ALEXANDERI couldn't seem to get my father’s words out of my head as I jogged down the stairs from the manor’s upper rooms.‘You've changed son, ever since you married that little wife of yours.’Could it be? Had Darlene really?I'd always known being with her made me want to be a better person, but having my father confirm it gave me mixed feelings I didn't know how to unpack yet.I sighed, gritting my teeth and nodding my head slightly as one of the bright-faced manor maids curtseyed past, her tarp-covered pixie-length hair bobbing dramatically.My eyes blurred for a moment as tears of frustration sprung to my eyelids before I swallowed past the bile, the rustic red wallpaper jeering me out of my musings right before I felt my chest slap heavily against what must have been a tree trunk.“Dammit Xander, what the fuck’s wrong with you? Watch where you're going!” Fredrick’s frenzied voice screeched and I reared back to frown at him, catching the crazed look of rage in his eyes before t
ALEXANDERMy brother heaved a long-suffering sigh, seeming to ponder my question a bit before I craned my head just in time to catch his nonplussed shrug.“It's a party of bidders Xade, fuckers’ r’ gonna be gunning for the shipment all night,” Fredrick hissed distractedly, snapping off the leather of his seatbelt and flicking his sunglasses over the locks of his golden hair to gape at the round-bottomed elite woman that strutted past, a comfy suited chauffeur on one arm and an expensive gold-studded purse in the other.I felt the bulbs of my green eyes roll until they grazed the foam of the wet spaces behind my eyes.It was like I was working the job with a hot-panted teenager.It was on the tip of my tongue to tell the blonde-haired chad to get a hold of himself when an odd thought dropped into my head.There were escorts in the building? How much more suspicious could this look when Darlene found out about it?“Here, take this,” Fredrick hissed snippily after he’d snapped open the g
DARLENEStephanie Mckenzie appeared to be talking to herself quite animatedly when I cracked open the green wood door to the music room, the soft notes of the grand, gold-keyed piano playing syncing perfectly with her honeyed laugh.“Oh my, that is simply, preposterous woman!” Mrs. McKenzie cackled, throwing her head back in laughter before blowing into the frilly handkerchief noiselessly as I closed the door quietly behind me, conserving the woman.I didn't know how she managed to make something as vile as hacking out mucus into a kerchief as graceful as she made it look, Lord knew I'd probably have missed a fraction of my nostrils and proceeded to rain spigots of mucus all over the surrounding, something I'd be wiping off myself for weeks to come.”Oh, you mustn't make me laugh so!” Stephanie continued, wiping tears from her eyes and grinning more than I’d ever seen her since the time I’d moved into their mansion.It took me longer than it should have to realize that it wasn't the a
ALEXANDERYou could have felt the energy in the room drop to arctic levels from the moon’s milky orbit as we stood face-to-face with the billionaire mogul that had just a little too much hair spray in his slick, jet-black hair.So much so that he looked like a water seal waiting in line for choir practice instead of the sick perverted new money bastard he was.“If it isn't Stefan Mccoy, I admit I had to think about the name a bit. A little low on the social calendars aren't you?” I cooed, watching the chiseled lines of his face harden until I could have sworn he’d been carved from stone.“Oh spare the compliments Alexander, the only thing low on social calendars is that pretty little wife of yours,” Stefan McCoy jeered, his gold tooth flashing briefly as I felt the ball of my fists clench and shake with subdued rage beside me.What the fuck was he talking about? How had he known about Darlene? Fucking hell, of course, he did, what with the way the tabloids have been carrying the papar
DARLENEAlexander’s mother looked at me like I had just told her Michael Jackson was well and alive, running cross-country in the Yorkshire Olympics.“What do you mean what party? The party I'm hosting in honor of my sons tomorrow night!” Stephanie said, jutting her needle-sharp chin outward with an air of self-importance before Laura leaned over the table, her eyes flashing mischievously so that I felt my jealousy cave a little.“Mrs. McKenzie wants to host a ball at the manor, happening tonight. She wants us to be her angels Darlene,” Laura simplified, and I forced the knot that had gathered between my eyebrows to relax into something I felt was more accepting.“It would be the most exquisite dinner event to hit New York yet! Oh, I simply can't wait!” Stephanie purred, pumping her small clenched fists with excitement and beaming at me as I hastily worked a constipated smile onto my face.“That sounds ...er...lovely, Mrs. McKenzie, what does the mon signour think?” I sputtered, and i
ALEXANDERI watched my brother bite into the full meat of his pink lips anxiously, his form slouched into the driver’s seat as cold air slapped at us from the slanted vents of the air conditioning as he stalled the car in the forest path where we had a clear view of Duke Chabok’s driveway and twenty feet mansion.“Damn bastards must have planned to kick us out from the moment we fucking walked in! Fuck!” Fredrick cursed and I gritted my teeth, wincing painfully.They’d gotten me good when they’d brought up my woman. What was that? Since when did I lose control of my faculties so completely e?I had to be sure it didn't happen again, at least not when I didn't want it to.A deep sigh rose from the cherry pits of my stomach to escape out the lines of my parted lips as I raked a frustrated hand over my head.“We can't go back home without the shipment Fredrick,” I deadpanned, and my twin shook his head like I had just told him that there was a stair to the milky way right next door.I re
DARLENEMy ears rang in the silence that followed after Laura told me what she’d seen on the guest list, the foamy sponge of my brain skirting around the information so that I deliberated a moment before giving the dark-haired woman a puzzled look.“What do you mean you saw Kayla Storm on the guest list? Mrs. McKenzie just said it was by invitation only!” I croaked, trying to tamp down on the heat that was rising in my chest as I felt my breathing shorten to shocked gasps.We’d had a brief tussle in his office, his eyes darkening the second I shut the door so that he pulled me farther into the dimly lit expanse of his office.“What the hell Darlene? What was that? What's wrong with you?” Alexander whispered hotly, his eyes flashing with annoyance as he stared down at me, the hard barrel of his chest rising and falling with a quickness I hadn't seen before.Oh, I knew sure as hell he did not just try to pin this on me! I felt my teeth clench as I marched right up to him, stabbing the n
ALEXANDER MCKENZIEI felt the truck fishtail sporadically, away from the line of guards who had jumped away as I swerved the steering wheel into the forested path, only just missing the beam of my brother’s headlights up ahead.“Shit,” I cursed under my breath, my eyes darting off the road so I could slap the hades music off before I lifted my gaze back to the stretch of asphalt, swerving wildly to avoid the signpost that the car had been leaning toward.Green almond-shaped eyes met my cautious gaze in the rear view mirror as I watched the manor’s security team run into the brightly lit street, with some of the hump-chested men stomping their feet on the granite angrily and the other suit-clad protocols appearing to shout into their phones.We’d done it, stolen the shipment from right under their noses. Duke Chabok was not going to like this, Not Stephan McCoy either, No siree. I could tell the bastard had been gunning to outbid us if his plan to outs us hadn’t worked back at the Chab
DARLENE“Rise and shine sleepy heads! Breakfast’s ready!” Prince Charles’ booming baritone cracked through my skull before a wash of yellow light bored through my closed eyelids so that I groaned, breaking into a chuckle when Alexander groaned beside me.“Fucking hell Charles, did your parents not teach you to knock?” My husband hissed, throwing the soft white duvet away from his hard body and stretching to his feet to snatch the coffee mug the purple-eyed man held out like a peace offering in one hand, his gaze sliding over to me and darkening a shade before he smirked.“I don't believe they did,” He whispered breathlessly, nodding his head to the door where the strawberry blonde-haired man was leaning against the doorframe in brown capri pants, a pearly grin stretched across his smooth face.“Have some decency Frederick, my wife’s in the room,” Alexander whispered, scoffing loudly and sipping his tea as I stretched a yawn and shimmyed away from the bed to rest my head on my husband’
FREDERICK“Die motherfucker,” I gritted, pressing my finger into the claw of the trigger and feeling the gun jerk in my hands, the impact pulling me forward so that I tumbled into the stone flooring.“Come on! Go go go!” I screamed through gritted teeth, waving my hands wildly at Darlene and pushing her around the car as she surged through the barrage of shots pummeling us and firing off a few more rounds as the Umbrella man roared with pain, tearing the knife from his eye with an impossibly loud sucking sound.“I need to get closer,” I hissed through my teeth as I rounded the bend of the car to meet Alwxander’s tense body where he was hunched, hiding from the rain of bullets with Darlene curled in his arms.I swallowed the bile that had risen in my throat, jabbing my fingers into my palms to battle the wooziness that stabbed the sides of my head and peering through the rim of black sedan to see that the man now had a gaping hole in one eye that still spurted blood as he glared around
STEFAN MCCOYMy knuckles were white on the trigger as I watched the man’s hard body as he walked slowly into the room, his eyes never leaving the gun I had pressed dutifully against his wife’s empty ass head.“No sudden moves Alexander or I’ll have the woman’s brains plastered across the floor,” I growled through clenched teeth as Alexander staggered into the room with his father and more of my men surrounding them.I had known something was off the minute I left the penthouse, even before the sound of gunshots echoed out behind us and I asked Markov to turn the car around.The white penthouse with its flashing lights and tall pine trees loomed as ghastly as ever, as I motioned the men every which way, feeling adrenaline rush through my veins when the sounds of gunfire exploded around the sides of the house as my men sniffed the bastards out like the rats that they were.“Please, McCoy, don't do this, My wife has nothing to do with this okay? I’ll, I’ll give you whatever it is you wan
DARLENE“Something’s wrong,” I whispered breathlessly, feeling the hairs on the back of my neck stand straight as I watched the man with the Jerry curls stride away from the large lattice silver gates, a gun held tightly in his right hand.“What the fuck do you mean something’s wrong? McCoy’s going with most of his men! This is our cue to go in, grab the twins, plant the bombs, and hightail the fuck out of here in time for Mrs. McKenzie’s dinner special,” Erwin snapped blithely from his crouch beside me, the rim of a sniper rifle held tightly in his hands, as he peered through the scope.“Lassie’s right, this seems too easy, they must have found out about the decoy car approaching already, that's the only reason for him to leave...and yet,” Williams McKenzie growled on my right flank, raising the tight hulk of his frame into a low squat and inching to slap himself against the tree, the burnt orange blackness of the forest blending perfectly with our camo gear.“We should-” Erwin start
ALEXANDERThe bright fluorescent lights tore through my eyelids to fry my eyeballs before I had even opened my eyes. I groaned, the soreness in my arms and stiff legs making me groan louder as I let my head fall back into my chest.What the hell did the bastard hit me with? Fucking hulk?“Ugh!” I groaned, screwing one eye open to lock gazes with my brother’s blanched face and watching him sag with relief when he saw that I had opened my eyes.“Alexander? Fuck! Thank saints you're okay,” He rasped breathlessly and I felt the scowl deepen between my eyebrows as I glared at the swollen purple bruises on his face that had left the skin of his face puffy and red.“Your buddy didn't take too kindly to you I reckon, stabbed you in the fucking balls just like you did to me you piece of shit!” I barked acidly, watching my brother rear back on the chair that he was strapped to like he had been slapped.I looked down to see I was lying on some makeshift gurney table, feeling my heart pound wildl
DARLENE“Where is he? Where’s my husband?” I whizzed when I caught up to the ring chief scowling in the middle of the road, his hands fixed patiently on his narrow hips.“He’s gone Dar, that McCoy took him,” Prince Charles gritted, eyeing me carefully before I noticed his hand cupping the large gash on his chest, the trickle of blood pooling on the purple suit staining the area black.“Here, let’s get you to the car,” I gritted through clenched teeth, managing to push the words past the lump that had grown in my throat and tugging the man’s hand free when he resisted before hooking it over one shoulder, grunting when he leaned his weight on me a little.I could hear the whirl of sirens in the distance as they got closer and I yelped, slamming to a stop when the purple-eyed man stopped suddenly in his tracks.What the hell was it with mafia men and having death wishes? I tried not to look at the nasty knife wound on his abdomen or the purple and red bruises on his chin and focused inst
FREDERICK“Did you have to do it that hard?” I whispered, feeling tears gather in my eyes as I watched the Umbrella Man tower over my brother’s limp body, his brown eyes almost luminescent in the dark.“Quiet Frederick, you're ruining my groove, take him.” Stefan McCoy growled and I felt my heart hammer in my ribs as the masked ninjas dropped from the trees like banana monkeys, hooking my brother’s hard body onto the stretcher as I watched on with widened eyes.“Is he dead?” I rasped breathlessly, feeling panic burn in my chest as I trotted after the men, the crunch of dried leaves under my feet sounding loud in the silence as the masked men marched my brother to the large white van that had been parked off to the side of the highway.“Not yet,“ The Umbrella man whispered, rubbing his hands together in glee as they loaded him into the van and I felt a flicker of doubt spark in my chest.“So it’s all good now right? Everything will go as planned now?” I coughed, scarcely trusting mysel
ALEXANDERIt took longer than I would have liked for my eyes to adjust to the near blackness as I entered the forest.“Where are you? You son of a bitch,” I ground through clenched teeth, waving the gun this way and that and aware of the way I was panting loudly, carefully placing one foot in front of the other.My arms were starting to get sore from holding the gun up and high, my knuckles white on the trigger as I crept along the line of trees, freezing when I thought I had heard the distinct sound of a tree branch snapping.Could this get any fucking worse? Did the motherfucker have to pick the shittiest forest in the whole of New York to make his dramatic comeback?“Go on and run away like the coward that you fucking are McCoy, I can smell that cheap perfume from a mile away,” I jeered loudly, feeling goosebumps rise on my skin when my distorted voice echoed back to me in the blackness.I tried to focus past the hum that had started in my ears but my mind was not following my eyes
DARLENEMy husband hadn't made any sense when he got off the phone with the purple-eyed man and it made even less sense now as we sped toward the edge of town with his knuckles white on the steering wheel.I braced myself against the cool leather of the dashboard, trying to calm the staccato beating of my heart in my chest as we sped through the stretch of asphalt and felt a wave of nausea press insistently against the roof of my mouth.“Are you sure about the address?” I wheezed, unable to bear the silence any longer and risking a glance at the chiseled line of Alexander’s jaw, the way his piercing green eyes were starting dead ahead, his flock of obsidian black hair falling over his face as the muscles of his shoulder and bicep flexed when he fishtailed the steering wheel.“White Villa at Maple Street, I didn't know he lived there, there's only one of the kind, you can't miss it,” He whispered, and even though I knew the steel in his voice couldn't have been meant for me, it made sh