Page 21 of Finn

“Oh God,” he mutters, already folding his arms over his chest.

“I mean it,” I tell him, practically jumping up and down on my toes. “The best.”

“I already know I’m going to ha—”

“Love it,” I finish for him. I widen my eyes in true excitement. “Let Finn be my bodyguard while you’re gone.”

“What? No.”

He starts to walk away, completely dismissing the conversation, but I follow after him and yank back on his hand. “It’s perfect. Then you can see what kind of guy he is.”

“Leenie, no. Dempsey is watching you. He’s trained. I trust him.”

“Yeah, but I don’t want to fuck Dempsey.”

My brother stops and turns toward me. A cruel smile curves across his lips. “Actually, maybe I should hire Finn.”

“See, we’re on the same...” My excitement fizzles out like a bucket of water was thrown on a match. If Cole’s giving in this easy, there must be a reason. “What?”

He chuckles to himself. “My guards don’t fuck the people I have them guard. It’s forbidden.”

“Cole,” I warn.

He turns, his laugh echoing around the room while I stay rooted in the spot, dread deflating my body.

“And you’re right, Finn’s trained, too. Plus, he owes me for letting him run his businesses in my territory without compensation. You’re pretty smart, Leen. Thank you.”

Well, fuck. I walked right into that one.

9

Cole and I spend the rest of the day together at the tower.

I watch him jump between different personas. When it’s him and me, he’s back to being my brother, and we pick on each other relentlessly. When anyone else is in the room, especially if it’s one of the Dragons, he hardens up like a tortoise retreating into its shell. Even his voice lowers to a pitch slightly above dangerous, and I’m sure he’d go darker, too. To get where he is now, there’s no doubt in my mind he’s done it before.

He’s secretive about “the project” he’s working on, but whatever it is, it means a lot to him. The guys he’s taking are the ones closest to him, so he’s not trusting just anyone.

When he kicks everyone out after a short, whispered meeting, he tells me he ordered Chinese from the place we used to get it when we were kids. He bounces on his toes, rubbing his palms together in excitement.

Jaz has been keeping me company while Cole takes care of business, and she just informed me Jared’s going to take her cell away from her since they’re on a dinner date. I guess it works out because now I don’t have to eat alone in the apartment. I read her last text, which is a picture of her second glass of wine. If Jared knows her well enough, he already realizes he’s going to get lucky tonight.

“Who’s that?” Cole asks, keeping his voice neutral, but when I tilt the screen so he can’t see it, he frowns.

I laugh. “It’s just Jaz. She’s on a date with her boyfriend.”

He snaps his fingers. “Which reminds me. I still have to vet him.”

“Jared? Please.” I laugh, the sound coming straight from my belly. “He’s harmless. Besides, I promised Jaz I wouldn’t bring him into your shit.”

“Myshit?” he asks, raising a dark brow.

“You know, you and the big bad Dragons,” I whisper conspiratorially. “She told me not to drag them into it if you found me at the Ring yesterday.”

“Oh, so Jaz and this dude were at the Ring with you?”

“Of course they were. I wouldn’t go alone. I’m not dumb, Cole. I understand taking precautions. You do realize I’ve been taking care of myself since you left, right?”

His lips thin. He picks his foot up and rests it on the coffee table in front of us.

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