Free Forbidden Innocence: Tales of the Forbidden by Jaden Sinclair Page B

holding back from crying.
    “It will.”
    He didn’t sleep that night. Blaine stayed in the bed with her, listening and watching her sleep until he couldn’t stand it any longer. He wasn’t the kind of man to not have a willing woman in his bed, or more to the point, a woman willing, only not for the sex. That part definitely was new for him.
    So around three in the morning, he left the bed, dressed in some jeans and went to his office. He did a bit of work, but mostly sat back in the leather chair, bare feet up on the desk, thin cigar between his lips and a large glass of brandy.
    “You know when I heard you were married, I didn’t think when I snuck into your house that you’d be sitting in the dark brooding like this.”
    Blaine looked up and there stood Darius in the doorway. “Shit happens.”
    “So they say.” Darius Alistair pushed away from the doorway and went right up to the desk, picking up the bottle and taking a big drink right from it.
    “I do have glasses,” Blaine stated.
    Darius hissed once he finished. “Why mess with a good thing.” He put the bottle down and sat in one of the chairs across from the desk.
    He was dressed in ratty jeans, shit kicker boots and a black t-shirt that stretched across his shoulders like a second skin. His dirty brown hair had grown longer during the few months he’d been gone. The dark eyes darker, and if Blaine wasn’t mistaken, Darius also looked harder in both body and in his face.
    “So what brings you to my humble home?” Blaine asked, blowing out a cloud of smoke and picking up his glass.
    “Berdina ordered me home for this special party she’s throwing
    Makayla.” He groaned in irritation. “I told her no three times, and then she threatened to have Dane come get me. Oh and make my life hell once I did come.”
    “Why she want you there so bad?”
     
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    Darius shrugged. “Who the hell knows? The woman is on a power trip.”
    “Does she know?”
    The question had Darius quickly looking uncomfortable. “Know what?”
    Blaine snorted, “Don’t play that shit with me. They might not know, but I do!”
    With a groan, Darius stood back up and took the bottle with him.
    Blaine kept his mouth shut as one of his best friends paced around the room, drinking. For the past year, Blaine knew that Darius had a thing for Makayla Tabor. It happened the night they went in to get her out of the brothel before she was sold. Blaine saw it on his friend’s face but kept his mouth shut. It wasn’t his place to point out to Dane and the others what he saw. That was all on Darius and, instead of the man stepping up, the shit skipped town.
    Sure Darius came back here and there. The realty property that his family owned made sure of it. The name Alistair happened to be on deeds to every main building in Treece, meaning that Darius inherited not only a name but the legend to go with it. A legend he hated. He was worth a fortune, and every woman in town wanted to grab him for either their self or for a daughter.
    “What I don’t understand is how the hell that old bat is able to keep her out of the Compound,” Darius said, taking another long drink. “I don’t get it. No one has that kind of power.”
    “Apparently she does.”
    Darius snorted.
    “You need to talk to Dane,” Blaine went on.
    “And say what? You know how protective he is of her. He treats her like a daughter for Christ sake.”
    “Darius, getting drunk and staying away like you have been isn’t going to fix shit. Trust me, I know from experience.”
    Darius shook his head. “I didn’t come back here to talk about her or my problem.”
    “Then why did you come back?”
    “Heard you got married,” he shrugged. “Had to see it for myself,” he finished with a smile.
    “Yeah, well it isn’t sweet as candy like Devon and Dane have, trust me,” he groaned, standing up and stretching.
    Darius chuckled. “What fucking fairy tale have you been reading?
    Sweet with Devon and Kera