Page 17 of Declan

I say nothing. There’s not one thing I would say to this douchebag that would be productive, and I don’t trust myself not to blow up. I have to bide my time for that altercation. Not that I suspect it will be much of an altercation because blowhard Bobby is a sniveling little snake with no backbone.

Issa motions to Carolina and Antoinette and says, “Bobby, this is Carolina and Antoinette, Declan’s sisters-in-law.”

He doesn’t move to shake their hands, instead giving them a dismissive nod as he replies, “I’m sure I need no introduction.”

Antoinette snorts and also says nothing, likely for the same exact reason I choose to remain silent. But Carolina tilts her head at him and says, “I certainly don’t know you. Are you a local celebrity?”

His eyes widen, but his features remain passive, other than the tick in his cheek, which gives away his underlying agitation. He doesn’t say anything in response, so Antoinette says, “Carolina has spent most of her life outside of America. She doesn’t know much about pop culture.”

He laughs, its hollowness echoing through the room. Issa attempts to step away from him, but his grip on her tightens, his hand moving up so it’s gripping her shoulder instead of her waist.

She flinches minutely, and I move to stand, but Antoinette steps in and says, “We should probably be going.” She swoops in, basically shooing Bobby out of the way as she pulls Issa into a hug, and I see her whisper something into Issa’s ear as Issa’s arms come around, and she squeezes her back. Antoinette pulls back but doesn’t release her as she adds, “Absolutely wonderful show, Issa. I do hope that we catch another one very soon. And we should totally do lunch.”

Carolina gives her thanks and says her goodbyes. I rise from the sofa and walk over to stand next to Bobby, looking down at him with what I hope is a look of warning.

He barely manages to hold my gaze, and I turn my focus to Issa, who appears incredibly uncomfortable. I give her a nod, then walk to the door. I stop and turn back, the overall vibe in the room one of great discomfort, and Antoinette stops on her way out the door, her eyes hard on mine for a moment.

Then the corner of her mouth turns up, an evil glint in her eyes as she looks to Carolina, who nods in silent agreement with whatever Antoinette is planning in her crazy head.

Antoinette pats me on the chest and says enthusiastically, “You know what, Declan! There’s no way I’m cutting this night short. I’m going to take Issa and Carolina out for some midnight snacks and show them how to wrap up an already epic night in the most epic way. You go on without us, and we’ll meet you back at your place later.” Then she turns her excited gaze to Issa and says, “I won’t take no for an answer, so you may as well just say yes now.”

I know what she’s doing, and I want to hug her, but I manage to repress the urge and look at Issa, who has a relieved look on her pretty face. She smiles and nods, and Antoinette swoops back into the room, wedging herself between Issa and Bobby with ease.

Then she looks back at me and winks, and I smile, knowing I’m leaving my girl in good hands.

6

A Gentleman’s Plan

Declan

AntoinetteandCarolinadon’treturn until the morning, and they’re both a bit miffed and more than a little concerned about whatever is going on with Issa and that fucking douchebag she’s engaged to.

It took them a fair amount of work to get rid of Bobby. Once they did, they took Issa out for a very late dinner, and much to my chagrin, they ended up at a hotel rather than at one of the many places where I could spy on them. I’m certain they did this intentionally because Antoinette and Carolina probably know what I’m up to in terms of my constant surveillance.

Mostly, I’m just relieved they haven’t let the cat out of the bag, but I do know the closer the two girls get to Issa, the shorter my leash becomes. While these women have all the loyalty in the world to their menfolk, they’re deep-seated loyalty tends to stay on the side of female empowerment.

Not that I blame them, especially given their long history of men being complete assholes.

No, I’m not making excuses for my potentially douchebag behavior, but in my defense, I have at least attempted to set up some small boundaries for myself in terms of what I am allowed to peek at.

And that has been very difficult since, obviously, my urge to watch her disrobe is great. But then I remind myself that when I first set my eyes upon her naked form, it will be in person, where I can put my hands and mouth on her as well, and so I avert my eyes.

Another positive note about Antoinette and Carolina spending time with Issa is they’re even more on my side now than they were before. Their run-in with Bobby also made them keen on putting the hurt on that motherfucker, and that’s a direct quote from Antoinette, who is a bit more vocal about her bloodthirsty tendencies.

That being said, Carolina did not object or argue, and at one point in Antoinette’s tirade, she even nodded enthusiastically.

I give Tony and Dare a look at around the ten-minute mark of Antoinette’s rant on how best to handle that narcissistic douchebag, but they both just give me the same amused expression and shrug, obviously entirely used to this kind of tirade from her.

It isn’t until Antoinette states that she and Carolina are going to take care of the problem that the two men interject with some ruffled feathers. Of course, this only pisses Antoinette off because she’s inclined to go in and stab him repeatedly, an idea that I’m not entirely opposed to.

Then, they spend a few minutes arguing over whether or not they should just kill him or stick him in some kind of situation where he can be blackmailed. Both women have made strong arguments for each case, and Tony and Dare sit there a bit flabbergasted by the fact they simply can’t rein their woman in.

Seeing me laughing at him, Dare squints at me and asks, “You got something to say dickhead?”

I raise my hands up in surrender, but that doesn’t stop the laugh that falls from my lips. “What can I possibly say? They’re both very charming woman.”

Sensing my sarcasm, Antoinette raises her brows at me and replies, “You better watch yourself, or I might have to tell Issa your little secret.”

---