Page 108 of Poison Vows

“Oh?” I fold my arms, watching him. I raise an eyebrow. “How so?”

“It’s not as easy as it appears.”

“Then make it simple.”

“Young Miss,” Ty looks around, as if making sure we’re alone, but he still drops his voice to a low whisper. “Are you asking me to choose between you and the young master?”

“Well, your words, not mine,” I whisper back, as if we’re going to get caught at any second.

Ty takes a step back almost immediately and brings his palm up and places it over his heart.

“Young Miss, I am the young master’s personandI’m also vowed to you, so there’s no demarcation to whom I’m loyal.”

“Seriously? There’s no one that serves two people at once!” I whisper-yell. “You know that, don’t you?”

“That’s true for other people, but you and the young master… you’re both…”

“What?” I hiss, but Ty clamps his lips shut. “Hey, let’s be clear, that bastard and I are not anything at all! So you have to choose one of us, Ty!”

Ty winces like he’s in excruciating pain.

“Young Miss,” he starts in a whiny voice, his hands flopping at his sides, making me almost chuckle. “The truth is, my brother and I, we’re both sworn to be loyal to you and the young master. For us, you’re both one unit and so we’re one unit as well. Please don’t ask me to choose. It’s literally impossible.”

There’s a steely-like sincerity I see in Ty’s eyes as he says that, which shows me he’s not fibbing at all. Even his thick accent is more pronounced now that he’s in distress.

I can see he genuinely respects Emmett and is loyal to him to a fault, but the twins’ loyalty to me is something I wasn’t expecting at all.

In fact, it makes zero modicum of sense.

Is this all because of Emmett?

“So you’re telling me your brother is also loyal to me?” I ask.

“Yes, Young Miss,” Ty answers quickly. “He’d say the same thing too.”

“Then why are you the one who’s always with me?”

“Because it’s easier for me to blend in around you, Young Miss.”

“Uh-huh,” I point between his eyes. “So you have been watching me for a long time, haven’t you?”

At this, he looks sheepish again.

“Since when?” I demand, tapping my foot incessantly. “Since when did that jerk make you weasel yourself into my life to collect information about me to use against me?”

Ty remains silent, obviously struggling internally.

“You see? You can’t even answer me because you’re wondering if telling me would be in breach of your so-calledyoung master’sfreakish orders.”

Ty smiles. “Well, I’m more worried about my life, to be honest.”

“Why?”

“Well, Young Miss,” he starts with an uncertain look on his face. “I’m perfectly aware of how good you are in mixed martial arts.”

It doesn’t surprise me that he knows. Emmett also knows this.

“Yes, and?”