Page 24 of Lawless Rivals

And I just offloaded it to Saint Tallon.

Chapter 7

Saint

The cuffs click shut before she wakes.

One second, she’s curled in the armchair, blanket covering her legs, air dried chestnut hair draping her cheek, and the next, her eyes snap open, wild and glassy from sleep.

“What the hell are you doing?” Her voice is a thick, sleepy rasp.

“What does it look like?” I mutter, tightening the second cuff.

She glares at me like she’d claw my eyes out if she could. “Saint…un-cuff me. Now.”

“Nope.”

“Yes!”

She sits up straight, the links pulling taut when she jangles the metal. The blanket slips and skims the empty whiskey glass I’d taken from her hand to set on the hearth after she’d fallen asleep.

“You can’t—Saint, what is this? Come on…”

I pocket the keys, ignoring the guilt twist in my gut. Because what the fuck’s that about?

“I’ve got people to see this morning. Away from the yard. And you—” I nod at her wrists, “—can’t be trusted not to run.”

“I wouldn’t run,” she lies.

“Yeah, you’d sprint,” I counter.

She clenches her fists. “So, you’re going to leave me here…like this…with nothing to do.”

“I’ll leave the TV on and give ya the remote,” I say, doing just that and dropping the remote on her lap. “I’m sure a princess like you is well used to having time on her hands.”

Walking to the door, I shrug into my jacket and pop the collar.

“You won’t get far with those on. Maybe about four feet before the dogs track your scent.”

“You’re a dick,” she hisses.

“And you’re not here for a holiday.”

Her eyes flash like a struck match. “Unlock me. Otherwise, how do you expect me to use the toilet?”

“You don’t need your hands to sit.”

She goes quiet and flops back into the armchair.

“Break the windows if ya want.” I open the door to leave. “There are surveillance cameras running twenty-four-seven. I’ll get an alert when someone comes or goes within a 2-yard radius of this place. All I have to do is call my lads, and they’ll be on ya like a swarm of flies.”

“I hate you.”

“Good,” I say over my shoulder. “There’s no point liking me. Eventually you’ll trot off back home to daddy and live your privileged Harrington life, thinking you can look down on us and steal our land.”

“When the hell have I ever looked down on you?” she grits. “I let you kiss me, remember?”

“Yeah, but let’s be honest. If you knew I was a Tallon, would ya have been that eager?”