Arran’s Obsession (Body Count, #1)

In silence, Arran drove us away from Kendrick Manor. I couldn’t hold my tongue. “That used to be your home back there.”

He kept his gaze forward but awarded me a tiny inclination of his head.

“You destroyed it,” I pressed.

A slight tweak of his lips told me I was on the money. “Burned it down. Jamieson helped.”

For a moment, I held my breath. “Why?”

“My father killed my mother there, but then you knew that.”

Hurt bubbled up in me. “I didn’t even know your name until ten days ago. Would you stop with the crap that I’m some gangster’s mole trying to infiltrate you?”

“Gangster’s mole?” He uttered an infuriating laugh.

“I believe you about your business setup, can’t you return the favour and accept I am who I say I am?” I snapped, yelling at him for no other reason than I had no idea how to treat him now. His mother had died. Like mine. Except his father had murdered her rather than mourned her. God.

He worked his jaw. “Tell me everything you know about the gangs in Deadwater.”

“I know about yours.”

“I don’t run a gang.” At my astonished stare, he explained. “I call my team of people a crew. We act like a gang in that we defend our territory by any means, including by violence, but I don’t share any other gang aspirations.”

I pulled my lip between my teeth, chewing it. “Because you formed around running the club and protecting women.”

“Exactly. Now back to you.”

“I didn’t grow up in Deadwater,” I said slowly. “Though I was born here. My parents were a couple for the few years it took to have me and my brother, then they split. Mum raised us, then when I was ten and Riordan thirteen, our father wanted access to us again. We came back to Deadwater, where he’d stayed, and visited with him for weekends. Neither of us wanted to be there. He’d never paid maintenance, and we’d watched Mum struggle to make ends meet as a single parent. She did her best and even managed to complete a degree in nursing in that time. Her mother took care of us but died unexpectedly. Then when I was fifteen, Mum’s life was ended.”

“How?”

I gripped the sides of my seat, suddenly hot. “She helped a woman who was knocked up by a member of a gang, I think raped, but Mum didn’t specifically say, probably because I was so young. The pregnant lady wanted to give birth in secret because she was scared of the baby’s father and knew he’d never let them go, so Mum faked paperwork to say she’d lost the pregnancy. The woman moved far away and had the baby without the father knowing.”

“But he found out,” Arran said quietly.

“He suspected something after she vanished. He’d escorted her to appointments so knew where to go to find Mum. He intimidated her and made threats.”

My beautiful, confident mother had been afraid. She’d tried to change her working location. Anything to escape him.

“Did he kill her?”

“No,” I spluttered. “Not directly. Mum died in a car crash. She left work in a rainstorm and drove home too fast, ending up skidding onto the wrong side of the road and in front of a lorry. She was forty-three. Healthy despite her hard life. The stress and fear caused her panic, I’m certain.”

“So there was no consequence for him.”

I leaned my too-warm forehead against the glass. “No. Nothing happened to him at all. There wasn’t even any proof he was there. My world disintegrated, and that bastard walked away without a care.”

Lost in my own thoughts, I barely noticed that Arran had asked a question.

“His name, Genevieve,” he repeated.

My mouth rejected the words, but I spat them out. “Jordan Peters. We lived in⁠—”

“Newcastle. I know. Before that, London, and Manchester for a while. Then you moved in with your dad. Did you ever see Peters yourself?”

“Never, though Mum described him.”

“Tell me what she said.”

I cast my mind back. I’d told the police this but with precisely zero effect. “He was thin and wiry. Not tall but bigger than her and obviously strong. He had a bird tattoo by his eye and dots around it. Why?”

He didn’t reply. I returned to thoughts of my mother. Then Arran’s mother. I wondered if he’d ever want to talk about her.

“There are three main gangs in Deadwater and other nearby cities,” he said abruptly. “The Four Milers, which your brother and father are linked to.”

“They’re absolutely not.” I sniffed.

Arran shot me a look. “The Zombies are the second, my crew is the final one, if you insist on including us in the lineup. The Four Milers run drugs, the Zombies handle weapons. Our territory is sex work. Outside of that, there are small gangs that appear and disappear. I don’t give a fuck about the others or what they do unless they encroach on my turf.”

“So if any try to run sex workers?”

“I eliminate them. Used to be that women were trafficked here, but we shut down the routes. All those who wanted to come work in the warehouse did. Others we extended help and protection to while they got their lives back.”

“If you’re not a gang, why the masks? Why the big reputation?” As I said the words, I worked it through. “Because you’re showing them what you want them to see, so no one tries to, what was the word you used, encroach?”

Arran nodded, his smile fleeting but almost pleased, or approving. A little piece of happiness chased away some of my blues.

Jesus. What the hell was that? I locked down the emotion.

I was not going to fall for my skeleton-masked captor. Not even the tiniest bit.

“Tell me how your setup works, then,” I asked. “And no, I’m not asking so I can feed this back to someone else.”

His lips curved again. “What do you want to know?”

“I’m going to need to interact with your people. If we’re selling the line that we’re a couple, they’re going to expect me to know this.”

“I’m the leader for all intents and purposes. Shade and Convict are my right-hand men.”

“Do they have real names?”

“Yes, but it’s up to them if they want to share.”

“Which of them came into the game and hunted me?”

“Convict. You won’t see him tonight.”

I’d barely thought of his crew member in days. Perhaps he’d just been after what Arran had claimed in me. From the big deal everyone was making about it, I’d started to understand it more.

Arran continued his explanation. “Alisha’s my operations manager, though she objects to the title. She runs the women and is good at her job.”

“Why doesn’t she wear a mask? When I came in the first time, the three of you had masks on but she didn’t.”

“That’s up to her. She once said that men only see the character she’s wearing that day. Her wig, makeup, and clothes. Outside of the warehouse, she looks nothing like that and has never been recognised. She isn’t trying to intimidate anyone either. That’s all on me and the rest of the crew. All the men who work at the warehouse are ostensibly gang members. If they are working the club, on the door, or as security for the women, they’re paid from Alisha’s budget. If they’re doing business on my behalf, I pay them.”

“What does business on your behalf entail? Actually, I don’t think I want to know.”

He didn’t answer either, driving us on, our journey a reverse of the one that had taken me to his friends’ home. Soon enough, we crossed the Queensferry Bridge and passed Edinburgh, heading for the borders.

For a while, both of us were quiet, lost in our thoughts. When we got closer to Deadwater, Arran spoke again.

“I’m going to have to behave differently around you in the club.”

I twisted in my seat, giving him my attention.

“People need to see that I’m enamoured. I asked Shade to keep the news of our bonding under close wraps until today. Obviously the watchers knew, alongside some of the staff, but it hasn’t been made common knowledge. That changes tonight.”

“Do I need to pretend I’m in love, too?”

“Do whatever you feel. Just know that if you run, I’ll catch you.”

I blinked at him. “I’m not going to run. I don’t need to. You said yourself that now the first week is up, we’re not chained together anymore.”

“I only said a time limit of two hours lifted. We can now spend up to four hours apart, and that’s the case for the next three weeks. You’re still eating meals with me and sleeping in my bed. And fucking me. Did you think you’d escaped me? Guess again.”

All my plans broke into pieces. Yet in the same breath, I was hit with a bolt of relief. I didn’t even attempt to analyse that odd emotion, stacking it with all the rest that came with this maddening man. “I have things to do. I need to get back to work.”

“Take the damn money you’re owed from me and quit that delivery shit.”

I stuck my nose in the air. “Nope. You have your standards, and I have mine.”

He sighed but didn’t argue any more.

Then we were there, crossing the bridge from Scotland to England and entering the centre of Deadwater.

At the warehouse, a huge queue lined up for Divide’s nightclub, with an equal number of people streaming into Divine’s strip bar. It was midnight on Friday, so no surprise. We drove around the back, Arran easing the car into the last remaining space. It had the letters AD printed in white paint on the floor. Arran Daniels.

Because all of this was his.

“Don’t get out,” Arran instructed me. He exited the car, then rounded to my side, opening my door with his hand out like a gentleman.

“So precious,” an awed voice came, echoed with a smattering of applause.

Accepting Arran’s help, I peered wide-eyed at the warehouse. There was no bouncer on the back door this time, but a group of people stood at the corner, clubgoers by their smart or skimpy outfits.

“Congratulations,” another called.

“Beautiful,” said a woman.

Arran produced a smile so natural it gave me shivers.

“Thank you,” he called back.

We neared the group. A woman reached out and touched my shoulder. “I saw everything. Honey, that was so wonderful. You held out for him. My heart!”

I produced my own slightly stunned grin but kept on going.

We rounded to the front of the building, and Arran interlaced our fingers, lifting our joined hands as people in the queue shouted out for us.

“Oh my God,” I muttered. “How do they know my name?”

He leaned in. “Told you. Shade made us public. We’re a hot topic. Don’t worry. The fuss will die down.”

Except we were very much in that moment, just as he was very clearly leading me in the front entrance. Everybody was staring. I tugged at the hem of my short shorts then brushed back stray hair that had escaped my messy bun.

“I wish you could’ve warned me. I’d have put makeup on. I don’t look like I belong here.”

“Part of the attraction. You’re beautiful.”

That offhand compliment had no business making my heart swell. He only meant it as an outsider’s observation, not from his heart.

Inside, Arran received slaps on the back from his team and strangers, people smiling at me, too. Making introductions, he gave me names I tried to store away.

“I need to spend some time with my team, then I’ll give you a proper tour.”

A kiss pressed to my temple earned sighs from the spectators. Then we were in the management suite, and I could finally relax. He didn’t let go of my hand, though, and in his private office, where a selection of his crew waited, he directed me with him around his desk, sitting me on his knee while he reclined. I went to stand, but he towed me down on his lap, banding an arm around me in a possessive hold.

I gave up the struggle and relaxed, enjoying the almost immediate prod of his dick against my ass.

Subtly, I scanned the room for the picture that Cassie told me was here. I spotted it on a shelf by the door. That same child, the one I knew and had played with. Another memory rose—Dad had a printed photo of us somewhere. He had a wall of pictures, sentimental over his family, friends, and ex-girlfriends. I was reasonably sure I’d seen it there. When I had time alone with Arran, I’d tell him.

At last, I regarded his crew. What a change from last time I’d been here. No masks, only interested expressions. Except one woman, whose jaw was clamped shut. Alisha, though in a red wig this time rather than blonde. She’d shown me around and called me a clean little thing. I wondered what her problem was now.

Arran extended a hand, gesturing to each in turn. “Shade, Alisha, Manny who’s head of security, and Lara.”

The younger woman peered at me with unabashed interest. I recognised her. She’d brought me back to the office. I raised an awkward hand. “Hi, everyone.”

Both men dipped their heads. Lara waved gleefully.

Alisha stepped forward, her sky-high heels making her legs appear endless under her dressing gown, the outline of lacy lingerie clear. Arran had described her outward appearance as a disguise. To me, it gave her armour I wished I could have. I pined for ten minutes with my hairbrush and the makeup in my bag.

“Congratulations, Arran,” Alisha forced out, though her expression didn’t match her words. “A lot has happened since you disappeared.”

Arran drifted his thumb up and down my waist. “I didn’t disappear. I was very enjoyably present.”

“Not where you were needed,” she said.

“You’re wrong. I was exactly where I was needed.” He switched his gaze to Shade. “Anything happen that you couldn’t handle?”

“Nothing big. We were all just happy for ye to honeymoon in peace.”

Honeymoon. Like we were married.

Alisha’s focus shot to him. “We had the cops come in. A dealer on the floor. There was a fight right in the middle of Divide.”

Arran gave a short laugh, but his soft touch on me had stilled. I knew him well enough now to recognise annoyance. “A normal week. Do we have a problem?”

Alisha’s gaze flashed with some emotion I didn’t recognise. “Can we talk in private?”

Under me, his muscles tightened. “No, we can’t.”

Tension rose. Across the room, Lara sent me a wide-eyed look.

I exchanged it, then hopped up, turning back to Arran. “Actually, I wanted to talk to Lara about something. Do you mind if I step away for a minute?”

He watched me for a beat then reached up and cupped the back of my neck. And pulled me in for a very hot, and very public kiss.

My body melted for him. We weren’t meant to do this, yet he’d broken that rule twice already today. All I wanted now was to crawl back onto his lap but naked.

“Goddamn you,” I said against his lips.

“Don’t be long,” was his low reply. To Lara, he snapped a different order. “Don’t leave her alone. Manny, you’re Genevieve’s security when she’s not at my side.”

With my personal crew of two, I exited the office, exhaling in relief from being out of the loaded air.

“Holy crap, that was intense. I’ve never seen Alisha go up against the boss like that,” Lara quipped. “What do you wanna do?”

Behind her, Manny stood like a sentinel, arms folded, glaring over our heads at people further down the corridor.

I uttered a small embarrassed laugh. “It’s not a big deal, and only if you can spare the time. I realised when we arrived that I’m severely underdressed. I’ve got makeup in my bag, if you could just direct me to somewhere I could freshen myself up.”

In her revealing but cute black-and-pink uniform, Lara clasped her hands together, her grin instant and big. “I’ve been assigned to you, so of course I have the time. We have a huge dressing room and a wardrobe of clothing. Down for a makeover?”

“Are you serious? I’d love that.”

Lara linked her arm through mine. “You bet. The things I could do to your hair. Follow me.”

Together, we traversed the corridors to the place I’d been desperate to access last weekend. This time, I had a new hidden agenda. People I wanted to talk to out of earshot of Arran.

Information to gather, and exactly the right group of women to give it to me.