Page 41 of His Deadly Devotion

“Don’t tell me what to do, Connor,” she replies, already getting up and sliding her panties over her legs. “If you think for one second that I’m waiting in here like a good little girlfriend, you’re delusional. I want to know what he wants with you.” She yanks her shorts in place and buttons them. Once I’m satisfied she’s dressed, I walk over and open the door.

“We need to talk. Alone,” Bray says, glancing at Aurora over my shoulder.

“Whatever you need to tell him, you can tell him in front of me,” she fires back.

Bray looks at me, waiting for… I have no fucking ideawhathe’s waiting for honestly.

“Come in. She’s not leaving,” I tell him, knowing full well Aurora is not going anywhere. I don’t want her to. She’s right. “We don’t have secrets. Bray, whatever it is, she can hear it.”

18

It was obvious that whatever Bray had to tell Connor, he did not want to do it in front of me. Which is why I was more determined to stay put and hear whatever it was. How bad could it be? We’re literally in hiding with bounties on our heads.

“I’m only telling you this because I owe you for Dublin,” Bray says to Connor, who doesn’t say a single word. I still haven’tasked what happened between the two of them. I really need to do that.

“I got you these. Use them only if necessary.” He hands over two passports and four credit cards. And then he pulls out a phone. “There’s a preloaded location on here that will lead you to a car—again, only if necessary,” Bray says.

Connor nods, taking the items. “What’d you find out?”

“I made a call to Jimmy. He says your parents are starting to go through flight logs. It’s only a matter of time before they realize you aren’t in the States. Jimmy thinks the first place they’ll look is Dublin. So there’s time still.”

Connor nods again. “What else?”

Bray looks at me and then back to Connor. “They’ve increased the bounty to twenty million.”

“On me?” Connor asks.

“On her.” Bray gestures in my direction.

“Pfft, I’m worth way more than twenty. Tell them to try again.” My statement is met by a set of matching glares.

“This isn’t a joke, Aurora. The O’Malleys are not a joke. If they’re looking for you, it’s only a matter of time before they find you.”

“They would have to get to me first. In case you haven’t noticed, we’re locked up in a compound,” I point out.

“Don’t underestimate them. That will be your first mistake,” Bray tells me.

“What will be my second?”

“Getting caught,” Bray says. “The things they do to women… you don’t want that. The world doesn’t want that, because if they get you, it will start World War III.”

“They’re not going to get her,” Connor grunts out, his hand gripping mine tighter.

“Right, nice chat. If anyone asks, you didn’t get that shit from me. But she is my cousin, Connor. Anything happens to herbecause of you or your family, this agreement between us is off the table. I will come for you.” Bray leaves with that warning.

“What’s the agreement?” I ask Connor as soon as Bray is gone.

“There is no agreement. He thinks he owes me because I saved his brother one time.” Connor shrugs.

“Why, though? Why did you jump in to be Levi’s white knight?” I ask.

Connor chuckles. “I’m nobody’s white knight—well, I’d be yours but you’d never need me to be. I saved him because my cousin happens to like the asshole. A lot.”

“Kenny?” I ask as a fresh wave of guilt washes over me.

“No, I have more cousins, Aurora. Most of them in Ireland. Aisling, who’s in Dublin, met Levi and became… fixated on him. He, of course, doesn’t know that part because she wouldn’t acknowledge it to anyone. But when he was in trouble, she came and asked me to help him. So I did.”

“What kind of trouble was he in?” Knowing Levi, it could be anything.