“You?”
I nodded toward my Louis Vuitton luggage.
“I’m almost afraid to ask what you packed for the Mexico trip,” he admitted, which earned a laugh out of me.
“Oh, Tank, it’s a surprise.”
“Was afraid you were going to say that,” he grumbled and then shot me a glare. “Promise me you at least brought…underwear of some sort.”
I fluttered my eyelashes. “Why are you suddenly so concerned with my underwear?”
He clenched his teeth, his jaw ticking with annoyance. “Because it’s my job to make sure you don’t end up pregnant at eighteen, and flashing men your goods just to piss me off sounds like the sort of thing you’d call ‘fun.’”
“Cute air quotes.” I laughed. “And I guess you’ll find out.”
“Another sleepless night, how wonderful,” he grumbled.
“Dream of me, old man.”
His answer was a middle finger as he walked out of my room and slammed the door.
Of course, he didn’t see how my smile fell.
Or how I suddenly felt as empty on the inside as my room felt without him in it.
Why him of all people?
I was happy when he was near.
And then, when he was gone, I had this longing, and it pissed me off that somehow Tank was connected to it.
Then again, he’d always been connected.
I kicked my suitcase and then flopped back onto the bed.
Mexico.
With Tank as my babysitter.
Which meant he was forced to be in my presence—didn’t choose to be.
It also meant I only had another few weeks by his side before he made a choice—the Family or the FBI.
With a grin, I jumped up and unzipped my suitcase, then promptly tossed all my underwear onto my bed and zipped my bag back up.
Sorry, not sorry, Tank.
Let the games begin.
Chapter Five
Tank
“Mexicoooooooo!” Junior shouted once we were all in the black SUVs that had been waiting at the private airstrip for the G-V I was on to land. Altogether, we took three of the jets. I still wasn’t over the fact that each of the Families had their own jets. Yes, plural. Jets.
Thirty-million-dollar jets.
I’d looked it up.
Then promptly tried to forget how much a luxury like that cost. The last thing I needed to know was just how illegally rich they were and why.
“Dude.” Ash shoved Junior and then wrapped an arm around Annie. It still made my teeth clench.
I knew they were right for each other.
But at one point last year, I had thought Annie would eventually see that he was toxic, that he couldn’t love, and that our friendship could turn into something more.
Then the asshat had to come in and confuse her with all his feelings bleeding all over the place like a continuously erupting volcano.
Again, I got it.
I was okay with it.
But that didn’t mean I enjoyed watching him basically devour her face in front of me as he pulled her into his lap and started whispering what I could only guess were sexual innuendos in her ear as she blushed beet-red. Her hair was growing longer, another sign that she was his since she’d cut it to piss him off.
“Wonder what they’re going to do once they get to the hotel,” Tiny said without looking up from her phone, while Maksim laughed behind her, only to earn a glare from Izzy as if he weren’t allowed to think about sex unless it was with her.
Damn awkward breakup that one was.
Yet again, it reminded me why all the bosses had told the kids that they weren’t allowed to date.
It only created drama.
I put on my black Ray-Bans and waited for the arguing to start. The kids, even though they weren’t kids and almost all in their early twenties, did nothing but bicker, tease, fight—it was a true family. All the bosses were nice enough to let us stick together in our own private villa while they stayed across the hotel in another with the younger siblings.
Which meant I would have zero backup when it came to Tiny.
Serena clinked her chilled glass of champagne with Junior as they locked eyes across their seats. “You ready?”
He licked his lips. “I was ready to marry you at sixteen.”
“And here we go,” King said from the front seat as he flipped around with a scowl. “You know some of us aren’t getting regular sex, sooo if you guys could just—”
“Wait!” Maksim gripped the leather seat. “You stopped seeing your tutor?”
It was Valerian, his adopted brother’s turn to snicker. “Dad said, and I quote, ‘I will pull your liver through your pee hole if you keep fucking your twenty-five-year-old tutor,’ or something like that.”
“Very specific.” Maksim whistled with a cheeky grin. “Huh, King?”
King flipped the entire van off and lifted his chin in defiance. “I’ll have you know she was my first love.”
Everyone burst out laughing—me included.
“Bullshit! You’re eighteen!” Ash called him out.
“Um, Valerian’s twenty-one, you’re twenty, and all of our parents got married when they were young, thus all of them still looking like they belong on a calendar.”
“That was creepy, bro, just saying.” Maksim shuddered.
“Agreed,” I grumbled.
All eyes fell to me. “What? Look, yes, your parents are attractive—wait a second, why the hell are we having this conversation?”
Ash burst out laughing. “Tank, I say this with love, but I’ll probably choke you if you decide to choose the FBI instead of us…” He grinned. “All in favor…”
Everyone raised their hands but Tiny.
Shocker.
Izzy elbowed her.
She looked up from her phone. “What?”
“Cold-hearted Abandonato girls…” Maksim just shook his head. “The only females that terrify me.”
Izzy waved at him.
He paled and looked away.
“What’s so important that you can’t participate in adult time, Tiny?” Ash asked.
“TikTok,” was her cold response. “Some guys reacting to my favorite mac and cheese recipes.”
“Wow,” Junior mouthed in my direction.
Serena shared a look with me that I couldn’t decipher and then whispered something to Junior.
His face fell a bit.
Shit, were they talking about her?
Again?
Everyone wanted to reach her.
Nobody could.
It was pointless to even try.
She had every single guard up that she could find.
And as far as I knew, nobody had apologized for last year. I was sure she knew why Ash had lashed out, but that didn’t make it any less painful or embarrassing. The feeling of not belonging with the people you loved the most.
They pretended like it didn’t happen.
But I still felt the elephant in the room, which pissed me off because that meant I wanted to defend the devil.
The van pulled up to a huge resort that I knew probably cost more than my yearly paycheck to stay at. There was a long line of hotel staff waiting for us at the front with more trays of champagne.
I wasn’t used to this sort of extravagance, so I just followed the guys when they all started piling the luggage outside the van.
I’d never been to Cabo—it wasn’t like I was dripping with money from the FBI. If anything, I almost felt guilty that this was part of my job, following the terrifying girl who had me by the balls without even realizing it…and trying like hell to figure out how to crack that same scary façade in order to gain intel.
Seducing her just seemed like a really easy way to get castrated while on vacation.
Then again, sometimes, she stared.
I wasn’t sure if it was because she found me attractive or if she was just curious by nature at what the hell an FBI spy was still doing at her house, he
lping.
“Here you go.” Ash held out a tip to one of the bellmen.
I nearly choked when I noticed it was two hundred-dollar bills.
The bellman said, “Thank you,” refusing to look down, and then a lady in an all-white uniform smiled brightly at us. She had red lipstick, curly brown hair, and curves I knew King was already memorizing since Maksim smacked him on the back of the head when she turned around, showing a tight ass.
“What?” King rubbed his head. “I was appreciating Cabo!”
“Appreciate the birds.” Maksim gave him a hard shove and pointed skyward.
“Like you should talk. Literally every guy in this family’s a manwhore. It’s like a badge of honor!”
Izzy snorted.
Serena glared at Junior as if he were cheating. He held up his hands. “Thanks, guys.”
And Ash just reached for Annie’s hand and kissed it.
Maybe my hell wasn’t Tiny.
Perhaps it was watching all the happy couples while I tried to stay alive and keep the small one from getting drunk off her ass.
I tried not to look too stunned as I followed the group around the property. There were seven pools—that I could see.
A gorgeous blue ocean that didn’t look real to the naked eye, and a sunset that instantly relaxed me.
I glanced around and dumbly wondered why I didn’t see that many guests. In fact, I didn’t see any guests.
Only staff.
At least a dozen restaurants that were nearly empty.
I elbowed Ash. “Why is it so deserted?”
He grinned. It honestly freaked me out how much he smiled now. Then again, he was in love, half-healed, though still half-monster if you crossed him. “It’s ours.”
“Ours,” I repeated. “As in yours? Like you rented it all out?”
“No.” He shrugged. “Ours, as in my dad owns it.”
“The senator? Chase? Your dad?” I gaped. “Owns this?”
“What can I say?” Ash said. “He likes nice things.” When I didn’t answer, Ash just whispered, “Close your mouth, bro, and try to enjoy it. You deserve it after all the times I kicked your ass in the ring this last year and all the times in the future I will make you bleed.”
“Comforting,” I grumbled.
“I try.” He patted me on the back and then whispered something to Annie.
Kartini was on my other side, her giant Prada sunglasses perched high on her face. Her lips were pressed together in a scowl, and her hand clutched her purse so tightly, I wondered if she was upset about something.
“You all right?” I asked as we turned another corner.
“Huh? What?” She looked up at me. “Sorry, was daydreaming…”
“Yeah, I look scared shitless when I daydream, too,” I said under my breath. “You know, if you ever need to talk—”
“Ah, a babysitter and a therapist, how’d I get so lucky?”
“You don’t have to be a bitch,” I hissed. “God, I was just trying to help.”
“I don’t need your help.”
“Clearly,” I muttered. “Look, I’ll do my damn job while here, but let’s just try to keep as much space between us as possible.”
“Agreed,” she sneered.
“Fine.” I felt like a toddler.
“Great.” Her smile was syrupy-sweet, all white teeth and bright red lipstick.
I nearly collided with Ash’s back when we all stopped.
“We’re so happy you’ve come back to NC Resort and Spa.”
“NC?” I muttered.
“Nixon, Chase, one of their many joint ventures.” Maksim piped up. “Oh, look, the bungalow…” And then, with a sprint, he held out his hand to the woman. “Can I have that one, pleasssssseeee?”
She gaped and then handed him a room key. “Wait for me!” King chased after him.
“Oh no, you don’t!” Izzy squealed, grabbing her own keycard and jogging after them toward a gorgeous beach bungalow with a treehouse located right on the water.
Screaming ensued.
I could have sworn I heard a gunshot go off—and let’s be honest, it probably did—as they took over the beach bungalow.
Hell, Maksim better sleep with one eye open—or both…both would be better.
“Honeymoon Suite.” Junior stepped up and held out his hand.
And they were off.
Ash and Annie followed suit.
Then Valerian and Violet.
Leaving…
Yup, you guessed it.
Me and Satan’s mistress.
“The last bungalow.” The woman beamed. “It’s one of my favorites. You can see the sunset every night.” Goody. “Besides, you two look like you won’t be venturing outside a lot anyway. I know these things.”
I barely contained my sputter of denial when Kartini leaned against me and straight-up petted my chest with her dangerously long fingernails. “Aw, you could tell?”
“Lots of sexual tension. Your auras are…” She shuddered. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“Yes, well…” Tiny’s fingernails raked down the front of my shirt. Holy shit, was she ripping it open? “I would be so lost without my big, bad, sexy bodyguard.” She smacked my ass. “Have you seen this hunk?”
The woman blushed. “I’m Michelle. If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to call the concierge number on your phone.”
“Perrrfect.” Kartini took a keycard. “Actually, can you have a bottle of Patron sent to the room along with a deck of playing cards? Oh, and a bottle of Dom Perignon.”
And here we go!
“Oh, and cigars,” she added. “Oh, wait, do you have blow—?”
“Holy shit, Kartini,” I ground out. “That’s illegal.”
“It’s Mexico.”
“FBI agent,” I reminded her.
Michelle’s eyes widened.
“Don’t worry,” Kartini grinned. “He’s kind of stuck with us, so even if you do have other party drugs, he’ll be quiet. Won’t you, Tank?”
I just shook my head. “If you die, I die. So, no, I won’t be quiet.” I turned back to Michelle. “No drugs, she’s barely legal drinking age here as it is. Just the alcohol and some Advil.”
“Awww, baby, did the trip give you a migraine?” Kartini clung to my biceps with both hands.
“Yes. The trip. Of course, what else could it be?” I glared down at the tiny, insane human. “Let’s go.” I grabbed my keycard, and off we went as Michelle grinned after us like we hadn’t just asked for illegal drugs fifteen minutes into our trip.
“Unbelievable,” I ground out as I slid the card across the black pad on the door three minutes later. “Are you seriously doing drugs now? Be honest because I won’t stand for it. I won’t, Kartini. That’s a hard limit, a fucking hard limit, and not a road you want to travel down. People don’t just quit and come back up, and they don’t just—” I stopped talking when I realized she wasn’t interrupting me, rubbing up against me, trying to kill me.
It was unnerving.
I didn’t know how to handle it when she was quiet.
She jerked off her sunglasses. “Is this your protective old-man way of saying you care about what happens to me?”
“Fuck.” I spread my arms wide. “Why else would I be here? Risking my life every day to keep you safe? For fun? Do you think I enjoy being your dad’s target practice?”
“Oh, get over it, Tank. That was one time!”
“It was fucking terrifying!” I roared while she laughed into her hands. Her eyes were glassy, and she quickly looked away. “Hey…what’s going on?”
She sighed, and part of the façade slipped. “This used to be our thing.”
“Who?”
“Me and Dad.” She stared out at the balcony. “We would come here every year for my birthday. I’d dance on his feet after dinner. He’d read me stories about princesses in big towers and knights who fought to win their love. Their hearts.”
“Did it stop?” I aske
d, suddenly curious, unable to look away from the wistful look reflected in her face as she stared at the ocean.
She gulped, her blue eyes glassy. “It had to. People grow up, Tank.”
I crossed my arms. “Just because you grow up doesn’t mean you stop needing to hear stories about love and hope. You’ll be ninety and still smiling when the prince earns the princess’s good favor. You’ll be a hundred and still smile at a first kiss. You’ll die knowing you were loved, and loved in the very best way. So, no, you don’t just grow out of it, Tiny.”
She gasped—it was slight—and then she awkwardly mumbled something about unpacking.
And I was left wondering what the hell had happened between the wedding and this year, and even more curious how involved she was with the death of that FBI agent.
Guilt pounded like a freaking heartbeat against my chest when I thought about that day.
About what had gone down.
And what hadn’t.
Did they know?
Was that the reason the Families accepted me?
Because when it came time to choose—I chose them.
And protected her in really the only way I knew how.
By grabbing a drink with her, by talking, flirting, and for one fucking moment going…it’s okay to like her, to find her attractive. It’s okay to feel possessive.
It would be okay.
I let out a groan.
Clearly, the only thing that had just broken was a wall, even slightly. Okay, so I made a scratch against it, but it was still a scratch.
Hell.
I had to be nice.
Like really nice.
I had to be vulnerable to possibly the only girl who could hurt me, who could stomp all over my heart with her stilettos and laugh while doing it.
Once she was out of earshot, I dialed Ash’s number, the one person I knew I could trust and who wouldn’t actually kill me dead for what I was about to say.
“Kinda busy…” he groaned into the phone. So, they wasted no time.
“I figured.” I peered around the living room entrance to make sure Tiny wasn’t creeping back up on me like a bad nightmare. “Look, I need you to help me seduce Kartini, but in a way where my dick stays intact, her father doesn’t shoot me in the face then rip my dick off and feed it to me, and she doesn’t get hurt.”
He was silent.
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