Cruel Temptation (Underground Kings 1)

I hated him more than ever in this moment because while he knew these things about me, after all these years, Brian didn’t know a damn thing.

“You will not win me over with food,” I grumbled, and I stabbed the forked into the hashbrowns and shoved them into my mouth, the gravy unattractively dripping off my chin.

But a little tiny piece of my resolve was breaking when it came to the arrogant Jaxon Steel, reminding me of the love I once had for the man.

A love that never really faded and a love that would never happen again. No matter how this situation was painted, he was a murderer. A stone-cold killer.

And I’d rather die than to feel his embrace.

Chapter Six

Jaxon

I opened the door to the room we kept Brian in. We finally had a doctor look at his wound and stitch him up, but it did get infected.

Whoops.

So now he laid in one of the hospital beds we kept on site, the heart rate monitor beeping to let me know he was alive and well.

Damn it.

He had handcuffs on each wrist, chaining him to the bed. His blonde hair was slicked back, and his forehead shined with sweat as he fought a fever. Damn it; I was really looking forward to torturing him and letting out years of pent of anger. Maybe I could when he healed. He wasn’t going anywhere for a long time.

Not until I had the answers I was looking for.

And I had a feeling he wasn’t going to give them up easily. I had him on camera, recording every move and sound he made, just in case he slipped up and admitted that he was the one that killed Tracy.

“Well, well, well, look who finally decided to show his face,” Brian coughed. “I was wondering when I’d see a friendly face.”

“I know you aren’t looking at mine, then,” I said, sitting it the chair in the far corner away from the bed. I was afraid if I got too close to him again, I’d kill him, just like he deserved but I had to stay calm. I had to look at the bigger picture. I crossed my ankle over my knee and folded my hands in my lap, composing myself in the best way I knew how.

I hated the man in front of me.

With every ounce in my fucking soul, I wished him dead. I remembered when I first met Brian. I had just gotten done with a deal, and the guy fucked me over a few bucks. I was furious, and Brian was walking down the street when he saw me beating the man’s face in. We had been inseparable ever since, and I learned a lot of my ways from him.

And then I introduced him to my sister, and it was the worst thing I had ever done. It was my fault that she was dead because if I hadn’t introduced them, she’d still be alive.

“The felon look looks good on you, Jax.”

My jaw ticked when he called me by a name I hadn’t heard in years.

“The whole tattooed, I just got out of prison look really works. Oh, wait,” he coughed again through a sarcastic laugh. “You did just get out of prison, didn’t you?”

“I’d watch your mouth if I were you, Brian. You’re here, under my roof, and I can kill you whenever I want.”

“Oh, but you wouldn’t do that. You never do anything that doesn’t benefit you. And if you hurt me, that would hurt Quinn. And you wouldn’t want anything to hurt your precious little Quinny, right?”

I stayed silent. He was taunting me. He knew what Quinn meant to me when he took her from me. All these years, she had been lying with the enemy, and she had no idea. “Do you even care about her?”

“Quinn?” he snorted and shook his head. “She’s an easy bitch to target and filthy rich. Did you know that? If it wasn’t for you, I would be on my way to Mexico, four million dollars richer, and Quinn would be six feet under, somewhere.”

I stood slowly, keeping my breathing even and calm as he spoke about a woman, he almost married. I knew about the money transfer he had set up, but I had no idea he had intended to kill her. I wasn’t surprised. He killed Tracy. Why wouldn’t he have killed Quinn? Why now? Why not sooner? It didn’t matter. I was glad it wasn’t sooner, or I wouldn’t have been around to stop it.

I casually strolled to the

side of the bed and wrapped my much large palm that was wider than his neck around his throat and squeezed.

Hard.