Page 3 of The Apprentice
“And he will. Everything Sloan does?—”
“He does for a reason. I know. You don’t need to give me this lecture.” I shrugged off his hold and glared. “While Sloan waits, Reyes is making fucking fools of us. Look what he’s fucking doing right now in Miami.”
“Language.” Sloan’s strong voice filled the room.
I froze, fear striking me through the heart and making me wheeze in surprise as I glanced toward the door. My uncle stood there, arms crossed over his white dress shirt and deep red suspenders—which reminded me of Conall, who had a collar the same color that Sloan had put around his neck. Sloan was big on marking his slut as his property.
“Uncle, he?—”
“I know what Cunningham is like. You don’t need to tell me.” Sloan slid into the office and closed the door behind himself.
I suspected Sloan already had men leading Cunningham out of the mansion and off our property, and I wished it was me so I could flip Cunningham the bird before he left. But Killoughs didn’t do that. We kept our cool under pressure and never let fear or panic influence our decisions. More lessons Sloan had taught me.
“He’s siding with Reyes.” I dropped my shoulders forward, disappointment stirring in my gut. I’d lost out on the deal Sloan had wanted, one of the first my uncle had entrusted to me. Maybe I wasn’t meant to be the boss one day.Fuck. I wanted the position, though. Ideservedto lead. I was born for it.
And I was a Killough.
“I know.” Sloan stepped toward me and rested a hand on my shoulder, squeezing. The pressure of his hold had me relaxing,and Sloan let out a sigh. “Cunningham was always going to side with Reyes. I knew they had a deal in progress.”
I stared at Sloan in surprise. “Then, why did you ask me to make an agreement with him?”
“Because you need to learn a lesson, boyo.” He slid his hand to my cheek and patted it. “Not all men can be persuaded to see reason. Cunningham has always been stubborn, an old man in a young man’s game. He’s stuck in his ways. Racist, homophobic old bastard. I’m surprised he’d deal with the Reyes Cartel in the first place, but he’s always hated me more. Not because of anything to do with the Company, but because of who I share my bed with. Even though Reyes is gay, too, Cunningham’s making a point. What I wanted was to watch your reaction.”
“I let my anger get the best of me.” I didn’t need Sloan to confirm what I already knew—I’d messed up.
“Yes, you did.” He dropped his hand and straightened. “If you were on your own, that would’ve been fine, but you weren’t. Daire is still part of the Company, and you should never show those emotions in front of your men, no matter who they are.”
I swallowed around the lump lodged in my throat, disappointment clenching my insides. Another lecture Sloan had repeated ever since I’d taken on the role of his apprentice, and I still hadn’t followed it. “I’m sorry, Uncle. But don’t you ever... feel that way? Angry at these stupid men?”
Sloan stared at me for a long moment, light blue eyes curious, before he turned to Daire and nodded.
Daire backed out of the office, closing the door, and I watched him go, not quite sure what to feel. I was confident that Sloan knew Daire and I were fucking, even though he’d never said anything. Staring at Daire had become an obsession. I couldn’t stop sincethenight that began it all.
The memories of Daire taking my virginity made my skin warm and belly tight, and it was the beginning of our sexualrelationship. Despite me wanting so much more, Daire had made it clear that it couldn’t happen.Wouldn’t.I’d accepted that sex was the only thing I’d get from him and continued to take what I was offered like a stupid schoolboy with a crush.
“Sit down,” Sloan ordered, startling me out of my thoughts.
I followed him and took the chair Cunningham had abandoned. Sloan took mine, crossing a leg over his knee and linking his fingers together in front of himself.
No matter what he did, Sloan looked liketheboss. I longed to be like him: not fazed in the slightest by anything that happened. The only time I’d seen his facade slip was whenever Conall was in danger or hurt. His reaction said everything about how much Conall meant to him, and I didn’t think Sloan’s pet realized. He didn’t comprehend how lucky he was, because while I begged for scraps, he got all of Sloan’s attention.
“You can be as angry as you want, Fionn. You can throw things around your office.” Sloan glanced toward the littered pieces of glass, and I winced. “You can take a gun to a range and imagine Cunningham’s face on the target. Hell, tape Cunningham’s picture on it for all I care.” He smirked when I laughed. “But not in front of your men. No matter who they are or how much you trust them. They must never see your weakness. Emotions are exactly that.”
I quirked a grin. “And what about your pet?”
“What about him?” he asked, the lines around his eyes tightening.
I laughed again, this time less in amusement. “Come on. Conall’s not just a pet anymore. You love him, and our enemies can see it. That’s emotion. I saw you when the rogue Italians kidnapped Conall. How you felt because he was hurt.”
I expected Sloan would deny it, wave off the comment and tell me I was wrong, but he didn’t. Instead, he nodded. “I admit that my pet caught me off guard.” His face turned soft, a raresight on Sloan Killough. He lived to look fearless and in control, but now love had overtaken him. “You once implied, when we were in Miami that first year I found him, that Conall was made of stronger stuff. It was you who made me believe he could handle what I threw at him. But now I thinkyouunderestimate Conall.”
“I must have been in a good mood,” I grumbled.
Sloan raised his dark eyebrows.
I shut my mouth quickly.
“My petissmart. If you gave him a chance, you could be friends. Instead—” He leaned forward, staring intensely at me. “—you choose to be a jealous child who’s afraid I’ll forget about you.”
