Page 33 of Promise of Hellfire

I pursed my lips to stop the laughter bubbling up inside of me, and Dominic coughed. “We’ll have plenty of time for that as well, but you seem to have forgotten we still work.”

Hunter dropped my hair and walked across the room, picking up the glass of amber liquid. “I didn’t forget, Dom, I just didn’t want to think about it yet. It’s not like we had an actual break for the holidays.” He tossed back the whiskey and poured himself several more ounces. “I’ll be up bright and early tomorrow to go into the office. Rayne, what are your plans for the morning?”

I took a small sip from the tumbler that Ethan had handed me, relishing the burn. “I guess I’m going to Inferno. Oliver still needs help. Plus, it will be good to hear what the word on the street is about the Rose.”

Dominic lifted his eyebrows and held my gaze. “That’s a great idea. Let me know what you find out.”

That night, I went to bed alone and attempted to sleep, but the events of the day weighed heavily on my mind. So much had occurred in the past twenty-four hours. The Ruby Rose was gone, the women were all safe, Ethan had killed his father, and we’d all lied to the police. Lexi was staying with Ignacio which surprised me and I wondered what their hidden past was.

Finally, Bennett was gone. It wouldn’t take long for Ayers to discover his former right-hand man was murdered or that his business venture had gone up in literal flames. There was no doubt in my mind he would retaliate somehow. The only question really was when.

The next morning, I awoke from a restless sleep to being smothered by the two men laying on either side. Ethan’s leg was thrown over mine while Hunter’s arm clung tightly to my waist. Dominic was missing, but that didn’t surprise me. He was probably already up, ready to start the day.

After managing to untangle myself from their sweating bodies, I snuck to the bathroom to wash my face. When I exited a few minutes later, both men were still sound asleep. Hunter had rolled towards Ethan and wrapped his arm around him in the time I was gone. They looked pretty adorable like that. I smiled to myself and debated taking a picture to show them later, but instead opted for coffee and a few quiet moments before the day started.

Dominic sat at the end of the breakfast bar, studying something on his phone. “How’d you sleep?” he asked, never looking up.

“Fine. I think I need a bigger bed,” I mumbled more to myself than him as I milled around the kitchen.

He looked up from whatever he was reading and rested one hand on the counter, tapping it with his fingers. “So, you’ve decided you’re staying?” He arched one eyebrow at me in question, waiting to see what my reply was.

I narrowed my eyes at him. “Didn’t Hunter tell you?”

His movements stilled as he searched my face. “No. What are you talking about? Believe it or not, even though they are my best friends, we don’t discuss everything.”

“I’m not leaving.” I walked closer and placed a hand on his cheek. “And it’s hard to believe that the three of you don’t discuss everything. You share a business, a house… hell, even a girlfriend.”

Amusement twinkled in his eyes. “Fair enough. I’ll look into a larger bed.” He stood, shoving his phone into his pocket, and leaned close to me. “I’m glad you’re staying. It would be pretty lonely without you,” he whispered as he pressed his lips to mine.

Chapter twenty

Hunter

Isatrestlesslyinthe seat across from Oliver’s desk, flipping through a stack of papers, watching Rayne from the corner of my eye. Dominic had requested I escort her to “work” today and told me he’d cover the office. I had no idea what Ethan was doing after yesterday’s disaster. Since Olly still wasn’t back on his feet from being shot last week, she was still filling in. I didn’t mind and tried to keep myself occupied by casually perusing some files she handed me, knowing that soon the other shoe was going to drop. It wasn’t like Ayers to wait for payback and I knew that sometime in the next forty-eight hours, we would find out exactly how he felt.

The shock of him being my father had worn off, while the guilt of the life I’d chosen lingered in the back of my mind. Only time would help to lessen that because there was no way in hell I would ever come clean to my mother after all of her sacrifices. She was proud of the business the guys and I had built and I wanted it to stay that way.

Rayne seemed to be slowly opening up to all of us, managing to trust us despite her initial reservations, and she’d agreed to stay. Soon Ayers would be taken care of, she would be safe, and we could all take a trip somewhere far away from Strathmore. She probably thought I was just saying that in the car last week, but the truth was we could all use a vacation, especially since she was eventually going to inherit Oliver’s empire.

The low drone of the music from the front was driving me crazy, but Rayne seemed completely immersed in whatever she was doing, occasionally texting or making phone calls. Things were slower today. All of our energy, and Oliver’s, had been directed towards shutting the Ruby Rose down for good. Now, it was back to business as usual, as long as you counted smuggling weapons as usual.

I tried to keep my focus on the numbers in front of me, but every time I looked up at Rayne, thoughts of her underneath me the other night flooded my head. I shifted in my seat, envisioning her seated on top of the desk, skirt pushed up around her waist and me kneeling in front of her with my face buried between her thighs.

Standing up from the chair, I stretched and stepped next to her. I allowed my breath to feather against her flesh, caressing her skin as I leaned close. “Hey, princess,” I whispered, watching goosebumps dance across her skin. Her lips parted slightly, even as her eyes narrowed. When she finally looked up from the paper she was reading, I smirked. “Let’s get out of here. We could go pick up some lunch.” I tucked a strand of hair behind her ear before tracing my fingertips down her neck slowly. “Or we could christen Oliver’s office.”

She bit her lip before groaning in frustration. “He’d be absolutelythrilledif he found out, and I’d rather not have that discussion. Let’s grab some lunch.”

She stood, grabbing the jacket from the back of her chair, and I pressed my body against her, pushing her against the desk. My hand splayed on her lower back and I kissed below her ear, placing my thigh between her legs. Her breath caught in her throat and she whimpered.

“Are you sure? He would never find out,” I murmured against her skin, placing leisurely kisses along the column of her neck. Her jacket fell from her hand as I nipped at her collarbone.

Her body melted into mine, but as my hands snaked beneath her blouse, she remembered where we were and pushed against my chest. Straightening her clothes, she cleared her throat. “Once this office is officially mine, I’ll let you bend me over the desk and do whatever you want.” She picked up her jacket off the floor. “Joey’s standing outside and all I can imagine is him hearing us.”

This was the same woman who shot Bennett without a second thought, stabbed her brother, and was the heir to a vast criminal empire, but she was worried about someone hearing her have sex. I pursed my lips together trying not to laugh, and when she saw, she grumbled, “I’ll have to look him in the eye every day when I’m here.” A grin spread across my face as she continued speaking, mainly to herself. “And after what Dominic said last night, I have no doubts he’d hear me.”

A rumble of laughter escaped, and I pulled her to me, wrapping her in a tight embrace. “You know we love that, right? None of us would change anything about you. Besides, the look on your face when he said that was priceless.”

She grimaced at me before silently walking out of the club into the parking lot.

---