"Of course. Ms. Conti did a series of investigative interviews detailing the corruption within the transit authority in New York. I believe three people were arrested and a handful more lost their positions from the fallout. I must admit I'm a fan of your work. I appreciate the take no prisoners' mentality." Justin smiled at the smaller woman who lit up. Jade opened her mouth to speak as Nic reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell. He rolled his eyes and motioned toward the table. "Would you join us, please? And excuse me, this won't take long."
Two additional chairs materialized out of thin air as waiters swooped in and added crystal and silver to the table top. Jade felt like she was watching a NASCAR pit stop. Hell, those guys had nothing on the wait staff of this restaurant.
"What?" Nic's exclamation of alarm turned every head in a ten foot radius. Jade noticed Nic's tense stance as he clasped the phone to his ear and plugged his other ear with his finger. He glanced up at her, his worried expression plastered all over his face.
"No. Don't touch anything. Are you alone?" Nic waited for a second and then continued, "Lock that fucking door. Go into your office. Lock that door too, and stay away from the windows. Call 911, Ma, and tell the cops. Yes, damn it, you need to do it. You can't screw around with this. I'll be there as soon as I can get there." Nic pushed his phone into his pocket.
"What's going on?"
"What happened?" Jade and Carla spoke at the same time.
Nic lifted a hand toward Jade, halting her words, and focused his attention on Carla. Aaannnddd that little move is one you will pay for the next time we spar, either in the ring or in bed.
"Someone left a threat on Mom's doorstep. Probably one of the cases she's hearing. Carla, I'm sorry, but I need to go."
"If you will allow me, I'll ensure Ms. Conti gets home safely. Take my limo and send Paulo back after he drops you off. We'll finish dinner and wait for him here." Justin offered his help, and as far as Jade was concerned, his solution fucking rocked.
Jade stood and mentally jumped into the situation with both feet. "Let's go."
"No, thanks. I can handle this." Nic pushed in his chair and turned on his heel.
Unfazed, Jade fell into step beside him. "Fuck you very much, DeMarco. This is my specialty. I'm a PSO. You're a paper-pusher." They stopped at the elevator door, both of them looking at the display as it ticked off the floors. Thankfully, it was a dedicated system used only by the restaurant.
Jade stepped into the elevator as soon as it emptied and turned back toward Nic, giving him an expectant look. His eyes narrowed, and he strode into the confines of the lift. "I have more than enough experience to deal with this. There is no reason for you to get involved in my family's business."
"Damn. The cold coming off that shoulder would stop global warming." Jade didn't hide the sarcasm as she turned and faced him. "Seriously, is this because you're out with another woman? I mean, dude, we agreed on no strings. You do you, right? No skin off my nose." Jade turned to the front of the car and lifted her eyes to the rapidly descending numbers. The fact he was out tonight with another woman still shocked her, but hey… no strings.
"Of that, I have no doubt." The cornucopia of sound that blasted them from the street muffled Nic's words as the elevator doors opened.
Jade glared at him before she headed down the sidewalk toward the limo that pulled up to the curb. Justin's driver rounded the hood and opened the door for them. "Where to ma'am?" Jade motioned toward Nic who barked an address out to the driver as he got in beside her. She lowered the dividing screen and waited for the driver to merge into traffic before she spoke to him. "Please hurry Paulo; it is essential we get there as quickly as possible."
"Yes, ma'am. I'll get you there right away."
Jade pushed the button to raise the privacy shield. The second the divider was up, she turned toward her quasi lover-slash-almost friend. "What the ever-loving-fuck, dude?"
Nic stared out the window and shook his head. He held up a hand and closed his eyes. Obviously, not in the mood to talk. Well, whatever. Two could play at that game. She was the queen of ignoring assholes. So what if this one happened to be sexy and, okay… obviously very worried about his mom?
They traveled for thirty minutes in thick silence before he spoke. "You don't need to be involved in my family's issues. You and I are a no strings attached deal. You meet my mother or help in this case, and presto, strings."
"Yeah? How so?" Jade couldn't wait to hear this one. She was going to be doing her job. Well, kinda, because she hadn't really been assigned to the case.
Nic turned to her. His eyes conveyed a fuck-ton of emotion. She looked away almost immediately, because whoa, she was so not expecting that.
He sighed and turned his attention back out the window, speaking toward the lines of homes that stretched along the street. "Look, let's strip this to the bare bones, shall we? I don't want you around my family. You and I together are a problem. I don't want my mom to meet you, like you, or get wild notions about you and me being together. You play the field as much as I used to. If the tables were turned, you wouldn't introduce me to your family, and you know it. You wanted me without the soft center, so this is no soft center. I don't want you here."
"No, this is you being a dick and a stupid one on top of it. I tell you, Nic, it is a damn good thing you're pretty because when it comes to other things, you're seriously lacking. I am the best damn Personal Security Officer Guardian has on the books. I'm paid a fuck-ton of money to protect people like your mother, and I haven't lost a single primary to date. Not so much as a papercut on any of them. So let's cut out the bullshit and tell me what the fuck is going on!"
Nic turned his entire body to face her. "Did you call me pretty?"
"Yeah, and stupid." She couldn't help pointing out that little fact.
"Why do I feel like my world has taken a trip through a worm hole and I'm somehow in an alternate reality? One where the women in my life treat me like I used to treat them?" Nic pushed the hair off his forehead and leaned back into the corner of the seat. He drew a deep breath and shook his head. "Just take the car back to Justin. If I need help, I'll call. This isn't a Guardian issue. It is a DeMarco thing."
"Which makes it a Guardian issue. I don't understand why you are so set against me helping."
"NYPD will be there. My mom has had threats before. I don't know if this is more serious or if it is someone being stupid. Again, if I need help, I'll call in reinforcements." Nic looked at her and held her stare. She didn't believe a word he said, but he was correct. Guardian wasn't involved and inserting herself into his world could cause attachments she didn't want or need. She hated strings. Strings tied people up, made it impossible to leave, and inevitably ended up hurting or killing the people that originally embraced them.
"I think they made a movie about that once upon a time," Jade spoke as they turned into a plush neighborhood.
"What?" Nic pulled his attention from the floor where he was staring up at her.
"That alternate reality where the guy becomes the girl and gets to experience the bullshit most women deal with." Jade shrugged as if her knowing that wasn't a big deal.
"That sounds precariously close to a chick-flick. I thought we agreed the night we went out that we didn't like chick-flicks."
The smile she'd extracted from him was worth admitting she'd watched the horrible movie.
"Yeah, well, girls night at the King household is kinda mandatory if you are within a hundred mile radius. I'd rather get falling down drunk than watch some of the movies they've subjected me to, but I'm told that getting totally shitfaced around your mom is not a good idea."
"Yeah, who told you that?" Nic's expression seemed to be starting to relax.
"Well, my mom for one, and every one of my brothers. Assholes, all of them."
"Your brothers are not assholes."
/> "Did you grow up with them?"
"Well, no."
"Then you don't get a say on whether or not I think they are assholes. I love them, don't get me wrong, but they have this inner drive to be everything to everyone and steam roll over you when they think they know what's best for you."
"That doesn't make them assholes; it means they love you."
"Yeah, I get that they love me. I mean, why else would they put up with me, right? But it also means they think they need to run my life, which is so not happening. I'm a black belt in three disciplines of martial arts, I can shoot the center out of a quarter at one hundred yards, and I have taken each of them to the mat at least once. I don't need them to play 'daddy' for me. I had one of those."
Her gut sank at the thought of her father. It always did. Her life changed drastically after that night, as had the rest of her family, but the thing Jade carried with her, the anger at her father for lying… for dying… for leaving her, it was a real thing. She used the lesson she learned from her dad's death to forge her life-the one built without strings.
"Hey, you okay?"
Jade turned to look at Nic. She lifted an eyebrow and smiled. "I'm fucking excellent or have you forgotten already?"
Nic's gaze locked with hers. She silently begged him not to fuck up and get all gooey on her again. She'd have to walk away, and as of this moment, she didn't really want to. What she did want was another go at Nicolas Fucking DeMarco. Heat filled her stare, and she licked her lips. Nic's eyes tracked the movement of her tongue. He blinked rapidly and cleared his throat.
"No, I didn't forget, and would you do me a favor and tamp down the seduction. I don't need to go to my mom's front door with a hard-on." He adjusted himself and laughter bubbled out of her.
"Big boy if you think my licking my lips is seductive, wait until our night together. I will blow your fucking mind and maybe other areas, too."
Nic studied his watch and then peered out the window. "We're about to my mother's house. Let me deal with whatever is going on here. Meet me later tonight."
"Name the place and time." Jade lifted her arm to the back of the limo seat folding it to bring her fingertips to her lips. She flicked her tongue out to lick the tip of her index finger. Nic's eyes zeroed in on the action and Jade smiled when he had to adjust himself again.
"I'll text you when I'm done." Nic leaned over and took her mouth. He forced his tongue through her lips and dominated the kiss while fisting her hair at the back of her neck.
Fuck, she loved the way he twisted her hair to make her meet his kiss. There was something primitive and freeing when he held her immobile and added the slightest hint of pain. She sank into the embrace and allowed him to take what he wanted. She grasped the lapels of his jacket and pulled him closer. The warm smell of his natural musk accented by expensive cologne swirled around her, resurrecting decadent memories of their one night together.
He drew back and glanced out the window. It was then that Jade realized they'd stopped. There were three patrol cars and two unmarked vehicles lining the street in front of them. Yellow crime scene tape fluttered on the wrought iron railings of one of the porches. It wasn't difficult to see where Nic's mother lived.
"I'll text you later." Nic bent quickly and pressed his lips softly on hers before he turned and got out of the car. She reached up and touched the area where his stubble had sensitized her skin. The man could rev her engines. She had to give it to him. He was sexy and knew his way around a woman. Jade watched him identify himself to the officer keeping people out of the area and then bound up the stairs before he disappeared inside the house. She reached over and pressed the button that lowered the privacy shield.
"Paulo, would you please drop me off at Justin's apartment before going back to the restaurant to pick him up?"
"Yes, ma'am! Your wish is my desire."
Jade cocked her head and took in the sexy chauffeur. Maybe if she didn't have sex on a stick texting her tonight… Jade chuckled and hit the button for the privacy shield sending it up once again. Why play with amateurs when she had an expert?
Chapter Thirteen
" Ma?" Nic bellowed as he pushed open the front door. He'd carefully stepped along the marked-off path allowing him into the house. The beheaded animal and the note that read, 'recuse yourself or die bitch' was impossible to miss. No wonder his mother was upset. What a bloody mess. Literally.
"In here, Nico." His mom called to him from her study.
"What in the ever-loving fuck? You told me there was a threat. You didn't tell me about that!" Nic swung his arm behind him and pointed at the porch.
"Watch your language, young man." His mother glared at him from where she sat opposite a suit, an NYPD detective no doubt.
"Sorry, Ma. How many active cases are you working on?"
"Why do you need to know that?" The question came from the detective, a middle-aged woman with grey streaks running through her dark brown hair. She stood and crossed her arms in front of her.
"Because I need to know." Nic drew a deep breath and faced off with the detective. "I'm sorry. I haven't introduced myself. Nic DeMarco, I'm Judge DeMarco's son and also the Chief Operations Officer for Guardian Security." He held out his hand.
The detective drew a short breath and exhaled in a huff before she took Nic's proffered hand. "Detective Sergeant Keller, NYPD. Until my superiors tell me otherwise, I'm assuming Guardian isn't taking over this case."
"You'll be hearing from your superiors by morning. Guardian most definitely will be assuming control."
Nic's mom held up a hand, stopping him from continuing. "Nico, I did not ask you up here to babysit me. I'm sure between the NYPD and the U.S. Marshals Service I'll be fine."
"Awesome, Ma. I'm glad you have faith in them, but I will be taking over and orchestrating your safety protocols while you aren't at the courthouse until I know who threatened you."
"We have a good idea who threatened her." Detective Keller pulled out her notebook and flipped back several pages. "We seized something the forensic techs believe is called a Piandao, a style of Chinese broadsword. Stroke of luck there, the tech only knew it because of a martial arts class he's taking, but Judge DeMarco indicated she was hearing a case involving a high ranking member of the Triad."
His mother lifted her gaze to him. Shit. The look of determination in her eyes forestalled any argument. No, she wouldn't recuse herself. Bettina DeMarco didn't run from threats, and that was one of the many reasons his mom was a fucking rock star.
"Ma, I need to make some phone calls. Detective Keller, as a professional courtesy, I'd appreciate a rundown on your impressions of the situation. I know not to ask for official documentation or access until we have jurisdiction. I won't put your career in jeopardy."
The detective's head snapped around, and she gave him a surprised look before she nodded. "It's rather refreshing having one of the big guns acknowledge what we do."
"I've been in your shoes. DCPD. Believe me; I understand the feeling when one of the suits shows up. I've had them look at me as if I were dog crap that someone stepped in. I'll never do that to the people who dedicate their lives to keeping this city safe."
"Huh." Detective Keller shook her head and flipped her notebook closed. "I don't know whether you're feeding me a line of BS or you're for real. I'm going to go against my better judgement and hope you're real. I need to follow up with forensics." She pulled out her card and handed it to Nic. "Call me in about two hours. I should have a solid grasp on the particulars of the case by that time, and any leads that Vice may have on the locals that may have participated. We have a Gangland Task Force that could provide some intel." The woman turned away from him and extended her hand toward his mother. "Ma'am, I'm sorry this happened to you. I appreciate your service."
"I appreciate your professionalism, Detective." His mother shook the woman's
hand and escorted her to the front of the residence.
Nic sat down in one of the wingbacked chairs and pulled out his cell. He pressed and held #1. Jared's number popped up as his phone dialed his best friend.
"Vacations are supposed to be time away from the office. Did you miss me?" Jared sing-songed the question.
At any other time, he'd have said something inappropriate and sarcastic with a twist of demented on the side, but not now. Not tonight. "J, I need your help."
There was a moment's silence at the other end of the phone before Jared responded. "I've secured the line. What do you need?"
"My mom was threatened tonight. Someone decapitated a dog and left it on her porch along with a threat demanding she recuse herself. They found a Piandao at the scene. My mom is hearing a RICO case, and you get two guesses who it's against."
"The Triad." Jared didn't even hesitate.
"You got it in one," Nic confirmed his assumption.
"Oh… just fuck me now…"
"Can't do it, my man; your husband would get upset." The quip fell from his lips without him realizing it. The banter they shared was so easy and natural he couldn't have stopped it if he tried.
"Screw you, man."
"J, I love yah, but like I said…"
"Shut the fuck up. I'm looking at the caseload. It has quadrupled, and we are stacking up more referrals from other agencies. I'm trying to find someone who can run your mom's security detail and also find where I can shake out a good detective to work the case."
"Don't worry about that. I'm going to take a leave of absence. I'll handle it. I need this to be official. I need cooperation from the U.S. Marshals Service, specifically the Judicial Security Division."
Jared exhaled in one, long, drawn-out breath, before the man cleared his throat. "Dude, can we make a compromise? You do your normal job and take the lead on the investigation from up there. I'll find someone to work the PSO duties? I got to admit it brother, I'm drowning here."
Jade (The Kings of Guardian Book 9) Page 11