Page 28 of Axel (Belles & Bratva Beasts #2)

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

AXEL

“Why in the hell are we at The Mercier Hotel?” Sire glares at me before turning on his heavenly smile, holding the door open for a gaggle of women.

“Why, good morning, ladies,” he drawls. “Welcome to Charleston. Y’all have a blessed day.”

They gasp and giggle, tittering their thanks for his Southern manners, and if it were the Victorian era, they’d be fanning their hoop skirts, too.

Sire knows he looks like God and the Devil spawned a tatted cover model. He ruins panties, and it runs in the family.

“We’re here to meet with my future brother-in-law.”

“What?” He freezes in the hotel’s opulent, white marble lobby. “When did this happen?”

“While you were breeding Wren.”

“I’m fucking serious.”

“So am I.” I lower my voice. “But it’s complicated. We’re going slow, but it’ll happen. She’ll be my wife one day, and I need your backup to get there.”

“Complicated how?”

“Because she already knows about us. She spied on Wren’s initiation and figured it out. And?—”

His top lip curls. “If we can’t trust her, you know what needs to be done because nobody puts Wren at risk. I’ll ki?—”

“We can trust her.” I palm his shoulder.

We’re both wearing suits. We have a kings’ meeting at Delta’s next.

We need to discuss our plan to trap the trafficker we’re hunting, but I made a call this morning after my tiff with Ruby yesterday.

We didn’t go to bed mad about it, but I held her, worried.

“She’s close with Nick and Zar. She’s earned their trust, and she has mine. Mostly .”

His nostrils flare. “ Mostly ?”

“She can be a bit stubborn. A bit of a sexy, fucking wildfire and…”

Sire throws his chin up, filling the lobby with his almighty laughter. “Oh, so she’s your queen . Has Mom met her yet?”

“Not really. I don’t want anyone to know about her yet. Only you. And only Grant, because we’re running a side mission together. Something to help Nick and Zar and?—”

“Who’s hurting Nick?”

Sire’s as protective over our brothers as I am. We both took beatings to shield them, trying to defend our mother, too. Yes, we were young, but when your father’s an animal, you learn to fight back like one, too.

“It’s a long story. I’ll fill you in later, but we’re running late.”

“Late for what?”

“We’re meeting with Luca Mercier. He’s the brother-in-law of the woman I…”

I stumble on the word. It’s not that I don’t feel it. No, I fear it. I fear what loving me will do to Ruby.

I don’t give a shit about my risk, my pain. I’ve already suffered so much. But I will stop at nothing for her safety.

“The woman you love ? That’s what you were going to say?” Sire’s not laughing. “It’s okay, brother, you deserve it. You never loved Katya, and she never loved you.”

“Yeah, because she was pussy-crazed for you.”

I’m not mad about it. It’s true. Katya wanted me and Sire. She wasn’t shy about it. She’d ask me to let him join our bed all the time. Of course, I said no.

“I never disrespected your marriage,” Sire insists. “I always turned her down and told you about it each time. Only once. Only her initiation. Only that night and?—”

“I know. I know you’d never betray me, and you’re right. It wasn’t love. But this is.”

“So what’s the problem?”

“She wants to go on vacation with her sisters and?—”

“And you need to protect her.” He nods, understanding; any time we claim a queen, we claim her protection for life.

The minute Sire saw Wren, he claimed her. He had to. She was a virgin, being trafficked and auctioned off, and he went through hell to get her out of it.

“So this is tricky.” I lead us toward the golden elevator doors. “I need Luca Mercier to know the risk Ruby’s in, but he can’t know why.”

“Ruby?” Sire smirks, joining me before the doors slide closed. “Isn’t she your hot paralegal with those big blue eyes, fiery hair, and luscious tits like?—”

“Shut up, holy fucker.” He’s trying to goad me. It’s a wicked game we brothers play. “She’s more than my paralegal now, and she’s fucking mine .”

The elevator doors slide open on the third floor to Zar standing there. Though I’m not into men, I see why my brother Nick is madly in love with him. Zar’s tall, built, and tan, with dark hair and eyes. Zar drips with swagger, and when Sire’s around him, the energy crackles between them, too .

“Mr. Cummings.” Zar nods at me. “Pastor Rutledge.” He winks at Sire. “Right this way. We’re expecting you.”

This meeting will be one of the trickiest situations I’ve ever negotiated.

The blood shared between some of us. The erotic connections between others. The dangerous secrets we hide. The powerful and interconnected worlds about to collide over one woman.

My woman.

All know Luca’s protective over Ruby. He should be. She’s his beloved little sister-in-law.

Some know Zar is fiercely in love with Nick. They’ll get married when Nick retires from football. But only a few know Nick is our brother. He’s a king, and Zar is his queen, and our queen, too.

However, Luca and Scarlett have no idea who we really are and how Zar is one of us.

A few know Zar is also partnered with Luca. Zar is his CFO, best friend, and loyal sub. Zar subs with Luca’s wife, Scarlett, and Nick joins them.

I respect my brother’s privacy. How ever Nick is partnered with them is his business.

But Ruby is my business.

And her protection is my vow.

“Mr. Cummings.” Politely, Luca rises from his mammoth desk to greet me. “Pastor Rutledge.” He shakes Sire’s hand, too. “Please, come in.”

As the CEO of The Mercier Hotels, Luca’s office is impressive, but his rich Greek accent is inviting. He gestures for us to settle into the seating area, a circle of Grecian blue velvet chairs by the window in his office.

“My wife drove our daughter to school,” Luca shares. “She’ll be joining us momentarily.”

As Luca’s assistant asks for our drink requests, Scarlett appears. She’s obviously Ruby’s sister, equally stunning with her long, auburn hair and fierce blue eyes. The Jones sisters are a force, I can tell.

I’ll never stop feeling guilty, suspecting that I triggered Ruby’s seizure. That I evoked the fear she used to have of her predatory stepfather.

But I note the jagged scar through Scarlett’s eyebrow. The bruises on her knuckles like she’s been sparring. The way she lifts her chin like her little sister. The way she glares suspiciously at me, and I see it now—how the sisters protected each other.

Like Ruby, Scarlett doesn’t easily trust men, and I understand.

But it’s reassuring how she sits lovingly beside her husband, Luca, and tenderly accepts his kiss before she glares at me.

“Why isn’t Ruby here?” She demands to know, “That’s who we’re here for? Right? My sister works for you? Because I’m not talking about her behind her back.”

Zar laughs. “Damn, Red, way to come out swinging.”

“We’re here,” I answer, “because your sister is a wildfire who’d burn my world to ash if she knew I was meeting with you.”

“Ah, I see.” Luca rumbles a deep chuckle. “The professional has turned personal.” He nods. “No judgment. We’re just as guilty in this room.”

“Fine.” Scarlett softens. “This is personal. But why is Charleston’s celebrity pastor here, too?”

“I’m here to vouch for Mr. Cummings,” Sire answers smoothly. “We’ve been friends for years, and I can attest to his character in this matter.”

“What matter?” Scarlett presses, and I can see why a powerful man like Luca Mercier married her. She’s his equal. She’s his soulmate .

Luca and Scarlett make me feel like I’m looking in a mirror. Like Ruby is my soulmate, she’s as equally terrifying and tender as I can be.

I begin, “I understand that Ms. Jones is scheduled to go on vacation with her sisters.”

Scarlett arches her scarred brow. “…. and? ”

“And,” I fight my smile at her ferocity. It’s familiar. “And I need to discuss her security. Her protection.”

I catch how Luca squeezes Scarlett’s thigh before he glowers. “Exactly who does my sister-in-law need protection from, Mr. Cummings?”

“My business has its risks.”

“But you’re a property lawyer.” Luca’s not buying it. “How risky can that be?” But he plays along.

“We have some nefarious clients, some disgruntled ones, too. And as a member of my staff, it puts Ms. Jones at risk.”

It’s not a lie.

Disturbed clients have targeted legal teams before. I even clocked how Bill Ratcliffe seethed at Ruby in the courtroom. Like the predator he is, he was silently threatening her, too, and it’s a matter of weeks before I kill that piece of shit.

“So you’re saying my sister is in danger? From what?” Scarlett’s equally calling bullshit on me. “A house sale that went wrong?”

“I also take pro bono cases,” I explain. “I represent disenfranchised tenants to survivors of sex trafficking and?—”

“And that’s where I come in.” Sire gets my back.

He’s not lying about this, either. “My church is a safe harbor. We have a rescue mission and offer survivor support. Mr. Cummings and his staff seek legal justice for the survivors we help, which puts them at risk of retaliation. I assure you he’s a good man in a dangerous business. ”

“Does Ruby know this?” Concern grabs Scarlett’s voice.

“Yes, Ms. Jones is the best paralegal on my pro bono cases,” I answer. “She’s invaluable to our mission and at risk because of it. So, please understand my concern when she informed me that she’d be traveling out of the country and away from my protection.”

Luca snarls, “Your. Protection? ”

“Yes, my protection .”

Let him read between the lines.

Luca Mercier is no fool. Neither is his wife. Let them assume what they want about me, but don’t let them doubt my loyalty to Ruby and my intentions to make her mine.

“Look, Mr. Cummings,” Zar mediates. “Ruby is my ride-or-die. I love that little firecracker, and I’ll be there. I’m crashing the Jones sisters’ getaway, and I can assure you of her safety. Of everyone’s safety.”