Page 40 of Devil in Her Details

An annoying heat spread along his jaw, inching down the column of his neck.

Mercifully, Reaper sauntered through the back door. “Those shites are all tied up and ready for you, frère.”

A sense of darkness swept through him. Good. “What about the shop?”

“My boys are standing guard.”

“And the neighboring storefronts?”

Reaper grinned. “Minding their own business.”

“Wise.” And as they should. “Thank you.”

“Ah, frère. You are most welcome. I’d do anything just for you.”

“I take it back,” Dagger muttered, his gaze shifting back to Lilly, who stared at his brother thoughtfully. He bit down on his jaw. But the color had at least returned to her cheeks.

Reaper flashed his teeth. “Are you doing this now or when Maxen arrives?”

Dagger rose to his feet, prompting Lilly to rise as well. He shook his head when their eyes met. “Stay here.”

“Why?” she questioned. “I want to meet them, too.”

No. Never. Not for what he was about to do. “Where I’m going now, you can’t follow.”

“I don’t accept that,” she argued. “I’m going with you.”

“Where I go is no place for a lady.”

Her brows snapped together. “Just because I’m a lady doesn’t mean I faint at a bit of roughness.”

“Says the woman who blanched when she learned I broke her pest’s fingers.”

“That . . . that . . .” She trailed off. “I was simply surprised.”

“Then let’s call it that.” Dagger refused to back down on this. “But where I go, only family can follow. Finish your drink, Lilly. I’ll be back soon.” He glanced over at Knight. “Keep an eye on her.”

Knight nodded.

Dagger didn’t wait for any further response and left Lilly with Knight, striding past Reaper; the glare of her gaze firmly planted between the blades of his shoulders. Damn it. He had to force himself not to look back. The urge prowled in him all the same. So strong he had no other choice but to force the sensation down. He had given Lady Lilly Trenton enough already. Too much, in fact. A promise he had no business making.

But Christ.

Family.

The word struck again, and again, and again.

He’d used the word deliberately, but somewhere between uttering that claim and walking away from her, the weight of it had turned on him entirely. Stuck heavy in his damn craw. Still, he kept walking, each step feeling as though his boots sank a little deeper into the floor.

His hands curled into fists.

She did not belong in this world. His world. So why then did she look at him like she might step into his darkness at any moment without caution?

God help him, he feared she would.

“You all right, frère?” Reaper asked from behind. “I can do this without you. Just say the word.”

“No.” Lilly was his responsibility, and he would deal with all things Lilly. It already didn’t sit well with him leaving her alone with Knight, but he had to draw a stronger, deeper line between them. It was the only way he’d get through this entanglement without losing his damn mind.