Page 9 of Cost of Courting

I throw a cushion at Kingston to get his attention, prepared to beat him down if he doesn’t just spit out the information I want. Kingston snarls.

“Patience. Good things come to those who wait. You know that Bailey’s father is the president of Despair. Andy Anderson or Brutus, the savage legend himself was a single dad to Bailey, and, up until the last few years, Bailey has been part of everything to do with the club. Hmm, so I don’t think he’s been kicked out. He’s probably been asked to leave, or he’s got some other agenda. Meanwhile, Bailey has been very busy with his maternal relatives and their record label. Alpha Labels or, its new rendition, Raines Entertainment. He’s now the CEO and has done a complete rebranding and restructuring.”

I roll over on the couch and stare at Kingston. “Interesting. I love a bit of corporate warfare. So, he won?”

Mael is staying strangely silent.

“Yes, it would seem he took it over with no issues or contention. After all the havoc his family has caused, I’m not surprised that he was uncontested. Bethany and Locke Raines, Lia Raines, Ryn Raines, Kelly and Raider Raines. All these rich and famous Raines’ completely backed him.”

“I read about them. I didn’t think they were the same people,” I mutter and reach for my own phone, loading up the information and reading quickly. “Locke was hurt by his band, Lia is with Mirakill? How does that work? Ryn’s dad tried to sell her. Raider’s beta had a stalker that almost destroyed the Greene Demons hockey team and Kelly-”

“No! You can’t touch Kelly.” Mael sighs heavily. “Listen, Bailey is my target. The job I’ve been doing on the side for Anderson. I’ve been following him around for months.” Mael shrugs his tense shoulders, trying to ignore the very pregnant and heavy silence in the room.

“We,” I say with emphasis, “are going to circle back to that. Go back to the Kelly issue. Why can’t I-”

“Because Kelly is Daane,” Mael says flatly.

I frown, all my plans of dismemberment vanishing in the blink of an eye. “Damn.”

“What?” Kingston whines. “How can he be untouchable? How does he even know the Daane?”

“Bailey is untouchable because of Kelly,” Mael stresses. “And my cousin Shale just called in a favour, and we can’t hurt Kelly,” Mael says. “Well, he put in the request a few months ago, but it’s a standard forever request. For all intents and purposes, they are, I guess…family now?” Mael winces and drops a clean plate in the dish rack.

“That’s not fair!” I growl, my frustration dripping over. “I hate his face. Look at him!” I turn my phone around and show the image of a smiling Kelly. “He’s sunshine and roses. I just want to give him a little scar.”

Kingston and I exchange a look when Mael doesn’t react. I urge him to ask. He’s silently telling me to do it.

I sigh. “Okay, I thought that job following Bailey had ended?”

Our alpha shakes his head. “No, Anderson wants him protected. Several attempts have been made to take Bailey now. Male omegas on the black market, especially one as high profile as him…”

Sadly, Mael doesn’t need to give any more information than that.

“I’ve managed to keep him safe so far.”

What? I can’t believe I’m just hearing about this.

“I can’t talk about it. Just…Bailey is still a job.”

Mael abandons the dishes and walks to the window, looking out across the road. My attention slips away from the scion of Despair and back to the problem that has been haunting me since I was eight years old; Selene.

Selene’s house hasn’t changed much. It’s aged, as all things do, but everything else is the same. Who would have thought she’d still be here? Not me.

I thought she’d be long gone.

She looks different, though. It’s clear to see that she has changed. And though I hate to say it, her presence changes things for me.

I find myself daydreaming about making her smile and touching that incredible blue hair. It hangs down to her mid-back, a couple of shades darker than her ice-blue eyes. She’s filled out more now, her hips are wider, her breasts bigger, but it’s the confidence in the way she walks. The way she managed to punch me in the face was a move that I underestimated but also spoke of lots of practice.

She’s probably had to fight a lot here without us. I mean, we taught her what we knew when we lived here. I don’t know why the three of us thought she’d be okay when we left.

The fact is, when we left, none of us were thinking about her. We were thinking about…something else. Us, our dicks, our knots. Not her.

I deserved that hit.

I’ve thought about her a lot over the years, but not with a brother-like fondness. No, we chased after green pastures, and we forgot what we left here for a minute. By the time those green pastures turned into fields of shit, it was too late to come home. We weren’t the same.

Big mistake.

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