Page 96 of Royally Bad

“Your father was the leader,” he explained patiently. “He put Frock in charge when he left, but he was always viewed as the real leader—until his death. That was probably what began Brick’s madness, the fear he’d never get to control the Deep Shots if Bastian ever returned ... or you did. But your father is here, he’s alive. And as his daughter, it’s your right.”

This revelation was almost laugh-worthy. Me? Lead agang?I couldn’t stop it; I started giggling. “You’re joking. Do I look like I want to take over a group of crazy killers?”

“I’ll say this,” he replied, “I don’t want you to do it ... but I don’t doubt at all that you could.”

I couldn’t blink. “What?”

“You’re a leader at heart. You’re tough, you don’t back down, and more than that, you take on the burden of everyone you want to help. You’re concerned about the people close to you. Combining that and your new ties to my family, and I think ... in a way, you’d be perfect.”

Is he right?Compliments aside, there was more to controlling a group like this. People would be jealous of my power, I’d deal with threats and danger and a million other problems.

Kain brushed my fingertips.

But would it be much different than the danger of staying near Kain?

Gingerly, I clutched the bandages on my stomach. It had only been five days since my injury. The pain was a harsh reminder of this world I was dabbling in.Dabbling,I mused.I’ve been in with both feet first for a while.

I considered what I would say. “Gang Leader Sammy has a nice ring to it, in a twisted way.” With clear intention, I grasped Kain’s hand and held it. “I’m still adjusting to being near one group of crazy assholes. I think I’ll hold off from taking control of a second one.”

Kain didn’t laugh like I expected. Instead, he pushed me against a section of wallpaper. A maid who’d been rounding the corner saw us entwined; her face went red as she shuffled off.

She reminded me about what Fran had told me forever ago, the thing about their Badd Maids company. Maybe it was real after all. I wondered if that meant the girl was a real maid, a spy, or something else. Then Kain started nibbling my throat, and I stopped wondering anything at all.

There was still so much I wanted to learn about the Badds. The number of old secrets and bad blood ran deep. At least with an uneasy truce settling in, the Deep Shots would take a break from exacerbating those issues.

That meant I’d get some peaceful times with all of them.

With Kain.

Or at least ...

That was what I hoped for.

“You know,” Francesca said, pointing a forkful of bank-breaking levels of salmon, “I was thinking.”

Thorne’s eyebrows rolled upward. “That’s surprising.”

She tossed the fork at him, and I lamented the waste of food. There’d been caviar wrapped up in the fish as well. “Shut up and listen,” she insisted, eyeing me closely. “It’s supposed to be veryinfor winter weddings, isn’t it?”

A flutter of paranoia moved through me. “Uh. Well, sure. I was actually thinking about my lineup for the season.” That thirty grand had gone a long way toward paying off my debt and giving me the breathing room for new dress designs.

The photos from Fran’s wedding had finally started leaking into the public. I was pretty sure she was the one to thank for that. My business had been booming wildly since then.

“If you ever need help fitting your customers into their dresses, by the way,” Hawthorne said, “I might be able to swing some time.”

I pursed my lips. “You realize they’re engaged?”

Popping a cracker into his mouth, he shrugged. “Just helping them get into their dresses. You’re the one with the dirty mind.”

“Gawd, let me finish!” Fran snapped. Her scowl became a toothy smile fixed right on me. “So I’m saying, I figure red is a great color for a maid of honor dress. And I look fuckin’greatin red.”

“Fran,” Mama Badd scolded.

I looked less good in red, especially when it was my skin turning into the color. Shooting a glance at Kain beside me, I said, “Frannie, give me a break. You’re acting like I’m getting married or something.”

“Well, duh,” she scoffed.

Laughing nervously, I gave Kain a light shove. “Tell her she’s being crazy.”

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