30. Cleaning His Gun
Cleaning His Gun
Fly
It’s four fifty and I’m sitting in front of Vex’s house.
The woman I’m about to pick up is staying with Vex. That shouldn’t be as intimidating as it is.
Sheri said yes when I asked her. She’s a grown adult who’s not in any way related to Vex.
So why am I terrified that I’m going to walk in that door and he’s going to kill me?
Cause it’s Vex we’re talking about, and that man isn’t anywhere near rational.
I hop out of the SUV I chose for tonight’s activities. Even though I wanted to take her out on my bike for the first time, a nighttime ride in the middle of winter might not be the best time to introduce her to the joys of riding.
But it would have felt amazing to ride with her arms around me and her body pressed against mine…
That might not be the right thing to think about before I walk into a date.
Vex’s house is so completely normal it’s freakish. The brownstone isn’t quite large enough to be considered a mansion, but it’s large enough to be a solid family home. That’s exactly what it looks like with the soft light of the windows highlighting the floral curtains hanging inside.
Vex living here makes no sense at all.
Not one drop of it. I knock on the door, which opens immediately.
Vex yanks the door open. “Took you long enough.”
He was watching me. “I like to collect my thoughts—”
“Yeah, right. Are you scared of me or her?”
“Mostly you.”
Vex nods. “Good. Because they won’t find a single scrap of your DNA when I’m done with you, if you don’t treat that woman right. Do you understand me?”
Loud and clear. I nod.
“Good. Want a drink? They’ll probably be a minute. Dahlia is never ready on time, and there are at least a dozen of them up there making sure she’s ready.”
“A drink sounds good. Thanks.”
Vex nods and walks toward the kitchen.
I’m going to take that as an invitation to follow him, even though I’m not sure it was meant as one.
“So, you and Sheridan.” He walks over to the fridge and takes out a bottle of beer and a bottle of water.
“Yeah.”
“That new?”
“Yeah.”
“What are your plans?”
Did Vex just ask me what my intentions are? Because that sure sounds like it. Is this prep for him if he might ever have a kid? The world isn’t ready for that.
“I don’t ask questions twice.” He holds out the water bottle and leaves the warning hanging.
I take it, hoping my hand isn’t shaking as much as I think it is. “We’re going to the movies.”
“Don’t care. Answer the question.”
He did. Vex asked me what my intentions were. “I don’t know…Sheri, she’s so bluntly honest. I want a woman like that forever. But this is our first date.”
“You need to figure it out, and fast. These women won’t wait around for you to figure out. Worse, because of who they are, another guy will see what you have and want it. Now I don’t have a problem getting rid of that threat, but Dahlia seems to think that I can’t kill any man who smiles at her.”
Did I inadvertently smile at her? Is this him explaining to me why I’m about to die, or is this him warning me that—“Sheri isn’t dating anyone else, is she?”
Vex grins. “Not that I know of. But the men around here won’t hesitate when they meet a woman of value. You do know where I live, don’t you?”
Where he lives—This is Vincenti territory. That’s why Sheri feels so safe running around alone in the dark. “Is there anything I should know?”
“Viola has taken a marked interest in her.”
Viola??? Viola Vincenti? The former don's wife? “Does that mean something?”
Vex snorts. “You haven’t met the grandmothers. Hope you never do. They’re meddlesome women who have a knack for arranging weddings.”
Arranging weddings?
“Viola has a lot of family. If you catch my drift.”
All too clearly. “Sheri is leaving town soon.”
“Like that will matter. Nothing thwarts a meddling Italian grandmother when she decides something. You can take my warning or ignore it. It doesn’t matter to me.
I have what’s mine, and killing you won’t bother me at all.
” He lifts the beer to his lips and takes a pull before walking away without a word.
I’m dead.
It’s official, Vex is going to kill me just for breathing in the direction of that woman. It doesn’t matter, though, I still can’t walk out the door. Whatever Sheri and I are going to end up being, whether it’s friends or forever, I need to know.
The sound of footsteps on the stairs pulls me back over to the foyer.
It’s not one set. There must be a half dozen or more. Vex said there were a bunch of women. I look up—Wow!
Who is this woman?
She’s beautiful. The smile on her face draws me in, daring me to kiss her while making me want to do anything to ensure she always smiles just like that. “Beautiful.”
“Don’t go acting all charming like that. You’re going to make me think you’re the prince in this story.”
“Only if you’re my princess.”
Sheri stops on the bottom step. “Would that make your motorcycle our carriage? Because I’m pretty sure it has more than four horses and it isn’t white.”
I chuckle. “That might be true.”
“No ‘might’ about it. There’s no way you have a white motorcycle or a slow one. So what color is our ride tonight?”
“Gray, but this vehicle has four wheels instead of two.”
Her face falls.
“I thought you’d appreciate not freezing the first time we rode together.”
A smile pulls up the edges of her lips. “Does that mean you’re already planning on us having a second date?”
“How could I not be?”
A chorus of sighs comes from above us.
There, leaning against the banister, is a plethora of grinning women. I give them a nod and a wink before holding a hand out to Sheri. “Your chariot awaits.”
Giggles erupt all around me, but the little ones from the woman in front of me are all I can hear.
“Don’t have her back before ten!” one of the women shouts down as I open the front door. They’re bold and brazen and probably the best wingmen a guy could ask for.
Sheri’s grin just gets wider.
As I close the door behind us, I spin her into my arms. “All I’ve been able to think about is kissing you. I can’t wait for our date to get started.”
She wraps her arms around my neck, plunging her fingers into my hair. “I do believe it has already begun.”
Her lips press against mine, not knowing that she just sealed her fate. One kiss. One date. One whirlwind romance isn’t going to be enough. I’m going to need more, so much more.