Sin (The Stone Society Book 8)

by Faith Gibson

  “There’s nothing wrong with the way you look, Rocky. But yes, I’ll ask him to drop by around one. Will that work?”

  “Sure.” Rocky knew there wasn’t enough time in the day to make herself truly presentable to men like Finley and Sinclair, but there was only so much she had to work with.

  “Excellent. Now, let me show you around. I want you to make yourself at home while you’re staying here.”

  Rocky didn’t plan on staying but a couple of days. There’s no way she’d allow herself to get comfortable in a home like Finley’s. She didn’t belong there, but she honestly didn’t know if she belonged anywhere.

  Chapter Eleven

  Sinclair was anxious about meeting Rocky. The woman had been through a traumatic experience, and he didn’t want to add to her suffering by discussing her bar. Finley had already filled Sin in on everything Rocky had told him and Uri about her past. He now knew why she was selling RC’s, and it didn’t sit well with Sin. He had called in several Goyles to help Rett with investigating Blake Stansbury. Scum like him didn’t belong on the street, and Sin would make sure he didn’t stay there much longer. After he hung up with Finley, Sin called Banyan. Since Landon had gone to help Julian, Banyan was the next best Goyle to do a little digging into Blake’s life.

  The other reason he was anxious was because Rocky was supposed to have been with Vivian instead of Dana. Had she not been busy, Sinclair would have had sex with the woman. That would have been awkward when it came to discussing the bar. Sin never mixed business with pleasure. He’d learned over the years it was best to keep the two separate. From what Finley told him, Raquel Cartwright was pretty, but she needed to put on some weight. Then again, Finley preferred his women curvy. Sin had never discriminated. He loved women of all shapes and sizes. It was what was in their heart that mattered most to him.

  His wives had been as different as night and day in the looks department, but they all had the one thing that drew Sin to a female – inner beauty. But now, it didn’t matter what someone looked like. Sin would either accept who the fates had chosen to be his mate, or he would live the rest of his life having unfulfilling hook-ups.

  Fin had asked Sin to wait until one to show up. He was getting antsy, so he decided to drive by the armory and see how Uri was doing since it was on his way. He told Ingrid he’d see her later and made his way to the garage where he slid into the low seat of his Lambo. He turned the music up and rolled the windows down. His long hair was flying in the wind, so at the first stop sign he came to, he found a band and tied his hair back at his nape. Sin changed his appearance often. Sometimes he wore a beard, sometimes a goatee. Right now, he sported a short beard, since he wasn’t a fan of shaving. His hair had been long for some time. He usually kept it that way in case he ever needed to impersonate Rafael. He could shave if he needed to.

  When he arrived at the armory, he was surprised to not find Uri’s vehicle there. Sin got out of the car anyway and walked to the door. He tried the knob, but it was locked. Sin reached out with his shifter hearing, but there was no noise coming from inside. He could have let himself in, but there was nothing inside he needed to see. Since Uri wasn’t there, Sin decided to head on over to Fin’s, even if he would be early.

  When he got there, he noticed a couple of strange cars in the driveway. Sin assumed one belonged to Rocky, the other was more than likely Vivian’s, since Finley mentioned the woman might be there. He had made it clear to Fin he was only there to discuss the bar with Rocky, not pile up in the bed for a repeat of Tuesday night. He let himself in the side door as he did anytime he visited. The kitchen was empty, but voices sounded from farther inside the home. He followed the voices and wound up in the door of one of the bedrooms. Fin was on the bed. Vivian was situated between him and a brunette whom Sin assumed was Rocky. They had their clothes on, and it appeared they were relaxing together.

  The sick feeling he’d had before came rushing back, almost knocking him to his knees. Was it possible Rocky was the cause of his unease? She had been at the bar the night he felt ill. When he grabbed the door frame to keep himself upright, Finley asked, “Sin? Are you okay?”

  “Fine,” he ground out. “I need you and Vivian to leave. Now.”

  Finley stood, pulling Vivian with him. Rocky remained where she was, staring at Sin. Finley held out his hand to Rocky. “We should probably take this meeting somewhere less cozy. How about my office?”

  “Out. Now!” Sinclair growled. Rocky scooted to the far side of the bed, looking to Vivian and Finley for help.

  “Brother? You need to calm down.”

  “And you need to get out of here so I can talk to Rocky. I have a funny feeling, if you know what I mean,” he whispered.

  “Come on, Viv. Let’s give Sinclair time to talk privately with Rocky.”

  “I’m not leaving her alone with him if he’s going to be violent,” Vivian said, arms crossed over her ample breasts.

  “I apologize if I came on strong, but I sincerely need to speak with Miss Cartwright alone. Vivian, I vow I will not harm her.”

  “She’ll be fine.” Finley pulled a hesitant Vivian from the room, and Sinclair shut the door behind them.

  Sin took a moment to study the female sitting on the bed before him. Her long brown hair was pulled over one shoulder in a messy ponytail. Her eyes were a deep sapphire that sparkled even in the dim lighting of the bedroom. They were mesmerizing. Her face was glowing with a touch of make-up, and her lips were full. Plump. Kissable. Finley had been wrong about her. She wasn’t pretty; she was exquisite. She was on the thin side, but that didn’t matter to Sin.

  When she crossed her arms over her chest, Sin found his voice. “I am sorry if I frightened you, Rocky. I just want to talk business, and I’d rather we do that in private.” He inhaled deeply and had to grab hold of the wall to keep from going to his knees. “May I ask you a question?”

  Rocky was on the bed with her knees pulled up to her chest. Her eyes were wide, but she nodded.

  “Have you ever been in Iron Bars, the gym down in New Pasadena?”

  “Yes. I went in to sign up for self-defense classes. Guess that free pass isn’t going to do me any good now,” she mumbled.

  “Thank the gods.” The man being in the gym and the bar had been a coincidence. Now he understood the need to get involved with her. Subconsciously, he must have known she was his mate. Sin stepped toward the bed, and Rocky scooted farther back, if that was possible. “I promise I will not hurt you. I just want to look at you.”

  “Why? What do my looks have to do with whether you buy the bar or not?”

  “Absolutely nothing. I am purchasing the bar, so you can stop worrying about that. It’s just…” Sinclair wanted to climb on the bed beside the female and merely bask in the scent that was drawing him to her. His beast was berating him to do more than lie there.

  “Now hold on a second. I didn’t say I’d sell to you. I have a staff of friends I need to look out for, and you might not be the right person to take over RC’s.”

  “I won’t be taking over. A friend of mine will. I believe you have already met him. Banyan was one of the males who looked after you when you were drugged. He owned an establishment much like yours down in New Orleans, and he misses it. He is looking to get back into the mix, if you will.”

  Rocky grimaced when Sin mentioned being drugged, but she quickly recovered. “In that case, I will need to meet with him. So will the manager, Bridget. If you’ve done your due diligence, you’re aware there’s a clause stating all employees retain their jobs.”

  “I am well aware of the conditions of the sale. I promise you, nothing will change except for who pays the bills, unless Banyan decides to upgrade the kitchen so the bar will serve more than grill food.”

  Rocky’s hands relaxed from around her legs, and it was all Sin could do to keep from grabbing her and ripping her clothes off.

  “Raquel…”

  “Don’t call me that!” she snapped.

 
“But it is your name, is it not?”

  “Yes, but someone from my past chose to call me that, and I hate it. And him.”

  “Ah, the bastard Blake Stansbury. I understand now. Please accept my apology. Rest assured we are doing everything we can to get him behind bars quickly.”

  “Finley told you?” Rocky went from mad to livid.

  “Finley and I are like family. We have a large group of males who we consider brothers. Think of us as a clan of sorts. We watch out for each other, and when one of our friends is in need of assistance, we are there for them as well. You are one of us now.”

  “Why? You just met me, and you only fucked Vivian once. Are you in some kind of cult? Do you think we belong to you now?” Rocky slid from the bed, clearly agitated. She began pacing the floor on the other side of the room, and without thinking, Sin went to her. He stopped her steps by grabbing her arms. Rocky squirmed, trying to get away from him. “Let go of me!”

  “Everything okay in there?” Finley asked from the other side of the house.

  “Fine. We are fine.” Sin let go of her arms, but his beast decided to protest.

  She is our mate. We need to bed her.

  She is not willing. You need to chill the fuck out.

  I will not wait long. You need to tell her the truth.

  When the time is right. Now shut up. I need to concentrate on her.

  The shifter quietened, but he continued to push at Sin’s mind.

  “For the record, I didn’t fuck Vivian. And no, I don’t think I own you.”

  Yes, we do.

  Shut up!

  “We are a caring, tightknit family who looks out for those we consider our friends. I am sorry if I’ve upset you. Maybe it is best if we go into Finley’s office and discuss the terms of the sale.”

  “I don’t want to sell the bar to you. I would like for you to leave.”

  “Excuse me? I have money. You need money. Banyan will make an excellent owner.”

  “If Banyan’s the owner, why are you putting up the money?”

  “I’m not. I am brokering the deal for him since he is busy.”

  “I’ve already told you, if he’s going to be the owner, I’ll need to meet him.”

  “That can be arranged. I will call him now, and he can stop by here.” Sinclair absolutely did not want Banyan anywhere near Rocky. Sure, he was fated to be Uri’s mate, but the male was gorgeous. In fact, Sin didn’t want anyone near Rocky. He wanted to kidnap her, take her far away, and make love to her until she submitted herself to him.

  “Whatever. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’d like to go see Vivian.”

  “Rocky…”

  “What? Until you get this Banyan over here, you and I have nothing to discuss.”

  Sinclair was losing her. Hell, he’d never had her. But he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt she was his mate. This wasn’t going to be easy. “I understand, and again, I apologize for upsetting you.” Sin left the room and went in search of Vivian. He found her sitting on Finley’s lap in the den. Fin’s hand was precariously close to being inside of the woman instead of resting on her thigh. Sin cleared his throat.

  Finley stood, depositing Vivian on the sofa. “Everything okay?”

  “Vivian, she wishes to see you.” Sin waited until the redhead was down the hallway. “Fucking hell, Brother. She is my mate.”

  “I had a feeling that might be the case the way you demanded Vivian and I leave the room.”

  “I went about things the wrong way, and now she wants nothing to do with me.”

  “Give her time, Sin. Rocky’s had a rough twenty-four hours. Hell, man. She’s had a rough three years. The one male she allowed into her life royally fucked her over.”

  “This does not bode well for me.”

  “You need to give her time. Let her get to know you. You’ll win her over.”

  “I hope you are right. It is hard going through life thinking you will never find your mate. It is harder finding her and thinking you will never have her.” Sin walked over to the liquor cabinet and poured a tall glassful of Scotch. He drank it all down and poured another. It was times like this when he wished Gargoyles could get drunk.

  “I need to call Banyan. She wants to talk to him since he is going to be the owner.”

  “Now that you know she’s your mate, have you considered letting her keep the place?”

  “Absolutely not. No mate of mine is going to work in a place such as that.”

  “Wow, I didn’t realize you were such a snob.”

  Sin jerked his head around to Finley. “I am not a snob. But I am fully capable of taking care of a female. She will not have to work if she ever allows me to get close to her.”

  “She won’t have to, but she might want to. Kaya refused to give up being a cop until she got pregnant. Abbi still teaches. Sophia still works, even if it’s helping Nikolas combine the archives of the Gargoyles and the half-bloods. Trevor goes to the morgue every day, and he’s studying to take over for Dante. Isabelle goes to the…”

  “All right, all right. I get it. I will talk to her about it. Let her know she has options. But one of those options is not slinging drinks all night at a bar where her ex has access to her. If you will excuse me, I need to get Banyan over here.” Sin left Finley standing in the den and walked outside. It wasn’t that he didn’t want Fin to hear his conversation; he wanted to get some fresh air. If only he could phase and take to the skies.

  Rocky wanted a cigarette and a shot of tequila. No, she wanted the whole damn bottle. When Vivian had described Sinclair, she’d fallen miles short of how handsome the man was. It had been all Rocky could do to pay attention to what he was saying. The need to reach out and touch him to see if he was real had been overwhelming. The way her body reacted to him as soon as he opened his mouth to speak had been unlike anything Rocky had ever experienced. It was better than any high Blake had given her, and it was worse than coming down had ever been. Something about Sinclair called to Rocky, and she wanted no part of it.

  She was positive he had that effect on all women. How could he not? His dark hair hung across his shoulders, and his eyes... Damn those eyes had burned a hole right through to her soul. The way he looked at her had her panties getting wet. She couldn’t imagine what would happen if he touched her. Yes, she could; she’d go up in fucking flames. And that wouldn’t do. She’d been burned by Blake, and he hadn’t been anywhere near as good-looking as Sinclair Stone.

  Vivian came through the door asking, “What the hell happened in here?”

  “You didn’t tell me he’s a jerk,” Rocky blurted. He hadn’t actually been rude, but her self-defenses were coming to the forefront.

  “Tell me what happened,” Vivian urged as she came around and sat down on the bed beside Rocky.

  “He said he’s buying the bar.”

  “And? Isn’t that a good thing?”

  “No, it’s not. He’s not actually buying it. He’s brokering the deal for Banyan.”

  “Uri’s friend?”

  “Yes.”

  Vivian frowned. “What else happened?”

  “What do you mean?” Rocky slid back until she was once again sitting against the headboard with her arms wrapped around her knees.

  “I mean, when he came to find me, he looked… devastated.”

  “He’s probably not used to being turned down.”

  “He asked you out?”

  “What? Of course not. Have you seen him? Scratch that. You’ve seen him. All of him. Damn, where did these guys come from?”

  “I told you he was hot,” Vivian smirked.

  “Viv, hot comes nowhere close to what he is. But it doesn’t matter. He’s him, and I’m…”

  “Stop it, Raquel Cartwright. I will not listen to you put yourself down. You are beautiful.” Vivian pushed Rocky’s hair back behind her ear and touched her cheek. “Absolutely beautiful,” she whispered. Vivian often gave Rocky looks that let her know she was interested in being more than friends, but tha
t was a line Rocky refused to cross with her best friend. Vivian pulled her hand back and said, “The look on that man’s face spoke volumes. He was truly upset.”

  “I have no idea why. I simply told him I wanted to speak with Banyan since he would be purchasing the bar and thus in charge of my employees. I won’t sell to the first person strictly because they have money. And what is it with Finley and his friends ‘having our backs’? I mean, chivalry’s great and all, but they take it to extremes.”

  “You’re just used to dickheads like Blake and Tommy. These guys are the real deal, Rocky girl. They know how to treat a woman.”

  Rocky had told Vivian that Tommy was mean to her, but she’d never told her best friend the whole truth. “I’m glad… for you. I’m not looking for a good man, Viv. I’m not looking for any kind of man. Never again will I trust another one as long as I live.”

  “Ahem.” Rocky hadn’t heard Finley come into the room. By the look on his face, he’d been standing there a while. “I’m sorry to disturb you. Banyan will be here in five minutes. I thought you might want to come into the office where you could conduct your business.” He didn’t wait to see if she followed. He left them alone to finish their conversation.

  “I’m going to go smoke before Banyan gets here. I need something to take the edge off.” And by edge, she meant Sinclair. Her body was still buzzing from being around him.

  “I’ll go with you,” Vivian offered.

  “I appreciate it, but I’d like to be alone for a few minutes.” Rocky wasn’t trying to be rude, but Vivian was so awestruck with these men that she wasn’t able to offer an unbiased opinion. Rocky found the cigarettes Vivian had bought on the way to Finley’s and took the whole pack with her. Instead of going toward the office, she headed the other direction. She found the back door which led to a small balcony overlooking the patio below. It wasn’t until after she lit up that she noticed Sinclair leaning his elbows against the railing, head bowed.