Mr. Russo

by Lynn Hagen

  “If you’re that worried, just take me home,” Derek said. “I’m sure I’ll be safe getting out of your car and going inside the building.”

  I ignored his request. Without telling Derek about the current situation with Antonio, I had no good reason to refuse him. But I needed to feel Derek out first, see where his head was at. See if he would freak out if he found out that I was a wolf shifter, that I was a crime boss, and that there would be things I needed him to do that might contradict his morals.

  “Gary.” Derek leaned forward and poked the driver on his shoulder. “Take me home." He rattled off his address. “I can give you a few bucks for gas for doing me a solid.”

  I was quite enamored with the human. He wasn’t pretentious like the males who worked at the lounge. He was mouthy, klutzy, and there was just something about him that intrigued me—drew my attention like no other had.

  “He’s not going to listen to you.”

  Derek gave me a thunderous look. “This is kidnapping. If you don’t take me home right now, I’m not going to answer the phones all day tomorrow.”

  He crossed his arms, jutted his chin, and sniffed while jerking his head in the air.

  “Sir, I think we have a problem,” Gary said.

  I leaned forward and looked out the windshield. A black SUV was parked sideways in the road, two armed men standing next to it. Fuck, this was bad, and that thought was an understatement.

  Then Antonio got out of the backseat and flipped me off before he nodded. The men standing by the SUV opened fire.

  Chapter Four

  Derek…

  One second I was ready to explode over Max’s high-handedness, and the next, I was being thrown onto my boss’s lap, him shielding me as the tires squealed and the car jerked.

  But I’d locked eyes with one of the shooters. The one with brown hair with a patch of it over one eye. God, he was gorgeous. We’d stared at each for a split second, although it had felt like an hour, before Max had thrown me onto his lap.

  My window shattered, glass flying everywhere. I heard someone screaming and realized it was me and that I sounded like a wounded animal. Max’s upper body was keeping me pinned down, and I could hear bullets tinging against the car as Gary sped away like a NASCAR driver.

  Max was shouting into his phone. I couldn’t make out what he was saying because I couldn’t stop screaming, even though my throat was starting to hurt. Why was someone trying to gun us down? None of it made any sense. Max was a fancy lawyer, not a criminal.

  Wasn’t he?

  Okay, maybe it did make sense since he was a lawyer. Nobody liked lawyers, but enough to go gunning for him?

  “Just keep your head down,” Max said.

  Like I could get up with his weight on top of me. I felt like I was being folded in half and wasn’t sure how much more my spine could take.

  In any other situation, I would’ve been all for him pressing his weight into me, would’ve loved that deep, smooth voice and the dark cologne that was blasting through my lungs.

  This wasn’t one of those situations. I was truly terrified of what would happen. Gary was still driving at a reckless speed, jostling us in the backseat. I was near tears and shaking like crazy when the car finally started to slow.

  “I don’t see them.” Gary’s voice was tight. “I don’t think they’re following us.”

  Max’s weight disappeared, but I wasn’t ready to get up. I was scared out of my ever-loving mind that a bullet would come through the window and end my life. I was too damn young to die. I still had to make the world beautiful with my hair-styling skills.

  You’re not thinking clearly.

  Hell no, I wasn’t. I’d never been in a shootout before, and let me tell you, my life literally flashed before my eyes. I was clutching my chest, my heart thumping so hard I feared I was having a heart attack. Derek Wolfe was not built for this kind of insanity.

  Max brushed his hand over my back several times. Then he started plucking at my hair as though he was a monkey grooming me. “You’ve got glass all over you.”

  “I’ve also got your craziness all over me!” I finally sat up and glanced around. The inside of the car looked like a war zone. I gasped when I saw two bullet holes in the seat where my head should’ve been.

  Two bullet holes right next to my boss’s shoulder.

  That was when everything became surreal. Not when we were getting shot at. Not when Max was on top of me shouting. Not when Gary turned into a stunt driver.

  When I stared at the two holes that would’ve been in my head if Max hadn’t shielded me with his body.

  I felt sick to my stomach. “Pull over!”

  When the car stopped, I flung the door open and emptied my stomach in painful hurls, retching until my eyes watered, my face pounded, and my gut curled into painful knots. I gagged and spit then wiped my hand across my mouth as I took deep, gulping breaths.

  I closed the door, and Gary drove off. Max sat there on his phone. The prick. He could’ve at least asked if I was okay. Instead he glowered straight ahead as he talked to whoever was on the other end.

  “I told you he would retaliate. The bastard’s smug expression and cool acceptance was out of character.”

  Who was he talking about? Retaliation? What the hell had I’d gotten mixed up with? I was a glorified fake secretary with subpar skills, not a gangster. I wasn’t about that life.

  When Gary slowed to turn a corner, I jerked toward the door, fumbling with the handle, desperately trying to get away. My knuckles kept hitting the handle, and I couldn’t seem to curl them enough to pull.

  A hand wrapped around my forearm like a steel band, yanking me back. “Sit the fuck still.”

  “Fuck you!” I tried to yank my arm free, but Max’s grip was too tight. “Let me go!”

  He lowered his phone and snarled at me. My breath froze in my lungs. My jaw dropped. I might’ve peed a little in my jeans at the sight of his long and sharp canines. I stopped fighting him and went perfectly still.

  “You’re not going anywhere,” he said as he tucked his phone into his suit jacket. “They saw your face. Going home isn’t an option unless you want to die a painful death.”

  I couldn’t get words past my dry throat. I just kept staring at his elongated canines. The guy looked savage, and I was too afraid he’d rip my throat out if I uttered a sound.

  Max picked up the bag I’d gotten from the corner store and set it beside me, as if he didn’t appear otherworldly, dangerous, and terrifying.

  My worldview was forever changed. I didn’t know what Max was, but, oh fuck, I’d had office sex with him! Did that mean I would become like him? Was it contagious?

  “I’m a wolf shifter,” Max said as if he’d read my mind. His smooth voice was too damn calm for my rioting nerves, and I wanted to shake him and ask why he wasn’t having a meltdown, too. “Deal with it, get over it, and never breathe a word to anyone about it.”

  “Am I…will I…” My head was spinning hard, making me dizzy. I might’ve thrown up again if I’d had anything left on my stomach.

  “Howl at the moon?” The side of his sexy mouth twitched. “Hardly. You can’t become one of us just by having sex.”

  So it was a possibility.

  A possibility I wanted no part of.

  “I was born this way,” he said as he stared out his window. “And with this…irregular gene, I’m aggressive, dangerous, and not to be crossed.”

  I threw my shoulders back. “And I’m an Aries. I’m stubborn, impulsive, and moody.” I tapped my chin and added, “I’m also optimistic and determined.”

  I wasn’t everything my sign claimed to be, like courageous, aggressive, and confident. Those were the qualities my twin possessed. We used to joke that we’d split our astrology sign down the middle, though I really didn’t believe in astrology like Chad did.

  Max’s gaze slid toward me. “Are you accepting what I am?”

  Why did I have a feeling there was only one right ans
wer? If I said no, would he kill me? Was I willing to take that chance? For now I would tell him whatever he wanted to hear if that saved my life.

  I was far from okay, but I couldn’t freak out right now. Max was watching me closely with those dark, mysterious eyes. One would think that since we’d had sex that he would be a little nicer to me. After all, I’d been ass-up on his desk, showing off the most intimate part of my body.

  Nope. That hadn’t scored any brownie points for me.

  I shrugged. “I’m getting there.”

  My answer seemed to appease him. He gave a short nod as Gary drove into an underground parking lot. He parked by an elevator and got out, immediately going to his boss’s door and opening it. I had to open my own but was too afraid to get out. My legs felt weak, and I wasn’t sure they would support me.

  I was also afraid of following Max. What if he got me into his place and I was never heard from again?

  “Come,” Max said before he started away. That single word made me feel as though he were talking to a dog instead of someone who’d been through something traumatic. That made me want to dig my heels in and ignore his command.

  What an asshole.

  Gary looked at me and said, “You better go. He’s not a patient man.”

  No, he was a straight-up prick. I couldn’t believe I’d swooned over him. Worse, I’d fallen all over him and had sex with him. Now I felt as if I needed a damn shower.

  He was still hot, though.

  Dangerous, but sexy.

  And not human, you moron.

  There was that.

  I gave Gary the stink eye as I crawled out of the backseat, gripping the frame of the door to steady myself. My hand exploded in pain. I snatched it back and hissed. My palm filled with blood. There were still some shards of glass caught in the window frame. I wasn’t sure if any of the pieces were embedded or if I’d just sliced my hand across the jagged pieces.

  It hurt like hell, and I cradled it to my chest while I noticed that Max had already made it to the elevator. God, he was a colossal jackass. I was starting to regret sleeping with the guy.

  But then I noticed his hand freezing halfway to the elevator button. Max’s head snapped around, and he sniffed the air.

  Holy crap. That couldn’t be good. He turned fully around, and I saw his eyes slightly glowing! I spun, ready to get the hell out of there but stopped when I saw Gary looking at me the same way, like he was about to attack.

  This was a nightmare on steroids. I had no choice but to run the opposite way, which, for fuck’s sake, was a dead end. Gary was closest. He bared sharp canines at me, his nose scrunched up, terrifying the hell out of me.

  “Can’t we talk about this?” I held up my hands, palms out, as if that would ward him off. If I’d been a chick, I probably could’ve given one of those high-pitched screams. Since I wasn’t, all I managed was a pathetic whimper.

  Gary lunged for me. I opened my mouth to shout when Max tackled him, taking Gary down. I had nowhere to go. The dead end was behind me, and two powerful, aggressive men were in front.

  I started dodging left then right, trying to find an opening so I could escape.

  One final slug to the jaw kept Gary down. He was knocked out, his eyes closed. Max wiped at his forehead with his arm before turning his attention on me.

  “What the hell is going on?” I shouted as I backed away. He still had that eerie glow to his eyes, and I was officially freaking the fuck out.

  “You’re bleeding,” he said between clenched teeth. “Stop the fucking bleeding.”

  How was I supposed to do that? It wasn’t as though I had a first aid kit in my pocket or a faucet to run my hand under.

  Max shrugged his suit jacket off then ripped his dress shirt from his muscular frame. He threw the shirt at me before pressing the back of his hand against his nose. “Wrap up your damn hand.”

  I grabbed the shirt from the ground and mummified my hand. There was too much material, and I felt foolish with a big wad of shirt curled around it. “Better?” I snapped. “Now tell me why Gary almost made me his midnight snack.”

  “Your blood.” Max turned and headed back toward the elevator but not before retrieving his jacket. “It makes our beasts go crazy.”

  “You’re not vampires,” I argued as I hurried to catch up with him. I didn’t want to stick around and have Gary try to attack me again. It wasn’t as if Max was any safer, but at least he showed some restraint.

  “You ever see a wolf come across an injured animal?” Max hit the elevator button, his hand still pressed against his nose.

  “On documentaries.”

  The doors slid open, and we stepped inside.

  “Exactly,” he said. “The smell makes our beasts want to hunt. Gary isn’t an alpha wolf, so he’s unable to fight the urge.”

  I didn’t have to ask if my boss was an alpha. He bled power and dominance. No pun intended. My hand really did hurt. He exuded authority, with his fine-looking ass. I was still in shock over everything, but Max was still drop-dead gorgeous.

  There was no denying that fact.

  The doors slid open, and we stepped out into a luxurious hallway. Light green walls with cream trim. There were gold fixtures and even a crystal chandelier. Max dug out a keycard and let us into the only door in the hallway.

  If I’d thought the hallway was fancy, that was nothing compared to the apartment we stepped into. High-polished wooden floors, floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked the city. White furnishings, bookcases, potted plants, and wow…just wow.

  His home was amazing.

  It put my apartment to shame. This fancy place made my apartment seem like a homeless shelter.

  “The guest bedroom is the door by the balcony.”

  He had a balcony? I was so enamored with his apartment that I forgot about being shot at, wolves, blood, my near attack, and how hot and cold Max ran.

  “Go clean your wound and bandage it.” He walked up a set of stairs and was gone.

  I flipped him the bird. I wouldn’t have been in this mess if he hadn’t jumped out of his Benz and kidnapped me. I could’ve been safely tucked away in my apartment eating my powdered donuts and sucking down some orange juice.

  Instead, I felt like I’d been hijacked and forced to his lair.

  * * * *

  After I’d cleaned my wound—thankful no glass had been in it and the cut wasn’t deep enough to need stitches—and I nearly fainted at how glamorous my room was, I wandered through the downstairs.

  I had some gauze wrapped around my hand, which was a lot better than that bulky shirt. My hand still stung, though.

  The kitchen was a dream. Everything was shiny and state-of-the-art. The fridge was fully stocked, so I helped myself to a sandwich and a bottle of wine.

  To hell with it. I deserved to have a drink, or ten, after the craziness I’d been through. I deserved a huge raise, though I didn’t even qualify for the job and had lied my way through the door.

  After I’d eaten and taken the bottle of red wine to the balcony—holy crud, the view was amazing—I thought about calling my twin. Chad would flip over everything that had happened to me.

  Or call me a liar.

  I pulled out my phone and then remember the warning. Max had said that I wasn’t allowed to tell anyone. But I was bursting to tell Chad. This whole situation was too bizarre to keep to myself.

  Then I thought of how savage Max had looked and decided to keep my mouth shut. I opened the wine instead and poured myself a big old glass as I stared out at the city.

  I’d never known the city of Ridgeview was so breathtaking. The most I’d seen from my windows was an alley on one side and the bustling street with a liquor store on the corner from the other. Buses on the street, homeless beggars, and once I’d even seen a guy get stabbed. The block had been swarming with cops afterward.

  No, I hadn’t given a statement. In my neighborhood, you kept your mouth shut, or you ended up the next stab victim.

  I�
��d never known it could be so windy this high up, either. My hair tossed around as I sucked down my first glass of wine like it was a cup of Kool-Aid and then started on my second. Soon I was comfortably numb, the pain in my hand a distant memory.

  I was also laughing at the absurdity of this whole situation. A wolf! How crazy was that? And clearly Max had enemies. Tonight had proven that. Where the hell had Gary gone once he’d woken up? Did I care? Not as long as the driver stayed the hell away from me.

  The wind became too much, so I moved my party-of-one indoors. Wine bottle in one hand, my glass in the other, I walked around checking things out and wondered how much Max had paid for the statue of the naked cherub. Its little dinky and balls were hanging out as it hugged a baby lamb.

  I snickered and stared the cherub in the eyes. It looked back at me with a stone gaze.

  Was that art or porn? Was that really a baby or a short version of an effeminate guy? I had no freaking idea and felt like a pervert for staring so hard. Yes, I tapped my finger on the stone dinky. It was too tempting not to.

  Wow. The wine was going straight to my head. I was a bit dizzy, and the room slightly tilted. I stumbled to the couch and dropped down, cursing when some of the red wine splashed onto the white cushions.

  Shit. That was gonna leave a stain.

  I just stared at the spots, as if I could mentally make them disappear.

  Footsteps.

  I looked over my shoulder and saw Max coming down the steps. He’d changed into casual jeans and a thin sweater that hugged his body like the material was worshipping his muscles. He was a walking sex god.

  I wanted to drool over him, but I hurriedly scooted my butt over to sit on the stains. He scared me enough already. I didn’t need him taking my head off for ruining his couch.

  “Did you tend to your hand?”

  I lifted my injured hand to show him the gauze, but all that was showing was the half empty bottle of wine I had my fingers curled around. “All done.”

  “You should get some sleep. We have to be at the office early.”

  “We’re still going to work?” I blinked several times, still amazed at just how good-looking the guy was. A man who could have been on the cover of any modeling magazine. I was drooling.