Page 74 of Queen of Diamonds

I already knew the answer, though. I knew Zed’s heart. I knew he’d wanted to drag the Brotherhood back from the edge of the cliff his father had pushed them to.

He might have been able to, as well.

Ace, though? He’d made his father’s legacy look like child’s play. The gang was more brutal than it had ever been, eating their own and using fear to stay on top.

“Right. So what?” Knight asked. “Now you’ve been alone for years and you run into us again…”

I snorted, tapping on my collar. “I want to leave, remember? Don’t act like I’m pining over you.”

“You are, Sweet Oasis.” Kyan pulled me into his arms. “I proved that the other night for everyone to see.”

I snorted. “A good fuck does not constitute?—”

“Shh,” Kyan murmured, pressing his fingers to my lips. “Or I’ll have to prove it again. You’re not blushing nearly enough.”

I was now just hearing the possessive rumble of a growl in his chest. Before I could stop myself, I’d sunk into the crook of his arm, finding it hard to fight my desperation for the way he felt, those old scars still closing with every touch.

Knight got to his feet, though, and I didn’t miss the dark expression on his face as he exited the room to the larger open room beyond.

I hugged my knees to my chest, watching the boxing for a while longer before I made my decision. I got to my feet, crossing to Knight’s room, and knocked on the door gently.

When there was no reply, I knocked again, unlatching the door and peering in. Knight was at his desk, but his eyes caught me the moment the door opened. He ripped his headset off, crossing to me in an instant. “I don’t want you getting your scent all up in my fucking room.”

“I don’t have to come in.”

“What do you want?”

“It’s about Kyan,” I said.

Knight glared at me. “What about him?”

“You’re… together?” I asked.

“He’ll have your neck if he hears you saying that.” Knight snorted.

“You aren’t?”

“No Princess. I like to punish him when he’s a brat.”

I frowned. He was protective of Kyan, beyond regular pack mates. “What happened with him after I left?” I asked. “I have to know.” I thought maybe, I already did, but a guess wasn’t enough.

Knight froze, glaring at me. Then he opened his mouth and shut it.

“You have to?” He looked bitter.

“It’s… it’s important to me.”

“Bit late for that, isn’t it?” he asked.

I waited, balling my fists at my side and bracing.

Finally, Knight unclenched his jaw. “Meeting you fucked with his brain chemistry, Glade. He wasn’t stable to start with.”

I nodded. I knew that. Kyan’s family had resorted to barbaric methods to make him what he was—wanting a son who would make a name for them in the Brotherhood. Every Alpha instinct had been dialled up, pushed on, honed in, burning away everything else.

“What did you think would happen?” Knight asked.

I swallowed, having no answer to that. There had been no plan. Just a prayer that Zed and Knight would be enough.

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