It won’t happen. If it was that easy to purge the secret demons from myself, I would have done it long ago.
The Raider truck is waiting for us at the curb, just like it is every day. I ignore the little stab of disappointment when I see Maddox behind the wheel instead of Broderick. Of course, it wouldn’t be Broderick. He hasn’t been our driver even once in the last two weeks. He’d rather cut off his arm than spend thirty minutes in an enclosed space with his Bride.
Even if I’m there, too.
At least Maddox is one of the few people Monroe doesn’t mess with. It’s fascinating, because she has no problem poking at Cohen, who’s easily the scariest motherfucker in the entire compound, but Maddox, his best-friend-sometimes-lover is where she draws the line. The big blond man is handsome and charming, and I don’t understand what he did to accomplish putting her on her best behavior when he’s around.
I’d love to be able to replicate it.
She climbs up into the truck and slides to the center of the bench seat, leaving me to follow. I yank the door shut and nod at Maddox. “Any trouble?”
“No.” He puts the truck into gear and pulls smoothly from the curb.
Monroe slouches against the seat and lays her head on my shoulder. Her shampoo teases my tenses. It took me days to identify the scent, to diagnose the maddening combination of apple, vanilla, cedar, and chrysanthemum. I should push her away, but giving her a reaction will only encourage her.
And… Maybe part of me likes the weight of her body against mine. A very, very small part.
She’s playing with my hair again, braiding several strands together in an absentminded kind of way. “Maddox, would you agree that Shiloh does a good job?”
He doesn’t look over. “I want no part of whatever you’re trying to get at, Amazon.”
“Yes, yes, I’m the very worst. We can all agree on that.” She finishes the braid and starts on another. “But it’s been three weeks since Lammas, and Shiloh has been at my side nearly every moment of it. I want to take her out for a drink to say thank you.”
Maddox glances at me, his gaze lingering on Monroe’s fingers in my hair. His handsome features look chiseled in stone in the fading light of day. “That’s not a good idea.”
“Please. If I wanted to cause trouble, I would stage an ambush on one of the trips across the river.” She smiles sweetly. “Not that I would, of course.”
“Of course not,” I murmur. “Not when your sister and uncle are still in the compound.” Quite the brilliant little hostage situation the Paine brothers have put together. We’re still sitting on a ticking time bomb with all the powerful, dangerous people living under the same roof, but they’ve managed to ensure mostly good behavior up to this point.
“Exactly.” She tilts her head to look at me. It’s only then that I realize how close we really are. It would take no effort at all to lean down and kiss her, to see if she tastes as sharp as the words she deals. Monroe’s gaze drops to my mouth. “We’ll just have a few drinks in Old Town. You can come along and ensure our good behavior. Or assign another babysitter if you don’t think Shiloh can handle it on her own.”
Oh, that was clever. From the way Maddox’s hands tighten on the steering wheel, he realizes exactly how clever. If he insists on staying, he’s effectively undermining me and saying he doesn’t believe I’m capable of doing the job they assigned me after Lammas. It wouldn’t even hurt my feelings; I’m the first to admit that Monroe really needs two handlers—or half a dozen. But Maddox is too good at balancing our people to ever pull a stunt like that. “You get an hour.”
“You’re a peach.” She snuggles closer to me, her breasts pressing against my arm.
I honestly can’t tell if Monroe is just this touchy of a person or if she uses physical contact to set people on edge. It could be both, honestly. All I know is that she’s always touching me. “Drop us at the Goat, please.”
“Will do.”
We cross the bridge back into Raider territory, and a little of the tension bleeds out of my body. No matter what Sabine Valley says about handfasting and Brides, I can’t quite believe the tentative peace is anything but an opportunity for someone ruthless and ambitious enough to break the rules. Three weeks isn’t nearly enough time to weed out potential issues in the Raider faction, but at least we’re making progress there.
In the Amazon faction?
Enemy territory doesn’t begin to cover it. Every single person I encounter is aware of what we took from them. Their heir, their spare, their queen’s beloved younger brother. They would like nothing more than to stick a knife between my ribs and leave me bleeding out on the sidewalk. They’d even do it, if not for the carefully balanced juggling act that Abel and the rest of the Paines have put into place. I don’t have to know every detail to know their entire plan rests on the assumption that Monroe and Fallon are more loyal to their family than they are to their faction. That they don’t believe in acceptable losses.
At least, acceptable losses that include their family members.
But will it continue to be so?
I have no idea.
And that keeps me up at night.
Chapter 5
Monroe
I fall in love with the Goat the moment we walk through the door. It’s a tiny bar with sticky floors, one dirty window, and a bartender who looks approximately five hundred years old. I had expected something else, with it being only one block off Old Town. That little neighborhood within the Raider faction is polished to a shine, ruled with an iron fist by the three families who own the majority of businesses contained in that three-by-seven block area. They arguably hold as much power as the Paine brothers, though they don’t bother with ruling overtly.
That shit would never fly in the Amazon faction.
But this place? It’s something else entirely. I allow Shiloh to lead the way to the bar and slide onto a stool. She looks as deliciously understated as always, wearing what I’ve come to recognize as her custom clothing and hairstyle. It’s a little plain, but I can appreciate a woman who knows what she likes and sticks to it.
I scoot my stool closer to hers just to see her narrow those pretty, hazel eyes. “Since we only have an hour, we’re going to make this count.”
“Monroe.”
I like the disapproving way she says my name. I’ve come to crave it more than I likely should during our time together. When I decided to seduce her to irritate Broderick, I never expected to enjoy her company so much. She’s not the little church mouse I first assumed. The woman has a spine of steel, and I haven’t managed to bend it even once since she became my glorified babysitter.
Ah well, I have a little over eleven months left. More than enough time. I catch Shiloh staring at my breasts when she thinks I’m not paying attention; she wants me. She doesn’t want to want me any more than Broderick does, but the desire is there all the same.
I glare at the scratched bar for a moment. Broderick. That damned coward has been avoiding me since Lammas. I’ve allowed it for the time being, but I’m over it now. Three weeks is more than long enough for everyone to settle into this new rhythm of life.