“Betrayal?” Nate growls. “Are you fucking kidding me, B? You can’t seriously be taking his side on this. He is going to be a father. He needs to step the fuck up and let that shit go.”
“Yeah?” I raise my brows, dropping back onto my chair while keeping my eyes locked solely on Nate. “And whose fault is it that he didn’t know until last week?”
“I will stand by her, Bran. Even if he doesn’t this time.” Nate squeezes his eyes closed. “I should have from the start.”
“No one is going to hold it against you for not doing what you should have done in the first place.”
His gaze burns into mine, his jaw flexing. “Fuck you.” He turns and leaves the same way Madison and Bishop did, the second door slamming in a matter of minutes.
“No cap, I’ve always admired you, Bran,” Eli says, and if it wasn’t for the seriousness in his tone, I would have ignored him. He continues, “You’re the only one who keeps us all real.”
“Eli?” I murmur, pulling my phone out of my pocket to open a new text. “Don’t ever say ‘no cap’ again.” He laughs, but I fade him out, opening a new text message. “What are we going to do about The Gentlemen?”
Me: What’s she doing?
“We kill them all,” I say, tapping my phone against my thigh as a text comes through when Bishop walks back into the room.
“See, but we assume it was The Gentlemen who did the shoot-out.”
“Where the fuck is Nate?” Bishop asks, looking around the room.
I open the text.
V: She’s fine. You know I will take care of her.
I do know she will. I trust very few people in this world, but Veronica is one of them. Shutting out of the message, I shake my head at Bishop. “He’s pissed. Caught up in the drama between you and Madison.”
Bishop leans forward, grabbing his Glock off his desk and shoving it into the waistband of his jeans.
“We’ve got to handle this shit so Saint can come back.”
“Why can’t she?” Eli murmurs, standing before we both follow Bishop out the door.
“Because she already got fucking shot at once. I’m not letting it happen again.” We reach the front door, all three of our cars parked out front of Bishop’s temporary house while his home is being built.
I pull my keys out of my pocket. “Where are we going?”
Bishop smirks at me from over his shoulder, walking straight for his Maserati. “Think this trip will make you happy.”
“If it doesn’t involve scraping Gentlemen brain matter off of that pretty fucking grin you’re wearing, I don’t want in.”
Bishop smirks even more. “Oh, then I’ve got you.”
“Bishop,” Madison calls out, shocking all of us.
Bishop turns to face her, his eyes traveling up and down her body slightly. They may be fighting a lot, but we’ve all seen the old Bishop has come back strong. No more recklessness or sadness in his eyes. Now it’s wrath and anger. Bishop works best like this. The beef between him and Mads is good for us. It’s what we need right now, and it’s keeping him distracted enough to not go against our best interest and drag Saint out of The Coven.
I know why he hasn’t. It’s the same reason I haven’t.
Because she’s safe.
And he knows exactly why she’s safe.
“I may not like you right now, but that doesn’t mean I don’t need you.”
His mouth slams closed before finally opening. “I know, baby. Go inside.”
She smiles softly before disappearing through the way she came.
“You know what? You’re both so toxic they could name a fucking poison after your love.”
I chuckle, sliding into the driver’s seat and starting up the Bugatti.
Time. To. Fucking. Ride.
Saint
Goose bumps rise on my skin as I turn the corner into the kitchen. I pause, step backward, but keep my eyes locked on the large open windows that overlook the courtyard and pool. I can’t sleep. Yet again, another witching hour.
Pulling out my phone after finding a glass and pouring some cold milk, I open a new message on Bishop’s name.
Me: I miss you.
Placing my phone back onto the counter, not expecting him to reply instantly, I get busy with finally looking around the house that seems to never sleep. Movement catches my eye through the window again and I freeze, my stomach recoiling anytime I find myself looking outside. The sickening sensation clings to me the same way it did at the ceremony. I’m squinting my eyes and walking closer to the window when my phone vibrating scares me back to the counter. I reach for it quickly, not bothering to see who it is, considering I know it’ll be Bishop.
“Hey,” I whisper breathlessly into the phone.
“God, it’s good to hear your voice.” At his own, my fears release, and whatever was outside doesn’t matter. It can’t touch me. That’s how Bishop makes me feel. Safe and protected, much like Brantley, only… different.
“I didn’t think you’d still be awake.” I slowly drop onto one of the gold-plated barstools tucked beneath the kitchen island.
“Can’t sleep much lately.” He sounds tired, sleepy.
“Are you okay?” My finger circles the rim of my glass.
Long pause. He exhales. “No.”
“Want to switch stories?”
He chuckles deeply, and it sets off warmth swimming in my blood. “Sure, Angel. Go ahead.”
“I’m angry with Brantley.”
There’s shuffling in the background. “I’ve heard.”
“And I don’t know why I’m so upset with him. It’s not—it’s not because of the bullet grazing—” Bishop growls softly. I continue, “It’s the why.” I pause, my back straightening. “Why didn’t you tell me that I was going to be taken?”
“I won’t lie to you.” Something about the sincerity of his tone makes me trust him further. I didn’t think that was possible, since I trust him unconditionally already. “It wasn’t planned until the last minute, when Eli spotted two of The Gentlemen floating around the ceremony. We couldn’t make a scene because we didn’t know how many more there were. Everyone we loved—with the exception of one other—was in that building. We had to continue. Play it by ear. It wasn’t until Brantley told us that he knew where to take you that we came up with the plan. They’re smarter now. They’re different. We started a war that night by doing something, and right now, the safest place you can be is there.”
“But why? Why can’t I be with you all? I feel…secluded.”
“Do you, though?” Bishop asks gently, sleep drowning his tone. “Do you really hate it there?”
I look around the kitchen. Everything is pristine and shiny, but the overgrowing plants that spill over all of the railings remind me of home. I sigh. “No, but I want to be with you all. My family.”
“I know, but here’s the thing. You have me as your brother and the Devil as your lover. What do you think is going to happen when you’re threatened?”