Sir's Redemption (Doms of Decadence 8)

“She gets these often?”

“About once a month.” Sloan crossed his arms over his thick chest. “You’re very concerned for a guy who’s just her boss.”

James slashed his arm through the air. His eye was swelling from where Sloan had punched him, and his other aches and pains were beginning to make themselves known. Sloan wasn’t the only one riding the edge of his temper right now. “I’m more than just her boss.”

“So I see. Not like you to get so involved in other people’s lives.”

James glared at him. “She’s my friend.”

Sloan raised his eyebrows. “You don’t have friends.”

I once had you. He bit back those words. “Kinley is my friend.” But it was more than that, and he wasn’t going to lie. He straightened his shoulders, knowing Sloan could well come out swinging again, and there was no Kinley waiting with a vase of flowers. “I won’t lie. I wanted her to be more than that.”

Sloan growled.

“She said no. Because for some reason she loves you and she needs time to get over you.”

Sloan took a step forward then stopped. His jaw was clenched tight. James tensed, watching him warily. “She doesn’t need time to get over me because we are not over.”

“Then where have you been these past few weeks?” James snapped. “She said she lied to you and hurt you, but what about before then? Why the hell have you allowed her to live in this shit hole? Why do you not have the sort of relationship where she calls you if her shitty car breaks down?”

“None of your business.”

“It is if you hurt her.”

He held his ground as Sloan moved close, too close. He loomed over him, his eyes dark with anger.

“This is between Kinley and me.”

“She deserves better than this.” James waved his hand towards her apartment. “Her bed consists of a rock-hard mattress on top of some crates for fucks sake. She’s working two jobs, taking public transportation at night. She’s so exhausted and run-down that she became ill, and you, apparently, abandoned her.”

Abandoned her?

It was on the tip of his tongue to deny it. But, in truth, hadn’t he done just that?

All these rules about safety, and he’d allowed her to live in this shit hole. Of course, Kinley would protest the word “allow” and she’d definitely not be happy with him interfering, but part of being her Dom was taking care of her, and he hadn’t been living up to the job.

“This is only the second time I’ve been in her apartment. The first time was when she told me she’d been lying to me.”

“About what?”

He didn’t need to tell James. It had nothing to do with him. And he was the last person Sloan wanted to talk to, but that wasn’t quite true, was it? Because there was a part of him, buried deep, that was dying to talk to James, to see him. That part had hounded him constantly to call the other man and talk things through with him. Get some closure.

Seeing him now stirred up all sorts of memories he wasn’t certain he wanted to remember. He ran his hand over his face with a laugh. “Is it really a coincidence that you’re here?”

“I know it’s hard to believe, but it really is. I thought that asshole, Gary, was her boyfriend.” Sloan him an incredulous look.

James held his hands out at his sides. Sloan noticed that there were a few more gray hairs and some extra lines around his eyes.

“Maybe it was wishful thinking on my part,” James admitted. “Because if Gary was her boyfriend then the way was open for me to take her. He’s an asshole. I wouldn’t feel guilty about stealing her from him.”

He held himself still, but his heart beat fiercely. James wanted Kinley. He waited for the jealousy. The anger. Kinley was his. It was there. But far more muted than it would have been had it had been anyone but James standing there. And that annoyed him more than anything. Because James was the last person he wanted in his life or Kinley’s. Or, at least, he should be.

“It wasn’t until we arrived here today that she cleared that up. She told me you were her boyfriend. The boyfriend who broke things off with her.” There was a question in his voice. And he looked slightly doubtful, as though he couldn’t believe Sloan would be so stupid as to dump Kinley. Neither could Sloan.

“I didn’t break things off,” Sloan growled. “I needed some time to think.”

James was silent, waiting for him to continue.