Page 61

I groan and roll my eyes in annoyance as I straighten off the grass and slink toward the door to find my phone.

I find my blaring device lying on the kitchen counter and snatch it up to see who would bother me at — yeah, nearly one in the morning, I note as I glance at the clock above the window.

Joel’s name is flashing on the screen and as soon as I swipe to answer, loud music blares from the tiny speaker, causing me to nearly drop my phone.

If it isn’t Molly squealing at me through the phone, it’s Joel calling me while he’s at Hell’s Playground. I will most definitely need a hearing aid before I turn thirty.

“Alex?” Joel practically screams over the line. I grimace before answering. “Joel, for the love of fuck, walk away from the goddamn bar! I’m hanging up if I can’t hear you over the noise!”

Fintan and Kieran join me in the kitchen as soon as they hear Joel’s name and Fintan mouths “put it on speaker” before they take a seat at the table.

I pace around with the phone, now on speaker, as I wait for Joel to make his way somewhere quieter. “Come sit, baby,” Kieran whispers as I round the island.

I sigh and make my way toward the two men focusing hard on the noise coming from the device in my hand. I place it on the table so we can all hear what Joel has to say.

Moments later, Joel’s voice crackles through the speaker again, this time I can actually make out his words. “Hey, sorry about that—Um, have you three checked the Hush account since you posted?” he asks and my heart immediately starts hammering.

“No, why? God, did you watch the video?” I nearly yell at the phone. The horror of my cousin watching our content makes my stomach flip.

“Gross! No, of course not! But I do get notified when actors post and you might want to check what is happening on that account.”

Fintan swipes up their phone that is still lying face-down in the middle of the table. I watch breathlessly as his fingers move over the screen.

Kieran leans over to see what Joel is talking about, and they both go still. Eyes wide as they stare at the phone. “God! What is it? You guys are freaking me out. Did we fuck up the plan?” I ask, feeling a panic attack creep in slowly.

“We have twenty-two thousand views,” Kieran says in an incredulous tone. “And counting,” Fintan adds before he hands me the phone.

“Ah, good. You three are together,” Joel says before the sound of rustling papers drown him out.

I stare at the climbing numbers on the screen in my hand and before I can even think of saying anything, Joel’s voice echoes again.

“Well done, guys. Looks like your bat-shit crazy plan is working. I got an email from one of the higher-ups about twenty minutes ago but we should talk face to face.”

“Holy shit,” I whisper, looking up at Fintan and Kieran. “We did it. It’s working.”

“This is just the beginning, Dove,” Fintan says with disbelief still clinging to his words.

“He’s right, but listen, come to Hell’s Playground. Molly is already on her way, and we need to celebrate your first win. I’ll fill you in on the rest when you’re here,” Joel chimes.

“We’ll be there,” Kieran announces before Fintan, and I can wrap our heads around this whole thing.

“Fantastic, come straight to my office when you arrive. I’ll have one of the bartenders here to take your drink orders; the bar is chaos tonight.”

Joel hangs up just as I am about to protest. I am going to punch him in the throat when I see him. I fucking hate it when he does that.

I turn to look at Kieran. “Seriously? You want to drive to the city at one in the morning?” I ask with a tired annoyance clinging to every word.

“We need to get out of the house, Alex. We deserve some respite for what we’ve been dealing with,” he tries to reason.

“Agreed. Joel is definitely not my favorite person in the world, Dove, but celebrating a win is deserved,” Fintan chimes in.

“We should go, but we are sure as fuck not driving, we’ve nearly finished the bottle of your heavenly whiskey.

I’ll get us an Uber,” Fintan states with a smile.

Alex stomps toward her bedroom with annoyance radiating from her sexy little frame to change her clothes. I am surprised she didn’t fight us on the matter.

“How long?” I ask Fintan as he taps away on his phone. “Six minutes, Darlin’,” he responds as he gets up from his seat and slips his phone into his pocket before grabbing the work phone.

“Nearly fifty thousand,” he breathes as he checks the insights of our video. “Hmm, I didn’t think there were that many people on Hush, but I suppose some of those sick fucks could be rewatching,” I say with a sliver of bitterness in my tone.

Fintan lifts his eyes to mine and something flashes in his golden gaze that makes my heart thud faster. “We are going to have a proper celebration after drinks at the club.” His voice is low and tinged with lustful promises.

Fuck, if he doesn’t quit looking at me like that, we’re staying here and making good on his words.

A few minutes later, Alex appears from the bedroom and we head outside. She apologizes to the driver who has been parked outside for a short while as we pile into the car and take off toward the city.

The drive felt like it took an eternity before we come to a stop outside the club. Hell’s Playground. I think back to the last time Kieran and I were here and a devious smile quirks my lips.

Our little Dove managed to drug us and somehow got us back to her place. It’s impressive to think about when you ignore the darker details of what followed.

It’s nearly two in the morning now and this place is still crawling with patrons. Drunk, writhing bodies greet us as we step inside, they move as if being controlled by the loud music and thumping base. The floor under our feet feels alive as the beat vibrates the tiles.

“Follow me!” Alex yells at us over the noise blasting from the speakers as she weaves her way toward the bar, glancing behind her periodically to make sure we are tailing her in the sea of people.

Fuck, I can barely think with the chaos ringing in my ears.

Alex leads us to a door next to the bar, waving at the bartenders as she opens the door and lets us in while offering a brief explanation to the bouncer who walks over to us.

Following her up a flight of stairs, Kieran and I let out relieved breaths as the music begins to fade to a more appropriate volume, the higher we go.

Molly notices our arrival first. Her excitement is palpable as she rushes over to hug Alex. “You made it!” she exclaims.

Joel looks up from his phone with a smile lighting up his face. Behind him, a bartender works a small, but fully stocked bar, expertly mixing drinks for us. The large window in his office offers a view of the club below, the neon lights casting a colorful glow over the dance floor.

“Any news from Hush since we posted the video?” Kieran asks as he steps towards Joel, curiosity evident in his expression.

Joel gestures for the scrawny bartender to leave the office before eyeing us. He doesn’t speak until the door clicks shut, and the young man is out of earshot.

Joel’s eyes gleam with satisfaction as he responds, “People are sending payments to Hush and asking for more. Looks like the video struck a chord with our audience and more so the higher-ups. You three are making Hush history.”

He pours himself and Molly a drink and gestures for us to help ourselves before handing his girlfriend her drink and taking a seat behind his desk.

Alex raises an eyebrow at Joel’s words, a mix of disbelief and pride swirling in her gaze. “So what’s the plan now? What do we do next?” she asks, taking a seat in one of the chairs facing her cousin’s desk, her fingers drumming a nervous beat on the armrest.

Joel takes a sip of his drink before responding, his eyes glinting with excitement.

“Now you capitalize on this momentum. You need to keep the audience engaged, keep them wanting more. You’ll need to brainstorm some fresh ideas, maybe even throw in some interactive elements to get viewers truly invested. ”

“It’s unbelievable, but it seems like we’re onto something big,” Molly chimes in, taking a sip of her drink as she pulls up a chair and seats herself at Joel’s side.

“The buzz around your video is growing, and the demand for more content like this is rising. You’ve tapped into a niche that nobody on Hush has explored yet.”

I exchange a glance with Kieran and Alex as the gravity of Joel’s words start sinking in. This was more than just a one-time success; it is a potential game-changer when it comes to taking these fuckers down.

Molly leans in closer, her eyes shining with excitement. “We need to strike while the iron is hot. We should start planning our next move.”

“We?” Alex questions, leveling them with a look of confusion. She shakes her head before they answer. “No. I’m not letting you two get involved in this.”

Molly opens her mouth to say something but decides against it when Joel tilts his head with a smirk. “I’ve already scheduled a meeting with the higher-ups to discuss possible upgrades to the Hush platform.”

“What do you mean?” I ask, my voice coming out as a growl. Joel’s gaze travels to meet mine as I move to stand beside Alex. “Viewers are feral for more, and if I get them to add a tipping option to the site, you three will be rolling in cash,” he states with a prideful grin.

“And what’s in it for you?” Kieran asks as he stares out the window overlooking the dance floor.

“It’s simple. If you make more money, so do I. I’m sticking my neck out by even suggesting the change to their platform, the only thing I ask in return is that you keep Alex safe and stick to your plan.”

Kieran turns and stalks toward us as he takes in Joel’s words. He places his hands on mine and Alex’s shoulders as he stands between us.

“Sounds good,” he says, before leaving us and heading to the bar. “Shots?”

I walk over to him, rounding the bar and grabbing shot glasses, lining them up on the bar before Kieran pours.

Molly makes a beeline toward the row of tiny glasses and swipes up two of them, nearly spilling the contents.

Fuck, this girl really loves tequila. I muse to myself as she hands one to Joel when he nears the bar with Alex in tow.

We raise our glasses; Molly and Joel might be celebrating our video’s success, but I raise my glass in a silent toast to my partners in crime and what we are building between us.