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I lean forward again, stealing another kiss from Ryland’s addictive lips, chasing his mouth when he drops his head back a little. I press my lips harder to his, taking the kiss deeper as I let my tongue dart out to taste him. Then pull away a fraction of an inch, the first genuine smile in days tugging at the corners of my lips.
“I guess this means I won our fight.” I kiss him again, squeezing my inner walls around him and making him groan. “I’m helping you guys. Whether you like it or not.”
* * *
Ryland doesn’t like it.
At all.
But he relents, and that’s all I need.
By the time Theo returns, Ryland and I have put ourselves back together and changed into more comfortable clothes. We’re in the kitchen sipping whiskey when he walks in, looking exhausted and annoyed but satisfied. I’m guessing he was able to put out whatever fire he had to deal with between his mom and his uncle.
“Jesus. I need one of those.”
He walks over to join us, slipping off his tie and dropping it on the countertop before pouring himself a drink too. He joins us on the barstools that line one side of the island, taking the seat on my left side.
His blue-green gaze darts between the two of us, and I get the feeling he knows exactly what happened while he was gone, although unlike the night he picked me up from Marcus’s house, I don’t think I still smell like sex this time.
He and Ryland share a look, and something passes between the two of them. I don’t know quite what it is, but it’s not anger. I don’t even think it’s jealousy. More like understanding, maybe.
Theo takes a sip of his whiskey, and I lean my elbow on the countertop, resting my chin in my hand. “So, tell me about the other players in the game.”
He cocks one eyebrow, looking mildly amused. “Ah. So Ryland agreed to let you play, huh?”
I shrug. “I won’t be an official player. I know that. But he agreed to let me help.”
I can practically feel Ryland’s dislike of this plan radiating from him like an aura, but his surly expression doesn’t intimidate me like it once might have.
Theo purses his lips. “I can give you the rundown, Rose, but…” He grimaces. “I mean, we’ve been playing this game for four years now, and not much has ever happened in between the seventy-two-hour free-for-alls. People jockey for position all the time, but nobody’s really amassed any loyal followers. Everyone wants the prize too bad, so even if there’s only a slim chance they’ll win, they’d rather take those odds than swear allegiance to someone else and give up their shot at the crown.”
Worry curls through my stomach. Maybe it’s arrogant of me to think I can make any difference in this endeavor. I don’t know this world like these two men do, so what can I do to help?
But I shrug again, leaning back and picking up my drink. I swirl the amber liquid in the glass before taking a sip. “The alternative is to do nothing, and I can’t handle that. Maybe I can help you spot something you didn’t see before. Some leverage you can use against the other competitors.”
Theo glances down briefly, and I can tell it’s because he doesn’t want me to see the pain in his eyes.
Even as things settle between the three of us, feelings growing and deepening, there’s still a sense of wrongness that hangs over everything.
This isn’t right.
We’re missing a piece.
But all we can do is forge ahead.
“Okay.” Theo nods decisively. “Well, you saw three of them today. Four, counting Dominic. You already know Dom, which means you also know he’s a sniveling little weasel and a backstabber. He comes from old money. Old money. The Roths are one of the most powerful families in Halston to begin with, although their strength has been slipping a little over the past few years.”
I nod. Thinking of Dominic sends a chill down my spine, and my fingers twitch, unconsciously itching to curl into a fist. But I take in everything Theo says as calmly as I can, absorbing the information and storing it away.
“Michael and Gabriel both come from mafia families,” Ryland puts in. He still sounds reluctant, but when I turn to face him, he elaborates. “The Savianos and Morellos, respectively. They’ve been enemies for years, but they supposedly made a truce to help them win the competition. So far, it’s holding up, but as more players fall, it’ll start crumbling as they start looking for ways to take each other down.”
“Got it.” I chew my lip, thinking of the two dark-haired men I saw in the church. Then I narrow my eyes. “What about Victoria? What’s her story?”
“Victoria Tatum,” Theo supplies. “She’s the opposite of Dom.
Her family rose to power about ten years ago. Came from pretty much nothing, but a couple of risky investments paid off and put them on the map. She’s smart and cunning as fuck. If there’s anybody who’s got a shot at winning through political maneuvering alone, it’s gotta be her.”
“No. It’s gotta be us,” I correct fiercely, and he shoots me a lopsided grin.
