Lips hands me the knife and I take it, glancing back at Ash before I finish this. He doesn’t attempt to stop me, he just watches as I slit her throat and bleed her out for daring to come after our family.
* * *
I take a two hour shower.
Ash had walked me back up to my room and waited at the bathroom door for the first half hour, calling out to me to reassure himself that I haven’t just broken myself by killing that woman.
It’s not the highlight of my life but there’s a satisfaction to being the one to kill her. I never understood it before, but once you’ve been forced to kill the first time, the next time is easier.
He gives up after that and heads off to harass someone else for a while, and I get to scrubbing every last inch of my body until I emerge buffed, polished, shining, and glorious.
I get into some casual clothes and throw a fluffy robe over it all, slipping into a pair of cashmere slippers as I head back down to attempt to cook something for us all to eat tonight.
I’m thinking... chicken parmigiana and salad.
The security alarm buzzes on my phone to let me know that Aodhan has arrived, so I stop at the foyer to let him into the house. He’s freshly showered, his hair still a little wet where it hangs over his eyes, and he looks me over curiously.
“Harley said you killed the fucking cunt Donnelley, you okay?” he says as he swoops down for a kiss.
I hum against his lips, pulling away and murmuring back, “I’m fine. I’m taking the afternoon to cook and do nothing work related for a day.”
He nods and runs a hand down my back, squeezing my ass when he comes to it. “You mean, I made it in time for dinner? Fucking perfect, Queenie.”
I grin at him and lead him into the kitchen, enjoying the feel of his arm around my shoulders and his body against mine. It’s perfect for exactly thirty seconds before we make it into the room and find my own personal nightmare happening.
Noah sits cross-legged on my kitchen island countertop and my eyes immediately narrow at him. I’ve tried to be calm and kind around the little asshole, no matter how much he tries to get a rise out of me, but sitting there on the space where I cook, in those filthy jeans of his, crosses a line.
“I walked in on your brother railing my sister on the kitchen table a few nights ago, I’m sure my celibate, clothed ass is the least of your worries here.”
I will murder Ash in his fucking sleep.
Aodhan steps around me and smacks Noah in the back of the head hard enough that he actually yelps and jumps down. “This is her house, her food your eating, and her hospitality you’re being a fucking nightmare about. Out of respect for your sister, I won’t beat the shit out of you without a warning first. Consider this the only one you’ll get.”
Noah glares at him but he doesn’t say a word as he stalks back out, slamming doors on the way.
“Pass me your cleaning bucket, I’ll bleach everything,” he mumbles, pressing a kiss to my forehead, and I shake my head at him.
“No, I’ll be calling my deviant brother down here to take care of that. I shouldn’t be surprised, he always did lean towards voyeurism. Disgusting.”
Aodhan chuckles and pulls me into his body, pressing his lips to my ear and murmuring, “I’m sure I could convince you otherwise.”
A shiver runs down my spine even as my eyes focus on the tiny thread that Noah’s ripped jeans have left behind on the marble. I’m not going to be able to focus until I’ve scrubbed the entire house from top to bottom. “It’s not about the act, it’s the thought of my brother doing it. I’m finding there are some downsides to all of us living together.”
Aodhan doesn’t let me pull away from him, his arms tightening deliciously around me as he backs me into the countertop. “We both know you’re not ready to be away from them yet, no matter how much the kid is pissing us all off. Fuck, I might even be able to deal with Atticus here full-time just to see how badly he handles Noah’s ass. He’s been too injured to really do shit about him.”
I groan and Aodhan laughs at me, cupping my cheeks and bringing my lips to his for another blistering kiss. I’ve missed him so much, missed having him here every night andgoddamnare we going to have to have some conversations soon.
I start pulling things out of the fridge and setting up my ingredients on a countertop as far away from Noah’s spot as possible. Aodhan scrubs down the countertop and then heads over to do the same with the table despite my complaints, mostly because he can see how much it’s affecting me.
Another reason I love him and need to talk with him.
“I need to talk to you,” I murmur when he comes back to stash the cleaning supplies away, and he huffs at me.
“I saw the diamond, Queenie. I’m glad you’re getting what you want. There’s nothing to talk or freak out about.”
I huff back at him, waving a spoon in his direction. “You haven’t heard his list of demands yet, you can’t say that! And they are demands, by the way, he’s a tyrant.”
He chuckles at me, kissing my neck. “Of course he is. Well, what’s the list then? I’m imagining a whole lotta bullshit with scheduling and a dress code.”
