AllFreeNovel
Share Us
ETHAN: It’s a bomb. That’s their plan. You need to get out
BELLE: There’s a dark van. That must be the transport.
ETHAN: I want you to leave. With Billy. Do you hear me?
BELLE: I can’t leave if there’s any chance I can stop them. I think he’s going to double cross Lucia
ETHAN: And she’s trying to pin it all on him
Fuck, this is a mess. Even if we could work out the plan they agreed upon, they’re both trying to screw each other, both going off script. Anything could happen.
BELLE: I have to go. Be safe Ethan. I love you
Typing the words back as fast as I can, I wait, heart pounding, but there’s no response. One minute turns into two, and then ten, but the screen remains dark.
Did she see my words, or was she already gone?
46
BELLE
The shower turns off and I tug my top down over my stomach, quickly doing up the top button of my jeans. Steam billows into the tiny room as Billy opens the bathroom door, striding in with only a towel wrapped around his waist. I avert my eyes from the myriad of scars criss-crossing his abdomen and side.
“All good?” he asks, reaching into his wardrobe and pulling out a clean pair of jeans and a black t-shirt.
Nodding, I hurriedly delete the steamy pictures and messages from the phone, dropping it onto his bed.
“Ah, for fuck’s sake.” Billy’s nose twitches as the steam clears, and his sensitive nose picks up on my heated condition. “You were supposed to be letting him know you’re alive, not sexting. Marcus told me you rejected him, but it doesn’t smell like it.”
Flushing, I don’t deny that’s what we were up to. He can smell my arousal. My panties are damp and my nipples are stiff peaks under my thin t-shirt, hidden beneath his enormous one. There’s no point in lying.
“Sorry,” I mumble, unable to keep the smile from my face, and Billy shakes his head, wrenching open his bedroom door.
“Out,” he barks. “That’s too much.”
Trying not to laugh, I stand and step out into the hallway, jumping when the last person I want to see appears on the landing.
“That’s no way to speak to a lady,” Leon growls, smirking as he looks from a practically naked Billy, to a flustered, clearly turned on me, drowning in Billy’s massive shirt. “Although maybe she’s not as much of a lady as I thought?”
Fixing Leon with an irritated glare, I fold my arms over my chest and say nothing. The way he’s leering at me makes my skin crawl, even though I’m just as covered up as I always am.
“Billy, keep an eye on the bar. Belle, you’re coming with me.”
Billy steps into the hallway and I feel the heat of his body close to mine as he stands protectively at my back.
“Why? Where are you taking her?” Billy’s worry is obvious and I will him to reign it in as Leon’s face twists in anger. In a heartbeat, Leon is in his face. Billy pushes me to the side, and I watch with horror as Leon presses closer to his son, the threat of physical violence clear in his body language.
Leon seems to swell in size, his shoulders broadening, his muscles bulging. He’s a big man, and his dominance is stifling. I don’t know how Billy is standing so tall in the face of it.
My wolf wants to be anywhere but here right now, afraid to be caught-up in a battle between these two giant men, but I have a feeling the only thing stopping Billy from losing his cool is my presence.
“You might have a soft spot for these little wolves, but she belongs to me until I say otherwise. Both of them. Do you hear me?” Billy nods, teeth gritted. “Don’t ever question me like that again or you’ll be picking your teeth off the floor while I fuck her into the dirt.”
Leon’s beady eyes land on me and he sneers. “Get your shit, Cinderella. If you’re going to go to the ball, you’re going to need a dress. And, Billy, you try anything stupid and she’ll be the one who pays. Got it?”
Billy nods. Stepping back and de-escalating the situation, the anger in his eyes is still there. He hates his father. Hates what he’s doing. Hates that he feels powerless to stop him. Reaching out, I touch his arm to reassure him.
“It’s just a dress, Billy. I’ll be back in no time.”
