Chapter 6
Chapter Six
NADINE
Dinner and dessert were without a doubt the most fantastic night of my life.
I didn’t think that any part of sex could feel as amazing as it did last night.
I want to do it all over again.
Again and again.
Every single night until I die.
A throat clears in the distance, and my eyes pop open.
I’ve been halfway between sleep and awake for a while, choosing not to open my eyes because I didn’t want the memories of last night to fade away as the start of the new day begins.
Grayson stands above me, wearing his usual work attire.
A pair of slacks.
Today’s are my favorite, light gray to match his name.
Which always makes me smile when I think about it.
On top, he’s wearing a navy-blue button-down shirt perfectly pressed, and his matte silver watch, which I know costs more than my rent for half a year.
“Are you leaving?” I ask, my heart racing inside my chest at the thought of being here in my apartment alone.
I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to truly be alone again.
I was by myself a lot in the safe house, but it somehow felt different from this.
It doesn’t matter that I know without a doubt the security at my place is better than at the White House.
I don’t want to be alone.
“Baby,” he rasps.
“You’re bait, remember?”
“Can’t we have some kind of game plan?”
His lips curve up into a grin as he watches me as if he thinks I’m this adorable little creature.
I’m not.
I mean, maybe I am, I don’t know, but I don’t want him to think about that right now.
I want him to say he’s never leaving my side and that he has a grand master plan.
“The game plan is you’re bait. We keep an eye on you, but otherwise, we have to give him the opportunity to hang himself.”
Sitting up fully, I stare at him, unable to take my eyes off his.
“Please, Grayson.”
He hums but doesn’t respond to my plea.
Instead, he only smiles.
“Grayson,” I snap.
“I’m terrified.”
He moves toward me, sinking onto the edge of the bed until he’s sitting beside me.
He lifts his hand and cups my cheek.
His thumb slides across my bottom lip, his gaze never leaving mine.
“I have you, baby. I will not let a single hair on your head be touched, let alone hurt. I have you.”
I’m not worried that Grayson won’t protect me.
I know without a doubt that even if we weren’t sleeping together, he would do everything in his power to ensure my safety.
What I’m concerned with is the fact that the things Landon Tate can and will do to me that would be beyond Grayson’s power.
And he wouldn’t have a choice but to let me go.
That is what’s terrifying.
As much as I want to say all of that, though, I don’t.
But I can feel it hanging between us.
He knows as much as I do that Landon Tate, being ATF, can and will use his powerful government position for evil.
I’ve been running from him for long enough that I know once he catches me, he’s going to pull out all the stops to keep me.
To hurt me.
To use me, abuse me and make the rest of my life, no matter how short it is, absolutely miserable as payback for leaving him.
But I’m pretty sure that if Securus keeps me hidden, I also know that he will likely ruin their lives.
That’s six to my one life, not including Lucille and Colette, plus the new babies.
And then there’s my brother and all his people—his found family.
There are too many people’s lives at stake here for me to be concerned about my own personal welfare and safety.
So I’m going to do whatever I can to save everyone’s lives around me because I’m the one who brought this to their door.
They didn’t have a say in any of this.
I selfishly came to Securus for safety and security.
I should have left here a long time ago.
I stayed long enough that it allowed Landon Tate the time to look for me.
And honestly, he should have sooner.
I’m literally in the same town as my brother, using the same first name.
It’s not like I was overly stealthy.
Sure, I covered up my digital print, but I was hiding in plain sight.
I should have left a few years ago, staying on the run consistently.
But I couldn’t leave Brody, and I wouldn’t leave Securus and Grayson.
Now my selfishness has put them all in danger.
So instead of arguing or telling Grayson that I’m scared to death, I am going to accept my fate.
Because I brought all of this to their door, and they don’t deserve any of it—not a damn ounce.
“Nadine,” he calls out, likely because I’ve completely zoned out and have become lost inside my head.
“Grayson,” I respond, though only instinctively.
I’m not really out of my head yet, which he must sense because he doesn’t say anything else.
He watches me, his gaze searching mine before he finally says something.
And as he speaks, I have to force myself not to react—to tamp down every reaction that threatens to cross my face.
“You’ll go to work at your normal time. Your car is parked in its spot. I’ll be leaving before you, but make no mistake, Nadine. I will be watching you, and Hale has eyes on the apartment building and on you. Boden is in the surveillance room with his eyes on you as well. When I say we got you, baby, we fucking got you.”
Without another word, he slams his mouth down against mine before he stands and walks out of the room.
I don’t take my eyes off his retreating form as he disappears.
I stay sitting in bed until I hear the front door open, close, then the door lock click into place.
Seconds later, I receive a text from him.
GRAYSON: Text Hale when you’re ready to leave.
He will turn off your alarm.
Do not open the door until he gives you the okay.
Yes, sir.
Once I’ve responded, I throw my legs over the side of the bed.
I’m not expecting a response when I feel my phone buzz on the bed with an incoming message.
GRAYSON: You can say that when I’m inside of you next time.
What?
I’m not sure if I’m good at playing coy, not that I’m good at playing at anything really.
I am exactly who I am, awkward and shy.
If I’m coy, it’s by accident.
Flirtatious is something that I find I can only be when it comes to Grayson.
Like it comes naturally or something.
Otherwise, I turn red and run away from anyone else.
Everything comes easier with Grayson.
Every single thing.
GRAYSON: Yes, sir.
My lips curve up into a small smile as I respond to him.
I feel giddy, like I imagine a girl in high school might feel texting her first boyfriend.
Yes, sir.
As I turn to make myself a bowl of granola and yogurt, I realize that I never had a boyfriend in high school.
I was so busy trying to stay hidden in my parents’ shadows and their illegal lives that boys and normal teen things didn’t really occur to me.
I wanted to be unnoticed in every way possible.
Grayson is the first to ever make me feel this way.
And I like it.
A lot.
I hope that whatever happens, I can survive it.
Because I want more time with Grayson.
So much more time…
like decades.
GRAYSON
My mouth made it clear that my leaving her alone in her apartment was the safest option.
However, my body and brain hated every fucking word I said.
I didn’t even believe myself, so how in the fuck did she believe me?
I snort as I drive toward the office.
I’m the first to the office this morning, minus Boden, who stayed the night and kept an eye on shit, which isn’t surprising.
Walking up to the secured door, I gain entry, then wait for it to close behind me.
When it clicks shut, only then do I make my way toward Boden.
When I walk into the surveillance room, I see him lounging in the chair as he stares straight ahead at the computer screens in front of him.
One of them is a split-into-fours screen of Nadine’s apartment, front and back entrances, then her apartment door from the hallway, and the living room window that faces the street.
There are more cameras, but those are what he has displayed.
The other computer screen shows Brody’s construction office.
There are men arriving to the yard, all pulling up on bikes and wearing those stupid fucking leather cuts.
“What are the bikers doing today?” I ask.
Boden shrugs a shoulder.
“Loading up materials and shit. I do not get their operation,” he says, still watching them work.
“They are doing something illegal somewhere, probably money laundering or something.”
Boden leans back a little farther in his chair.
“You know,” he begins, “it wouldn’t be a bad idea to maybe get in on some kind of action.”
“In on something illegal?” I ask.
He presses his lips together, then tilts his chin upward and toward me before he tears his gaze away from the screens to meet my own.
“Why not?” he asks.
“If anyone can cover their asses, it’s us. We got Lucille doing her shit on the financial side. We got Nadine, who none of us knew was some kind of infamous hacker, and Colette is the organizational queen of the company. I think we’re going to get bored here soon with all these women picking up all the shit we’ve slacked heavily on.”
Instead of laughing at the complete ludicrousness of his words, I cross my arms over my chest, tipping my chin slightly as I keep my gaze connected to his.
I'm unsure if he’s completely serious, but I think he is. I’m not sure what he wants us to do, though. Personally, I lived in a world that was ugly and illegal, which he did, too, but I don’t want to go back.
“Vaughn is not a hundred percent on the up and up,” I state. “And we have enough work to keep us busy for the next two years without taking a single day off. We have waiting lists,” I point out. “Get us some more contracts if you’re bored.”
He shrugs a shoulder, not impressed by my suggestion. “Or, I don’t know,” I continue, “maybe get a woman?”
He snorts at my words. “Yeah, fucking right. The last thing I need is a fucking woman.”
Arching a brow, I tilt my head to the side. “Why not?” I ask. “I’m having fun.”
He places his hands on the armrests of the chair and pushes his body up to standing. “You’ve been with Nadine for about five seconds, and she’s got some husband coming after her who is a whole-ass dick, but also a whole-ass dick with power. Don’t get cocky, and also, that doesn’t appeal to me.”
I could be offended by his words, but I’m not. Instead, I grin as I watch him gather his shit to go home and get some sleep from working an all-night shift. He moves toward the door and reaches out, his finger curling around the knob as I call out to him.
“Boden?”
He stops but doesn’t turn around fully. Instead, he just looks back over his shoulder at me, arching a brow as he waits for me to continue.
“I’m telling you right now, no matter what that fucker tries to pull, Nadine is worth it.”