Page 57 of A Worthy Opponent
Does she realize that she’s stepping into the role we spoke about, shifting to act as a partner instead of someone fighting me every step of the way? I’m not sure, but I appreciate it all the same. I take her hips and pull her against me, savoring the contact. “Your sacrifice is duly noted. Try not to come all over his face before I get back.”
She laughs, low and wicked. “What happens if I do?”
I turn her around and bring her back flush against my chest. The feel of her in my arms drives me fucking wild, but I muscle down the physical reaction. I can’t be walking around with a cockstand while I’m dealing with this bullshit. I nibble on the curve of her ear. “If you disobey me, then I won’t let Gaeton come all over you and then fuck you against his chest.”
She whimpers and arches back against me, rolling her hips and instinctively seeking my cock. “So rude.”
“You love it.”
A shaky laugh. “Maybe I do.”
I want to look into her words, to demand an explanation about whether they go beneath the surface level. I don’t. I just press a kiss to her temple and give her ass a swat. “Don’t give him time to think.” Distracting Gaeton has the added bonus of distracting Tink. Tonight won’t fix the damage Peter did by destroying her things, but it will still be a good thing.
“Yes, Sir!” She puts a little extra sway in her walk as she saunters to the bathroom, and I let her catch me enjoying the view when she glances over her shoulder. “Perv.”
“You’re putting on such a show. It’d be a shame if I didn’t appreciate it.”
Tink shakes her head. “Go deal with Colin. We’ll be herewhen you’re done.” Then she’s gone, and I hear the low murmur of Gaeton’s voice and the shower turning on.
I don’t want to leave. But the sooner I’m gone, the sooner I can get back.
I find Nigel in his office down on the main floor. For the first time in a very long time, he’s not perfectly put together. His hair is more mussed from running his fingers through it than by design, and his clothes are rumpled. He looks up as I cross the threshold. “We’re clear.”
“He’s already done?”
“Yeah. It was all hands on deck. We’ve shut down the exits and closed the gate in the garage. Colin is sweeping that one last time, just in case.” Nigel sinks heavily into the chair across from my desk. “How long do you think we have?”
“I’m drawing him out tomorrow. One way or another.” I haven’t talked about it with Tink, but we can’t keep going like this. Peter has already proven he’ll indulge in guerrilla warfare. The only people who will be hurt by a prolonged siege are the innocent ones.
“You sure about this?”
No. Not even a little bit. I know I can take Peter in a fair fight, but the man is incapable of fighting any way but dirty. He won’t come at me from the front, no matter how pissed he is. I don’t know if I can beat him, but I can’t tell that to Nigel. I can’t tell it toanyone. They need to believe in victory. In me. “Yes.”
Nigel looks at me for a long moment. “I have your back. No matter how this plays out.”
“I appreciate you, cousin.”
He shakes his head. “Yeah, yeah. We have this covered. Go back to your woman and that asshole Gaeton.”
“Actually—”
“Hook.” He crosses his arms over his chest. “You don’thave to carry the world on your shoulders. We can handle this tonight. Fuck, cousin,letus handle it.”
I finally nod. He’s right. Maybe I micromanage shit too much. I don’t know. It’s hard not to wade in and do shit myself. They put so much faith in me to lead them. I want to be worthy of that. “Call if you need anything.”
Nigel rolled his eyes. “We’ll see you in the morning. Get out of here.”
This time, I don’t argue.
I don’t allow my pace to increase as I head back up to my suite. Anticipation is just as important as allowing my people to see me. They’ve mostly retreated to their individual apartments, but I catch Colin on the way back down. He gives me a tight nod. “We have this covered.”
“Thanks.” I clasp him on the shoulder and keep moving.
The first thing I see when I walk into my suite is the outline of Gaeton and Tink against the glass of the shower. They’re obviously putting my hot water to the test. I sit on the bed and pull off my boots and socks and then simply watch for a few moments.
Tink has her hands braced against the tile, each finger a clear outline in contrast of the hazy image of their bodies. Even so, I can see Gaeton bent over Tink, one hand cupping her breast and the other between her thighs. It’s not exactly easy to forget how huge Gaeton is, but there’s something about seeing him wrapped up in smaller people that does shit for me.
I grab a condom from my nightstand and stroll into the bathroom to lean against the wall, just outside the tile of the shower. “You’ve been busy.”
