King's Reign (Sydney Storm MC 6)

“Not fucking likely,” he said, squeezing her tighter against his body.

She wiggled out of his hold. “Give us a minute, Linc. I’ll be inside soon.”

He stared at her long and hard before muttering, “Fucking hell,” and doing as she’d asked.

I tracked his movements until he was inside. Then, pinning my gaze to Lily’s, I said, “We’re not done.”

She frowned. “Yes, we are. That was your choice the other day, King.”

“I don’t give a flying fuck what I said the other day. I’m telling you now—this thing between us is far from over.”

Her frown disappeared, leaving an expression that told me how annoyed with me she was. “You don’t get that right anymore. You don’t get to tell me anything. And fuck you. My sister is lying in a coma that I’m not sure she’ll wake up from, and I’ve got a lot on my mind, and you wanna come around and discuss this? No. I’m not okay with that. Not when you made it perfectly clear where you stood the other day. Go home. I’m done with this conversation.”

Not giving me a chance to respond, she walked inside, leaving me staring after her.

I was a selfish bastard. I’d pushed her away to protect her, and here I fucking was demanding her back. It completely went against my reasons for removing her from my life. Dragging her back into it would only put her at risk again. But I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t not have her. I had no idea where this need came from. I sure as fuck didn’t want to feel this way. And yet I did. Hell, I wanted Lily in ways I’d never wanted a woman.

Once she was safely back in the house, I walked to where Mace was parked. Tapping my hand on the top of his car, I leant down to talk to him through the window. “Go home, brother.”

“We’re done here?”

I shook my head. “No. But I’ll do tonight’s shift.”

“I’m good, King. And besides, haven’t we removed the threat to her now?”

“Go. Get some sleep and be back here at six tomorrow morning. We’re keeping eyes on her until Romano is dealt with.” Fuck knew who else he had on his payroll.

“Okay, so long as you’re sure.”

I nodded and pulled out a smoke. “I’m sure.”

I lit the cigarette as he pulled away from the kerb. Dragging nicotine deep into my lungs, I thought about what I was doing. Not much of it made sense to me, but that was the fucking story of my life. The last thing I wanted was a woman by my side. And fuck knew where we’d end up. But even though I was in the middle of a fucking war that needed my full attention, and although I had a million reasons not to pursue her, Lily had become my new addiction.

5

Lily

I pulled the curtain to the side to glance down the street. He was gone. The fact that disappointed me also annoyed me. I wanted King just as much as I didn’t want him now. His arrival last night and his announcement that we weren’t done had thrown me. Completely freaking screwed me up. I’d hardly slept, especially since I knew he was outside. I’d watched from my window after I left him standing on the footpath, waiting for him to leave. But he hadn’t. He’d stayed all night. I knew this because I’d bloody checked almost every half hour until I finally fell asleep around three.

God.

I was going to lose my mind over this man.

I was sure of it.

That was the reason why I’d let him think Linc and I were getting back together. I’d hated letting him believe that, especially when I’d seen his reaction. His response had surprised me. When Linc had thrown it out, I’d thought King wouldn’t even blink. I mean, the man told me in no uncertain terms we were over. A small part of me had been happy to see how affected he was by the thought of me back with my ex. But I didn’t like playing games with men, so

mostly I’d felt like a bitch for misleading him.

I had to guard my heart, though, so I’d chosen not to correct his thinking.

He’d move on soon. He’d find another woman to sleep with, and I’d be long forgotten.

“Mum,” Zara said, knocking softly on my door. “Breakfast is ready.” She peaked her head in. “Are you okay to come out and eat or do you want me to bring it in here for you?”

I smiled at my beautiful girl and moved to her. Wrapping my arms around her, I pressed a kiss to her head. She was coping with Brynn being in a coma differently to her sister. Zara was me, through and through. Right down to her boy-crazy bones. It was why I worried so much about her having sex with her boyfriend. I knew her next move before she did most days.

“I’m okay, baby. How are you?” It was a lie; I wasn’t okay. I was exhausted from too little sleep over the last few days. I was anxious over Brynn. I was worried about how my kids were doing. I was concerned about this situation with Linc. And I was twisted up over my feelings for King. Somehow, I’d managed to go from being hardly aware of living this time yesterday to hyper-aware of everything today.