The Skull Crusher (Skull 2)

When the doors had opened and I observed the scene in front of me, there was definitely a glow of pride inside my chest. Heath was a strong man with quick reflexes, but my woman managed to put him in his place. It didn’t seem like I needed to give him a worse punishment.

“So can I have a relationship with the woman?”

“She doesn’t want one with you.”

“I can win her over. You obviously did.”

“I’ve never pulled a stunt like that.”

“No, but I’m sure you’ve done much worse.” He stepped closer to me. “If this woman is going to be around for the long haul, we need to bury the hatchet and form an alliance. Lucian will try to take her at some point, and if I’m here and you aren’t, it’s my responsibility to keep her safe. I’m the last line of defense.”

I couldn’t argue with that. “She doesn’t like you, Heath.”

“She didn’t like you either, and she’s fucking your brains out.”

“Not the same thing.”

“Let me take her out to dinner—”

“Not gonna happen.” Some other guy wasn’t taking my woman anywhere.

“Then convince her to come down for a drink. I wanna make nice, alright?”

“Why is this so important to you?” My brother never cared whether someone liked him or not. He never cared about making amends with someone he wronged. He did whatever he wanted without thinking about anyone but himself. Why was Cassini any different?

He lowered his arms and prepared to turn away. “Because she’s important to you, brother.”

Fall was now approaching winter, and the air was noticeably colder. When I worked late at night, there was always frost on my windshield when I left it in the garage all night. Now I wore long-sleeved shirts and light jackets when I left the house. Dressed in a black leather jacket and a white V-neck shirt, I was ready to take Cassini to visit with her brothers.

She came down the hallway, dressed in black leggings, tan booties, and a maroon sweater that covered her ass. Her hair was curled, and she wore the hoop earrings I bought for her. My personal shopper did a great job dressing her, finding the perfect clothes to amplify her stunning beauty. I preferred the short dresses where her cleavage was visible, but even when she was completely covered, she was still the sexiest thing in the world. “Morning.”

“It’s noon.”

“That’s morning to me.” She helped herself to a mug of coffee before she sat across from me. She skipped her meal because she didn’t usually eat first thing in the morning. She usually watched me eat my boring breakfast of fish or egg whites. “Since you keep me up so late…” She brought the steaming coffee to her lips and took a drink.

“I wouldn’t be much of a man if I didn’t keep you up late.”

She stared into her coffee mug. “Why are you dressed so nice?”

I glanced down at my clothes. “Nice?”

“If you’re staying home, you don’t really wear much at all. And you hardly go to work during the day. You must have some plans.”

“My plans are none of your business.”

She lifted her gaze and gave me a cold look. “Let’s stop that bullshit right now. If I’m going to live with you however long this takes, you need to stop shutting me down like I don’t matter. I do matter—and we both know it. I treat you with respect, so you need to treat me with respect.”

“Believe it or not, I do treat you with respect.”

“How so?”

“You don’t have any bruises, right?” I drank my coffee and watched the fire dance in her eyes. Truth be told, I liked her more when she stood up to me, when she called me out on my bullshit. She was right in being upset. She was also right that I was doing the best I could to make her feel insignificant—because she was very significant.

“That’s not respect. That’s human decency.”

“Well, I’m not a decent human. We both know that.”

“I think you’re noble, just, and fair. Hitting me wouldn’t be fair, and that’s why you haven’t done it. I also think talking to me like that isn’t fair since you and I are committed partners. If this relationship is monogamous, then I have the right to ask where you’re going.”

I wanted to kiss her when she got all bossy like that. “Wrong. Monogamy means you have the right to ask for my fidelity. It means you have the right to be the only woman I fuck. You own a piece of me—but just a small amount. I own all of you, and you’re my prisoner. The rest of me is off-limits.”

She set her coffee mug down and leaned forward. “You just cost yourself a night of sex.”

The corner of my mouth rose in a smile. “Sure, baby. Whatever you say.”