by S. K. Hardy
“I love you, too. Hawk...maybe you could just think about letting me see if–”
“You ain’t even gotta finish that sentence, Rae.” Hawk could see the wheels turning in her head and knew what she was thinking. The last thing he needed was for Raven to be anywhere near Thompson. “We’re almost there. Be patient. I’ll take care of business and be back the same night. Bet?”
She nodded reluctantly. “Bet.”
Good. Now that that part was settled, Hawk took a deep breath and prepared himself to tell her the rest. Raven’s eyes narrowed suspiciously as if knowing she wouldn’t like what was coming next. Well. Might as well let it rip.
“I know the plan was for you to stay at my place in Manhattan, but even with my men guarding you, I just don’t feel completely comfortable with that. Until I know with absolute certainty that Thompson is no longer a threat, I don’t want you by yourself. When we land in New York...I’m taking you to stay at Pattel Manor.”
CHAPTER 35
“What?!” Raven yanked her hand out of his so fast it was like she’d touched a burning hot stove. “You’re taking me where?”
Hawk kept his tone calm and steady. “It’s only until I get back from Las Vegas. You’ll be safe there.”
It was an idea he’d tossed around in his head the last couple of days. It was the only thing that made sense, the only thing that would give him peace of mind while he was gone. He couldn’t hunt Thompson down and worry about Raven at the same time. He just couldn’t do it. Thompson was in Vegas for now, but if he slipped away before Hawk got there Hawk wanted zero chances of him getting to Raven.
However, from the expression on her face, Raven wasn’t feeling it. And he couldn’t say he blamed her, but she would have to trust him on this. “Before you say anything let me explain.”
“No!” She spat out vehemently, shaking her head. “You don’t have to explain anything. I’m not going, Hawk!”
Hawk brought his hand up to frame her face. “Just hear me out. The only way I’d be one hundred percent at ease is if you were at the family compound. I’d know with certainty that you’d be safe and protected. The place is a fortress.”
“The ‘place’ also has your father and uncle there! Have you forgotten what happened the last time I was with them? How your father threatened me and your psycho uncle tried to snatch my hair out from the roots? If you hadn’t shown up when you did they probably would’ve kept me there indefinitely–or worse!”
His jaw ticked with renewed anger at the vivid image her words painted in his head. “I haven’t forgotten, Raven.”
“Apparently you have!” She shrieked. Her expression was a mixture of anger and panic as she looked for a way out of doing what he was asking. “What if I go to my sister’s? I could stay there. Angel would protect me.”
“Don’t insult me like that. I don’t need Angel to protect you. Besides, you’re not Angel’s responsibility, you’re mine.” A hard edge appeared in his voice when it seemed as if she was about to argue her case. “End of discussion, Rae.”
“End of...I’m not going to Pattel Manor. I can’t.” Her tone started off defiant but cracked in desperation. “Please, Hawk.”
His voice gentled as he moved his face closer to hers. “Baby, listen to me. Nothing will happen to you. I swear on my life. I told you I took care of that. I don’t know what the hell my father and uncle were thinking, but they realize what you mean to me now. I plan on marrying you as soon as all of this is over. You’ll be a Pattel, which means you’re family. They’ll kill anyone who tries to hurt you.”
But Raven tuned out everything except for one sentence. “You...You what?”
“I said they realize how much you mean to me. When I confronted them that night, I damn near lost my mind but–”
“No, not that part! What did you say after that?” She whispered.
Hawk squinted and went over his words. When he realized what she was talking about, his lips relaxed to form a semblance of a smile. Not enough to piss her off, but enough to let his amusement breathe.
“You mean the part about marrying you?”
“Yes. That part. Are you proposing to me?”
Hawk’s brow wrinkled in confusion. Proposing? Was he supposed to propose? Hell, in his mind he already had her barefoot and pregnant with his seed. He just took it for granted that...
Raven seemed to follow his thought pattern. Now she seemed slightly perturbed for an entirely different reason. “Oh. So you weren’t going to ask. You just assumed I would marry you.”
“Well, aren’t you?”
Raven’s mouth dropped open. “Did you seriously just say that? Really, Hawk?”
His frown became more pronounced once he realized how badly he was fucking this up. “Well...”
Folding her arms, Raven glared and waited.
“My bad. You’re right. I shouldn’t have assumed.” He ducked his head low and gave her a look that had been getting him out of hot water with women since he was a kid. “Forgive me?”
Slightly mollified, Raven relaxed a bit and allowed the beginnings of a smile to make its way across her face. “It depends.”
“On?” He prompted.
Her left eyebrow lifted at a saucy angle. “You’re a smart man. Figure it out.”
A low chuckle rolled from his chest. Capturing her hand in his, he guided her out of the chair but remained down on bended knee. “I love you, Rae, more than I thought I could possibly love anyone. Even though I suspected there was something special between us the first day we met, I fought it tooth and nail until I couldn’t deny it any longer. It took me a while to admit that, but the day I walked into the courtroom, I was ready.”
“Hawk.” His name came out a disjointed sob.
“It took some time to convince you, though, didn’t it?” He laughed, remembering the roadblocks she threw up almost every step of the way.
“Just a little bit.”
“Even after everything we’ve been through, I wouldn’t change a thing. You’re everything I could ever want in my woman. If you’ll give me the chance, I promise to make every day special for the rest of your life. So I’m asking: Raven Ja’dore Randolph will you marry me?”
Raven nodded vigorously. “Yeah. I’ll marry you, Pattel.”
Hawk’s heart swelled in his chest until he thought it would burst. Hearing her say the words made it that much more real. Standing up, he pulled her into his arms. A kiss that started off sweet and loving quickly changed to hot and lustful. Her curves adhered to his body as if they were sculpted that way.
Just as he made up his mind to get in a quickie before they landed Hawk’s cell phone rang. He groaned in irritation, knowing he needed to answer it just in case it was news about Thompson. Reluctantly separating their clinging lips, he reached for his phone. Hawk frowned when he saw the number displayed belonged to his father.
“What’s up, Pop?” he said once he connected the call. He saw the way Raven tensed when she heard that it was Joseph. “Everything okay?”
“Where are you?”
“We should be landing in the city in a few minutes then we’ll drive there. Why?”
“Have the pilot fly you directly to Pattel Manor.”
A sense of foreboding hit him hard when he heard his father’s tone. Something was wrong. “What’s happened?”
“Mills is on his way. He says he has something he needs to tell us concerning Raven. He didn’t want to get into it over the phone. Just get here as soon as you can.” With those ominous words, Joseph hung up.
Hawk slowly lowered the phone from his ear. What the hell was so important that Jeffrey Mills wanted to see them in person? Especially concerning Raven. Refusing to wait until they got to the Manor, Hawk dialed Mills’ phone number. His eyes found Raven’s as he waited for him to pick up.
“Hawk? What’s wrong?” She asked with a thread of fear lining her voice.
Hawk shook his head without answering. When the call just went to Mills’ voice
mail, he cursed under his breath and hung up. Pressing the intercom button, he buzzed the pilot.
“Yes, Mr. Pattel?”
“Instead of landing at the airport, take me to Pattel Manor.” After giving the order, Hawk turned to Raven who was looking at him with eyes that demanded answers. “My father said Mills has news regarding you that he wants to deliver in person.”
“What news?”
“I don’t know. He wouldn’t tell Pop over the phone.”
“But ...it must be important if he’s...” She didn’t finish the sentence but she didn’t have to. They were both thinking the same thing. Benny Thompson.
Seeing the fear that shadowed her eyes, Hawk made sure nothing on his face betrayed his concern. Cupping her face, his thumbs caressed her cheeks as he looked deeply into her eyes. “You trust me, Rae?”
“Yes.” The word came out as a broken whisper but she didn’t hesitate to answer.
“Then know that when I tell you everything will be fine, I mean it. Okay?”
“Okay.” The word trembled past her lips in a hoarse whisper.
“Alright?”
Raven took a deep breath and nodded. This time her voice was stronger. “Okay. Alright.”
“I love you, Rae.”
“I love you, too.”
Hawk lowered his forehead to hers and closed his eyes for a brief second then sat in the chair behind him. After pulling Raven down on his lap, he wrapped his arms tightly around her, letting her know he was a shield, a safe place to protect her against the evil and hurts and pains of the world. He wouldn’t let anything touch her. He swore that on his life.
His hand rubbed up and down her back in a soothing motion while placing gentle kisses on her forehead. It wasn’t until her breathing evened out and her trembling stopped that Hawk finally allowed himself to feel something he would never, ever let her see. Deep down inside, past the warrior the Pattels were all groomed to be since birth, Hawk felt the stirrings of what he could only describe as fear. The emotion itself was almost foreign to him. He hadn’t experienced it in years, not since Leah’s kidnapping.
He, his brother’s and cousin had reached the maturity of manhood faster than their peers; their ideological glasses were intentionally ripped off at a young age. Whatever natural fears or uncertainties they had throughout the years were instinctively locked away and ignored; it was a necessity if they were to excel and survive in the world they lived.
Now, however, Hawk found himself struggling to keep the fear away. The possibility that he wouldn’t stop Thompson in time was fucking with him. Hawk should’ve gotten rid of him when he had the chance, but it was too late for doubts and anger. He pushed them away just as he’d been trained to do. It was imperative that he keep a cool head.
Kissing Raven’s temple, he turned his head to look out the window. They were now flying over his family’s property and headed to the helicopter pad located in the rear. Whatever the outcome of Mills’ visit, Hawk wasn’t worried. Whatever it was, he’d deal with it, because quite honestly? It was the only choice he had.
CHAPTER 36
Hawk and Raven exited the chopper and started towards the main house hand in hand. Hawk immediately spotted his father in the distance waiting for them on the veranda. From the way Raven’s steps slowed, he knew she saw Joseph, too. Hawk looked down at her and saw that her jaw was set tight, almost as if she were gritting her teeth the way a child did before they got a shot from the doctor.
He came to a stop and moved in front of her. “What is it?”
Raven started to shake her head, but knowing he wouldn’t stop until he found out what he wanted to know, she reluctantly answered. “Does your family know what I did?”
“Yes.” Hawk didn’t try to dress up the truth in pretty words. They were way past that. “I talked to them last night.”
“Hawk.” She tugged her hand away from his and looked up at him through eyes that told him how upset she was. “You could’ve warned me instead of waiting and springing everything on me at once.”
Hawk’s eyes narrowed. “I handled it the way I felt was best.”
“Best for whom? Certainly not best for me.”
“Everything I do is with you in mind, Raven.”
“You waited until we were almost here to tell me I would be staying with your family until you got back. I don’t think I was on your mind when you decided that or else you would’ve known I’d rather be anywhere but here, especially after the way they treated me.”
“Do you really think I’d leave you someplace where harm would come to you? Is that how little you think of me?”
“Of course not. ”
“Then what is it?”
Raven cast a quick glance at Joseph. “Nothing,” she uttered quietly. “Let’s just go.”
“Hey.” Hawk caught her arm as she stepped around him. “Look, I know you’re scared. Everything seems like it coming towards you at lightning speed. I get that, but you have got to trust that I know what I’m doing. Please.”
“I do trust you, it’s just that...” Sighing, she squared her shoulders and lifted her chin. “I trust you. I’m just nervous, but I’ll be fine.”
Some of the tension left Hawk as he saw the uncertainty fade from her face. In its place was the stubborn determination he knew so well. He wished he could give her more reassurance, but they just didn’t have time for that. “If I didn’t think you could handle being here I wouldn’t leave you. You got this, alright?”
“Absolutely,” she returned with a toss of her head.
Hawk smiled at the confidence in her voice.
His soldier.
He took her hand in his as they continued on towards the house. Joseph’s eyes stayed on them as they walked up the steps to where he was waiting. “Hey, Pop.”
“Son.” Joseph nodded a greeting to Hawk before turning to Raven.
His shrewd eyes studied her closely, dissecting her bit by bit. Joseph had a habit of looking into a person’s soul until they felt like specimens underneath a microscope. It could be extremely unsettling, but then again, it was designed to be. It usually worked with almost everyone.
Almost.
Amusement shone in Hawk’s eyes when Raven returned Joseph’s look with a shrewd one of her own. No one looking at her would know just how unnerved she was beneath her cool lawyer’s stare.
That’s my baby.
Joseph’s left brow arched high when she held her ground and refused to cower in front of him. She didn’t know it, but Joseph was impressed, had been since the first time they met in her apartment. Strength was something the Pattel’s admired. Raven had it in abundance.
“Hello, Mr. Pattel,” Raven greeted him in a formal tone.
“Raven,” Joseph nodded. “I thought we agreed that you should call me Joseph.”
“I think under the circumstances I’ll leave it at Mr. Pattel.”
Joseph’s brow lifted in an exact replica of Hawk’s. “And what circumstances would those be?”
“I think we know where we stand with each other, sir.”
It was obvious that her answer was not what Joseph expected but there was little he could do about it. “As you wish,” he replied curtly. Apparently finished with the tug of war conversation, he shrugged and turned to Hawk. “You’re just in time. Mills just drove up. Everyone’s waiting in the great room.”
“You still have no idea about what he wanted to see us about?” Hawk asked as they started towards the manor.
“No.” Joseph glanced back at Raven before walking inside. “But we’re about to find out.”
CHAPTER 37
Entering the room that had been the official gathering spot for the Pattel clan since as long as he could remember, Hawk was oblivious to the elegance surrounding him. That is, until he noticed Raven glancing around. Looking at it through her eyes, the immaculate room with its high cathedral ceilings was larger than most people’s entire apartment. It wasn’t a garish show of wealth that some in their pos
ition had a tendency to flaunt. Instead, the entire mansion was tastefully done with the skills of one of the top decorators in the country. The crème, tan, and brown color scheme was decidedly masculine with blue and sand accents throughout. The furnishings were obviously expensive but chosen to ensure comfort since it was an area heavily used.
Any other time, Hawk was positive Raven would’ve appreciated the warmth and beauty of his family’s home, but under these circumstances that was next to impossible. Especially with Isaac Pattel watching her closely from his usual chair.
Hawk glared at his uncle. The elder Pattel could be just as intimidating as Hawk’s father. Probably even more so. Joseph kept his danger hidden beneath a mask of gentlemanly charm. Isaac didn’t see the need for meaningless facades; he was making that fact known right now. Hawk continued to eye his uncle. They specifically had a conversation about this exact thing just last night. He made it clear how he expected Raven to be treated. Anything else was unacceptable.
Isaac finally finished his scrutiny of Raven. Standing, he greeted her with a nod. “Ms. Randolph. I trust you had a pleasant flight.”
A flicker of surprise crossed Raven’s face. She glanced questioningly up at Hawk before stumbling out a response. “Yes, uh, thank you.”
Isaac glanced mockingly at Hawk. Satisfied? The look seemed to ask.
Shaking his head, Hawk placed a hand at the small of Raven’s back and ushered her to the loveseat. “You hungry? You didn’t eat anything before we left.”
“No,” Raven answered quietly. “I’m too nervous to eat.”
“What about something to drink? ” He asked as one of the servants stood quietly waiting.
“Ummm...a bottle of water is–”
Before she could finish, Jeffery Mills was suddenly shown into the room by the butler. Raven immediately tensed when she saw her former boss. Their gazes clashed and held for several moments before Raven dragged her eyes away.