Chapter Two
HUDSON
I WAS CURRENTLY on my private jet, heading from New York to Detroit. It had been five years since I’d left, and I hardly ever came over to Detroit now. Working at the New York office was far more to my liking. That being said, I still came over to see my brother, Trent, and his wife, Kristen, every once in a while.
I was always joined by my best friend, Nico. He was both my friend, driver, and chief of security. He went everywhere with me. We were closer than I was with my own brother. We had been friends now for more years than I could remember, having known each other since high school, before he left and went to New York. I think one of the reasons I moved out there was because I missed him, and there was no reason for me to stay in Detroit, not after that night.
There was one other thing about Nico that not many people knew: he was also the boss of a small mafia family. They weren’t as prevalent as most of the families in NYC, but he was known well enough not to be bothered, and that allowed us to conduct our business without any problems. We had left his second-in-command, Gino, in charge back at the office while we spent some time back in Detroit discussing business and other things with Trent. Trent always welcomed Nico with open arms. He knew how important Nico was to me and was always there for me whenever I needed him.
We were sitting facing each other, as we always did. I was gazing out the window, wondering what Trent’s solution was to my problem. Well, not so much a problem. More like a dilemma. I must have completely zoned out because I didn’t even hear Nico talking to me until he placed his hand on my knee. I quickly looked up with a shocked expression to find Nico almost wetting himself with laughter.
“I didn’t think you heard me, Hud.” He was the only one who got away with calling me Hud.
I took a deep breath to calm my nerves before I spoke. “Did you want something, or were you just trying to give me a heart attack?”
He just laughed in front of me. For a trained killer, his sense of humor was sadistic at times. I had gotten used to it over the years, but it still amazed me sometimes.
“What’s wrong with you lately, Hud? You seem to be lost in thought all the time. You know I’m always here to listen.”
That he was, along with other things. I couldn’t thank him enough for always being there for me, but there was still one thing he could never give me, and that was the reason why we were currently on a plane heading back to my hometown of Detroit. I looked up and saw him patiently waiting for me to speak.
“Have you ever thought that there is more to life than just this, Nico?”
I saw the realization come over his face. We’d had similar conversations most of my adult life. He knew exactly what I was going to say.
“Hud, I’ve told you so many times. The right woman will come along just when you need her. Until that time, you just have to be patient. I’m always here for you and will always stand by you, no matter what.”
I gave a big sigh. It was the same answer every time. Be patient.
I was done being patient. I was thirty-three years old. Most people my age, with my money, were already married and divorced twice over, with children by now. I still hadn’t gotten married the first time around. Nico moved forward in his seat and took my hand in his. He always knew how to calm me when I was feeling low or anxious.
“Nico, I’m not sure I can wait for the right woman anymore. I’m thirty-three years old. If I wait much longer, I’ll be nearly retired before I find the right woman. I just hope whatever my brother has come up with is worth it.”
I heard him chuckle in front of me. I looked up and saw him shaking his head.
“Are we going to have this conversation again? I’ve lost count of the number of times you’ve told me how old you are. I know. I’m the same age as you, remember. Now, come on, enough of this. We are almost in Detroit, and I can’t wait to eat your sister-in-law’s food again.”
I laughed at his comment. He loved Kristen’s cooking, as did I. Spending some time with them would probably be good for both of us. I just wasn’t looking forward to hearing my brother's plan.
WE HAD ALREADY enjoyed a lovely meal cooked by Kristen and were currently sitting out on the deck enjoying a drink. Kristen and Nico were out for a walk with my brother’s dogs, I was guessing to give Trent and I a bit of space, and also because Kristen couldn’t handle two big rottweilers together. To this day, I didn’t really know why Trent had chosen them, but they protected them and the house, so I guessed that was all that mattered.
I took a sip of Jack, waiting for Trent to start the conversation. I didn’t want to seem too eager to find out my brother's plan, but inside I was dying to know. I watched as he took a sip of his drink before looking at me.
“So, I guess you are wondering why I called you all the way here?”
That was the understatement of the year, but I held back my sarcasm as I spoke to him.
“Well, I’m guessing you have a wonderful idea to find me the perfect woman. Although, short of buying one, I’m not sure how you are going to help.”
I saw a look come over his face. It was one that I wasn’t sure I wanted to know the answer to. I had been joking about buying a woman, but from the look on his face, that was exactly what he was about to suggest.
“You cannot be serious, Trent. A mail-order bride? Really? Have you completely lost your mind?”
I saw the smile return to his face. He was being deadly serious about this. To make matters worse, he was enjoying the idea.
“Hudson, hear me out before you lose it with me. No, I am not suggesting a mail-order bride. Even I’m not that stupid. But buying a woman does come into it. You remember Club Lust?”
I did remember it. Although I had never visited the club – through choice, not because I couldn’t get in – I had heard everything about it from numerous sources, my brother included. It was actually where he had met and purchased Kristen for a weekend. For them, it had been the start of a perfect relationship; they had gotten married and were now expecting their first child together.
“Yes, I remember hearing about it. Why?”
“Well, they have another auction coming up in May. It’s the first one they have had in over a year, and I may have just gotten you a personal invite as a buyer.”
I couldn’t believe that he was even suggesting this. The thought of paying for sex went against every fiber in my body. It seemed seedy, the kind of thing old men did because it was the only way they could get laid. Except for Trent, of course. I didn’t include him in that category. He was one of the lucky ones, though. It didn’t mean I would get my happily ever after.
“I’m not sure. It just doesn’t seem right to me. I know you found the right woman for you there, but I’m not confident that I would.”
I looked over at Trent and knew what was coming next. He knew all about Angel and had been there when I first met her. I hadn’t even told Nico about her, and I told him everything.
I sat there waiting for the lecture I was about to get.
“When the fuck are you going to realize that Angel is gone? No one has seen her for months, not even in the club. You have to get over her. You can’t let her get in the way of finding the right woman.”
I could tell he was getting angry, but he didn’t understand. He had the woman he wanted forever. I had let mine get away. I should never have left her alone. I never should have left her to go find my brother that night. I knew he wasn’t interested in her. She was too curvy for his liking, but she was perfect in my eyes. I had let her walk away from me, and with Vincent Forbes-Stuart of all men. I’d heard how he used women in the past. But from what I had heard recently, he had gotten involved with drugs. I just hoped that Angel was being treated well and not used like I suspected. I could feel the anger building inside me at the thought of it.
“It’s easy for you to say, Trent. You have the woman of your dreams to go to bed with every night. I let mine get away and have no idea what that monster is doing to her. I can’t fucking forget her because she is the only woman I have ever wanted.”
I realized I had taken things too far when I looked at my brother's face. I shouldn’t have lashed out at him like that.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t take things out on you. You’re my brother and I love you. I just envy the life you have and am annoyed with myself. I know I caused my own problems, and yes, you’re right. I can’t live in the past. Perhaps it is time for me to try to move on. How do I get on the invite list?”
I saw a sad smile come over his face. He knew exactly how I felt about Angel, even though I didn’t know her real name. But I knew everyone was right; I needed to get on with my life. There was someone out there for me, and as Nico said, the right woman would come along at the right time. Perhaps Angel hadn’t been the right woman for me. After all, I wouldn’t have realized what I had now if Angel had been around, and I would have missed out on years of companionship.
“You don’t have to do anything. I will speak to Edward, who runs the auction. As I have already been, I can recommend you, plus our name goes before us. You will have to stay here in Detroit, though, closer to the auction. You can stay in our guesthouse if you want. At least then you will have some privacy, and I have also kept the playroom in there, so you will have access to everything you need.”
I was at least pleased about that. It had taken both me and Trent years to get that room together. I had so many plans for it, but after losing Angel, I moved back to where I felt comfortable and ran the NYC division of the corporation. However, I had an amazing room set up in my penthouse apartment overlooking Central Park.
“Thanks, Trent. You know I do appreciate this. Plus, I’m sure Nico will appreciate Kristen’s cooking for a few days.”
He let out a hearty laugh. It was the only reason why Nico would come back to Detroit. He hated it as much as me, and it had been one of the reasons why he had moved to New York when he was only eighteen.
“I’m sure he will.”
Just as he finished talking, Nico and Kristen came around the side of the house with Apollo and Titan bounding behind them.
“Nice walk?”
I could tell that Nico wasn’t happy. The look on his face said it all.
“If you call being pulled over twice by these two a nice walk, then yes, we did.”
Kristen couldn’t hide her laughter any longer as Nico turned around and glared at her, thus causing her to laugh even harder.
“You’re lucky I like your cooking and you are my best friend's sister-in-law. I’ve shot people for less than that.”
This caused us all to burst out laughing, even though I knew he wasn’t joking. He probably had killed for less. I got up from my seat to allow Kristen to sit down and walked over to my best friend, placing my hand on his shoulder.
“I’m sure it wasn’t that bad, Nico.”
He still had a stern look on his face, but it was slowly cracking, I could tell. He was trying desperately to keep the hard man act going, but failing dismally. Until he couldn’t hold it back anymore and started laughing right along with us as Apollo and Titan sat down in front of him. Looking around at the scene in front of me, I knew that I needed to at least try Trent’s suggestion. In front of me was the exact scene I wanted. Maybe not the two rottweilers, but having my loved ones close. No matter what happened at the auction, I was at least going to go there with an open mind.