Westlyn and I enter Duncan’s and it’s painfully obvious that we’re the center of attention. Well, I’m the center of attention—just like the night of my claiming announcement. All eyes are on me. And to make it worse, Leith sees me as soon as we enter the bar and calls out, “There’s the bonny surgeon who saved my arm.”
Oh, God. Kill me now.
Leith jumps and slides over the bar instead of walking around it. It’s kind of a hot move. I bet Lorna doesn’t mind watching him do that.
“This way, ladies. I have a special table just for you.”
Leith leads us to the back and pulls out two chairs. The table looks just like all the others so I fail to see what makes it so unique.
“Shite, Ellison. Leith’s giving us the trinity table.”
“What’s the trinity table?”
“It’s where Leith, Sin, and Jamie sit. Always. It’s their table. No one else is allowed to sit here. Ever.”
“You get a private barmaid when you sit at this table.” Leith waves over a tiny blonde. “Greer will bring you anything you want. All you have to do is ask.” Greer. This is my first time meeting this woman but I have an immediate distaste for her. She has caused my friend a lot of pain.
“Give them anything they want. And I do mean anything. If they ask you to stand on your head and spin while you sing ‘I Once Loved a Lass’ then you do it.”
Those aren’t the orders you give to a woman you’re sleeping with. Or have any affection for. I believe Leith when he says he hasn’t touched her in almost a year. I hate that Lorna wasn’t here to hear Leith tell Greer that. I suspect she’d have enjoyed it.
“This is Ellison MacAllister. She’s Bleu’s sister.”
“I know who she is.” Wow. Greer spews acid like Linda Blair in The Exorcist. “What can I bring you?”
I don’t guess I should expect to be welcomed by all Fellowship women. Many of them probably see me as competition. But I’m not—unless they’re after Jamie.
“Hmm. Not sure. Don’t really think I’m in a whisky mood tonight.” I don’t want to go home wasted. Jamie and I are still making up for the two days we lost while we kept the babies.
Greer dramatically huffs. “You do know this is a whisky bar? It’s what we serve.”
Westlyn gives me her don’t-listen-to-her eye-roll. “Kenrick can make you anything but I love his Rusty Nail. It’s magic. That’s what I’m ordering.”
I have no idea what’s in a Rusty Nail and there’s no way I’m asking Greer since she’s wearing her ass on her shoulders. “Sure. I’ll give that a try.”
She says nothing as she slaps two napkins on the table and walks off. I bet Leith, Jamie, and Sin don’t get this kind of service.
“What a bitch. Think I should watch her to make sure she doesn’t spit in my drink?”
“Might not be a bad idea for both of us to watch. She clearly isn’t happy about serving us.” I was actually thinking it was more me than Westlyn. Her anger seemed to be focused in my direction.
“Do you think it’s because we’re Lorna’s friends?”
“Doubtful. I don’t think she knows anything about Leith and Lorna’s past. Few people do. To Greer, it probably just looked like a regular boss-employee relationship.”
“Miss MacAllister?”
I look up and see one of the men I danced with after my claiming announcement. Derek? Darrell? Shit. I can’t remember. “Oh, hi. How are you?”
“I’m well. I was wondering if I could buy you a drink and maybe steal another dance with you?”
I really don’t want to be bugged tonight. I just want to enjoy some drinks with my friend and then go home to Jamie and have some crazy good sex before cuddling up naked beside him and falling asleep.
“I promised Westlyn this would be a girls-only night out. No men allowed, I’m afraid.”
“I understand. Enjoy your girls’ night.”
I wait until Derek or Darrell or whoever is gone to say anything. “The last time I danced with the brothers, Jamie drank a half-bottle of whisky and ended up leaving the party with another woman.”
“What!”
“Adaira drove him home, which upset me until he told me she was into women.”
“Aye. She has a girlfriend outside of The Fellowship.”
“Miss MacAllister?” Dammit. They aren’t going to leave me alone.
It’s the pit boss from the casino. I actually remember his name. “Hi, Alan. How are you?”
“I’m good. Better now that I’ve run into you.”
“That’s a sweet thing to say.”
“I was wondering if you’d like to take a walk with me later?”
“I promised Westlyn this would be a girls-only night. No men allowed.” Same song, second verse, except this time I make a pouty face.
“Next time you want to have a girls’ night, come to the casino. I’ll make sure you have a good time.” Alan winks and it gives me the creeps.
“Yeah. Sounds like fun.”
Alan turns to walk away and Westlyn smiles while whispering below her breath, “I don’t envy you.”
It’s annoying. “Do we even want to stay if our conversation is going to be interrupted every two minutes?”
“I think it’ll get better now that you’ve shot down the first two. Word will spread, and they’ll be too afraid to approach for fear of pissing you off.”
“Maybe. We’ll see.” I don’t plan on being harassed all night.
“Did you know Lorna hasn’t stepped foot in this place since the day she overheard Leith talking about her to Sin?”
“I had no idea. Just like I don’t know anything about their history. She never talks about it. What in the world happened to bring them to this horrible place they’re in?” I’m one of her best friends. Shouldn’t she confide in me?
“You need to ask Jamie. If you’re going to find out, it should come from him. Not me.” I don’t like the way that sounds.
“Why should Jamie be the one to tell me about Leith and Lorna’s conflict?”
“He was part of it.”
Part of it? That could mean a lot of different things, and my inquisitive brain imagines at least a hundred scenarios. None of them good. “You’re scaring me, Wes.”
“It happened years ago. Jamie didn’t know you then.” No one says that unless sex is involved.
Damn. The man I love was sleeping with one of my best friends?
It was years ago. Long before me. I can’t hold the past against either of them. But I can’t not know what happened.
“Two. Rusty. Nails.” Greer slams our drinks on the table and shoves mine toward me so hard it turns over and spills in my lap.
“Shit.” I jump up from my seat and try to shake off the liquid but it’s too late. My dress absorbed most of it on impact.
“Oops. Sorry about that.” Greer’s apology is about as real as her blonde hair.
Bleu was very clear about something. If I end up with Jamie, he sits on the council, which means he’s in a leadership role. He will need a strong woman by his side. As his wife, I can’t be like other women. I can’t feed into female drama and play their catty games. But when their behavior is unacceptable, they need to understand that I won’t tolerate it.
“It’s okay. Accidents happen. Except that wasn’t an accident.”
“It slipped out of my hand.”
“When someone shows you who they are, you’re wise to believe them. And what you just showed me is that you play catty games and you’re a liar. Thank you for making it clear early on that I should never trust you.”
“Ellison’s right. That was no accident. What’s your problem?”
Greer cuts her eyes at me. “She’s my problem.”
“I don’t know you. How the hell could I possibly be your problem?”
“I’ve had this job for two years. I walk in today, and I’m told to clean out my locker after my shift because I’m no longer employed here. And then I’m told to serve you. Give you anything you want. At. His. Table. The table Leith doesn’t allow anyone to sit at except his two best mates. All of this happens after you’re put on the claiming block.”
“I’m not the reason you’re losing your job.”
“Liar. You told Leith he couldn’t claim you until I was gone because you’re jealous of me. Jealous of our relationship. Jealous of us fucking.”
I laugh aloud because her theory is so ridiculous. “I didn’t tell Leith to fire you, and he isn’t claiming me. You lost your job on your own. I had nothing to do with that.” I shake my dress to see how soaked it is. “And I happen to know you’re full of shit for saying you’re still fucking Leith. He hasn’t touched you in months—almost a year. Do you know why? Because he’s in love with someone. And. It’s. Not. You.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“Trust me.” I hold up my hand and form an O. “Zero. Shits. Given.”
I glance toward the back of the bar. “Toilet?” I’m beginning to get used to saying that instead of bathroom.
“Last door on the left,” Westlyn says.
“I’d like another Rusty Nail, please. This time served in a glass with a straw. Not my lap.” And I’ll think about not telling her to stand on her head and sing.
I march toward the ladies’ room but I’m stopped when I’m grabbed around my waist from behind. “Is someone wearing wet panties?” Jamie’s warm breath travels over my ear and causes goosebumps to erupt over the entire right side of my body.
“Oh yes. My panties are very wet indeed.” As is my dress.
Jamie pulls on my waist and leads me backward into a room of shelves filled with bottles of liquor and supplies. He spins me around and pushes me so I’m pressed against the wall. “Those wet panties must come off, Miss MacAllister. You can’t walk around in those. Might catch cold.”
He bends down and pushes up my wet dress before leaning forward to lick the front triangle of my soaked panties. “I do believe that is the best cocktail I’ve ever tasted.”
The wet fabric makes my skin even more sensitive to the caress of his tongue. I’m instantly turned on. “Oh, that feels good.”
He pushes his tongue between my legs and then slowly drags it upward. It’s amazing how all the little tingles fire at once and at the same place in the center of my groin.
“I saw you put these next-to-nothing knickers on when you were getting ready and I wanted to spank your bum for wearing something so sexy around my brothers.” He pushes the wet crotch to the side and licks my bare skin. “Taking them off you—that’s all I’ve been able to think about since I watched you pull them up your beautiful legs.”
“I’ll let you take them off.”
“If I do, I’m going to fuck you against this wall. Your back will bear the evidence of how hard.”
“Do it.”
Jamie drags the wet lace down my legs and I hold his shoulders as I step out of them one foot at a time. “I’ve been wanting to fuck you while you’re in your high heels. I especially like the way these come up and wrap around your ankle. They speak to me.”
Hearing him say that makes me giggle a little. “What do these shoes say?”
“You want to feel sexy. Look sexy. And trust me. You do.” He notices. Worth the effort after all.
Jamie stands upright and unzips his pants. “I didn’t know it was possible to want someone this much.”
When he finishes, he comes forward and grabs my face so his palms are pressed to my cheeks. “You consume my every thought, Mac. I think about you all the time.”
“I think about you all the time too.”
He presses a quick kiss to my mouth before grabbing the back of my thighs and lifting me. I wrap my arms around his shoulders and hold tightly as he positions his cock at my entrance. And then slides inside me. Filling me up. “Fuck, Mac. Feels so good.”
My back is pressed hard against the wall and my spine strikes it each time Jamie thrusts into me. I will definitely bear some marks from this lovemaking session. “Am I hurting you?”
I shake my head. “Feels good. Keep going.”
And he does. Jamie pounds faster. Harder. Deeper. “Oh, fuck. I’m coming. From so deep.”
Jamie pins me to the wall and thrusts one last time. Hard.
That’s how we are—him pinning me against the wall—when he presses his forehead to mine, his eyes intently staring at me. “I love you, Mac. So. Fucking. Much.”
He isn’t drunk.
He isn’t going to take these words back in the morning.
He means them.
He really loves me.
I move my hands to hold his face. “I love you too. I can’t even tell you how much.”
Jamie opens his mouth to say something but then stops. What does he want to say? “Don’t do that. Tell me what’s going on inside your head.”
“I’ve given us a lot of thought. I have things I want to tell you, but the stockroom at Duncan’s isn’t where I want to have that conversation.”
What has he been thinking?
What has he decided?
What does he want to tell me?
“You can’t do that to me—say that you’ve been thinking about us and you have things to tell me but then you don’t.”
“We’ll talk when we get home.”
“Jamie! I’m dying—right here before your eyes.”
He returns my feet to the floor and my legs are so wobbly I have to hold his shoulders for support. “See? You’ve literally made my legs weak. I’m dying.”
He chuckles and grabs the bottom of my dress to pull it over my hips into place. “It’ll give you something to think about while the brothers pursue you tonight.”
This is cruel and inhumane. “If I weren’t with Westlyn, we would sooo be leaving right now.”
“I’m sure we would.”
He zips and buttons his pants and then scoops my panties from the floor and stuffs them in his pocket. “I’ll hang on to these for safe keeping.”
A wet dress and no panties? Not overly keen on that.
“Where were you in the bar? I didn’t see you.” It’s like he came out of nowhere.
“I was somewhere keeping a watchful eye. And that’s where I’ll be when you’re done freshening up.” He places a quick kiss on my lips. “I don’t want you to wipe all of my cum away. Leave a little bit.”
Jamie sometimes expresses an odd mixture of carnal and primal needs. “Even if I wiped all of it off, it’s still inside me.”
Jamie’s semen. Inside me. Where babies are made. I haven’t been able to get it off my mind since Westlyn made the pregnancy suggestion.
“Mmm. I do enjoy putting it inside you.”
“You’re very crude sometimes.”
“Don’t pretend you’re offended. You love it.”
I shrug. “Maybe.” Definitely.
“Ready to go back out there and fight off your suitors?”
“I’d rather go home and have this talk, but I don’t guess that’s an option.”
“Ah, the suspense. How will you survive?”
I poke out my bottom lip. “Uggh, you’re so mean. Make it up to me. Tell me again that you love me.”
“I.” Kiss.
“Love.” Kiss.
“You.” Kiss.
“Mac.” Kiss.
He holds my face and with full-on eye contact, says, “I love you. Now tell me you love me too, so I can survive watching those fuckers compete for you.”
“I love you, Doc.”
He kisses me one last time. My dismissal kiss. “You go out first. If anyone sees you leaving this room, giggle and ask them where the toilet is as though you got lost.”
“Got it.”
I go to the ladies’ room and evaluate my dress. It’s unsalvageable—complete soaked mess—but it’s black, so hopefully not really that noticeable.
I clean up the other wet mess and return to the trinity table where a fresh Rusty Nail awaits me. “I see Greer managed to not spill this one.”
“What a bitch. Is your dress bad enough we need to go?”
I’m wet and sticky—make that double wet and sticky. And uncomfortable. But I hate to bail on Westlyn. “I can tolerate it.”
“What took you so long?”
I grin and giggle, which makes Westlyn grin and giggle. “I ran into Jamie.”
“I thought I saw him following after you like a little lost puppy.”
I grin bigger. “More like a dog in heat.”
“You shagged him?”
I nod. “In the supply room.”
“Did you work on getting me that niece while you were at it?”
“I told you I was on the pill.”
“Then stop being on the pill.”
Westlyn has never struck me as manipulative, but she is Abram Breckenridge’s daughter. Maybe she has a side I’ve not seen. “Is that something you’d do to keep a man?”
“Not one that didn’t love me. If we were in love and we wanted to be together and some stupid reason was keeping us apart, then yeah. I might do it. But I don’t have someone to love. And I don’t have someone to love me. And there’s no one I want to be with. You have that person, and you shouldn’t let him go without a fight.”
“He told me he loved me just now. Three times.” And how I needed to hear those words. I’ve wanted to hear them for quite some time now. And finally feel more confident that he’ll do all he can to keep me.
“See? It’s true love, so tell me how in the world you can let something like that go.”
“I don’t think it’s going to take a baby to keep us together. He told me he’s been thinking about us a lot and there’s something he wants to tell me when we get home tonight.”
Westlyn claps her hands like an excited toddler. “Do you think he has changed his mind?”
“I do.” Jamie’s ready to claim me. I saw it in his eyes.
“Then what are you doing here? You have to go home right now for that talk.”
“I don’t want to bail on you.”
Westlyn wrinkles her brow and shrugs. “Psh. I’m not interested in anyone here. We might as well go.”
“Are you sure? I see a lot of cute guys.”
Westlyn shakes her head. “I’ve known every one of these men my entire life. None of them do it for me.”
“Okay. Let me text Jamie and tell him what we’re doing so he won’t worry.”
We’re leaving.
Jamie’s reply is nearly immediate.
Not without an escort. Protocol. Meet me at the front door.
BTW . . . You’re riding home with me.
Ready to talk. Love you.
“I may swoon. He just texted ‘love you.’ No man has ever texted that to me.” Except my dad.
Love you too.
“Jamie says meet him at the front door.”
Westlyn loops her arm through mine as we walk toward the front of the bar. “I’m so excited for you. Will you call me first thing in the morning and tell me all about it?”
“Of course.”
We’re bundled in our jackets and scarves and ready to go when Jamie approaches. “Ellison is riding home with me. Sterling is pulling around to pick you up.”
“But I drove my car.”
“I know, but it isn’t safe for you to drive alone. Not with this new Order leader coming into power.”
“I have class in the morning. What am I supposed to do about getting there?”
“I have clinical. I’ll come by and pick you up around 5:30 to take you over to get your car.”
Westlyn rolls her eyes. “That means I have to wake up at the ass crack of dawn. I really hate this life sometimes.”
Jamie holds the door for us and we walk out onto the sidewalk. I’m freezing so I wrap my coat tightly around my body. “A wet dress isn’t ideal to wear on a cold November night in Scotland.” But we’ll be home soon. And Jamie will be taking it off me.
“I can’t believe Greer did that. Pure rubbish. Hundred pounds says she goes to work for Lyle Campbell dancing on stage and showing her tits to the brothers. Although I’m guessing half of them have already seen them.”
I look at Jamie and he holds up his hands. “Haven’t seen them, babe. Swear.”
But he has seen Lorna’s.
Stop it, Ellison. If they were together, it happened before you. Neither of them can change the past.
A long black limo stops in front of us. “Damn. When did Sterling get a limo?”
“He didn’t.”
The doors swing open and men spill out like ants leaving a disturbed bed. I don’t even know how many there are but they all have guns fixed on us.
Jamie streaks in front of Westlyn and me, shoving us both behind him. There’s a searing pain in my ankle when my heel hits the unleveled cobblestone on the sidewalk. I go down, landing hard on my side and my hip takes the brunt of my fall.
There’s a loud pop and Jamie collapses to the sidewalk in front of me.
“No!” No. No.
I crawl to him on my hands and knees. A dark, wet sphere grows beneath his black shirt and I put my hand over it to stop the bleeding. “You’re okay, Doc. You’re gonna be fine.”
I’m holding firm pressure over Jamie’s wound when arms wrap around me from behind and drag me away. The grip is forceful. Disturbing. Painful.
“No!” I kick and fight to free myself from the grasp but the man is stronger.
“Get them in the car now.”
I scream for help at the same time Westlyn does. Shit. They have her too. And we’re in deep shit because I’m pretty sure The Order is taking us.
A fabric hood is shoved over my head. Chaos and panic eclipses the rational part of my brain.
Breathing. Hard.
Heart pounding.
Can’t . . . catch . . . my . . . breath.
I try to remember Bleu’s self-defense instructions but my brain has turned to mush. I can’t see a thing. I have no idea if there’s a gun pointed at my head ready to blow my brains out or not.
I’m not my sister. I’m afraid to fight.
My arms are restrained behind my back and I’m thrusted forward about a dozen paces before I’m lifted from the ground and forced into the car. Once inside I’m shoved onto the floor.
Oh, God. They shot Jamie. I need to get with him.
“On your knees. Hands behind your back.” I do as instructed and someone binds my wrists together with what feels like plastic ties. Shit. What did Bleu teach me about busting these open?
I took the self-defense class thinking I’d never have to use the skills my sister was teaching. This wasn’t supposed to happen to me. Attacks. Kidnappings. Rapes. Murder. Those things happen to other people. Not me.
But I’m Fellowship now. Almost. This is my reality.
“Wes?”
“I’m here.” Oh, God. They got both of us.
I’m trembling so hard my teeth are chattering. My heart is literally knocking against my chest wall.
“She’s not Fellowship. You gain nothing by taking her,” Westlyn says.
A man chuckles. “You don’t think the sister of Sinclair’s wife is powerful leverage? Sounds to me like Miss Breckenridge doesn’t think very highly of you, Miss MacAllister.” Shit. They know exactly who we are.
“Crawl to me, Westlyn. On all fours like the Fellowship bitch you are.”
Is she doing it? Is she crawling to whoever this man is?
“On your knees in front of me. Kneel before your master.”
I turn my head trying to hear any sound that would indicate what’s happening next. I get my confirmation when the man says, “Good lass. I think I’ll reward you for following orders by taking off your hood.”
I almost hope they don’t take off my hood. I think it might be more frightening to see what’s going on in this vehicle.
“Hmm . . . no one told me you were such a beauty.” Wouldn’t someone from The Order know exactly what every last Breckenridge looked like? Especially the daughter of Abram Breckenridge?
“Should I know you?” Westlyn’s voice is soft but steady. How can she sound so calm right now?
“I’m Kieran Hendry.”
Westlyn hesitates a moment before replying. “Are you part of The Order?”
“Aye. My mum is Arabella Grieves Hendry. Torrence was her brother.”
“Your grandfather married your mum off to a brotherhood in the north as part of a treaty.”
“Aye. A very successful treaty, which made both brotherhoods very successful. And now The Order has asked her to come home and lead because she is the next Grieves blood successor.”
“A woman is acting as the leader of The Order?”
“No. My father is acting on her behalf until I step into the role of leader.”
Holy shit. This Kieran guy is the new Order leader. Or will be. We aren’t being held by goons. Even I know that this can’t be good.
“What are you going to do with us?”
“That conversation is coming, Miss Breckenridge, but right now I’m really enjoying the sight of you on your knees in front of me.” He hesitates a moment. “I really like your pink pouty lips, but I think I’d like them more if they were wrapped around my cock.”
Oh, God no. Please don’t make her do that.
“I hope you like my teeth as well.” I hear what I assume is Westlyn gnashing her teeth to demonstrate what he’ll get if his cock comes anywhere near her mouth.
How is she so brave at a time like this? Or stupid? This man could kill us at any minute and she’s blatantly taunting him.
“Ouch, Miss Breckenridge. That could be dangerous for my dick. I guess we’ll go with the original plan instead.”
“The original plan being?”
“I take you to my house, tie you to my bed, and do whatever the fuck I want to you. Both of you.”
No. No. No.
“Ellison isn’t Fellowship.”
“You said that already.”
“She isn’t one of us and doesn’t understand any of this. She’s simply the sister of a woman who married into the brotherhood. This isn’t her fight. She doesn’t deserve to be injured or damaged.”
“Are you asking me to leave her unharmed?”
“Yes . . . please. Show her mercy.”
“What are you willing to do to keep Miss MacAllister safe?”
There’s a pause before Westlyn continues. “What do you want from me?”
“Will you take her beating? Take her rape? Plus yours?”
She can’t do that. It’s too much. “No, Wes! Don’t even think about agreeing to that.”
Something comes down against my face. Hard. “Shut. Your. Mouth. I’m negotiating with Miss Breckenridge.”
“Ellison will be unharmed if I take hers and mine?”
“Yes, but one more stipulation, Miss Breckenridge. Take yours and hers without a fight. Submit to me freely, and I won’t harm a hair on your friend’s head.”
What a fucking snake.
“Swear it on the life of your firstborn son.”
What the fuck is she saying? She can’t do this. She can’t be thinking he’ll uphold his end of the bargain. How can she consider doing this for me? She’ll be ruined. Possibly damaged beyond repair.
“Don’t do this, Westlyn.”
“Swear you’ll not harm her. Swear it on the life of your firstborn son, Kieran Hendry, and I’ll do it.”
“Miss Breckenridge of The Fellowship brotherhood, I swear to you on the life of my firstborn son that Miss MacAllister will not be harmed by me or any member of The Order. Do we have a deal?”
“Deal.”
The motion of the car soon stops and a door opens. “Take Miss MacAllister to the guest quarters. Feed her if she’s hungry. Offer her a shower and change of clothes but keep her confined there. You heard my deal with Miss Breckenridge. No harm is to come to her.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Miss Breckenridge and I will be in my quarters. Do not disturb us under any circumstances.” What? No. He can’t. Wes . . .
“Yes, sir.”
“Wes . . . I . . . I’m so sorry.”
“It’ll be okay, Elli. Go.”
I’ve never felt so agonized . . . apart from when my parents died.
I’m the reason my beautiful friend will know twice as much pain, twice as much degradation, twice as many violations at the hands of this Order member. Their future leader. A man who equates ruthlessness with power, and will show no mercy.
This is not going to be okay. Not even a little.
And I may have lost Jamie forever too.