Page 67 of The Penalty

“I am getting to know him. He’s possessive of his boy toy. I know that now.” Colin points out.

Am I the boy toy? He’s younger than me. Doesn’t that make him the toy?

“Stop talking about me like I’m not here.” Rhys sighs. He seems a little nervous about all this, but I don’t know how to make that better.

My stomach growls again.

“Jesus. Are you a bear in a man suit?” Colin raises an eyebrow.

Owen looks at me and shakes his head. “Not a bear. Definitely a jock.”

Why do I want to flex my arms right now? Would that be weird?

“He can be both,” Colin says like it’s obvious.

“Is this really why you wanted me here? To objectify my boyfriend?” Rhys bites out.

Boyfriend?

Did I hear him right?

Is this part of the cover? Or are we boyfriends? That can’t be right. I wouldn’t be boyfriends with the enemy.

It’s fake. It’s got to be fake. But then why is he upset they are objectifying me? I kinda like being objectified. I frown, thinking about this way too hard.

“See, we’re learning things. He’s got some claws,” Colin says to Owen without taking his eyes off Rhys. “Good. Don’t be afraid to use them but use them wisely. We,” he motions between himself and Owen. “Are not the enemy. Out there, in public, all of us with a Godfrey name are a united front. Never show fear. Never show weakness.”

“We aren’t in public now, though, are we?”

Colin smiles knowingly.

Owen takes over. “No, we aren’t. In here, behind the closed doors, is the only place we fight. Oliver is a control freak. His backup plan has backup plans, andtheyhave backup plans. He’s calculated and cold. It’s why he leads.”

“So I’m expected to just fall in line and toe the line I had no say in?” Rhys tightens his grip on my hand and I have to admit, I have no idea what’s going on.

“In public, yes.” Owen leans forward. “You didn’t grow up in this world. You don’t know the players or how people areconnected. Not like we do. And frankly you don’t want to go into it blind. They will eat you alive. Welcome to living in the public eye. It fucking sucks. Everything you do could be the next new media story. The snakes among us will try to use you for their own benefit. Don’t let them. Our sister moved to London to get away from it. And I can’t blame her.”

The seriousness of the conversation breaks through the mommy juice on an empty stomach, and I nod. “The snakes are in the pipes. They eat the rats, but if they get hungry, they’ll bite your ass when you shit.”

They all turn towards me slowly, but they get real quiet. Probably absorbing my genius. Colin slaps a hand over his mouth, and he closes his eyes.

Owen cocks his head, one eye squinting a little as he looks at me. He purses his lips and looks like he’s going to say something when the door opens.

“See? I told you they would start before we got here.” The other twin, what’s his name…Oscar? Oshkosh? Oleander?

“Ah, Oliver. So glad you weren’t struck by lightning on the way here.” Colin sighs.

A smiling Isaac gives a little wave when he sees us. “Hi.” Then turns a stern look at Colin. “That was rude.”

“I said I’m glad he wasn’t,” Colin says.

I lean toward Rhys and whisper, “Do they have the pre-food food?”

My stomach is about to eat itself. I’m sure of it.

“Pre-food?” Isaac asks.

“Appetizers,” Rhys supplies.

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