Page 8 of Their Domme

“Literally any other way than how you did would have been great.” Emmerich’s sassy voice filled the room as he sauntered in and beelined right for me. He scooped me up, grunting when I looped my arms around his neck and held him tight. I gave him a quick warning to not spin me, so he just squeezed me instead. “I’msobeating your fucking ass, Nic. Where the hell have you been?”

I pulled back to meet his glare with a wide-eyed, innocent expression. “Busy.”

“Busy could mean a lot of things,” Em said dryly as the others relaxed a bit. I could tell Wulf was still trying to figure out how he must know my name, but he’d lost some of the stiffness in his shoulders.

“Do I want to know how they know my name?” I asked, gesturing at Blake’s men.

“Oh, they might have heard about me walking in on you and Blake fucking,” Em said easily. “Guys, meet Nic, the prostitute-turned-call-girl and one of the most prolific serial killers on the East Coast.”

“I don’t know ifprolificis the word I would use. I’m a little young for that particular title. Besides, there is so much competition around to compare me to,” I protested even though I felt a warm sense of pride at that declaration. “Anyway, a girl has to have a hobby.”

“Killing people?” the guy with buzzed hair, Conrad, asked softly.

“Blood and lust make the world go round,” I replied casually as Emmerich slowly set me down. He didn’t leave my side, and I knew that spoke more to the way he felt about our friendship rather than any lack of trust in his sibling’s partners. “Is that food ready? I’m starving.”

“If you aren’t cooking, no bitching.”

“If you still want a kitchen, you don’t want me to cook,” I snarked back.

“Then shut it,” they commented, starting to throw together what looked like hamburgers, which luckily didn’t make my stomach turn.

“You said you were busy. With what? I’m not taking another deflection,” Em warned.

My face smoothed out, and I purred, “I have a business proposition for you, Emmerich.”

“A business proposition? With you?” Emmerich arched an eyebrow, but he stood there waiting for more. From someone else, I would have smacked them for the implied insult, but right now, it gave me an advantage so I let it slide.

“Me. The woman who is intimately tied to very close business partners of yours… and the person who has found an in with your trafficking rival.” I didn’t blink when Emmerich’s mouth dropped open in shock. The others froze, their attention focused on me, but I ignored them all for the man in front of me. “You just took over after your uncle’s… untimely demise. I might have been hiding out, Em, but I still kept tabs on what’s going on. I can help you show everyone your iron fist and your strength as the new leader of the Family by taking care of the rival your uncle could never touch.”

“A bold claim,” he said softly, his sharp, cold green eyes searching my face. I couldn’t tell what he was thinking, but I had my game face on as well. This was business, not two friends talking or me calling in a favor.

“A true one. I had everything taken from me, Em.Everything. My life, my future, and mybrother.” I felt Atlas jerk at that, but I didn’t look his way to see what was going on with him. “I’ve spent the last month hiding and working my way through names associated with the trafficking ring in Ashview to find my stalker and Thomas.”

“And what’s the price for this information?” Blake asked.

“The contacts I found… Their deaths are mine. And I want you all to help me find my brother, like we originally discussed. But this time it’s not part of the favors you owe me. I’ll hold on to those.”

“And your stalker?” Emmerich asked.

“How far are you willing to go?” Blake added on.

“There is nothing I wouldn’t do to protect what is mine.Nothing.” A cruel smile curled my lips. “It’s funny, you know. I thought being pregnant would make me more cautious, but they chose the wrong bitch to play with because it’s just made me even more bloodthirsty.”

“Pregnant?!” Atlas asked, his voice cracking.

“It’s not yours,” I joked, glancing at him again. “Relax, Atlas. Do we have a deal, Em?” I held out a hand, waiting to see what he would do.

After watching me for a minute, he grasped my offered hand, sealing the deal. “Name.”

“Joe and Miranda Graves. They’re in the inner circle of the ones running the show.”

“Nic…” Emmerich’s eyes widened, his hand letting go of mine, but I shook my head.

I tsked at him, lightly patting his cheek. “You’ll need to work on that poker face, sweetheart. It seems I get to do something I never wanted to do. I get to go home.”

“And the Russians? When are you getting them involved?” Blake asked, breaking the tense silence.

I just chuckled, amused by their question. “What makes you think they aren’t already involved?”

---