Page 15 of Cruel Debts (Killers of Port Wylde #4)

Hawke fell gracefully into a chair beside me, scooting it far enough away that it’d be a challenge to kick him should he offend me. “Well, Asher, looks like Liam’s got some explaining to do.”

Asher, scratching his head, turned to me, a frown marring his beautiful face. “What I meant was, why are you still in the kitchen?”

“Well, nobody else showed me where the hell to migrate to, so what was I supposed to do?” I threw my hands in the air. Why was this concept called thinking so damn hard for men these days? “Wander the apartment myself until I walked into the wrong room?”

Asher paled. “Good lord, please no.” I could imagine what was going through his head, and really, it was a shame I hadn’t taken the opportunity while I had a chance. Running into him without his clothes on would have been absolutely divine.

“I’m not a tour guide,” Hawke muttered as he disappeared once again, likely in search of their third, so he could get to the bottom of the secrets Liam kept from the other two.

And then there were two.

“I suppose you could show me where I should grab some sleep, right?” I said prettily, stretching so he could see the lines of my lithe torso through the baggy clothes that hung on my underfed frame.

His eyes followed my body, then jerked away, like he’d just remembered who I was. “Yeah. But first, a few rules.”

He didn’t bother to sit down, keeping the table between him and I like a barrier. I wanted to move to close the distance, but I knew better than to push too soon. Asher was like a skittish cat, and his hackles were still up. Last thing I needed right now was for him to run in the other direction.

“I’m listening,” I said slowly, leaning back in my chair. “Haven’t had rules since I left my parents’ house.”

“Don’t leave this apartment without one of us with you.

” His eyes cut to the door in the living room, narrowing to slits as a commotion in the hallway echoed past it, and then faded.

“These fuckers around here aren’t to be trusted, Trinity.

You’re only guaranteed safety here when you’re behind closed doors that belong to us. ”

That sounded fair enough. The weirdos on the main floor had given me enough proof that the residents here were all far from normal, in the general sense. Some of them might legitimately be borderline crazy. Like full-on psycho.

“I won’t leave the room without an escort. Scout’s honor.” I held up two fingers, swearing on them like it was a dire requirement that he know I was serious. “What’s next?”

He slipped around the table’s edge, closing the distance between us unconsciously. “Listen to the orders we give you.”

Now, that one made me scoff. “I’m not your little subordinate, and this isn’t the military, Asher,” I pointed out, my irritation rising. “I’m an adult. I expect to be treated like one.”

“You’re an adult, sure, but you’re not a Guild member. You don’t know what’s expected of you here. And since we’re providing you ‘protection’, I think following some basic commands isn’t too much to ask for.”

He was only a few feet away now, sipping his soda over ice like it was a martini and he was an elegant bastard at a charity dinner.

I wanted to take that glass from his mouth and replace it with my lips.

Down, girl.

They had no idea that I was in love with them. Hell, they probably thought I was still the bossy, spoiled little girl they’d seen hanging around Keehn growing up, before they were discharged.

They never came around to check on Keehn when he came back. They never once got to see how I’d changed in six years. Maybe if they’d bothered to keep up with their friend, they would have expected the me they were seeing now.

My arousal died a cold death at the thought.

“Whatever, Asher. Anything else you want of me, master?”

He leaned over me, his hair falling to shield his face as he took a deep breath. Those eyes were filled with cold malice, danger lurking behind the confusion and anger and—something else.

“Stay out of our rooms. Each room has a connected bathroom. You can use the communal rooms, like the kitchen and living room, for whatever you want. But our rooms are off-limits.”

“As if I have any reason to want to go inside those dens of sleaze.” My eyes would be stuck in the back of my head if I rolled them any harder.

“You hiding the Declaration of Independence in your closet or something? Maybe a few million in hard cash?” I was standing now, but I only came up to his chest, which made me twice as mad and feisty as before.

“Or maybe there’s an actual skeleton in there.

” I poked him in the tit, just above his heart, rather roughly.

“Maybe you’re hiding another girl in there and you’re afraid I’ll find her.

” My eyes twinkled with mirth as I pushed his buttons. “Or a boyfriend.”

“Or maybe I like to sleep naked and don’t like people watching.”

“I’ve seen you naked,” I pointed out, cocking an eyebrow, “and you seemed to like being watched just fine.”

He froze then, realizing I had him dead to rights. “That night at the club was a mistake,” he muttered, making an excuse, refusing to deny it. “It won’t be happening again.”

“Well, that sucks for you, but I have a job to do, and I’ll continue to do it as long as I want to.”

“You’re going home later today, Trinity,” Liam said as he returned to the room. “No more arguments.”

“You didn’t show her where to sleep,” Asher pointed out, looking for all the world like he wanted to escape this conversation himself. “Or get her something to eat.”

I shrugged, staring off into space. “I’m not hungry.”

“You sleep, right?”

I had to admit, he had me there. “Well, doesn’t everybody?”

“Your guest room is off to the left of the living room. First door on the side. All the other bedrooms are off limits,” Liam commanded, his arms folded over his chest. “Do not leave this apartment. Do not make any phone calls from inside the walls unless you use a protected phone. And for the love of fuck, don’t open the door for anyone. ”

“Jesus, Asher, are there any more rules you wanna tell me about? Maybe that I can’t breathe within six feet of any of you? Or that I’m only allowed to shower between the hours of 2 am and 7 am?”

His eyes narrowed to slits. “You’re a brat.”

“I try,” I teased, loving the way it had him all flustered for a moment. “I’ll go ahead and get some sleep, then,” I decided aloud, frowning at the two men in the room. “If there are no other objections, that is?”

“Don’t get comfortable, Trinity,” Liam called behind me, and I scoffed at the assumption. “Home. Tomorrow. To your parents.”

“We’ll just see about that,” I muttered under my breath, closing the door to the guest room behind me with a sigh.

I wasn’t done here in Port Wylde. And until I was, there wasn’t a person on this planet who could keep me away.

Not even the Gunners themselves.

All fucking three of them.