Heart-On: Turf Wars #2 Bella Jewel (books for 10th graders .txt) 📖

to get hold of it. I watched, I figured it out, I found where you were selling, and I stole it. Then, I tried my hand at making it better.”

“And you weren’t plannin’ on giving it back?”

Poppy shrugs. “I didn’t think you’d find me. I was doing it for myself.”

“What for?”

“Does it matter?”

Riggs looks to Beckett. “Your call, brother. You decide what you want to do here. You were the one who found her and you’re in charge of this side of things, so it’s up to you what move we make next.”

Beckett narrows his eyes. “She fuckin’ stole from us.”

Riggs nods. “Yeah, she did. You can decide what we do with her.”

Wait a second.

If they mean hurt her, I’ll lose my shit.

Surely they’re not going to do something like that?

She’s a girl for crying out loud.

“What do you mean do with her?” I say, crossing my arms. “You let her go.”

“Not how it works,” Adan informs me. “Sorry.”

“She’s a girl.”

He gives me a hard look. “She’s a criminal.”

I glare at the man I love, and he glares right back.

When it comes to the club, we don’t get a say so. I know this, but oh, it’s frustrating.

“If I might add,” Hank says from a quiet spot in the corner. “I say we use her.”

Beckett looks at him. “Explain.”

“That cash looks good. We make it, and we sell it for triple the amount. We make a fuckin’ fortune.”

They’re selling it?

Makes sense.

“Not a bad idea,” Riggs nods, looking to Beckett. “Still, it’s your call.”

Beckett thinks about it, and then he looks to Poppy. “You make us back what you stole, plus interest, and we’ll let you go.”

Poppy shakes her head. “You want me to show you how to make money, so you can go on and make millions from it, and I miss out? Sorry, leather dude, it’s not happening.”

I bite my lip again.

She’s hilarious.

“You take a cut of the first sale,” Beckett goes on. “Then we let you go, and if you want to make and sell it somewhere else, that’s on you. Deal or not? It’s not fuckin’ negotiable.”

Poppy purses her lips. “And while I’m making this money, I stay here?”

Beckett nods.

“Do I get my own room? Food?”

Beckett nods again.

Poppy shrugs. “Sounds good to me.”

“It won’t be a walk in the fuckin’ park,” Riggs adds. “Don’t trust you, so you’ll be in Beckett’s care the entire time. One wrong move and we do it my way. Trust me, lady, you won’t like what I would do to you.”

Both Beckett and Poppy look to Riggs with horror.

“You want me to fuckin’ babysit her?” Beckett growls.

That’s all they picked up from that?

Riggs nods sharply. “Call it what you will. You won’t leave her side.”

Beckett looks like he’s going to bust a top. “You can’t be fuckin’ serious.”

Riggs nods. “It’s how it goes.”

I look to Eve, who gives me an ‘uh oh’ expression.

Well.

This should be fun.

“SHE’S NONE OF YOUR concern,” Adan tells me as I prepare our dinner later that night.

I chop into a carrot and stop, staring at him. “I mean, she kind of is. We girls have to stick together.”

“You don’t even know her, babe. She could be anyone.”

“She could also be a girl who has had a hard life, is smart, and knows how to get what she wants. I mean, anyone who has been able to make money the way she did is pretty clever, right?”

Adan gives a half shrug. “Yeah, you’re probably right. Still, we don’t know fuck all about her. Stay away until we do.”

I hold up a green bean. “Can’t promise that I’m afraid.”

He gives me a look.

I smile at him.

After all, I like Poppy and I think she has some really cool stories to tell. She is certainly the type who would keep you entertained for hours with the life she’s lived. I can’t wait to sit down and find out more. I really can’t.

“You’re goin’ to be the death of me,” Adan murmurs, giving me a look that makes me feel funny on the inside.

I grin. “Oh, honey, you have no idea.”

A knock sounds at the door, and both of us look at each other. “You expecting someone?”

“Nope, you?”

“Nope.”

He walks over, and I continue chopping the vegetables for my stir-fry. When he doesn’t return, I place the knife down and walk out to see what’s going on. There, at the door, is Hera. She’s crying and waving her arms around, sniffling something to him as he tries to talk to her calmly. Great, I forgot about her. Lorelei, she moved onto another job and let us be. Hera is not in the same boat.

When her eyes fall on me, she stops sniffling and just stares at me.

“Her,” she sobs. “You chose her?”

“I guess the chunk got to him in the end,” I say with a shrug. “A man can’t help what he wants.”

Hera glares at me. “What does she have that I don’t?”

“Booty,” I point out.

Adan gives me a look. Yes, yes, I need to go away but honestly, she deserves it. She was rude and quite frankly, I’m tired of it. She wants to come around here, then she gets what she’s delivered.

That, being me.

“Adan?” Hera sobs. “Are you going to answer me?”

Adan exhales, like he just doesn’t have the energy to deal with any of this right now. “She’s my girl, Hera. What do you want me to say?”

Aw, his girl.

He said I’m his girl.

That feels really, really good.

“We had something,” she cries.

He shakes his head. “We didn’t.”

Hera’s eyes move to me, then back to Adan and she exclaims, “I’m pregnant.”

Sweet Jesus, she is desperate. I give her a pitying look. It’s the oldest trick in the book, and I mean sure, it works. She and I both know that she’s not pregnant. It’s a desperate attempt to get Adan to be with her. She feels like she has no other option right now, and she’s going to use whatever she can. I can’t say I blame her, but