Dead Drop (The Guild #2)(98)

“You’re mine, DeLuna. Sooner or later, you’ll have to let me kill him, then I’ll be the only one filling your delicious pussy with cum. Forever.”

I swallowed hard, feeling the weight of his hand covering the ghost of Kai’s grip. There were no words.

Leon gave the side of my neck a bite, just hard enough to make me gasp, then he released me.

By the time my knees stopped shaking, he was gone. He was gone, and now I had double the reason to take another shower.

Goddamn, why did I have to find that kind of behavior so freaking hot? I could only blame it on the Guild. They raised me, they were responsible for all my damage.

I took my sweet time in the shower, not being in any particular hurry to rush back downstairs and put myself in the middle of their pissing match. But eventually paranoia took control, and I quickly towel dried and got dressed. I couldn’t shake the idea that they’d actually gone ahead and killed each other while I showered, so I hurried my cowardly ass down to the kitchen.

To my surprise, there was no blood splattered around, and everyone seemed to have full functionality of their limbs. Weird.

Even weirder still was how neither of them picked an argument for the whole meal. They didn’t exactly engage one another in conversation—in fact they seemed to totally ignore the other’s existence entirely—but they also didn’t antagonize each other.

It was… creepy.

Although I did have to laugh when Kai served everyone’s plates, and Leon very deliberately switched plates with me, then gave Kai a challenging look.

Kai just rolled his eyes and told me to eat. Apparently, poison was too immature for him.

After dinner I firmly informed them that I was going to bed alone, and this time I absolutely meant it. If I woke up with anyone else in my bed, they would be castrated.





Imagine my shock when I actually woke up alone the next morning. Not only had the guys taken me seriously about leaving me the fuck alone, I had also slept through the night. Double strange.

That sense of confusion remained while I got dressed and did my hair and makeup, but it eased exponentially when I realized my bedroom door was unlocked. I’d definitely locked it when I went to bed, which told me someone had picked my lock at some point in the night.

My money was on Leon.

It was backward as hell, but it brought a smile to my face, and I was in a much better mood by the time I got downstairs. Leon greeted me with a kiss and a whispered Merry Christmas, DeLuna, and I gaped at him. I’d lost track of my days so much that I didn’t even click what day it was.

It seemed like the guys had agreed on some sort of weird truce for the day, because they carefully avoided each other all damn day. Kai cooked an amazing meal for us, and Leon mixed me martinis, but they otherwise just pretended the other man didn’t exist.

Most surprisingly, Leon was drinking egg-nog. He didn’t strike me as an egg-nog kinda guy but Leon was full of surprises.

It was cute, domestic, but also super uncomfortable. I wanted the three of us to get along like that, but it all felt forced. Fake. I went to sleep that night feeling uneasy, like I was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

That same feeling was still with me when I woke the next day, but I gave myself a mental pep talk while getting dressed. Leon and Kai getting along was exactly what I wanted. What I needed. I shouldn’t be questioning that peace, no matter what had triggered it.

Leon was at the coffee machine when I got downstairs, and I acted on instinct, wrapping my arms around his waist.

“Good morning, Bunny,” I said, pressing a kiss to his back.

His hand covered mine, holding me close as he finished making the coffee he was working on. “How did you sleep?” he murmured, turning to face me and handing me the mug.

I narrowed my eyes. “As if you don’t know.”

His smile was pure mischief, and he sipped his own coffee. “What are we doing today, mon cœur?”

I took my coffee over to the island to slide onto a stool, giving myself some space to breathe and not jump his bones. Again. I was such a ho for Leon Marx.

“Sabine gave me a lead on Layla’s cache,” I said vaguely, “which wasn’t an option yesterday with businesses closed for Christmas. Where’s Kai this morning?”

Leon gave me a long look, and I arched a brow. Then he smiled. “Are you asking if he’s still alive, gorgeous?”

I sipped my coffee, then licked my lips. “Is he?” Was I worried? Yes. Yes, I was.

“He’s in the gym,” he finally told me, leaning his elbows on the island opposite me and giving me an intense look. “He had some aggression to work off… for some reason.”

I rolled my eyes. No doubt he’d been deliberately antagonizing Kai before I woke up. It was kind of a relief. “Alright, well, Sabby recommended I follow up on this lead alone, so…”

Leon’s brows raised, and he gave me a considering look. “You’re sidelining me? That’s new.”

I gave a low laugh. “If it helps, I’m also sidelining Kai. Will you both be alive when I return?”

He just shrugged. “Roll the dice, mon cœur. But if you want to sneak out without your six foot four Māori shadow, I suggest you leave before he sees you’re awake.”

I wrinkled my nose. I didn’t like the idea of sneaking out, but… he had a point. “Good thinking.” I took a few huge mouthfuls of the hot coffee, then put on my shoes and weapons that I’d dropped beside the island when I came into the kitchen. “You won’t be tempted to follow me, then?”