Page 54 of Twisted Tate

Tomorrow. Less than thirty-six hours until I watch my father sign me over to Tate. And then he’ll pay with his life for everything he’s done to me.

I wait for the guilt to hit. He’s still my father, even if he never acted like one. Some part of me should mourn what we could have been, what he should have been for me.

But there’s nothing. Just cold satisfaction and the warmth of Tate’s body next to mine.

“We’re ready, Dad.” Tate has never sounded more confident in the time I’ve known him. “We’re going to see this through.”

Dane nods once and then finally gives me a small smile. “As soon as this is all done and my sons are home safely, I look forward to welcoming you to the family, Reese.”

I wouldn’t call it warm and fuzzy, but I feel like he means it. And when I look around the room—at Fox and Ivy, at Thorne, at Whitney, and even at the hard patriarch of the Sinclair family—I feel something settle in my chest.

I’m going to join this family. A family of tactical, powerful killers who stop at nothing to protect their own.

It’s fucked up in any other context to choose this fucked-up world with their fucked-up rules.

But here with them is exactly where I want to be.

Chapter 9

TATE

All I can think about is how many ways I am going to make Jenson Donaldson bleed.

I have been running through the options for hours. Knives are personal, and this needs to be fucking personal. I want to feel his skin split under my hands. I want to watch his face when he realizes that every horrible thing he has ever done to my girl is about to be repaid tenfold.

But that comes later. First, we have to get through the next few hours without me losing my fucking mind.

We are spread out across three vehicles. Fox and Thorne are in the lead SUV with two of our most trusted Talons. I am in the second with Reese and Ivy. My father is waiting at the intercept point in the third vehicle, ready to transport Jenson to the warehouse once we have him secured.

Reese is shifting in her seat. Her fingers keep drifting toward her mouth, and she catches herself every time. I reach over and take her hand, lacing my fingers through hers. I have to admit that feeling her skin against mine gives me a better sense of calm, too.

This woman. This fucking woman has rewired my entire brain in less than a week.

“It’s almost time, baby girl.”

“I know.” But her voice is tight, and I can see the way she’s forcing herself to keep breathing. “I just want this over with.”

“It will be.” I bring her hand to my mouth and press my lips against her knuckles. “We almost have him right where we want him.”

She turns to look at me, and I see the fear underneath the determination. She is terrified. Of course she is. We are about to walk into the house where she was tortured for a decade, and she will do it anyway, because she is the bravest person I have ever fucking met.

I want to pull the car over and bury myself inside her so she can forget all of this shit. I want to wrap my body around hers and remind her that she’s only owned by one man. I want to tell her that I am falling so hard for her that it scares the shit out of me, and there’s never been a thing in this world that fucking scares me.

Until Reese Donaldson became part of my life. There isn’t a world where I can survive without her.

I squeeze her hand and try to focus on the job.

Ivy shifts in her seat on the other side of Reese. “Has Fox texted yet?”

I check my phone for the tracker update. Nothing from Fox, but Jenson’s car left the country club twelve minutes ago. He is taking the scenic route home, just like Reese said he would. A creature of fucking habit. That is going to be his downfall. “Not yet. We will intercept him at the bend before the private road. It’s a narrow stretch with no witnesses and dense tree cover.”

“What if something goes wrong?” Reese asks.

“Then we improvise.” I look at her, and I let her see the truth in my eyes. “There is not a scenario where we don’t win tonight. I will burn down the entire fucking city before I let anything happen to you.”

She holds my gaze for a long moment, and I want to find the words to tell her how fucking important she is to me.

My phone buzzes. Fox.