Free Risk It All (Risqué #2) by Scarlett Finn

you think half our women know what we do full stop? Let alone what we do to protect them and keep other men away?’ The question was rhetorical, not even their mothers and sisters knew half the stuff that Warner men did. Respect and protect was the number one rule when it came to women, that’s what they’d all always been taught.
    ‘She’s one of us again, cuz,’ Gus said, slapping a hand on his shoulder then returning to his coffee. ‘You’ve done well for yourself.’
    And just like that Bri somehow became his woman again. Gus was already heading to the coffee machine for a refill like what he’d said was no big deal, but Blaser was stuck. After so long apart Bri shouldn’t still feel like his woman, yet she did.
    Warners were tough and fair, they gave their steadfast focus to whatever they dedicated themselves to. He knew that whatever Bri was mixed up in he wanted to take care of it, he just hadn’t realised that his actions would involve asking the family to take care of it as well.

Chapter Five
     
     
    Going to Risqué shouldn’t make her apprehensive, but it did. A sharp tapping on her apartment door beckoned her, but when she opened it there was no one there. Stepping out onto the balcony to seek out the source of the knocking, she saw that Blaser was already at the top of the stairs.
    ‘Come on,’ he said, sliding both hands down the metal railings on either side of the stairs. ‘Chop, chop.’
    Reaching into the apartment, she snagged her purse then locked the door as quickly as she could. ‘So much for fixing the window,’ she said, running down the stairs behind him towards the idling truck that still had its lights on. Bringing a vehicle highlighted just how desperate he was to be quick in returning to the club.
    ‘I’ll do it another time,’ Blaser said. ‘I don’t like to be away from the club.’
    ‘I can tell,’ she said. Hopping into the truck she pulled on her seatbelt, but Blaser was already rocketing out of the parking lot. ‘Have you had a chance to think about my request?’
    ‘Your request?’ he asked, flashing her a frown.
    ‘To dance. I can make more money—‘
    He was already shaking his head. ‘Every girl starts by waiting tables.’
    ‘It’s not like I need an audition, you’ve seen me dance.’
    ‘In private,’ he said. ‘That wasn’t a public show. Dancing in a club is different.’
    ‘I’ve done it before.’
    ‘When you were seventeen,’ he said. ‘There’s no point in fighting with me. I stick to the rules. Just like we always said we would do.’
    ‘Yeah, but…’
    ‘But the rules don’t apply to you?’ he asked. ‘They apply tenfold, Doll. I won’t take advantage of you.’
    ‘It’s not taking advantage if I ask.’
    ‘Argue all you want,’ he said. ‘But I’m the boss and my rules are law in Risqué.’
    She knew Blaser too well to believe him when he was so obviously lying. ‘The rules aren’t why you’re saying no to me. Do you remember when you used to love me?’ she asked, twisting in the passenger seat to rest a hand on the centre console.
    ‘What do you want now?’ he asked.
    ‘No, I’m just saying, our relationship went for more than a decade. I know when you’re bullshitting me, Warner.’
    ‘I’m not bullshitting you, it’s true, you can ask Lyssa.’
    ‘Lyssa is in the club?’ she asked.
    He pulled into the parking spot at the back of the club and turned off the engine. ‘Yeah, why?’
    ‘Why would a woman want to hang around at a strip club?’
    ‘Lyssa,’ he said and a smile decorated his face. ‘I can’t get the damn woman out of the place. She loves it here, Suzette’s in all the time too. But she only comes in to see Lyssa.’
    ‘And why does Lyssa like it so much? She’s weird; she smiles too much and has no shame when it comes to sex.’
    ‘She’s a sex therapist,’ he said. ‘You should hear some of the things she’s said to Ruge.’ He frowned. ‘How would you know what Lyssa’s