It wasn’t, but this time Leyton managed to hold his tongue.

“Take care of her,” Max finally said. “That’s all I’m sayin’ on that point.”

For some reason, Leyton felt as though Max was talking out of both sides of his mouth, but he couldn’t bring himself to ask what that meant. They both knew he would protect Ashlynn should it be necessary.

But Leyton was beginning to wonder whether he was the one who needed to be protected from her.

Chapter Nine

Sorry. Not at your beck and call.

Present day

Thursday, November 5 th

Ashlynn knew that Jase hadn’t been keen on the idea of going to Devil’s Playground on a Thursday night, but he hadn’t put up too much of a fight. On a normal day, she would’ve been content to hang out at home so they could get naked and work off some of the excess energy she’d stored up. But not tonight. Her adrenaline was free-flowing through her veins, leaving her edgy, and the last thing she wanted to do was be cooped up, even if the idea of fucking Jase made her pussy clench.

After he parked the Escalade in the underground spaces reserved for her family, Ashlynn waited for Jase to open her door and then allowed him to lead her into the building that housed Devil’s Playground Dallas. This particular club was their most popular by far, as were its sister locations in Las Vegas and New York. Although they owned several other clubs—most of them of the topless variety—this was the only one that Ashlynn frequented.

“You sure you wanna be here?” Jase asked as they made their way down the long, narrow hall that led to the club proper, passing several of the club’s security team on their way.

Rather than answer, she simply nodded.

Jase placed his hand at the small of her back. Sometimes Ashlynn wished he would take her hand, but he never did. The mere notion of holding hands seemed intimate to her, for whatever reason, yet the idea of Jase holding hers was something she’d wondered about. But they still had to keep up appearances since only a few people knew of her sexual interactions with Jase, and those were the four enforcers who backed him up. Since Leo, Teddy, Cowboy, and Derrick lived on her property and Jase slept in her bed, it was rather difficult to hide from everyone.

Granted, Max had never said anything, but she suspected he knew, as well, since he did have his entire house and the club wired with cameras. Not that she cared. She was a grown woman, and she did what she wanted, always had. Then again, if he ever chose to confront her, she wasn’t sure what she’d tell him. Truth was, it wasn’t his business.

A few minutes later, they were in the VIP section on the second floor, along with probably three dozen other people who’d passed the intense scrutiny of the guys who manned the door, plus paid a significant premium just to be there. The alcohol was free in that section, but considering how much these people were willing to pay for the chance to say they’d been there, it only seemed fair.

“He’s here, you know,” Jase informed her after taking a seat beside her on one of the crushed-velvet sofas in the back. The music wasn’t as loud up there, but unless they sat in the private seating in the back, it was still difficult to hear.

Ashlynn didn’t have to ask whom Jase was referring to. “I know.”

It was one of the reasons she’d wanted to come tonight. Ashlynn hadn’t been able to stop thinking about Leyton since last weekend when they’d been at Max’s. After Jase had informed her of the confrontation he and Leyton had had, she was hoping for one of her own. It seemed only fair that she would get the chance to tell Leyton how she felt, what she wanted, and what she needed from him. It didn’t help her cause when he performed his disappearing act whenever she was near.

Hence the reason she was there tonight. She knew Leyton would be at the club because Max was out of town. Her brother had called to let her know that he had to go take care of some business in Las Vegas and that Leyton would be handling things during his absence. Two whole weeks he was going to be out of pocket. Sometimes she wondered if these issues were merely his way of saying he needed a break. She got it. She really did.

Since she’d been involved in the family business from the ripe young age of nineteen, Ashlynn had become familiar with how things worked. Considering she was a female in a world generally run by men, she’d had to make a name for herself early on, which meant she’d paid her dues. Her days were generally spent making the rounds, talking to politicians, business owners, and a few others who needed small reminders of what they owed the Adorites.

For the most part, Ashlynn was responsible for the gun racket her family was known for. Although Max kept close tabs on it, was the one to bring in new business, Ashlynn handled it once it was established. They obtained, sold, and moved illegal weapons, and had established Texas as their territory, working directly with various gangs and cartels when necessary.

Ashlynn sometimes found it amusing that Max had ended up with Courtney. However, since Courtney’s family was in the business of protecting people, they really weren’t much different. From her point of view, Courtney’s family took on the business that came to them, while the Adorites went to the business where it was needed. The only significant difference was that Courtney’s family followed the letter of the law—mostly—and the Adorites didn’t know what that letter even was.

In the years that Ashlynn’s father had been holding the reins, they’d managed to maintain their position as the most ruthless organized crime family in the state of Texas, but when Max was old enough to step up, things had taken a drastic turn for the better. While Samuel had been interested in roughing people up in order to get them to do as he wanted, still old school in so many ways, Max had opted for a different perspective—although he was still known to fuck some people up when necessary. However, unlike Samuel, Max was a businessman, and they’d become quite profitable with the sales of guns, drugs, and yes, whores, all of which went on behind the front of the clubs. Honestly, Max was quite brilliant by choosing to handle his business that way.

Of course, they still had to keep a stronghold on their territory, which required a little blackmail and extortion, but seriously, it was business. Ashlynn didn’t have any preconceived notion when it came to what her family would do to maintain the power they’d worked hard to establish.

After all, she’d learned from the best.

Her father had been cruel with his teachings, forcing her to do things she would’ve otherwise never dreamed of, and only a couple of times, he’d attempted to make her do things she’d refused to do. Thankfully, Max had always been there to watch her back. Despite her out-and-out defiance on rare occasions, somewhere along the way, Ashlynn had convinced Samuel that she was capable of holding her own. And now that he was dead, it was as though a weight had been lifted, allowing her the opportunity to do things the way she wanted, not having to watch over her shoulder, wondering if she would be stabbed in the back by her own father.

That didn’t mean she could show any signs of weakness. She still had to prove to Max that she was worthy.

“Drink?” Jase asked as a waitress walked their way.

“Keep ’em comin’,” she told him.

When the waitress stopped in front of them, Jase ordered for her. Ashlynn was grateful because overindulgence on something was the number one thing on her to-do list for the evening. Unfortunately, she’d been hoping to overindulge on Leyton, but clearly he wasn’t going to show his face, though she knew he was aware she was there. Cameras lined the ceilings, were in every nook, every crevice. There wasn’t a single room—with the exception of Max’s office—that didn’t have a camera. Hell, even the restrooms were monitored, despite what went on in there. Her brother trusted no one, was always looking for leverage, and Ashlynn couldn’t blame him. She trusted a limited few, as well.