Fifteen
Hale
By the time Than pulled into the gates that led to Linc Shephard’s house, I was past the annoyed point.
Ready to hand over the woman beside me and be done with it.
I’d been sent to do a job, and it was finished.
She was Linc’s problem now. At least he wouldn’t struggle not to check out her ass and tits.
He was happily married, as fucking weird as that still was.
My youngest son, Than, glanced back at me, then gave Bay an almost-apologetic look. He’d gotten soft. Being in love had made him weak with females. Oh, who was I kidding? Than had always been weak when it came to women. Feeling sorry for them and shit. Sensitive, like his mother.
“You need a ride home?” he asked me.
“No. Not sure how long this is gonna take,” I told him, opening the door to get some distance between me and the woman beside me.
Why the hell did she smell so damn good? She’d just gotten off a flight from Australia, for fuck’s sake. She shouldn’t smell like some sweet treat. Dammit.
“Leave the Escalade,” I told him. I’d need a way to get home when I finally did get to leave.
Inhaling the early summer evening breeze, I cleared my head of her scent and felt some relief.
I’d been too damn focused on this woman for the past week.
She had gone from someone I was protecting to the enemy too damn quickly, and my head was dealing with it.
I should have known a woman who looked like her didn’t lead the lonely, boring, very organized life she’d appeared to be living.
She would use her looks to get ahead. She’d be fucked regularly.
That made a hell of a lot more sense. She sure as hell was waxing that cunt for someone.
“Get out,” I told her when she hadn’t moved.
I realized then that she was gawking at the house. Well, technically, it was a mansion. A very secure one, as was the entire property. If someone tried to break through the gates, they’d be dead within minutes.
“Wh-what…who lives here?” she asked, her eyes wide as she swung her gaze to meet mine.
“Told you. The man who is going to deal with you.”
Her brows pinched together in a frown. “Is he famous?”
I let out a bark of laughter and shook my head. “No. Now get out.”
A scowl replaced her frown, but I didn’t care. I was almost done with this. Away from her and that scent.
“Hopefully, whoever it is listens better than you do,” she muttered as she stepped out and walked past me, putting distance between us.
I heard a muffled snicker come from behind me, and I shot Than a warning look. He appeared ready to crack up laughing.
I grabbed her upper arm, and she let out a squeak while fighting to get her blazer pulled back together.
Not wanting her to show those tits to anyone else, I allowed it, then took her arm again, less aggressively this time, and began to haul her beside me toward the entrance of the house.
She would have walked willingly because she didn’t have a fucking choice and she knew it, but I was pissy, and manhandling her made me feel better about it.
Which was odd because I wasn’t typically so rough with women.
This one just seemed to know how to push my buttons.
“You want to slow down before you pull her arm out of the socket?” Than asked behind us.
I ignored him, but I did ease up on my pace. She had been jogging beside me to keep up.
“Thank you,” she muttered, not sounding grateful at all.
When we reached the front doors, I rang the bell, glaring at the doors as if they had done something wrong. Thankfully, we didn’t have to stand out here long and wait. Jayda—Linc’s housecleaner and cook—answered the door.
“Who is it?” Stevie, Linc’s daughter, asked excitedly, her blonde curls bouncing as she ran up behind Jayda and came skidding to a halt. “Hey, Hale!” she called out when she saw me. Then her eyes swung to Bay with interest.
“He’s in the office. Said for you to go there,” Jayda informed me, stepping back and giving Bay a smile.
“You brought a friend.” Stevie sounded thrilled. She held out her hand to Bay. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Stevie.”
Bay hesitated, not wanting to let go of her blazer, but it was just long enough for me to shake my head.
“Don’t,” I warned her before she could make the mistake of touching Stevie. Not that I thought she was a danger, but she wasn’t a guest here. She was a fucking prisoner.
Stevie’s eyes flickered to me questioningly.
“There’s my favorite little girl,” Than said loudly as he walked past me into the house and held his arms out for Stevie to run into.
She immediately forgot about Bay and beamed up at Than. “THAN! You’re here too!”
I led Bay inside the house and gave Jayda a nod before heading in the direction of Linc’s office.
“She’s adorable,” Bay said beside me.
I grunted in agreement but kept walking. We weren’t here for small talk. She’d refused to tell me one goddamn truth, and now she had Linc to deal with. Bane would be here soon enough, and she’d get a double dose with those two. Neither looked happy on a good day.
I gave one sharp knock on the door and waited for Linc to respond with his, “Come in.”
He might walk into my office unannounced, but I wasn’t about to do the same to him. Especially with this woman.
Swinging the door open, I shoved her forward, watching her stumble slightly before catching her balance, then followed her inside. Maybe he’d send me on my way soon, and I could get back to work at the distillery. Fuck knew I was done dealing with Bay Fox.