Page 11 of Property of Mercury

“This gentleman is gonna go grab the cleaning supplies and deliver them to the bathroom for you, moron,” Mercury states, a half smirk on his face at getting one over on Orion.

“You’re too good to me, asshole,” Orion gripes, not so lightly smacking Mercury on the back of his shoulder. “Don’t worry, I know you’re next on the lineup, I’ll leave a nice surprise for you on your day.”

“Awe, you really shouldn’t,” Mercury warns as he sits me down on the couch before turning around and facing his cousin. “Payback is a bitch, Orion. Your list is adding up.”

“My list?” Orion asks, acting as if he has no idea what Mercury is talking about.

“Yeah,” Mercury says, stepping into Orion’s face. “Your list.”

I plant my face in my palms and shake it. As I go to try and break the two apart before things come to blows, Gemini steps into the room, his voice thunderous as he hollers, “Enough!” Both of the guys’ heads twist in his direction before putting space between them. “This is Finley’s first day with us and you’re giving her the impression you’re both neanderthals.”

“In our defense, we are,” Orion justifies.

“I just want a little quiet,” I murmur when Gemini looks in my direction. “I don’t mind them joking around and cutting up, but I’ve still got a headache.”

“Shit. Sorry, Fin,” Orion says, sounding shameful.

“Damn, Finley. I’m sorry, he just has a way of getting under my skin,” Mercury announces. “Let me carry you to your room, it’s all set up and ready for you so you can just lay down.”

“Thank you,” I whisper. “Laying down for a little bit sounds good.”

CHAPTER

SIX

Mercury

The next morning, I’m at the clubhouse with Hercules and my cousins, as well as Sutton, as he shows us the newest issue. “The sheetrock in this room needs to be replaced,” he tells me as he shows me the mold that was hidden behind a layer of paint.

“How much damage is that going to do to our repair funds?” Gemini asks as he goes over and peels off another tier of the paint from the affected area.

“If it’s just this section, it won’t be horrible, but if it’s throughout the entire room, it’ll be a hard hit,” Hercules explains.

“We should presume that it’s throughout the whole room, Gemini. We need to check the other rooms before we go further. It may end up being cheaper to raze the whole fucking thing and start over. At least that way, we could put in what we need and want, instead of trying to refurbish whatever the fuck Rocco had going on here,” I state.

“Let’s do it,” Gemini replies. “Something like a barndominium would work, we could set out the interior the way it works for us and use the underground shit that’s already there. We know that the Kings have enemies throughout the country, and it’s probable that Rocco’s went underground when the club disbanded. But now that we’re here, they’ll come crawling out of the woodwork. We need to ensure we have the ability to protect whoever’s under our protection, as well as Sutton.”

“If we buy the kit, we can do all of the work ourselves, which will save some money,” Hercules adds. “I’ve got crews who are qualified and skilled on both plumbing and electrical, remember? You made them prospects.”

Gemini chuckles then smacks himself on the head. “You know you have too much shit going on in your head when you forget a simple detail like that. So, I’m not familiar with mold, is this the bad kind where we’ll lose everything inside that we could possibly reuse?”

“It’s not black mold, if that’s what you’re asking,” Hercules says. “Still, I like your idea and with my contacts, we can likely get it at nearly cost.”

“Get the numbers for me, brother,” Gemini instructs. “In the meantime, we’ll go room to room and anything we want to keep, we can get one of the prospects to remove it and we’ll put it in the barn for now.”

“No, get me the numbers since I’ve got it available to use,” Sutton rebuts. At Gemini’s look, she raises her brow and adds, “Am I your old lady?” At his nod, she states, “Then my money is our money and in effect, it’s club money, plain and simple.”

“But it’s yours, baby,” Gemini replies.

“And I can do what the hell I want with it, Gemini,” she gently rebukes. “We’re going to be living here and I refuse to have this place smelling like bleach because of mold when I have the means to make that not happen for any of us.”

I grin because he’s so gone for her, if she wanted him to shave his beard off, he’d do it, and he wouldn’t do it to win a bet against Pisces, which is saying a great deal about the hold she has on him. Granted, he’s got the same on her and my chest hurts thinking about having something like that for myself.

“I for one am grateful that you’d offer to help us,” Orion says as Aries nods beside him. “I have pride, but I’m not going to let that get in the way of building our businesses and family.”

“Orion,” Gemini calls his name. When Orion turns in his direction, he grits his teeth and says, “Shut the fuck up.”

“Or, you could keep talking and bury yourself in your own grave,” I sing.