Dorian seemed quite sure my dad would sleep until tomorrow. Maybe I should perform one last time for old times’ sake.
Yes, I definitely should go.
15
Track
The handcuff on the chair clinked against the wood when I released it. The sound made the hairs on my arms stand. I took in the sprawling bedroom Brynne would be locked in and felt nauseous. The space wasn’t awful. There was a comfortable bed and a large flat screen on the wall so she could binge her favorite shows all day long… for weeks until her release.
I faced the wall of windows that were blacked out. She would’ve had a spectacular view, but Storm had wanted it covered in the off chance a helicopter flew by and spotted her.
We expected an active search for Brynne. However, we didn’t know if Bruno would involve the police, the FBI, or the Marines. He was an outlaw like the rest of us. I doubted he’d alert the authorities.
“It won’t be long now.” Shit. How could I have deceived her? After years of planning her capture, hearing snippets about her from Tina, Brynne meant a lot more to me than I’d ever admit. And I had betrayed her.
How could I fall for my step-sister?
How could I let her fall for me?
I was a fucking bastard and deserved to be punished. Beaten to a pulp. I’d own my betrayals and take whatever my father felt was a proper consequence for my actions. And he would find out because when Brynne discovered Tina was alive and I’d been sent to watch and kidnap her, she’d call me out for manipulating her.
Was I genuinely sorry for tasting what I would never have?
Maybe a little.
No, having her in my arms, her lips pressed to mine, and our tongues doing a dirty tango would live inside me for the rest of my life. I wouldn’t forget how we clicked physically and emotionally.
“Fuck,” I hissed and squeezed my head between my hands. It was a damn shame we could never be together.
I hadn’t seen Brynne since that day at the lake. Not being with her drove me crazy. I had avoided all the places I knew she went, and Cash went back to watching her from afar again.
It was just as well. Being alone with Brynne was dangerous.
But I missed the hell out of her. If the plan worked out the way it should, Brynne would be here in six days. She’d be my captive, and I’d have her all to myself.
I couldn’t wait. Of course, she would only be more confused when she got here and would hate me. I fucking wished we could’ve told her everything from the beginning, but everyone had feared she wouldn’t believe a word of the wild story.
My chest ached as I touched the soft fabric on the bed. I hated all of this.
I left the bedroom, Brynne’s room, and followed the voices in the kitchen.
Espada and Ryder were shooting the shit and drinking beer. They loved our new accommodations.
“All set,” I told them and went straight for the bottle of Cuervo taunting me on the big-ass, granite-topped island. Tequila washed all my pain away, whether a cheap brand or expensive.
“What’s next?” Ryder asked. “I mean, now that this place is ready, do we just wait around, or maybe we have ourselves a little pre-kidnap party?”
I winced and sucked on a lime. His young age showed, along with immaturity.
“First, we aren’t kidnapping her.” Espada passed me a beer. I set it on the counter and poured myself another shot. “Second, it’s not like we’re going to hurt her.”
“You don’t think she’ll be terrified to be in an unfamiliar place with a bunch of men?” Ryder shot back. He had a good point. Maybe he was more mature than I thought.
“I’m sure she’ll be confused but not terrified. I would never let anything happen to her.” I tossed back my shot and waited for the tequila to work its magic. “She knows she’s safe with me.”
“Safe? That’s laughable. And confusion can be worse than terrified.” Ryder just couldn’t leave well enough alone.
“And what do you suggest we do? Capturing Brynne has been the plan from the get-go,” Espada said.