Page 26 of Stolen Temptation (Irish Kings #3)

I never thought I’d be into the eager good girl type, but everything from last night up until right now proves otherwise.

Much too quickly, we arrive back at her room. It’s just as she left it, except her window has been modified to only open an inch.

I forgot how fast the housekeeping staff moves around this place.

Then again, most everyone’s afraid of Finn when he gets angry.

Once she’s inside, it’s time for goodbye. I’ve never been great with those, so I just give her a stern look and another warning.

“Remember what I said. Behave yourself .”

It’s not just for her safety, but my sanity.

She nods. Unspoken words suffocate the air, but there’s no time for me to engage in a deeper conversation about last night’s events, and I’m not even sure what I’d say if I wasn’t in a hurry.

After I leave, I head to the war room on the third floor. I’m dreading what’s about to happen. Nothing can stop it, though, so I steel my spine, push the door open, and walk in.

The second he hears me enter, Finn’s head snaps up. Even from across the room, I can practically see steam funneling from his ears.

My guess? The guy had another rough night, followed by a shit morning, courtesy of me.

Before I can launch into an explanation that might lower Finn’s blood pressure, I notice his father Shane on his right.

Shane sits with the broad, squared shoulders of an army general. His sharp, titanium eyes probe me like I’m a frog to dissect. Finn’s angry, but Shane’s suspicious.

I can’t decide which is worse.

“Come in, Rory.” Shane’s deep voice commands my attention. “I hear there’s a situation with our hostage. Report.”

“Of course.” I stand casually, with one hand tucked into my pocket. Showing even the slightest hint of nerves would be like pouring a bucket of blood into shark-infested waters. “But first, the results of my second round of interrogation.”

Finn looks ready to bite my head off, but Shane raises a hand to keep him quiet.

“What did you find out?” Shane leans forward in his chair.

“At first, we thought she was an art forger, but this goes far deeper than that.” I maintain eye contact with him. “Our hostage doesn’t imitate Libertas. She is Libertas.”

Finn cuts in almost immediately. “Impossible. She’s a kid.”

“She’s twenty-four.”

I jump in to defend her age so quickly that now Finn’s side-eyeing me too.

He stares at me for several long, uncomfortable seconds before banging his fist on the table. “That painter should be fifty-four .”

“I didn’t say she was the original Libertas.” In the thick, smoggy tension, I force myself to take another breath. “Kiara is Libertas the second. The first Libertas was her mother.”

Shane steeples his fingers on the table. “What does this have to do with the De Lucas?”

“Kiara and her mother are art slaves to the De Luca family.” The words feel heavy and thick on my tongue. “I don’t know for how long exactly, but as long as Kiara’s been alive, so at least a couple of decades.”

Finn moves away from the table, dragging a hand through his shaggy mane. He faces the wall a moment before turning back to me. “The De Lucas force the girl and her mother to paint and then sell the pieces off as…”

“The works of an anonymous modern master.” I finish Finn’s thought.

“Enriching themselves at no cost.” Shane gives a curt, humorless laugh. “I’ve clearly underestimated them.”

“What did the online chatter turn up?” Finn’s tone has come down a few notches from ballistic missile.

“Relative silence.” I approach the table in the center of the war room, standing directly opposite of Finn. “I suspect Leo did whatever necessary to keep Kiara’s disappearance quiet.”

Finn’s eyes darken. “That means he’s planning to take her back.”

I don’t want to think about that. The idea of that psycho getting his hands on Kiara infuses me with the urge to play with explosives.

Great. I spend a little time with the woman and suddenly I’m turning into Darren.

“Which means we have two options.” Shane casts a knowing look at his son. Whatever the options are, Finn doesn’t like them. It’s written all over his vengeful face.

“Sell her back to the De Lucas or keep her as an ace, I know .” Finn groans. “What does any of it matter? Even killing her in front of Leo wouldn’t change anything. Wouldn’t bring any of our own back.”

A forceful combination of rage and resistance ignite in my chest. The hand in my pocket balls into a fist, and it’s a struggle to keep my mouth shut while Shane and Finn casually toss around suggestions that would threaten Kiara’s life.

I’ll protect her from them. No matter what they decide.

I shake my head. There’s something wrong with me. I’ve caught a twenty-four-hour insanity bug, maybe. When have I ever had a problem with the Kings using people? We’re a crime family. It’s not a novel concept. We do this kind of thing every day. All the time.

I’ve never cared before.

But right now, I’m disturbed. With every suggestion, my anger flares a little hotter.

I shouldn’t want to give Kiara even more special privileges over our other prisoners, but the thought of this family hurting her bothers me to the point of madness.

Sneaking down to my old office?

Lying to Finn about what else happened last night?

Who the fuck am I? A few days ago, I was a loyal soldier, yet one night with Kiara, and I’m changing into something unpredictable and deceptive.

No. That makes zero sense. I can’t be angry about Shane and Finn trying to exploit the situation. I must be pissed about the idea of them using Kiara before I decide how I want to use her. Of them stealing my toy before I’m finished playing with it.

I don’t have any kind of real connection with Kiara . That’s absurd. We’ve barely been aware of each other’s existence for forty-eight hours.

This is just about sex, pure and simple. Not emotions.

That’s what I get for letting my dry spell drag on too long.

“Leave your feelings out of it.”

I jolt when Shane’s warning tone echoes through the room. Did I say something out loud?

My shoulders relax once I realize Shane’s directing his comment at his son. His choice of phrase causes Finn to glower at the tabletop between us.

“You know as well as I do we need the leverage. Leverage is worth more to us now than any asking price for the girl’s safe return.”

“I said, I know.” Only Finn’s allowed to be short with his father.

Shane leans back in his chair, seemingly satisfied with this plan. “Keeping the girl locked up here means we can use her if things get dicey.”

“In case you haven’t noticed, Da, things are already dicey.” Finn shoves away from the table and stalks toward me.

Maybe there is something wrong with me after all, because I just want to get back to Kiara.

Finn drops his hand on my shoulder, his sharp eyes piercing like nails.

“My office. Now.”