Page 19 of Triple the Secrets
She chose her words before she spoke them. “It’s not illegal to change the names of children. Just because we changed their names doesn’t mean anyone is after us.”
“Cut the bullshit, Scarlett,” he snapped, temper making his eyes glow. “You can spout that to anyone other than me. We have one of the best hackers in the world for a brother. He can find anything. If I wanted to know every time you used that piece of plastic that’s probably in your nightstand, then I would.” Her mouth dropped open in shock at his words. “So you need to tell me what the hell you’re running from so I can help you.”
“And if I don’t want or need your help?” she asked frigidly. He just stared at her, making his thoughts on that very clear with the expression on his face.
“She’s protecting us from a family member that wants us dead because of some insurance money they get if we are,” Wren said quietly from the hallway.
Scarlett whirled and stared at the girls. It was nowhere near the truth as far as she knew, but why were they saying that?
“Some asshole wants you out of the picture for money,” Rogue repeated slowly.
Wren and Win nodded. “Scarlett agreed to take us in a few years ago to help us, and here we are.”
“And what’s stopping this asshole from searching for you?”
“Because as far as he knows we died in a car crash when we were twelve with our parents,” Win explained.
Rogue looked like he wanted to call them on their lies, but he just eyed them and then looked at her as if to assess if she was going to go along with this little charade. She held his gaze, lifting her chin. She wasn’t saying anything else. He could take it or leave it, she didn’t care. She wanted him to drop it and go.
Finally he sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He looked at the girls and then her. “Fine. This asshole shows up, you find me or one of my brothers and we’ll take care of him. For now, if you need anything else, go to the compound gate and ask for me.” Then, without another word, he turned and strode out the door.
None of them moved, as if they all expected him to turn around, call them on their lies, and demand to know the truth again. They waited until they heard a bike start up in the distance before Scarlett moved to lock the door and then turned to pin the girls with a hard look.
“Which one of you wants to start talking first?” she asked calmly. “Starting with the camera, and where you came up with that story.”
She would deal with the emotions she was feeling right now later, because first she had to figure out how much she was going to yell at Lewis and Marc, because she was sure they were involved in this whole thing up to their necks.
CHAPTERNINE
ROGUE
He strode into Church, just as irritated as he had been when he left Scarlett’s house. Damn stubborn women. Yes, women plural - he was roping the smartass twins in there, too. Those two were lying through their teeth, but something told him not to call them on it. That would probably send them running, and that was the last thing he wanted to do.
Still, he had offered his protection again, and now he was going to stay away from them. On the off chance they were telling the truth, he had a feeling if the poor bastard tried to off them, he was in for a surprise. Hell, their sassy attitudes were enough to have the guy running. Who wanted to deal with that shit?
You do, his mind whispered at him. He shoved that thought away. He was worried about how their potential danger would affect the kids and the club, that was it. Nothing more.
His mind immediately pulled up the memory of her standing there, looking defiant, and deliberately sassing him. The instinct to grab her and show her what happened when you sassed a man like him had hit him full force. His cock had gone instantly hard, and it had taken everything in him not to back her up against the wall, turn her around, and spank her ass until she was crying out for him to either stop or fuck her.
From the heat in her eyes and the way she had watched him, as though she knew what he was thinking, he was betting it would be the latter.
That in itself was a problem. She might be hot, but he didn’t want a woman. Even if Scarlett liked half the shit he did, he doubted she would be a one and done kind of woman. Few women wanted no strings, and he also didn’t need the headache of dealing with a clingy woman.
So why did he keep thinking of her?
“You okay there, brother?” Savage asked him, pulling him back to the present.
Rogue looked at his friend and President, and said tightly, “I’m fine.”
Savage glanced at Fury on his other side and Fury smirked. “Seems our brother here has woman trouble,” he said almost gleefully.
Savage’s brow hit his hairline, and the entire room went practically silent. “What woman?” Doc asked curiously. Their only African American member, he had dark eyes, hair and a short beard that he kept neatly cropped to his face. The man was wicked smart, and a doctor at the local hospital when he wasn’t here at the club. He might look easy going, but Rogue knew that he could flip that switch in a heartbeat.
“A certain librarian, from what I’ve heard,” Razor butted in, grinning wickedly.
“Librarian?” Savage repeated. “You talking about the hot one always at the desk whenever the kids go? Sophie? Sarah?”
“Scarlett,” Fury said helpfully.
