Page 22 of Possessive

"You don't know what you're missing." He rubbed the palms of his hands together and grinned.

"I know exactly what I'm missing," I said dryly. "Which isn't relevant. I pay you to do things like that so I don't have to." Just like I paid Terry to cook and the twins to do various odd jobs, and Damon to keep them in line.

"That's what I love about this job," Gianni mused. "I get paid to have fun."

"Maybe I shouldn't pay you," I said. "You might turn up and do it for free."

"If you didn't pay me, I'd have to go and work for the Bell family," he said. "I hear Samuel Bell has a?—"

"I don't give a shit what Samuel Bell has," I said.

I wouldn't stop paying Gianni, because he might do just that. And if he did, I'd have to have him dealt with. He was too good an asset to let go like that. I wouldn't admit it to myself, but I was accustomed to having him around. He was good at what he did, including taking care of Mina. Scaring the shit out of her with a song, notwithstanding.

"Not even if it's bigger than yours?" Gianni teased.

I rolled my eyes. "Nothing he has is bigger than anything of mine."

The Brantley and Bell families had been rivals for as long as anyone could remember. So long, I wasn't sure anyone knew how it started. It didn't matter, it wasn't ending anytime soon, unless one of our families was wiped out.

Gianni chuckled. "That's what I like about you, boss. You don't pull any punches. You know who you are and you don't give a shit what anyone thinks about you."

That wasn't true, I cared what Mina thought. She was the only one since she got old enough for me to really look at her. I'd wanted her back then, but her father got in the way. If I had any clue what he'd done, I would have prevented it, no matter what it took to do that. I would have paid back his debt and taken her for myself. Her life and mine would have been very different.

Now she was back with me, it was time to put us back on that path. As far as I was concerned, it was inevitable. No matter what I had to do to convince her of that.

CHAPTER 9

MINA

I managed to get some sleep before dawn. When I awoke again, the house was in near silence. Someone, I guessed it was Terry, was in the kitchen. Every so often dishes rattled, or a pan or pot.

I pushed the tangle of blankets off myself and slipped downstairs and into the library.

Ever since I could remember, I found the company of books easier than that of other people. My mother used to say, you could tell a lot about a person by their books. I was intrigued by what books lined Reuben's shelves.

I wasn't surprised to find a section of classics, but many looked untouched. One or two were still housed in shrinkwrap. Another section contained non-fiction, mostly history.

The biggest sections were fantasy and adventure. All of the books were in good condition, but Lord of the Rings looked slightly more loved than the others. I wasn't sure what I expected, but it wasn't that. Maybe a worn copy of Sixty-Nine Shades of Morally Grey.

I flinched as someone walked past the door. Their footsteps stopped a metre or two past before they turned back and peered into the library.

"Hey." He stepped into the room, his hands pressed into his pockets.

It took me a few moments to recognise him. "Hunter? Or Parker?"

He grinned. "You were right the first time. Parker is bringing in some bags."

"Parker has bags, but is wondering why the fuck Hunter isn't helping," Parker's voice came from down the corridor.

"Hunter is wondering why the fuck Parker is talking about himself in third person." Hunter winked at me.

"You're doing it too," I said. I could hardly believe the guy standing in front of me was one of the Brantley twins. The last time I saw them, they couldn't have been more than fourteen. Awkward, gangly and full of mischief. The man standing in front of me now was tall and muscular. Still full of mischief, that much was obvious.

Parker stepped into the doorway, a bag in each hand. "Hey." He looked me up and down. "Little Mina DiMarco grew up."

If either of them were surprised by how thin I looked, they gave no indication. Given they weren't surprised to see me here, Reuben or Gianni must have filled them in.

"I was thinking the same about you," I said. "Are you still giving everyone hell?"