The Vargas Cartel Trilogy (Vargas Cartel #1-3)(101)

The handle didn’t move. Shit. Ryker beat me home. I slipped my phone from my purse, checking for any missed voicemails or texts. None. He hadn’t attempted to contact me.

I balled my hand into a fist and tapped on the heavy, dark wood door, lightly at first and then harder when no one answered. The thud echoed down the long hallway.

Just when I had decided to give up and call Ryker, the door opened.

“Who are you? Where’s Ryker?” I glanced over his shoulder, but I didn’t see Ryker.

“You weren’t supposed to leave without calling Ryker,” the man said, a faint accent flavoring his words.

“How do you know that?”

He tilted his head to the side and smirked. “I read the note.”

“Great, and who are you?” I asked, repeating my question. His dark eyes and his angular nose looked familiar, but I hadn’t met him before.

“Ryker’s brother.” His dark hooded eyes swept down my body. “And you’re Hattie Covington.”

The minute he revealed his connection to Ryker, I couldn’t deny the family resemblance between Ignacio and Rever, and to a lesser extent, Ryker. His face was fuller than Ignacio’s, and he wasn’t as tall as Ryker, but they all shared the same nose and eye shape. I backpedaled a few steps. “I didn’t realize you were still living here.”

He turned away, leaving the door open for me. “Ryker doesn’t let me come out to play when you’re around. He likes to keep me locked away in the guest bedroom.”

“Why’s that?” I asked, closing the door behind me.

He plopped down onto the sofa, stretching his legs out on the coffee table. “Who knows? Maybe he doesn’t want to upset your delicate sensibilities. Maybe he thinks you’ll like me better.”

I rolled my eyes. “I don’t think he has to worry about that.” I walked into the kitchen and pulled a bottle of water out of the refrigerator.

He scoffed in disbelief, but otherwise ignored the comment. “By the way, he should be back any minute. He decided to cut his day short when he found out you left without calling him.”

I bristled as I leaned against the wall and took a sip of water. “How does he know I left?”

Rever snickered. “I called him.”

My brows snapped together. “Why would you do that?”

“For some dumb reason he thinks he can trust you. I wanted him to know he can’t.”

I squeezed my bottle of water, forcing myself to stay calm and unaffected by his words. “You don’t know me.”

He scowled. “I don’t know you, but I know all about you. You’re just another entitled bitch who thinks everything revolves around you, but you don’t know shit about living in the real world. The minute things get complicated, you’re going to run to your daddy and confess everything, and in the process you will ruin my brother’s life.”

I folded my arms across my chest and raised one eyebrow. “And he can trust you? The man who stole from his family. The man who planned to sell out his dad in exchange for prosecutorial immunity. The man who abandoned his pregnant girlfriend in Mexico because he didn’t want to deal with his dad. I think not.”

Rever jumped up, his hands curled into balls. “Shut the f*ck up. None of this is your business.”

“It became my business the minute your actions f*cked up my life. You’re a selfish prick who doesn’t care about anyone.”

A vein pulsed in the side of his neck. “You don’t know anything about me.”

“Oh really,” I said. “Because Ignacio told me a lot about you, but it can be summed up pretty simply. He’s disappointed in you. He thinks you’re worthless and disloyal. He doesn’t think you’ll ever do anything with your life.”

The air stagnated as my accusation hummed through the room.

“Shut the f*ck up,” he growled, his teeth bared like fangs. “You’re lying. He would never tell you any of that.”

I shrugged. “Think what you want, but you wouldn’t be living in Ryker’s home begging for his help if it wasn’t true. If you were a real man, you’d take care of your messes instead of forcing your family to do it for you.”

I shouldn’t have said it. I should’ve walked away and waited for Ryker in his room, but I couldn’t stop myself. Seeing his face—the man who put so much destruction and chaos into motion—ignited something inside of me. I wanted to wound him and tear his life apart even if I could only do it with a few well-placed barbs.

Rever’s nose flared, and his dark eyes glowed like polished obsidian. I retreated, taking baby steps backward while eyeing the clenching of his hands.

“I don’t know why Ryker tolerates you. It certainly isn’t your sparkling personality or welcoming attitude. Maybe you’re blackmailing him.”

I moved to the other side of the rectangular coffee table, putting something solid between us. “That’s ridiculous. How would that work exactly?”

“You’re right.” He cocked his head to the side. “Ryker would outsmart you. Maybe he’s just taking pleasure in f*cking you under Evan Deveron’s nose. You’re the toy he’s dangling in front of Evan’s face, taunting him. He always had a twisted sense of humor.”

“You’re an *,” I yelled and tossed the contents of my bottle of water in his face.