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“Why’s that a problem?” I snap. “I don’t owe him an explanation.”
Mav shakes his head. “He’s the VP of my club, and he’s practically her second brother.”
“Seems there’s a lot of your brothers fucking their way around your sisters,” I growl.
He spins back to face me. “What did you say?”
“Tell me about Ripper,” I snap.
His expression changes and he takes a step back. “We need to get into church,” he mutters, leaving the office.
“What the fuck was that?” hisses Albert.
“Nothing,” I growl, following Maverick.
The men seat themselves around the table, and Mav slams the gavel to shut them up. “We have a situation.” He proceeds to fill them in before turning it over to me.
“We don’t know much else. I’m about to meet Jolene Hall to tell her that her brothers are dead, but Rosey also said that Jolene is sleeping with the Palmer brothers.”
“Both of them?” asks Tatts, laughing.
“Apparently so. Either way, we can’t rule out that the brothers got rid of Leon and Max. They could be using her to get to the businesses, which means once they have what they need, they’ll end her too.”
“These street rats want to get bigger,” says Grim.
I nod. “And if they’re determined enough, they’ll do it. I was once that rat and look at me now.”
“The thing is, we worked too fucking hard to let this go,” Albert explains. “We don’t expect you to fight a war you have nothing to do with, but we needed to give you the heads-up in case these kids wanna step farther than our side.”
“We’ll vote on it. Wait outside,” orders Mav coldly.
CHAPTER TWELVE
MELI
It’s the middle of the night when Ripper sneaks into my room. It’s been a full week since he went on a job with my dad, so this is the first time I’ve seen him. I sit up, turning the bedside light on. I’ve been crying, and he sighs. “Baby girl, you know I can’t do anything about it.” He sits on the bed and brushes the hair from my eyes. “It’s not real, the shit that goes on down there.”
“I heard Scarlett screaming your name,” I snap.
“What am I supposed to do? If I come back from a week and don’t fuck a whore, your dad will ask questions.” He places a kiss on my forehead. “I want nothing more than to tell the world about us, but they wouldn’t understand, would they?” I shake my head. “Anyway, look, I’ve got a present for you.” I take the bag. “I heard you telling Rosey you wanted it.”
Inside is a scarf from Gap that I’ve had my eye on for ages. I smile. “Now, does that make up for it?” I nod, unsure if I mean it. He kisses me gently. “And you know, I wouldn’t have to go to Scarlett if we just—”
“You said when I’m ready,” I remind him. I’m thirteen years old. I’m scared to do the things he’s shown me on the internet.
“I know, and I meant it. This is all at your pace. I just want to help you.”
I nod. I’m lucky to have him, and he treats me really nice, buying me most things I want. The only thing is, I’m not allowed to tell anyone. He thinks they won’t understand, but how can they not? I really want to tell Hadley, and maybe Rosey, but I think she’d be really jealous I’ve got an older man. “I think I’m ready,” I say quietly, even though I’m still not one hundred percent sure.
He smiles. “Are you sure? Only if you really want to.”
I nod. He looks so pleased with me, and I like it when I please him. “Will it hurt?”
“Only for a second. It’ll feel good the more we do it.”
“Earth to Meli,” says Hadley, waving her hand in front of my face. “Where did your mind take you?” She’s smiling, though she wouldn’t be if she knew.
I inhale and force a smile. “Sorry, I was thinking about work.”
