does that make you feel better? Like blaming Macchiavello for all his problems makes Harry Boy feel better. Tell me. Is this a family trait I should be aware of?”
“Are you calling my brother a coward?”
“I’m not calling. I’m telling. He’s a coward. No man who has a set of balls sits there for years waiting for the right time to make a woman his. She is his. End of story. That car out there.” I chucked my head toward the front of the house. “This house.” I looked around. “Who gives a fuck? You know your friend better than anyone. Does material shit matter to her?”
Her mouth closed on a snap. She couldn’t argue. The red on her neck crept up to her cheeks.
“He was trying to give her a better life! Something you’d know nothing about.”
I shrugged.
Her face heated even more. “What’s your game, huh?” She took a step closer to me, and I noticed her hands when she did. Trembling. But she flexed her fingers, like she was warming up. Preparing for the attack. “How are you so sure that you’re going to be able steal my heart? Last I checked, it was mine to give.”
“That’s where you’re wrong. I’m the marauding fucking tiger.” I lifted my shirt, showing her my stripes, scars I’d gotten in battle. “Your heart is as good as mine. You’re already falling for me.” Letting my shirt drop, I looked down at her silk shirt, the material thin, her nipples pressing against the fabric. “Your body is already down with the memo. It’s your head that’s tripping you up.”
“Bullshit.” She tried to snap at me, but her voice came out as a whisper. “All you spew is lies. Lies from that forked devil’s tongue.”
“It’s not that you’re fighting this because you don’t want it,” I said, taking a step toward her. “You’re fighting this because you don’t want to give in so easily. Pride’s a deadly sin, darlin’—beware of that one. Don’t deny your pussy to spite your heart.”