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?"

They gave me matching grins in response.

"We wouldn't be us if we didn't," Hunter said. "Some smartass, probably Zeke, decided to give us the nickname evil twins. We think it's hilarious."

I snorted softly. "I'm sure you do everything you can to live up to that."

Parker laughed. "I've always thought you were the smart one in your family. Not to mention the cute one." He hauled the bags over and placed them down on the floor beside me. "Reuben said you might need some new clothes. We did our best to max out his credit card."

"He trusts you with his credit card?" I did need new clothes, but I hadn't expected this. I probably should have, given that the twins' old clothes didn't fit that well.

"See, that's exactly what I think," Hunter said. "And yet, here we are." He spread his hands as though he was completely innocent.

"He's so full of shit," Parker said. "Reuben trusts me with his credit card, not Hunter."

Hunter turned to his twin and put a hand to his chest over his heart. "I'm shocked that you'd even suggest that, Park. Everyone knows I'm the trustworthy twin. As well as being the smartest and best looking."

"Keep telling yourself that, Hunter," Parker said.

I shook my head at them both and managed a smile. "I see you haven't changed a bit." They were still giving each other shit, but clearly adored each other. Whatever happened, they had each other's backs. What would it be like to grow up with someone you could trust implicitly?

"My cock is bigger," Parker said. He wiggled his eyebrows and grinned. "Hunter's stayed the same."

Hunter shouldered Parker hard enough to make him stagger a few steps. "What have I said about making unsubstantiated comments about my cock size?"

Parker shoved him back. "Fine, in the interests of accuracy, Hunter's got smaller."

"You're such an asshole," Hunter told him. He turned to me and said, "My cock is as big, if not bigger than Parker's. Any time you want to see, you only have to ask."

I cleared my throat. "Um, thanks. No offence but?—"

They both groaned.

"Any time anyone says that, they're about to say something offensive," Hunter said.

"I was going to say that would be like looking at my younger brother's dick," I said.

They exchanged glances.

"I guess that wasn't so bad," Parker said.

Hunter nodded. "I can live with that. I mean, I don't feel offended."

I laughed softly. When was the last time I'd laughed? A very long time ago. Knowing I hadn't completely forgotten how, was a relief.

"Thank you for the clothes," I said.

"I hope they fit," Parker said. "And that you didn't want anything in pink. I didn't get any pink." He frowned. "If you want pink, I can go and—" He gestured towards the door.

"I don't want any pink," I said quickly. "I actually prefer darker colours like black."

Parker dropped his hand to his thigh and grinned. "I got lots of black things. Black goes with everything."

"Especially my soul," Hunter said. "And Reuben's heart."

"What about my heart?" Reuben stepped into the library.

"Hunter was just saying you have a black heart," Parker said.

Reuben raised an eyebrow at them both, but didn't deny it. Nor did Hunter deny saying that about him.

"Don't you have somewhere to be?" Reuben asked, eyeing the twins meaningfully.

"At this exact moment, no," Hunter said. "That's why we're here, talking to Mina." He glanced at me. "You like books too? There might be room on Reuben's credit card for more books."

"I can't ask you to buy me things," I said.

"We like buying things," Parker said. "Especially if Reuben is paying."

"If you want books, you can have books," Reuben said to me.

I got the feeling that if I asked for the twin's heads on a silver platter, he'd give them to me. Fortunately for all concerned, that wasn't something I wanted or needed. On the contrary, it was difficult not to like Hunter and Parker. With them, there was no pretence. What you saw was what you got. I appreciated that.

"I…like romance books," I admitted with a shrug. The old Mina, before Kurt, believed in happily ever afters. That was probably why everyone believed my father's story that I ran off to get married. Behind every good lie was a dash of truth.

What did I believe now? Did it matter? I just wanted to lose myself in the pages for a little while. No one could blame me for that.

"Get her romance books," Reuben said to the twins. "Whatever she wants."

"As if you won't read them too," Hunter teased.

Reuben looked back at him, a bland expression on his face. "My library is missing having books with covers made from the hide of human male twins. I could have that rectified, if you like."

Hunter and Parker both laughed.

"You wouldn't do that to us," Parker said. "You love us too much."

Reuben grunted. "Don't tempt me." He nodded his dismissal and turned his back to them.

They both made faces at him behind his back, then grinned at me before walking out of the room, their arms over each other's shoulders.

"Sometimes I wonder if they're adopted," Reuben said. "Then I remember, they're my half-brothers. It must be something from their mother's DNA."

"I envy them," I said softly. "They seem to love life."

Reuben sank into a chair and sighed heavily. "That they do. So should you." He pressed his lips together, then glanced down at the bags. "If you don't like anything in there, we can order more. Whatever you need."

I perched on the edge of another chair and reached for one of the bags.

"I need clothes, but if I open one of these and Kurt's head is inside…"

The sides of his eyes crinkled slightly, like he was holding back a smile. "We'd both thoroughly enjoy that. Unfortunately, we haven't found him yet. I have all of my resources on it. It won't be long. He can't hide from us forever."

At some point, I was going to have to use my own resources, but in the meantime I opened the bag and started to pull out various items of clothes. Mostly black trousers, black jeans, black skirts and lighter coloured blouses and T-shirts. Amongst those was lacy underwear in a variety of designs and sizes.

Every item looked expensive. The twins might not have exaggerated when they mentioned maxing out Reuben's credit card. Without access to my funds, I had little choice but to accept the extravagant gift. I'd draw more attention to myself dressed the way I was, than in the clothes stacked neatly in either of the bags.

"You didn't have to do this," I said, holding a black mohair jumper up to myself.

"You might prefer old track pants and T-shirts, but we'd soon run out of them," Reuben said dryly. "You'll feel more yourself in clothes of your own." His ice blue eyes regarded me intently, searching for my reaction, reading my response and taking note of everything.

For some reason, this was important to him, like he'd told the twins exactly what to buy. Like he'd chosen every item to make me look a certain way. The way he wanted me to look. This wasn't just about clothes, this was him making me into something. Moulding me into what he wanted. Claiming me in front of the world.

"I should try them on," I said. I stood and picked up both bags.

Reuben quickly rose too. "Do you need help?"

"I can manage," I said. Neither bag looked too heavy. If they were, I might have refused his help anyway. This was a small thing, but I needed to do it by myself. To prove to myself I wasn't a broken doll. "Thank you."

"It was my pleasure," he said, his voice smoother than silk. He'd be thinking of every centimetre of fabric as it slid against my skin, touching me in a way he wanted to, but couldn't. Not yet. If I was, when I was, ready to give myself to a man, he'd be ready. Ready to fill me, touch me. Claim me.

"Breakfast will be served soon," he said. "If you're up to eating."

He looked indifferent to the idea of food, as though he only ate because he had to, not because he cared about cuisine. What did he care about, apart from books and his family?

If the twins were open books, Reuben was one whose pages were shut tight and locked, the key hidden from the world. What would it take to break that lock? Why did I want to? He intrigued me. Many people found him intimidating, but I never had. To me, I saw a complicated man behind a stony fa?ade. A mystery to be solved.

There was more to him than just a callous mobster, although he was undeniably that too. He'd have people killed without a second thought, but he's always looked at me like I was also a puzzle he wanted to figure out.

I hadn't realised until now that we were so alike.

"I am," I agreed. "I won't be long." Especially now I realised the smell of bacon was wafting through the house. It was good enough to make my mouth water, even as my stomach twinged in warning.

He sat back in his chair and nodded. "I'll wait for you in the kitchen in about ten minutes."

I nodded quickly and turned to make my way back up the stairs, one careful step at a time.