Page 51 of King

“Never settle, Amara,” he murmured, his intense gaze locking onto hers. “You deserve much more than you’ve obviously been given by... boys.”

Her breath caught when King cocked a knowing eyebrow, then—just like that—turned and walked away.

Amara let out a slow, shaky breath, but her traitorous eyes had other plans. They went straight to his ass.

Nope.

She jerked her gaze away just as fast, her face heating. Desperate for something else to focus on, she quickly scanned the room only to land on Joey.

He was grinning his mischievous, ‘I-saw-that’grin.

Amara narrowed her eyes in warning, but Joey just wiggled his brows again like the little menace he was. Determined to ignore him, she dropped her gaze to her phone, pretending to scroll again—wishing she could just as quickly ignore the ridiculously sexy man across the room.

The one she felt staring at her.

Her body betrayed her with a shiver, heat curling low in her stomach.Damn it.She was in a world of trouble when it came to King. And the worst part. She wasn’t sure she even wanted to escape it.

CHAPTER 24

King fired off a quick text to Jake, then slipped his phone into his pocket, his gaze automatically seeking out Amara. She was staring at her phone, but the telltale blush on her face caught his attention. Before he could think more about that, the door swung open.

“You got a minute?” Kane asked, giving Joey a casual wave.

King nodded and walked toward Amara, his focus shifting. “Do you want me to handle this, or do you want to talk to her?”

Amara’s head snapped up, her eyes flicking between Kane and King. “She’s here?”

“Yeah,” King confirmed, watching her reaction closely. He’d rather keep her out of this until they knew exactly who this woman was, but he wouldn’t keep her in the dark. This was her call.

Slipping her phone into her pocket, Amara glanced at Joey. “I’ll be back,” she told him.

“Cool. Bring me a Mountain Dew when you do,” Joey called after her.

“I got you,” Adam said, pushing off the wall and following them out.

As they walked down the hall, King glanced at Amara. “Adam will be able to tell if this woman is lying.”

“You can do that?” Amara looked up at Adam, her eyes wide with curiosity.

“I can,” Adam confirmed with a slight nod.

“Good,” Amara exhaled, taking a deep breath as if steeling herself for whatever was coming.

King felt the weight of her apprehension, but damn if she didn’t square her shoulders and lift her chin in quiet determination.

They stepped into the waiting room, where a woman sat nervously. The second they entered, she rose to her feet.

“This is King, Adam, and Amara,” Kane introduced. “And this is Monica, the one who brought Joey to the ER.” Adam was the only one who reached out to shake her hand.

Amara didn’t hesitate. She strode straight up to Monica, her eyes sharp and unwavering. “Did you have anything to do with my brother being killed?”

King watched closely, ready to step in if necessary, but he had to give the woman credit—she didn’t flinch or shift uncomfortably. Instead, she met Amara’s gaze head-on.

“No, I did not,” Monica answered, her voice calm and steady. “And I was too late to stop what happened to Joey, but I did my best to help him.”

Amara immediately turned to Adam, who was studying Monica with sharp focus.

“Truth,” Adam confirmed, answering Amara’s silent question.

---