by Sheila Kell
Two men intercepted her. “Miss Maxwell?” the large, bald, African American man with a graying soul patch asked. She ensured her face remained neutral as she eyed the soul patch that she was certain had gone out of style.
She had no recourse but to stop unless she wanted to plow into the second man with mocha-colored skin and a sprinkling of gray in his beard. His wire-framed glasses did nothing to hide large, dark eyes that seemed to reach out to her, and not in a good way. They didn’t appear threatening, but she knew looks could be deceiving.
“Yes,” she answered with as much confidence and poise as she could muster at being approached by one husky man and one who looked like he was the brain behind their operation. Whatever that was.
“I’m Richard Casden and this—” He turned to his companion and nodded. “—is Jeremy Rogers.”
He stopped like those names were supposed to mean something to her. When she didn’t comment, Richard asked, “Can we take a seat? We’ve got something we’d like to discuss with you.”
She wondered briefly if this could be about a job. She’d had small business owners approach her before but then walk away when they found out her fee and restrictions on the type of business and their reputation that she’d represent. If she’d wanted to keep her sterling reputation in the modeling world, she’d had to be tough. Something about these men told her that they weren’t approaching her about a job though.
A frisson of fear shot through her. Her nerves were still frazzled after yesterday’s terrifying encounter, and being approached in a lobby by men who had clearly been waiting for her did nothing to calm her. Looking around the open lobby, her heart sank. It was deserted. What could these men want with her?
“Please, Miss Maxwell, we won’t take up much of your time.”
She eased a little at their politeness and that they wanted to remain in the public place. She offered a small nod. “I don’t have much time, but I can give you a few minutes.” She was expected to meet her realtor in half an hour for a viewing. Since she planned to live in Baltimore, she wanted a place of her own, and this time, unlike her rental in New York City, she wanted a home where she could paint the walls.
“That’s all we ask.” Richard gestured toward the cream and gold seating area to allow her to precede them.
Choosing a cream striped chair facing the sofa, Madison sat and crossed her legs, then uncrossed them in case she needed to rush away. It was a reaction she’d been aware she’d developed since learning of the harsh reality of kidnapping after her sister had been taken.
Once the men sat, she took a better look at them. Richard had to be in his fifties, and the tweed sports jacket he wore appeared to be a size too large across his broad chest. The man looked like he’d been a bouncer in a nightclub for years. On the other hand, Jeremy, in maybe his thirties, could’ve been an accountant looking immaculate in his dark business suit and soft pink shirt opened at the top and without a tie.
“We wanted to talk with you about our offer on PYNK,” Richard began.
Shocked, she was immediately at a loss for words. She and Rylee had come to an agreement and weren’t selling their business to anyone. There was no way her sister had gone behind her back and put it up for sale. No. She wouldn’t believe it. That funny feeling returned. Something wasn’t right. “I’m sorry, gentlemen,”—she started to stand—“there must be some mistake. PYNK isn’t for sale.”
The men jumped up with grim expressions on their faces.
“We know it isn’t listed for sale, but every business has its price, and we have a very generous offer, Miss Maxwell,” Jeremy finally spoke, although it came through clenched teeth.
Her ire rose at his comment. Her business definitely didn’t have a price. Besides, they were changing the type of business. Surely these men didn’t want a high-end lingerie shop. “PYNK is not for sale.” She moved to exit, but Jeremy was suddenly there, crowding her. Her pulse spiked, and her breath caught as Richard also moved closer. So much for a quick exit.
“What do you want for it?” Jeremy ground out. “We’ll entertain your request.”
God, they were serious about purchasing her business. What the hell? It was a successful nightclub, but not worth all this attention. She wished now that she’d seen what they’d offered for the business. With no desire to sell, she’d not asked Rylee anything specific about the offer they’d received. She’d discuss it with her sister this afternoon. Until then, she needed to get rid of these men so she could leave.
“Like I said, PYNK is not for sale, gentlemen.” Her grin remained fixed on her face as she spoke. The men were too close for comfort, but she was determined to not let them see how uneasy she was.
“Like I said, every business has its price,” Richard stated.
She shook her head. “Not PYNK.”
“Even PYNK,” Jeremy added.
Her heart beat erratically, wondering if these men would hurt her in public. All for a piece of property. If intimidation was their tactic, they were doing a damn good job of it. But she wouldn’t hand over the club due to intimidation.
“What’s going on?”
The air released from her lungs in a relieved sigh when she heard Brad’s voice. It didn’t matter that she’d not wanted to see him again. He’d just become her savior. Again.
Irritation settled on Jeremy’s face, and rage crossed Richard’s. She took the opportunity while they were distracted and slipped by them to Brad. “You’re just in time. Thanks for picking me up today.” She hoped he played along.
Searching her face as she took his arm, he read whatever she was broadcasting and nodded. “We don’t want to be late.” They turned to the entrance, and she didn’t even look over her shoulder to see if the men followed. She didn’t care. She had Brad at her side. No matter what she thought of him or their tumultuous relationship, she knew he’d protect her at all costs. It’s what he did. It’s who he was.
At the entrance, Brad’s truck was still waiting for valet parking, so he opened the passenger door. She didn’t want to get into his truck. When she glanced back and saw the men walking that way, any hesitation Madison had was gone. She climbed into his truck without a word.
Coming around the hood of the truck, Brad slid into the driver seat and started it up, and then drove away from The Ivy as if that had been the plan all along.
The tension in the vehicle was thick. After a few moments, her racing heart calmed down enough for her to speak with a steady voice. “Thank you. I’m sure the men weren’t going to hurt me, but I appreciate you helping me get away from them.” She mulled over how to continue. Flashes of their kiss from last night had her wanting to climb him like a tree. She swallowed hard. “Honestly, you can turn around now and take me back so I can get my car.” She forced a smile on her face as she finished, not quite sure she was doing a good job of convincing him, or herself.
Appearing to chew over her words, he worked his jaw. “Who were they and what did they want?”
She released a pent-up breath and decided to go with the truth. “They wanted to buy the club.”
“I thought it wasn’t for sale.”
“That’s what I told them.”
“Who were they?” Brad asked again.
She gave him their names, and he went rigid, his hands tightening on the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white.
“You’re not going back there,” he stated flatly.
“What?” Confusion dipped her brows. Was he seriously going all caveman on her?
He slowed and pulled to the shoulder of the road and stopped the truck before turning to her. The morning sun beamed in the front windshield, almost blinding her.
“Maddie, people who cross those men die. Sometimes horribly.”
She blanched.
“Their names are notorious. They own most of the strip clubs in downtown Baltimore. They don’t play around. If they want your club and you’re not giving it to them, they could take that as a slight, which would m
ean your life could be at risk.” The tension in his large frame radiated in waves to her. The tightness of his one palm still gripped on the steering wheel got her attention.
Madison didn’t want to believe what he was saying. There had to be a mistake. The men wouldn’t kill her to get the club. Wariness laced its way through her senses. With a churning stomach, she tried to put everything into perspective. They might try to intimidate, but that was all. Besides, men who killed as much as Brad described didn’t walk around as free men. “If they’re responsible for killing people, how come they aren’t in jail or something?”
“They’re smart enough to not get caught, or they have someone do it for them. It doesn’t mean they aren’t responsible. I don’t like this at all. This is serious, and I need you to take it as so,” he added.
She sat stoically, unsure what to say. She’d been back in Baltimore one day, and now, she’d seen someone killed, been shot at and, according to Brad, her life was in danger. This couldn’t be her life. It was like walking into the damn twilight zone or something.
“We’ll come back later and grab your stuff. You can stay with Dev and Rylee.”
Madison’s eyes widened in shock, and she shook her head. Was it truly so serious she had to go into hiding? That couldn’t be what he was suggesting, right? As if on autopilot, she responded, “No, I can’t. They used their second room for the baby and their third for an office for Devon.”
Brad narrowed his eyes as if in concentration and stayed quiet for a moment. “Then you’ll stay with me. Matt’s old room is still empty.”
Stay with him? Was he out of his freaking mind? The last thing they needed was to be in close quarters where beds were involved. She could just see that disaster without a crystal ball. “I’ll just get another hotel.”
“They found you at this hotel,” Brad reminded her. “Don’t you think they’ll find you at another one?” he asked incredulously.
They had found her and fast. Though she honestly hadn’t been in hiding. Nor had Madison noticed any paparazzi around when she’d entered The Ivy, broadcasting her every move. Reality slammed into her. They’d tracked her down somehow, and it had to be illegally because hotels didn’t just give that information out to anyone. She’d stayed off social media since she’d arrived, needing time to decompress from everything. Besides, since she wouldn’t be modeling any longer, her fans were sure to abandon her for the next hottest model. But, staying with Brad… that had trouble written all over it. Where could she stay that would keep her low profile so they couldn’t find her?
She wondered if those men would really hurt her because she wouldn’t accept their offer to purchase her club. If so, what about Rylee? If what Brad said was true, her sister would be in danger too, and she had a family to concern herself with. Foreboding slithered down her spine, even though she desperately hoped Brad and his reaction was going overboard. But if Brad were right…. Her mind spun to the possibilities of protection. Rylee had her alpha husband, plus she was a badass in her own right. Madison needed someone, and Brad was offering. Why did it have to be him of all people?
With no alternative, she’d accept help from Brad until she could convince her sister to find her another protector more suited to Madison’s personality. Admittedly, it was nothing to do with personality. She just needed the support of someone who she didn’t want to jump into bed with. She may be signing her own emotional death warrant with this decision, but she had to do something. Fear had swamped her around the two men, and they’d done nothing but stand there. With Brad’s characterization of the two men, she could readily see one of them pointing a gun at her, and it sent her senses reeling. She shivered at the image and voiced her decision while her gut clenched. “Okay. I’ll stay.” Then she added, “For now.” The last thing she wanted to sound was ungrateful, because she truly was thankful, but even displaying the hint of any emotion, she was terrified it may mislead him, or even worse, she may just give in to her attraction.
“Until we clear this up,” Brad intoned.
She bit her tongue to keep from arguing with him.
“Now, where were you going this morning? To see Rylee?”
“Oh.” She checked her watch. “I’m meeting with my realtor.” What to do now? She didn’t have any transportation, and she really wanted to see what her realtor had put together for her. She craved a place of her own so badly she could taste it.
“Okay,” he said. “Where to?”
“Brad, this could take most of the day. I can’t tie you up like that.” She almost choked when he smirked.
“Princess, you can tie me up anytime.”
She squinted, narrowing her gaze at the endearment.
“Now, where to?”
Defeated, she rattled off the address she’d been scheduled to meet her realtor at for the home tour. What bothered her was that she was a little giddy about touring potential homes with Brad at her side being ready to ask his opinion on the choice. It bothered her a whole lot.
A CHILLY WIND blew in through the door behind Brad and Madison as they entered his house. Not wanting to take her back to the hotel right away in case the two men were staking out the place, Brad had suffered through house hunting and exploring luxurious homes with the size and amenities he could never imagine. At least not anything possible on his salary. He earned a great salary with even better bonuses and profit sharing, but he’d never made the kind of money Madison had made as a model. She told him that she’d banked most of her earnings all those years with a plan of purchasing a home outright, so she never had to worry about a mortgage payment. She wanted to be able to do what she enjoyed, whether it made her wealthy or not. Her dedication to her goal impressed the hell out of him. It couldn’t have been easy for her. Her patience and professionalism while they toured the homes set up a certain warmth inside him that rivaled any he’d ever felt for a woman. There was just something about Madison that made him look beyond sex. And, he definitely liked what he saw.
It almost embarrassed him to bring her to his modest two-bedroom, two-and-half bath starter home he and Matt had purchased years ago, after the three homes they’d toured earlier. She’d only been scheduled for the first one, but her realtor decided there was another one she had to see and then another. Damn if the mousy realtor hadn’t been right. Madison had fallen in love with the third home with its original hardwood floor, marble accents, granite countertops, and heated bathroom floors with a price tag worth more than he’d be able to afford in many years. Madison hadn’t balked and had made an immediate offer on the property.
She’d been serious about setting down roots here, and he liked the idea, as long as he had the chance to tangle in her life.
Entering his home, his eye cast a glance over the plain look of his living room and, to his other side, dining room. No type of tablecloth or place settings on it. Just a nice wood table and four chairs. Sniffing, he decided, after smelling the other homes today with their scent to attract a buyer, his could use an air freshener.
“Matt’s bedroom is the second door on the right.” He added, “It has its own bathroom.”
As she wheeled her suitcase down the hallway with stiff shoulders, he watched her magnificent ass. Perfectly rounded and ready for him to take a bite. He shook his head to clear it. His job was to protect her.
“Thank you,” she softly tossed over her shoulder before she entered the empty bedroom.
He worried a bit because he hadn’t touched it since Matt moved all of his personal items from the house to live in Kentucky with his wife, Caitlyn. He grinned. She was expecting twins. Matt as a father seemed odd. Not that he thought Matt wouldn’t be a great father, it was just since they looked alike, he saw himself in that position and enjoyed the rush of pride and love that shot through him. He never saw himself as a parent. He liked to play too much to settle down with a wife and rug rats.
The bedroom door closed, breaking into his crazy thoughts. Okay, her smile from house hunting had turned to a
frown when she walked through his door. So, he’d been a bit overboard earlier in the morning before they’d toured the homes. After she’d agreed to stay—albeit reluctantly—she’d tried to find other avenues of escape. She’d tried the hotel route again, but he’d nixed it. If he were any other man, he’d be taking that shit—her trying to be away from him—personally. But they’d got on well while touring houses. She’d shown him features and even asked his opinion a time or two. As far as he’d been able to tell, she’d been enjoying herself with his company and putting aside the danger. Although it was never far from his mind.
Hell, he couldn’t say for certain if Richard or Jeremy would come after her, but he wouldn’t chance it. The two men had worked hard to establish a reputation of domination in their world, and there had to be some truth to some of it. Madison—and Rylee—didn’t need to be made an example of. The question was how to end any possible retribution, and ideally stop their interest, with the women being safe and keeping their club.
While Madison had spoken with the realtor, Brad had called Devon to tell him of the development. Apparently, Rylee hadn’t shared the names of the men who’d made the initial offer with Devon. She hadn’t known the significance of their names. Brad figured that during this instance Devon had her wrapped up tight even though she could hold her own. She’d proven that time and again.
Devon hadn’t been too keen for Madison to stay with Brad. He even said he’d turn his office back into a bedroom. Brad thought that overkill to get her away from him. When Devon had invited them to dinner, Brad had declined knowing Devon and Rylee would try to talk her into staying with them instead of Brad. He couldn’t have that. He wasn’t sure why, but he couldn’t.