Page 122 of Ruthless Desires: Vol. Two

Wren takes the dress from Aubrey and disappears, probably to change in the bathroom. Once we’ve sat down in the living room, Rhett doesn’t waste any time.

“Have you seen my brothers?”

“I have. They both seem to be doing perfectly fine. Benny is shaken—I mean, Ludo basically had him kidnapped—but having Andrew around is helping with that.”

“And what about the rat in Ludo’s organization? Is there any news on that?” I ask. “Or, more specifically, is the heat off Andrew?”

“One of Ludo’s guys was able to confirm that Andrew’s phone has been hacked. Ludo is still being cautious, but it’s more out of fear that Andrew will make anothernaive mistake.” Aubrey rolls her eyes. “The whole thing isn’t helping with his aversion to technology. He already looks at his phone like it’s going to grow talons and attack him.”

Rhett blows out a long breath and sags into the couch. “Just as long as Andrew isn’t at any unneeded risk.”

“Ludo isn’t an irrational man,” Aubrey says. “When he sees logic, he reacts accordingly. As long as his ego doesn’t get in the way, that is. That doesn’t mean he’s not unreasonably cruel at times, but most of his actions are evidence-based.”

“Which is why he hates technology, right?” Oliver asks.

Aubrey nods. “He’s paranoid of being hacked or of storing the wrong data in the wrong place and getting caught by the authorities. It’s why he doesn’t have security cameras at the mansion. And it’s also why—ohhh, Wren! You lookgorgeous!”

We all follow Aubrey’s gaze. Wren is standing near the entrance to the living room in a floor-length, pale pink gown. The fabric pools at her feet, probably because it’s meant to be worn with heels.

Wren shifts from foot to foot. Both her arms are behind her. “Um. Can someone zip me up?”

I’m closest to her, so I volunteer. The zipper is infuriatingly tiny, but I’m also distracted by the curve of Wren’s spine. Before I pull up the zipper, I trace a finger up her back, smirking when it makes her shiver.

“Beautiful,” I say once I’m finished. Squeezing her waist, I drop a kiss on her shoulder. “And it seems to fit well.”

“I gave Aubrey my measurements the other day.” With a little laugh, Wren adds, “Glad I measured correctly.”

Slowly, Aubrey walks around Wren, examining the dress from every angle. “It’s perfect.”

The girls chat for a few minutes about random wedding details. Bouquets, the other bridesmaids, rehearsal details, etc. The whole time, Rhett shifts restlessly, tapping his fingers on his leg. When the conversation starts to take a turn toward table dressings, he cuts in as gently as he can.

“I know this is stuff you two need to talk about,” he says. “And Wren—sweetheart, you look beautiful. But we need to talk about Ludo.”

Aubrey claps her hands together. “Right! Of course.”

“I’ll go get changed,” Wren says. “Um… Ell?” She turns her back toward me, looking over her shoulder.

“I’ll come with you.”

The walk through the hallway is short. Once we’re in the bathroom, Wren gives me a quizzical look. “Do you need to use the toilet?”

“No. Just wanted a moment alone with you.” Slowly, I unzip her dress and leave a trail of kisses down her spine as I do. “This dress is tempting my self-control.”

With an amused huff, Wren turns around. Her eyes are sparkling the way they always do when we remind her just how attracted we are to her. “I didn’t realize the dress was sexy.”

“Youdidn’t?”I groan. “Jesus, Wren.”

She shrugs, which makes the fabric slip lower down her breasts. “I think it’s pretty. Just not sexy.”

“Well,” I say, my gaze dropping to her body. “Let me tell you that you are one hundred percent wrong. Objectively.”

“Objectively?” Wren raises an eyebrow.

“Ask Oliver and Rhett. They’ll back me up.” With a kiss to her cheek, I step away. If we didn’t have such an important conversation to get to, I’d fuck her right here, but I don’t want to keep Rhett waiting. “See you in a few, love.”

When I get back to the living room, Oliver throws me a knowing smirk as I plop into one of the armchairs across from him and Rhett on the couch. We wait for Wren to get back, and then we waste no time.

“We need to know everything you know about Ludo,” I say. “It’s a lot of info, I get that. But anything could help.”