Chapter 12
CHAPTER TWELVE
~SHANE~
I vie’s skin is soft where I kiss her, right next to her eyebrow, and then I silently back out of the room. She’s sleeping peacefully, which is exactly what she needs after the mind fuck that she went through in my office.
I close the door behind me and walk out to the living room, where Curt sits, waiting for me.
“She’s finally asleep.” I pour myself two fingers of whiskey and do the same for Curt. After passing him the glass, I collapse into my favorite leather chair. “This whole thing is fucking nuts.”
“I’ve seen some shit, you know I have.” Curt sips his whiskey. “But I don’t know if I’ve ever seen anything like this before.”
“Yeah, it’s not typical, that’s for sure.”
I stare at my friend, lost in thought. I saw all of what Curt did—and plenty more since. Curt was on my squad. Was the best assassin I’ve ever worked with.
He’s quick, stealthy, and ruthless. When he needed to leave, to disappear, I knew I had to have him here on the ranch. I’d trust no one more to make sure things run smoothly here when I’m gone.
And I’m gone plenty.
“You know you should leave,” he says, surprising me.
“I live here.”
He shakes his head and then pins me with that intense stare he gets when he knows things are about to go to hell.
“Take her out of here. If that idiot found her, it’s only a matter of time before someone else does.”
I blow out a breath and then take another sip of whiskey. “Even if they do find her, I can protect her here better than anywhere else. I know every inch of this land like the back of my hand. And so do you. We can take on an army here if we need to.”
“I think it’s the wrong move, but you’re the boss.”
“We keep our eyes open and remain on high alert for the foreseeable future.” I lean forward, my elbows resting on my knees, and stare into my glass. “I know that this isn’t what you signed on for, man. If you want to go somewhere and lay low until this all blows over, I won’t be angry or think any differently of you.”
He swallows the rest of his whiskey and sets the glass down without a sound. “I’m not afraid. What happened today didn’t give me any bad moments. I thought it might, but I slipped back into the job, you know?”
“Yeah.” I nod once. “I know.”
“But I came here so I wouldn’t have to do that anymore. I know you think it was cowardly of me?—”
“Hold up.” I raise a hand and scowl at my friend. “You’re no coward. You did what you had to do to survive, Curt. You did more on the job than anyone else has. It was too big an ask, and it was wrong.”
“It was the motherfucking job ,” he insists. “And it sucked, but it was just the job. And maybe because of that, I can’t do it anymore. But I won’t leave this land. I won’t run away and hide. If they’re brave enough to come here and fuck with us, we’ll show them just how stupid they are.”
I nod grimly. “Damn right. But this isn’t your fight.”
“It’s yours, and that makes it mine.”
He says it so simply. As if there’s no other way of doing things. As if it’s as easy as breathing.
“You’d do the same for me,” he continues.
“Without hesitation.”
His lips twitch.
“So, you’re not leaving, then?”
“Not yet.” I shake my head and rub my hand over my lips in agitation. “But I need to call my brothers and Cox. I need to know what the fuck is going on. If that piece of shit Billy Sergi is behind this, I’ll kill him myself.”
“And start a war in the process,” Curt adds, knowing very well that the Sergi family is a force to be reckoned with. The mafia family is based in New York, and our families don’t always see eye-to-eye.
I wouldn’t put this past them.
“If they’re trying to kill Ivie, it won’t be a war. I’ll end them.”
Curt stares at me for a moment and then mutters, “ Fuck,” under his breath before scrubbing his hands over his face.
“Sure you don’t want to go lay low somewhere for a while?” I ask.
There’s no humor in his laugh. “Oh yeah, I do. But I won’t. We’ll finish this. I’m going to go secure that fence line and make sure the alarms are set. I don’t want any more surprises.”
“Great. I’m going to make some calls. I’ll be sticking close to the house while Ivie sleeps.”
He nods and stands, but then turns back to me. “You’re in love with her.”
It’s not a question.
“I know that it can’t go anywhere.” I sigh again. “But, yeah. She’s incredible.”
“Does she know? What you do?”
“No. And she won’t.”
“Shane—”
“The less she knows, the better.”
“I’m just going to say this, as your friend. She’s a smart girl. She’s not weak. And she deserves to know the truth so she can make the decision for herself. It’s not your place to decide for her.”
“I’m protecting her.”
“Did she ask you to?” He raises a brow, and with that, he walks out of the house.
It’s damn annoying to have people in my life who are so fucking smart—and stick their noses into my business.
I reach for my phone and start with Cox.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m working on it,” he says by way of greeting.
“Work faster,” I suggest and fill him in on what happened today.
“If I move any faster, I’ll raise flags, and people will start asking questions,” he says, frustration heavy in his voice. “Jesus, Shane, what did this girl do?”
“Nothing. That’s just it. This is all about her father. And it’s pissing me the fuck off.”
“Yeah, well, I’m moving as fast as I can without putting everyone at risk, but I should hear back from the one contact I’ve reached out to tomorrow morning.”
“Meet me in Denver at noon tomorrow.”
He blows out a breath. “No pressure or anything.”
“Oh, there’s plenty of fucking pressure. I’m going to call my brothers and ask them to meet us there because this goes deeper than I thought. I don’t want to talk about it over the phone.”
“Yeah, okay. I’ll see you tomorrow. You’re annoying, you know that?”
I grin. “Yeah. I know. Thanks for noticing.”
I hang up and immediately dial Carmine’s number.
“Yo,” he says, his usual greeting. He only does it with Rocco and me because it always made us laugh as kids.
Old habits die hard.
“I need you guys closer,” I say and explain again what happened today. “I have details that I can’t talk about on the phone. Cox is meeting me in Denver at noon.”
“We’ll head that way tonight. Nadia wants to do some shopping for the wedding anyway.”
“I’m so glad I could accommodate your fiancée’s shopping needs.”
“I heard that,” Nadia says into my ear. “And thanks. I can kick ass and shop.”
“Who says I need you to help me kick ass?”
She laughs. “You three wouldn’t know how to kick ass without me, Shane.”
“We did just fine for a long time without you,” I remind her.
“Okay, kids,” Carmine interrupts. “We’ll see you tomorrow. Noon.”
He clicks off, and I feel marginally better after some light verbal sparring with Nadia and knowing that I’ll have my brothers nearby in just a few hours.
I know that I can do this without them. But I don’t have to. And that feels damn good.
“Hey.”
My head whips up at the sound of Ivie’s voice. She’s standing at the edge of the room, her hair tousled from sleep. She’s chewing her lip as if she’s not sure what to do.
“Come here.” I hold out my hand for her, and when she crosses to me, I tug her into my lap where I can cuddle her. “How do you feel?”
“Drowsy. I woke up and didn’t know what year it was.” She smiles softly. “But it was also refreshing.”
“Good. You needed it.”
She plays with the button on my Henley and rests her cheek on my shoulder. “What have you been up to?”
“Making calls, talking with Curt. The usual.”
“I don’t think today was usual. ”
“No, you’re right. It wasn’t. I can honestly say that I haven’t had any excitement out here since I built the ranch.”
“And yet, it’s built to be a fortress.”
“Came in handy today.” I kiss her forehead. I can’t keep my lips or my hands to myself. She’s a fucking siren.
“So, what’s the latest?”
I don’t want to give her too much information because I want to protect her, but then Curt’s words come back to my mind, and I decide to take them to heart.
Because he’s right. She’s intelligent and capable. And maybe I’m doing her a disservice by keeping the details from her.
At least where this current situation is concerned.
“I’m headed into Denver tomorrow morning,” I begin and tell her about meeting with Cameron and my family. “We’re going to come up with more answers and a plan for moving forward.”
“What time do we leave?” she asks.
“ We aren’t going. I am.”
Ivie scowls. “You’re killing me here, Shane. I need to go with you, for my mental health.”
“And I need you to stay here, for your physical safety. I won’t risk taking you into the city. You’ll stay here with Curt.”
“Great, so I have a babysitter.” She pouts, and I can’t resist taking her mouth with mine, nibbling that plump lower lip.
“He’s not a babysitter. He’s a companion. Don’t flirt with him.”
She grins at that, which was exactly my intention. “I could use that time to try to get more information out of him. I’m determined to be his friend.”
“Good luck with that. I’ll be back tomorrow afternoon. It’ll be a quick trip.”
“Okay.” She sighs. “This all sucks balls.”
I can’t help myself. I wrap my arms around her and hold her tightly against me. “Yeah, it does.”
“I mean, I thought I’d get to spend time with you and get to know you better under much different circumstances. I didn’t think we’d be forced into it.”
I scowl. “I don’t think that we’re being forced into anything.”
“Aren’t we? I’m not allowed to leave. You have to stay here to protect me. Feels pretty forced. And I’m not complaining, I’m just saying it’s not a fun way to start seeing a guy. Pretty unconventional, actually.”
“Well, I never was the traditional type, I guess.”
She laughs and then sighs. “So, what do you want to do this evening?”
I raise a brow, thinking it over. “You seem to be feeling better.”
“I’m just fine, thank you for asking.”
I stand with her still in my arms and walk through the living room, down the hall to my bedroom.
“Do you want to take another nap?” I love this playful side of her.
“That’s not what I had in mind, actually.” I set her gently on the bed and climb on next to her, my head braced in my hand and the other one gliding down her torso. She’s wearing an orange tank and black shorts.
No bra, as evidenced by her tightening nipples.
“Do you want to talk some more?” she asks, all innocence.
“Yeah, I want to talk.”
She glances up in surprise. “Okay, what do you want to talk about?”
“How fucking sexy you are,” I reply as my hand glides up her smooth stomach, under the tank top that was clearly designed to drive a man out of his fucking mind.
“That’s not a fun conversation.”
“I think you’re wrong.” I scoot down to kiss the skin I just uncovered. “I think it’s the best conversation ever. And it’s going to take us a while to go through all of the talking points.”
“Did you make a PowerPoint presentation?”
I chuckle as I unearth one perfect breast. “I should. Maybe I will, actually. I’ll have to include photos. So, I should probably take some pictures of your perfect body.”
“A: My body isn’t perfect by any stretch of the imagination. And B: No one, and I do mean no one, will ever take naked photos of me. It would ruin my political career.”
I snort and then look at her in surprise. “You want to be a politician?”
“Of course, not. But if I did, it would ruin it. So, no photos.”
“I guess that means I’ll just have to commit everything to memory.” I pluck the nipple with my lips, enjoying the way her back arches at my touch. “Like that?”
“Yeah. I like that.”
“There’s much more where that came from.”
“Are you going to tell me or show me?”
“Both.” I surprise her by flipping her over onto her belly and then cup her round ass in my hands. “You have a stellar ass, Ivie. You’ve just gotta love any god you pray to for making an ass like this.”
“You’re crazy.” She giggles and then sighs when I slip my fingers up the hem of the leg of her shorts and graze her most intimate lips. “How do you do this to me when I’m still fully clothed?”
“Talent.” I kiss the small of her back. “I don’t mean to brag, but I’m a dedicated worker. I take my job of making you feel fucking amazing very seriously.”
“Holy shit, Shane.”
“What’s up, Ivie?” I can’t help but grin when she pushes that ass off the bed in the best fucking invitation I’ve ever had.
“Oh my God.” Her hands fist in the bedsheets, and I know she’s close. I haven’t even pushed a finger inside her yet. I’ve only teased.
Her responsiveness is the most arousing thing I’ve ever seen in my life. I can’t get enough of her. I want to explore her, to just submerge myself in her for about a year.
And it still wouldn’t be enough.
“You’re almost there,” I murmur and kiss up her spine as my fingers continue playing her like an instrument.
There are no more words coming out of her now. No, it’s just moans and gasps, and when I finally slide a finger through the wetness and inside of her, she bucks and then falls apart.
When she’s finished quaking, I turn her to face me and kiss the hell out of her.
“Small talk is over,” I inform her with a grin and pull my shirt over my head. “Let’s get to the good stuff.”
“Oh. Right. Okay.” She licks her lips. “Let’s get to the good stuff.”