All or Nothing

by Becca Van

  In fact, after dealing with that fucker Matteo Russo and his henchmen, Vinnie Ramos, Darren thought he deserved to have his cake and eat it, too. Now there was no competition since Ramos and his right-hand man Thaddeus Simmonds were dead, so he’d decided to get the sisters to sign everything over to him.

  In the eyes of Russo and Ramos, Darren Carter had been a brainless lackey. He laughed over that characteristic. He wasn’t as stupid as he’d portrayed, and now his acting was going to pay off. Not one member of the mob in Chicago had ever thought he was a threat, but little did they know, he’d been playing a game and biding his time. He should get an Oscar for playing his role so well, but instead he was going to find those two bitches and get them to sign over all the money, as well as daddy’s mansion.

  Darren had taken notes, and he knew who was who in the game of criminal aspirations. He’d even paid a visit to Russo’s lawyer, and while the bitch hadn’t known the reason for his visit, he’d been casing the joint. While he hadn’t seen the safe, it was easy to surmise it was hidden behind the painting on the wall behind the desk. The filing cabinets were along the left-hand wall of office, and even if they were locked, it would be child’s play to get into them.

  Once he left the lawyer’s office, he’d gone back to the seedy hotel he was staying at and taken a nap. After ordering and eating his dinner, he’d showered and packed his things into the vehicle he’d stolen a few days before. The cops would never even look at the car twice because he’d pilfered a set of number plates off another car and put them on his. The only reason the cops would have to pull him over was if he broke the law in some way, and since he had no intention of doing that and drawing attention to himself, he was safe.

  He’d sat across from the lawyer’s office for hours making sure there were no security guards in the building doing rounds. Luckily, Russo had used a not-so-reputable law professional for his business purposes, and the office wasn’t in an upmarket area of Chicago, either.

  He’d hadn’t been able to make his move until three in the morning, but he hadn’t cared. Once there was no traffic on the streets and all was quiet, Darren had disarmed the alarm, picked the two locks on the front door, and hurried to the office. When he was behind closed doors, he’d turned the lights on and gotten to work. His first order of business had been to find Matteo Russo’s file. Once he had that in hand, he removed the painting from the wall and started on the safe, but only after searching the desk drawers for the combination. The code hadn’t been in the drawers though, and he’d wasted precious minutes searching it out. He found them, of all places, written on piece of paper taped to the desk under the computer keyboard.

  There hadn’t been as much cash in the safe as he’d expected, but he’d found a diamond ring that had to be at least three to four carats. He’d have that appraised and sell it after he’d gotten the two Russo sluts to sign over all the cash and properties their father had accumulated.

  With a sigh of weariness, he’d turned the screen on his smart phone off and tossed it onto the side table. He’d perused the file on Russo and had been astounded by the amount of assets the asshole had, but he hadn’t had time to get a more in-depth look. However, he was so tired after driving non-stop for hours on end, he wouldn’t be able to take it all in.

  Once he got some shuteye and studied what was going to be his until he’d memorized it, he was going to head north from Dove Creek Town to Slick Rock. Finding Katerina and Nikita Russo as quickly as possible was crucial.

  Darren wasn’t leaving town until he had what he wanted—his name on the deed to all of Matteo Russo’s worldly goods.

  There was nearly twenty million dollars in an offshore Swiss bank account, and as soon as he had the passwords and the authority to access it, he was going to empty the account. There was no way he was leaving his money in an account under another man’s name, but he wasn’t about to put it under his own name, either. Maybe selling that ring was more important than he’d thought. He was going to have to buy false papers, and that was going to cost him.

  Darren cursed himself for not thinking ahead.

  Even if he had to drive to another major city so he could pay someone to print him up a false ID, he would, but not before he found the Russo cunts.

  Luckily he’d bought a used smart phone, which had an established number. He was going to search the dark web for the false ID. He might have played a dumb-ass, but he was far from fucking stupid. He’d stashed away nearly all the money he’d been paid for doing his job over the years, and he’d even stolen cash from the other dicks who’d lived at the mansion, but he’d made sure not to pilfer too much and draw attention to himself. The last thing he’d wanted was to have any of the fuckers realize they’d been stolen from.

  Darren changed his mind about getting to the sluts first. The first order of things was to pawn the ring and the second was to get his papers in order. Then he’d concentrate on getting his hands on those bitches and making them sign all of Matteo Russo’s assets over to him.

  He smiled as he rubbed his hands together. He was going to live in the lap of luxury, as rich if not richer than Midas.

  Chapter Ten

  Kat had expected all three of the Donnybrook brothers to pounce on her after telling them she agreed to be with them, but they surprised her. All three of them took her breath away when they smiled at her. They were so damn handsome she couldn’t understand why some other woman hadn’t snatched them up years ago.

  “Why don’t you come and lie down on the sofa, baby?” Jalen rose and held his hand out to her while gazing at her expectantly.

  “Uh…okay.” She placed her hand in his, stood, and let him lead her to the living room. She glanced over her shoulder when she heard movement behind her to see Mica and Dante following. She frowned with puzzlement while she tried to figure out what the hell they were up to. Kat had finally agreed to a relationship, but none of them seemed interested in going to the bedroom to have sex.

  Jalen seated her onto the sofa and sat beside her. Dante sat on her other side, then handed her a glass of water. Before she could ask what the hell was going on, Mica held out a blister of pain pills. With a sigh of resignation, she took the pills, handed the water back to Dante, and popped to capsules out. After shoving them into her mouth, she grasped the glass and sipped the water, then swallowed the tablets.

  She’d never had anyone so in tune with her before, and while it was disconcerting, she also felt…special. Cherished. How the hell they could tell she was in pain she had no idea, but these men, as well as the others living in and around Slick Rock, seemed very intuitive where women were concerned. Kat liked it a lot in some ways, but she also hated it since it seemed she couldn’t put anything over these men.

  “Come here, baby.” Jalen passed the glass to Mica, slung an arm around her shoulders, and tugged her closer to him.

  Kat inhaled his spicy scent and manly musk as she melted against him and closed her eyes. Her face and eye were throbbing, which she suspected was the cause of her thumping headache. While her belly muscles were also sore, the pain there had nothing on her face and head.

  “Let’s get you more comfortable, love,” Dante said.

  Kat nodded, her eyes still closed, even though she was feeling quite relaxed and content at the moment. Jalen and Dante lifted her and maneuvered her until she was lying along the sofa and them. She had her head on Jalen’s thigh and her legs over Dante’s. Although she wanted to see where Mica was, she just couldn’t find the energy to make the effort.

  “Turn her onto her side,” Mica said from close by.

  Once more Jalen and Mica turned her until she had her cheek resting on Jalen’s thigh with her back to the room. Dante began caressing up and down her calves, and when he got to her feet, he pushed her shoes off and started massaging her soles.

  Mica skimmed his hand up and down her back, then he started kneading the knotted muscles along her spine.

  Kat moaned and tried not to wince with pain as
the two men dug their fingers into the taut muscles. Jalen combed his fingers through her hair and then started working on her neck, the pads of his digits digging deeply into her flesh. The tightness slowly dissipated and the pain eased as the painkillers kicked in.

  Kat could literally feel lassitude invading her body, and there was nothing she could do to fight the beckoning sleep, so she gave in with a sigh.

  * * * *

  “I think we shocked her,” Mica said as he continued working his fingers up and down her spine.

  “Yeah, we did. I think she thought we’d take her into the bedroom and consummate our relationship.” Dante frowned.

  “She might be attracted to us and be willing to be with us, but she doesn’t know us that well yet,” Jalen said. “If she did, she would have known that there was no fucking way we were going to make love to her while she’s hurting.”

  “I’m surprised she didn’t argue or ask what we were doing.” Mica also frowned.

  “Do you think with everything that’s happened to her that she’ll ever truly open up to us?” Dante asked.

  “I fucking hope so,” Jalen replied. “She’s taken the first step and accepted having a relationship with us. We have to be patient with her. As the saying goes, ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day’.”

  “You’re right.” Dante nodded. “It’s just hard to be tolerant when I want everything with her.”

  “We all do, Dante,” Mica said. “You’re not the only with a monopoly on forbearance. We want her as much as you do.”

  “Yeah, I know.” Dante sighed. “I know we’re all in this together and are yearning to make love with and claim her as ours.”

  “Subject change,” Mica said. “What did the bosses say when you asked for a few days off. Were they pissed?”

  “Far from it,” Jalen said. “They both have women of their own and would do anything for their wives. Luke said that while they’d be stretched a little thin, a little planning and rescheduling of the roster was all that was needed to cover all the shifts and workload. He told us to take as much time as we needed to look after Kat and that our jobs would still be there for us when we were ready.”

  “This town is fucking amazing.” Dante smiled. “I’m so glad that Brent, Hes, and Rig called us and told us about Slick Rock after we decided to retire from the Marines. Even when they explained about the polyandrous relationships and how protective all the men were, I didn’t really believe it. Moving here was the best decision we ever made.”

  “It sure as fuck was,” Mica said, still staring at Kat as he caressed a hand up and down her back. “She’s asleep, yeah?”

  “She is,” Jalen said.

  “She’s still holding back with us.” Dante sighed.

  “After what she’s been through, that shouldn’t be a shock,” Mica said.

  “I know, but how the hell are we going to make this relationship work if she’s still wary of us?” Dante asked.

  “One day at a time, bro,” Jalen answered. “One day at a time.”

  Mica nodded and tried to curb his impatient need to make love with Kat. She was so fucking beautiful, and more often than not, he was aroused. His cock was continuously aching with a hunger so profound, sometimes it was harder to deal with than others. He’d lost count of how many times he’d jacked off in the shower. He was wondering if he’d end up with a case of blue balls, but sex was the least of his concerns.

  He felt emotionally connected to Kat in a way he’d never experienced with any other woman, ever. If only she’d smash all those walls she built up around herself and let him and his brothers closer to her on an emotional level.

  Mica felt that deep in his heart, she was perfect for him and his brothers. She was beautiful, smart, and so fucking sexy he had trouble keeping his mind on his job. Once a work situation was over, his focus inevitably drifted back to Kat.

  He didn’t want her ever leaving their home again. He wanted to hold her in his arms night after night and wake up with her every single morning. Mica wanted her living with them, but he had a feeling she wasn’t going to agree to that.

  Right now, she was hurt and probably feeling exposed after her encounter with those motherfuckers, but he was pretty sure that as soon as she was feeling more herself, she was going to demand to be taken home again.

  He loved having her in their home. She made the house seem more lived in, and the atmosphere wasn’t as empty. Their house felt happy, if there was such a thing. He snorted. If his brothers knew what he was thinking, they’d never let him live it down, but from the soft, loving looks they were giving their sleeping woman, maybe not. Yet he wasn’t about to test them out, so he kept his mouth shut.

  There was one fact they were all in agreement with though. Kat Russo was their woman now, and he and his brothers would have to do everything they could to keep her. If any of them made one wrong move, Mica was certain she’d leave so fast she’d leave them reeling.

  * * * *

  Kat shifted her legs as she came awake and froze when she felt a muscular hairy thigh brush against her skin. Her heart stopped beating and then thundered so fast and hard, she could feel her own heartbeat.

  When she noticed the heavy arm around her waist, she shoved it off and scrambled across the bed so fast she couldn’t stop herself from falling to the floor with a thud.

  “Fuck! Are you all right, baby?”

  Kat laid on her back, staring up at the ceiling as she tried to get her breath back. She’d winded herself, and add in the fact she’d been on the verge of a panic attack, it took her more than a few moments.

  Jalen’s head appeared over the edge of the mattress, and then he slid to the floor onto his knees. “Did you hurt yourself, Kat?”

  She shook her head and then pushed herself up until she was sitting on her ass on the floor. Just as she’d regained her breath enough to speak the bedroom door burst open, startling her. “What the fuck is…Kat, what are you doing on the floor, love?” Dante asked as he crouched next to her.

  “Did you have a nightmare, baby?” Jalen wove his fingers with hers.

  “Uh huh.”

  “What happened, sweetie?” Mica asked as he offered her his other hand.

  Jalen rose and both he and Mica helped her to her feet. Dante stood, too.

  Since she was embarrassed about overreacting, she changed the subject. “I need the bathroom.” She tugged her hands from Jalen’s and Mica’s, turned, and hurried into the adjoining room, closing the door behind her.

  After using the facilities and washing her hands, she cringed as she stared at her face in the mirror. While the swelling on her cheek and eye were receding, her face was still a mottled black and blue. There were a few tinges of green, which she knew would turn to a sickly yellowy color before fading, but the dark purple almost black under her eye and shadowing the skin of her cheek was going to be difficult if not impossible to cover, even with concealer and makeup.

  She needed to get back to work as quickly as possible but didn’t want to frighten any of the patrons away with the ugliness marring her face. However, since there wasn’t much she could do to hide the bruising, she was just going to have to accept the stares and questions. Her lip was no longer swollen and there was barely any scab.

  Kat brushed her teeth and turned the shower on while removing the T-shirt she was wearing. Her cheeks reddened as she wondered if the Donnybrook brothers had seen her naked body without her permission and copped a feel while she’d been asleep. The last thing she remembered was being draped over Jalen and Dante and all three of the men massaging her sore muscles. One of them had to have carried her to bed and removed her pants and bra. Had they looked at her boobs and pussy? While she still had her panties on that didn’t mean they hadn’t leered at her. Self-consciousness crept in. She hated other people seeing her scars. Not because there were marks on her body, but because it was physical evidence to others of how unlovable she was.

  Kat stepped into the shower, closed her eyes, and lifted
her face into the warm water. She loved having water cascading over her head and body, especially if it was hot. That was one of the only luxuries she’d been allowed to savor while living with her narcissistic, abusive father.

  With a sad sigh she reached for the shampoo, washed, and then conditioned her hair. Just as she grabbed the body wash, she felt a breeze waft over her warm skin and turned to glance over her shoulder.

  Her mouth dropped open when a naked Jalen stepped into the shower.

  “What the hell are you doing?” she asked.

  Jalen grinned. “I thought that was kinda obvious.”

  Kat snapped her mouth closed and was about to step back, but before she could, Jalen snagged an arm around her waist and pulled her naked body up against his larger, harder, bare body.

  Goosebumps raced over her skin and her nipples hardened. Heat shimmered and coursed through her blood and her breathing escalated. Jalen took the body wash from her hand, and she lifted her hand to his chest intent on pushing him away, but instead, she ended up running her hand over his defined chest muscles.

  A soft moan escaped from between her parted lips when she felt his engorged dick pulse against her stomach. Jalen nudged her chin up with a finger under it, searched her eyes for a moment or two, and then he slanted his mouth over hers.

  Kat whimpered, clutched at his hair, and opened to him without any thought. His tongue glided along hers before dancing around in her mouth and then twirled with her tongue. Just like that she was on fire, and though she was nervous about making love with him, she wanted that more than she’d ever wanted anything in her life. Well, almost anything.

  Her freedom had and would always be top priority.

  Jalen swept his hand down over her side and then over her ass. She moaned when he squeezed first one cheek and then the other. Her pussy clenched, her clit throbbed, and juices wept from her entrance.

  She was so famished for him, she was literally shaking, and she had a feeling the trembling wouldn’t stop until he’d quenched the fire blazing inside of her. Kat sucked in deep breath after deep breath when Jalen broke the kiss, and she groaned when he licked and sucked at her neck, moving his head lower and lower.