CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
MADDOX
Me: I am good and truly fucked.
Cash: I have waited my entire life for this text.
Axel: What did you do?
Ryker: My money is on Tessa.
Jax: Of course the guy who chased his wife for twenty years would jump to a woman.
Since Jax cleared my path up here, he’s well aware that a woman is the culprit, but that’s him having my back.
Me: It’s a wise bet.
Ryker: Did you sniff her hair?
Me: I sniffed a lot more than her hair.
Axel: What happened to not kissing and telling? I see where this is headed. How do we make it stop?
Me: Impossible. That’s the issue, Papa Axe. I never want to stop smelling any part of her. I want her to smother me in pina colada and Pixy Stix.
Axel: Dear fuck. TMI.
Cash: Her hating you worked out. Revenge is sweet.
Me: So fucking sweet.
Jax: Sweet doesn’t sound like a problem.
Me: I think I freaked her out. I’ve lost my fucking mind over this girl. Intrigue to infatuation to obsession to can’t let her out of my sight. Or breathe without wanting to sniff her goddamn hair.
Me: I want to chain her to me. I didn’t tell her that. Not exactly. I said shit that was pretty close though. How the hell do people function like this?
Ryker: Lock it down. It’ll only get worse if you don’t.
Cash: And the bulldozer strikes again. Ignore him and play aloof. Otherwise, she’ll bolt.
Me: Aloof I can do. I’m the fucking emperor of aloof.
Jax: Once you name yourself the emperor of aloof, you throw the aloofness out the fucking window.
Me: Look who joined the chat with snarky insight today. Smoking some witty pot this evening, Jax? I’m wearing gray joggers and nothing else. How’s that for aloofness?
Cash: That’s what I’m fucking talking about. Girls eat that up.
Jax: I think this shit might actually be making me smarter. Or you’re just in a really bad way, and Cash is punking you.
Jax: Regardless, I’m rarely the voice of reason, but an entire plan hinging on gray joggers isn’t a solid long-game move. Ryker is the only one with experience in this department. His advice holds more weight.
Ryker: Fucking wisdom.
Axel: Gray joggers as any type of strategy is moronic.
Cash: I was completely serious. Don’t underestimate the power of gray joggers.
Cash: And if Mad is looking to lock Tessa down by the time he’s in his fifties, Ryker’s the man to lead him that way. How to close a goddamn deal in two decades.
Ryker: Once given the proper opportunity, I came in under a month.
Axel: Again, TMI. I’m resigning from head of the family. You were all easier as teenagers. These text threads are excruciating.
Ryker: *Came in at* but also, yeah. lol
Cash: Ryker’s methods only work if Mad is ready to track Tessa’s every move.
Me: Been there, done that.
Axel: This escalated quickly from getting to know each other. What changed?
Me: I don’t know, but I was stressed this morning, and the only thing I could imagine calming me was her face. So, I crashed a private event she was at just so I could see her.
Me: I’m a fucking clinger.
Ryker: Make it work for you. Obsession is attractive with the right person.
Cash: I’m gonna go with a big fat *no, it isn’t,* so keep how gone you are under wraps.
Jax: I’d identify her crazy and bond over it. Mutual insanity is sexy. Better than therapy.
Me: I’ll back-pocket that too. Regardless, she’s my jackpot. I feel it.
Axel: Does she?
Me: I think so, but she doesn’t want to.
Ryker: Do whatever it takes to show her why she should.
Me: On it. Rooftop is in use.
I close out the chat, unwilling to field the mixed response to Tessa being in the penthouse. That’s the action that backs up everything I just admitted to, so I’ll let them soak it in.
My phone vibrates in my pocket as I’m headed back upstairs, and my face twists into a scowl. It’s an end-to-end encrypted call, so I know the news isn’t good. I want to tune out the world and simply bask in having Tessa here.
We took a shower and ate dinner a couple of hours ago.
Then we chatted about music before I made her come on my tongue until she was so spent that she passed out.
She’s so angelic when she’s sleeping. I held her in my arms while she snuggled into my side—another first for me.
With every even breath she expelled, I became more certain that she was right where she belonged.
When she woke up, she mentioned going home and that she’d like to grab some doughnuts on the way. So, I promptly led her out to the rooftop entertainment area and had Brasi meet me in one of the passageways with a box of her favorites.
I’ve been with her all day, and it still pains me to stop for this call, but I can’t avoid it.
“Yeah?” I clip, standing before my balcony entrance to the rooftop terrace.
“I looked into everything I could regarding the job from two and a half years ago,” Liam Graves begins.
He’s part of my sister, Rena’s, family, but he was a trusted friend and member here long before that.
He’s a cyber specialist, among other things, which is why I sought his assistance.
“There’s been some developments. Chatter and speculations.
Not looking good. But we got a hit in the Bahamas. Could lead us to the witness.”
“Laundering,” I reply, not as a question. Still, my gut knots.
“Right. I’ve got a list of possibilities. Some names you’ll find really interesting.”
“Give it to me.”