The thought didn’t distract me for long, though, because suddenly I was staring up at the massive foyer we had entered into.Wow.It was absolutely gorgeous. The ceilings were domed, painted with what looked like different renditions of the family crest. The walls that seemed to border an outside courtyard in the center of the estate featured stained glass windows that portrayed scenes that I couldn’t fully understand because I wasn’t close enough. There were people moving about dressed in similar colors as the older man, and the entire place had a rather comfortable and somewhat cozy vibe to it, especially with the two massive fireplaces that were roaring at either end of the foyer.
“Princess.” King came up behind me, wrapping a hand around my throat and tilting my chin back. “I have to handle a few things. I know you will probably be bored—”
“I’ll be totally good,” I promised, looking around. “Can I explore?”
“Absolutely.” King pressed his lips to my ear. “Just don’t leave the actual building.” Then he turned to the guys. “Lincoln, Sterling, I may need both of you. Stratton, you know I want your help, but I understand if you don’t want to.”
Stratton stared at him for a minute, something seeming to pass between them as he finally let out a slow exhale and nodded. Walking over to me, he wrapped a hand around the back of my neck and kissed me hard and deep before following King and Dermot towards a long, dark hallway. I had absolutely no idea what had just been decided, but I felt like it was important. My tongue darted out, tasting his kiss on my lips, and I looked back to where Lincoln was now in front of me, his smile a bit wicked.
“Be good, beautiful.” He cupped my jaw and kissed me, making my knees nearly break in the process. Him saying the word ‘good’ would always be associated with the orgasmic experience that he gave me on the jet. I felt like I was in a daze as Sterling kissed the top of my head before following his brother… leaving me with Yates.
“You’re leaving me with Yates?!” I called out as Sterling’s laughter echoed through the space.
I turned to look at Yates, who was leaning against the stairwell offering me a heated, amused look. I blushed as I walked forward, not feeling nearly as sassy without the others nearby. As if he knew, he tugged me forward by the hips and dipped his head, hesitating right above my lips.
“Don’t like hanging out with me, bunny?” He tugged on my bottom lip.
“You’re okay.” I flashed a smile, and as he let out a low rumble, I leaned against his chest and frowned. “Wait, why didn’t you go with them?”
“I try to stay out of official meetings as much as possible so that I’m not biased,” he explained. “I’m King’s legal counsel when it comes to more official shit. My dad did it for Mr. Ross, and I have to say, it beats sitting through those damn meetings with the other families.”
“And you get to hang out with me,” I pointed out, “Exploring.”
“I would love to explore you some more.” He offered me a dangerous smile as I offered a mock gasp and stepped back, his eyes narrowing at the distance.
“You don’t want to show me around this super cool castle?” I even batted my eyelashes for full effect as he barked out a laugh and shook his head.
Allowing me to lead him through a set of halls opposite of where the boys had gone, I let out a soft hum. “So if Dermot is second in command, and you’re legal counsel, what do the others do?”
“I don’t think any of us really have figured that out yet,” he admitted. “We thought we had a bit more time. We were going to wait until the holidays to have an official meeting and bring you with.”
“Oh yeah?” I teased, “That positive that I would go along with all this craziness?”
His eyes flashed with slight uncertainty. “No, actually. I know almost everything about you, Dahlia, but I still couldn’t be one hundred percent sure.”
“You had to know all this time how much I love you guys,” I whispered. I wasn’t even paying attention to the halls and rooms we passed, my eyes focused on Yates.
“I knew how much you loved them,” he admitted roughly. “I wasn’t sure how you felt about me besides being attracted to me.”
“Yates.” I stopped him, grabbing his hands. “I know I say we are archenemies, but we literally spend every day together. We freakin’ vacation together.”
“Our families vacationed together,” he pointed out.
“If I didn’t love you, heck, if I didn’tlikeyou, do you think I would have gone along with all your crazy plans?” I smiled. “You woke me up,on vacation, at six in the morning! You should have realized how I felt when I willingly went with you.”
His laughter bounced off the walls around us as I smiled, unable to stop myself. When it suddenly cut off, I turned to look at a group of men who had just walked into the hallway, my own expression slipping into something more serious. Yates let out a quiet curse as the main guy, followed by two other men that seemed to slip into the background, flashed a smile that seemed far too familiar. He was older—if I had to guess, I’d say he was in his forties, maybe fifties—but very handsome. Yet there was a look to his green eyes as they ran over me that made me uncomfortable, his perfectly styled dark hair adding to his cold and calculating look.
Why was his smile so familiar? It was going to drive me crazy!
“Yates Carter, when I heard King was back, I was thrilled, especially since we didn’t get to handle our business last time he was in town.” His Irish accent was thick, and once again, sounded familiar. Or maybe it was his voice that sounded familiar.
“Yes, we had some business to handle.” Yates didn’t extend a hand shake as the man stopped a few feet away, looking over the two of us with interest. I instantly knew this guy was bad news, and he hadn’t even said anything bad yet.
“Now that’s not completely true. I heard you were skipping town because my nephew and you fucked up.” His eyes moved over to me. “Amongst other reasons.”
“It’s not your business,” Yates said firmly, his voice cold. “King is in the office—”
“You must be Dahlia.” The man stepped forward and offered a hand. Instinctively I met it because of the manners I’d had ingrained in me. His lips brushed over my hand as he offered me a cold smile, causing me to feel sick to my stomach. “I am understanding the appeal now. Also, why exactly King would risk all of this because of some woman.”