LOGINTIFFANYI hated how I was starting to get used to this place.To the fixed chairs and dusty desktop that was probably older than I was.To the familiar customers that always had that look of pity whenever we traded glances.Even the the annoying smell of cardboard and old newspapers that filled the room with a heavier sense of staleness.I hated every bit of it. I sat behind the desk and turned a pen between my fingers, watching the second hand crawl across the wall clock.Summer had made everything slower.No classes. No club meetings. No convenient excuses to stay away from home long enough to outrun my own head. After Dakota, after the taking, after all those days of being moved around like a problem other people were deciding what to do with, silence had become dangerous. If I stayed still too long, the memories filled the space for me.So I came here.Even when the work was thin. Even when my father used the place more as a leash than a business. Even when most of my job was an
BRIAN“I was gonna tell you I found your guy,” Mika said. “But I don’t think you’re gonna be particularly fond of him when I tell you who he is.”I stopped just past her and turned.She was still standing in the balcony doorway, tablet against her chest, expression already braced for the mood I was about to be in.“Name,” I said.Mika didn’t drag it out. One of the few things I appreciated about her.“Matt Majors.”For a second, the night air felt tighter than it should have.Not because the name was unfamiliar.Because it wasn’t.I walked back into the workspace without answering her. Mika followed, quiet for once, and set the tablet on the desk like she was placing a loaded thing between us.The screen showed a thin file. Too thin. A few stills. A partial work history. Two known aliases that led nowhere useful. No current address. No clean financial trail. No family ties worth a damn.And still, the face was enough.Older than the last time I’d seen it, but not softer. Same controll
ADRIAN“No. Absolutely not. Over my dead body.”***“Julia’s said very good things about you, and I’m pleased to say we’d love to have you work here. Would you like to begin tomorrow, or right now?”I gritted my teeth, knowing fully well that if the next words that slipped down my tongue were the ones I actually meant, this whole carefully built cover would collapse on the spot.“He actually mentioned how eager he was to begin,” Julia answered for me… for what was probably the hundredth time tonight alone. “So I’m sure he’d love to continue the night shift with me. Right, Adrian?”She turned to glance at me.If only eyes could kill.If they could, she’d have died a little over seven times already.“Of course,” I lied.The manager smiled like that settled everything, handed me a black apron, and pointed toward the floor like I should already know where I belonged.A restaurant. Night shift. Waiting tables.Of all the places I could’ve ended up after Dakota, this somehow felt both t
BRIAN“You know, if you're gonna keep staring at me the whole time, you might as well just come take the laptop away. I can't work like this.”“You had me believe you were trained for these kind of situations” I groaned. “You hacked into the Lang database like it was nothing, yet you can't find one measly man?”Mika turned back on her ergonomic chair and stared at me with an expression clear with contempt.“He didn't sound so ‘measly’ when you described him. Speaking of which, you BARELY described him” she emphasized. “All I know is that you saw him at the Lang Meeting. Meaning he could be one in hundreds of people.”A wave of annoyance spread between us, and the moment she noticed, she turned back to the laptop. “Just give me more time. I'll find your mystery man.”Yeah. Sure she would.It's not like it'd been weeks or anything. The longer it took, the more frustrating it became. With Theo unresponsive and the hunt for me all but over, I already had a lot on my plate. Yet, the o
Chapter 232ADRIANI wasn’t attracted to Bianca.Did she have great boobs and a nice, plump ass? Yes. Did I find it increasingly hard to peel my eyes off her whenever she took her baths back in Dakota? Of course.But… she wasn’t my type. And the last thing I needed right now was to draw more unnecessary attention to myself by hooking up with the girl both my brothers already had a history with.So, despite the heat of that moment, our eyes met for only a couple of seconds before I walked away and headed back down to my room.I highly doubted they’d stop their little session just because I caught a glimpse, but I’d be lying if I said I cared.Bianca. Max. Brian. Mrs. Callaghan. I really didn’t give a flying fuck about any of them.Did that sound rude?My bad. I meant I couldn’t care less.And before the voices started orbiting my mind, I was very much aware that I’d be dead if not for Max’s mercy, in prison if not for Brian’s mediation, and homeless if it weren’t for Mrs. Callagh
BIANCAHe stared at me like the words had knocked all the oxygen out of his lungs.“What?” he muttered.Did he really want me to repeat it?Despite the tremble in my gut and the unease spreading through me, I took a few quiet steps toward him and stopped only centimetres away.“I want you to fuck me, Max. Properly and thoroughly.”I wasn’t sure what to make of his expression. Shock? Confusion?Whatever it was, it wasn’t enough to hide the flint of something hotter burning behind his eyes. Like a matchstick that only needed the slightest nudge to set an entire field on fire.“Don’t hold back.” I drew closer, ready to give him that final push. “I give you permission to use me however you’d—”He grabbed my waist before I could close any more space. Just as I tried to steady myself, Max’s mouth closed over mine.Instantly, streaks of something warm and spreading burst through me. My body tingled with a heat that ached and satisfied all at once.He pulled me closer. Close enough that I c







