"I need you alive for another two years and one month, or I don't get my payout." His tone was harsh, and it cut me as effectively as any blade.
I drew a sharp breath through my nose, then unbuckled my seat belt and popped my door open with sharp gestures.
"You're a piece of shit, you know that?" I asked him as I paused halfway out of the car. "It's no wonder you needed to buy a wife. No woman could possibly tolerate your damaged bullshit willingly."
He didn't answer. He didn't even look at me.
Shaking my head in disgust, I climbed out of his car and slammed the door behind me. I didn't pause and I sure as shit didn't look back at him as I stormed into my apartment building. His car remained in front of the glass doors, though, not leaving as I stepped into the elevator.
It wasn't until I got back into my apartment that my resolve cracked, and I looked out the window. Only then did the black Stingray pull away from the front of my building, like he wanted to be sure I'd made it safely inside.
The lengths he'd go to for that payout were impressive. Especially considering he had absolutely no need for my money.
Prick.
24
True to his word, Kody arrived on my doorstep a couple of hours later while I was contemplating dinner.
"New phone," he announced when I answered my door, handing me a device identical to my old one.
I took it from him with a smile. "Thanks," I replied, standing back to let him in. "I hope you put this on Archer's credit card."
Kody smirked. "Of course. It's the least he could do."
I closed the door and wandered back over to my kitchen, where I'd been browsing through takeout menus that had been stuffed into my mailbox over the past week or so. "You want to stay for dinner? I was deciding between Chinese or Mexican."
"Damn, babe, who knew you were such a chef," Kody teased, taking the two top menu choices out of my hands and inspecting them. "Yum, tacos."
"Excellent choice," I murmured, taking the Chinese menu back and returning the losers to a drawer in my kitchen. "And don't be a hater just because I can't cook. I've had a personal chef my entire life. Even in Cambodia we had a cook."
He just dropped the Mexican menu onto the counter and placed his hands on either side of me, boxing me in. It was such an alpha-male, dominating move, and I secretly loved it. "I love everything about you, MK," he told me in a low voice, his body crowding me against the island and giving me vivid memories of the first time we’d fucked—in the middle of the night, on the kitchen counter.
"Mm, nice save," I replied, tilting my face back to peer up at him as his hard length brushed against my lower belly. "But suddenly I get the feeling you're not all that hungry for takeout."
A wicked smile touched his lips. "See, babe? You totally get me. It's like we have a psychic connection, and I love that."
His kiss was gentle and unhurried, a sensual exploration of my mouth. My breath hitched, and my arms snaked around his neck, pulling him closer and silently pleading for more.
"As much as I want to take this further," he murmured against my lips, his body crushing me into the cupboards, "you should really order. Food around here always seems to take forever to arrive."
Instead of letting me go, he just reached out and snagged my new phone from where I'd left it and handed it to me. Then he proceeded to kiss my neck in teasing pecks while I dialed the restaurant and placed an order for us. Kody pointed to several items while I spoke to the girl on the other end, and I added them to my order.
"That's a shitload of food, Kodiak Jones," I commented when I ended the call.
He laughed lightly before claiming my lips in an intense kiss that stole my breath away and left my knees weak.
"I ordered for Steele too," he told me when our kiss ended. "Otherwise, he'll eat all of ours."
"He's coming over?" I tried to remember when, exactly, I'd invited both boys over for dinner. Then I remembered that they do whatever the hell they want, and right now... that was me. Or making amends with me, at any rate.
Kody just gave an easy shrug, his hands slipping under my tank top and pushing it up to expose my midsection. "Probably. He mentioned yesterday that you guys talked things out..." He arched a brow at me, inviting me to elaborate on that statement.
I wrinkled my nose, thinking. "We did. He, like you, is extremely hard to stay mad at when he gives a genuine apology." I narrowed my eyes at him. "You're a little bit charming, you know that?"
Kody beamed. "I do my best for you, babe. Besides, we really are sorry for how everything went down."
I placed my phone back on the counter, then looped my arms around his neck, threading my fingers into the back of his hair. "He told me about some stuff from before my mom died."
Kody looked surprised. "He did?"
"Yeah," I replied, searching his emerald eyes. "Did I meet you back then too? I don't remember any of it. Steele said you weren’t there, but…” I shrugged. It seemed weird not to ask, in case Steele was mistaken.
He shook his head. "No, I was in Texas looking after my grandma. By the time I got back, shit had already hit the fan, and you were just a ghost to both Steele and Arch." He paused, giving me a small smirk. "I wanted to meet you, though. Steele talked about you all the time, and I was jealous as hell. You sounded so cool."
I gave a little laugh. "Oh yeah? I guess I didn't leave such a good impression on Archer, then."
Kody grimaced. "I guess Steele didn't tell you all of it."
Anxiety turned my stomach. "No, we were interrupted. But it's fine. Archer can tell me his own shit when he's ready to pull that stick out of his ass. I've survived this long without those memories; I'm in no major hurry to uncover whatever I did to earn eight years of hatred from him."
"Fair enough," he agreed. "But for the record, Arch doesn't hate you. Not even close."
I snorted a sarcastic laugh. "Agree to disagree, Kodiak. He's actually said it to me."
"Well, what can I tell you? He lied." His brow creased, and his thumb traced the scar on my stomach. "MK—"
A knock on my door cut off whatever he was about to say, and we both cast confused glances in the direction of the sound.
"I thought you said food was slow," I asked him, and he shrugged.
"It usually is. I once waited four hours for tacos, no joke. I mean, they were great tacos, but come on." He released me and made his way over to the door to answer it. It should have annoyed me that he was acting so at home in my apartment, but it didn't. I liked it.
"Not tacos!" Kody called out, swinging the door open further, then sauntering back toward me.
"You ordered tacos?" Steele asked, walking through my door. He closed it behind him and made sure to flip my deadbolt. "Did you get enough for me?"
Kody shot me a smug grin, and I rolled my eyes.
"Yes, we did. Kody ordered for you, though, so blame him if it's not what you like." I moved over to my living area and sat on the couch, tucking my feet up under me. My lips were still warm and puffy from Kody's kisses, but I wasn't about to go initiating a threesome before my burrito arrived. So, I needed some space.