“Douglas reassured me he was on top of things. He’s working with Cade’s people to dismantle Warwick’s system. Chances are he’s working with other prisoners and their visitors.” He let go of her waist and gripped her hand. “Let’s change and get the hell out of here before anyone else delays us.”
“Don’t you mean my relatives?” Her eyes twinkled as though she was struggling hard not to laugh.
“Yeah, they seem to pop up like daisies when we least expect them,” he murmured.
“Pop up?” She bumped him with her shoulder. “That’s mean.”
He led her out of the den, past the side door to the secret stairs. He scooped her up and started upstairs. “The next ones might be from your daredevil grandfather’s side. I don’t think I can take any more surprises.”
“I’m sure they won’t trump Great-Uncle Gagliano.” She started to laugh, arms tightening around his neck. “The entire time he was talking, I kept thinking he whacked people on a daily basis.”
They entered the bedroom, and he kicked the door shut. He lowered her on the floor by the bed, and she plopped onto it, laughing hard. Only Jillian would be amused by the revelation that she had the mafia in her family tree. He shed his tux and bowtie.
Lex walked to the foot of the bed and studied her while undoing the buttons of his shirt. She was unlike any woman he’d ever known, and she was his. Their lives would never be boring.
“I wonder if he knows someone in San Quentin,” she said, sobering. She sat up, gripped the waistband of his pants, and pulled him closer, her eyes searching his. “He could whack Warwick for us and make him sleep with the fishes.”
Lex caressed her cheek. “You are too beautiful to spend the rest of your life in jail. Unless we run for the border.”
“And live in a cute little hut in a quaint village in the middle of nowhere.” She turned her head and kissed the palm of his hand. “Of course, you’d redesign all their huts and create a little paradise.”
Probably. He tended to see possibilities in the most decrepit buildings, but he’d be perfectly happy anywhere as long as she was with him. He ran a finger down her nose past her lush lips, lifted her chin, and kissed her. She hummed, sending heat through his veins.
“I love you, Lex,” she whispered.
His chest tightened. “Always.”
He got up and pulled her to her feet, then turned her around. He started on the hooks. The gown parted and exposed more skin. The curve of her back was distracting, the silkiness of her skin begging for his touch. He lowered his head and mapped her skin with his lips. He traced the edge of her gown to the strap and eased it over her shoulder. He nipped her exposed shoulder, and she shuddered. Her skin was flawless. Soft.
He lifted her hair and left a trail across her shoulder, nipping and laving her skin with his tongue. He moved lower as he lowered the gown until it pooled at her feet and he was on his knees. The white stockings and garter belt against her lushness kicked things up a notch. He wanted her now.
“I don’t think we are going anywhere for a while, babe. The honeymoon starts now.”
She glanced over her shoulder at him. “Isn’t Mathews waiting for us?”
“He can file a new flight plan,” he growled, running a hand up her stockinged leg. He rubbed his face against her skin, the scent of her arousal hitting him hard. He slid a hand between her legs and stroked her through her silk panties. “Hmm, you smell amazing. Feel hot and ready for me. I need you now.”
“Thank God.” She stepped away from her wedding gown and reached up to remove the tiara her grandmother had given her. She placed it carefully on the side table and closed the gap between them. “I didn’t want to wait either, but I was trying to be the obedient wife.”
A dutiful Jillian? Scary thought. He removed the clips pinning her hair up, and it fell to her shoulder in gentle waves. “I noticed you hesitated before saying obey when we exchanged our vows.”
“The rebel in me will have a problem with that, but times like this…” She spread her hands across his chest, over his shoulders, and locked them behind his neck. “I’m willing to obey.”
“Kiss me,” he ordered, and she did, exploring his mouth with a hunger that set his pulse racing. He lowered her to the bed and followed, his heart thumping harder as though this was their first time together. In a way it was. It was their first time as a married couple, and he wanted it to be special.
He rolled over so she was on top, his hands drifting down to her perfect ass. She wiggled, rubbing against his erection. He groaned.
“No teasing me tonight,” he warned.
“I need to remove my stockings and—”
“No. Stockings and garter stay on. Husband’s orders.” He caressed his way up her back, appreciating the tiny shudders that rocked her. He threaded his fingers through her hair and made love to her mouth, her lush lips. She moaned and pressed against him.
He rolled her over and moved lower, laving her neck with his tongue. He paid homage to her breasts, reducing her nipples to tight nubs.
Someone rattled on the bedroom door just as he scooped her up. “Go away.”
“Sorry, sir,” Troy said from the other side of the door. “It’s urgent. You’re needed downstairs.”
CHAPTER 18
Jillian watched her husband disappear out the door and groaned. He just had to leave her hot and tingly. She needed him back in her arms, focusing on her needs, not racing downstairs to take care of others.
Sighing, she scooted to the edge of the bed. She might as well join him.
Her suitcases were missing. The last time she saw them, they’d been in the closet. Instead of her getaway outfits, a gorgeous maxi print dress with a slit on the side was laid out on the chaise lounge and beside it were designer high-heeled shoes she’d admired in a magazine a few days ago in Vancouver. Troy must have talked. The note said:
I hope you love it, Lex
She slipped on the shoes and grinned while studying her reflection. She stepped into the dress and pulled it up. She was working on the zipper when a knock resounded and Troy called out, “Are you dressed?”
“Come in. I could use your help.”
He entered the room with two flutes and champagne in a wine bucket. “I’ve been ordered to keep you entertained until Mr. Fitzgerald comes back upstairs.”
She chuckled. “I don’t need to be entertained, Troy. And whose champagne is that? You know me and alcohol don’t mix.” She gave him her back. “Zip me up, please.”
He zipped her up and lifted her hair out of the way. “You made such a beautiful bride.” He sounded so close. She turned and caught him sniffing her hair. “Smells nice. No one was dry-eyed by the time you kissed,” he added.
“They were laughing that hard?”
“You have a sick sense of humor.” He popped the champagne. “It was the way you openly admitted to knowing you were meant for each other when you first met. I want that one day.”
“You’ll get it.” She hugged him. “I might hate all this publicity, but he’s worth it.”
“Someone already leaked pictures of you in your wedding dress to the press and it’s trending. Hashtag fairytale wedding. They love the gown. They want to know who did your hair.”
Jillian didn’t let the leaks bother her. Nothing was going to ruin this day, not even nosy press. “They’ll lose interest now that we’re married.”
“I doubt it. They already know your family will be performing at the Staples Center on Armed Forces Day. I didn’t get a chance to toast your wedding, so you owe me.” He handed her a flute of champagne and raised his. “To the beginning of your beautiful, charmed life, and partnership. And thank you for making me a part of it.”
“That was beautiful, Troy.” She took a tiny sip. It tasted sweeter than the one they’d served during the speeches and toasts. “Hmm, this is not so bad.”
“Then finish it. Don’t make me finish the bottle all by myself.” He tilted the base of her glass, forcing her t
o guzzle most of the drink.
“Enough,” Jillian said, laughing. “You finish the bottle.”
“Sit down with me.” He nudged her toward the sitting area and pushed her onto a sofa, then poured more champagne into her glass. “I want to hear more about how you two met since we’ll never have a chance to talk like this again.”
“Well, I refused to go out with Lex the first time he asked. Whoa, what do you mean we won’t have a chance to talk like this? Are you thinking of leaving me?”
“Not willingly,” he said, his eyes not leaving her.
Jillian frowned. “Did you just say ‘not willingly?’ Is Douglas giving you a hard time because you didn’t report to him? I told him to take it easy. I like you, and you are not going anywhere, mister.” She pointed at him. “Not over something as ridiculous as not reporting to Douglas.” She sipped more of her drink.
“Douglas is a lot smarter than I thought,” Troy said. He sounded sad.
“He is. Why would you think he wasn’t?”
“I played him and won. I worked my ass off for six months at MSTC to impress him because he always chooses his best students whenever he needs legwork. I knew it was just a matter of time before he picked me, but your presence accelerated the process.”
“What are you talking about? What is MSTC? And what’s wrong with your voice? You sound different.”
This was why she never drank alcohol. She had zero tolerance. She placed her glass on the side table and then tried to focus on Troy. He blurred out, then swung back into focus. A ringing started in her ears, so when he talked, she couldn’t hear a thing. Jillian stuck a finger in her ear and wiggled it.
“What did you say?” she asked.
“I said this is my normal voice.” Troy got up and put his drink down. There seemed to be several of him, before they coalesced into one. “I’m really sorry you got caught in this mess. I like you and I wouldn’t have minded working for you, but I had to choose between you and my brother. He needs me; you don’t. So he won.”
Jillian frowned. Nothing Troy said made sense. He also kept shifting in and out of focus faster. What does he mean by normal voice? Was he pretending to be gay? She’d stripped in front of him. And why was she thinking about that now?
“Your brother is dead, Troy. You said so during my bachelorette party.”
“I said I lost him. Not the same thing. I lost him to the penal system. Don’t worry. Nothing bad is going to happen to you. Once Lex does what Warwick wants, they’ll let you go.”
Warwick? Troy was the one working with Warwick. Jillian tried to get up, but the floor appeared to move and she lost her balance. Her elbow connected with the side table, sending pain radiating up her arm. The pain gave her a moment of clarity. Troy’s glass was still full. She couldn’t even remember him drinking from it, but he’d insisted she drink her glass of champagne and had even replenished it.
“You drugged me,” Jillian said. Her voice sounded strange, and her words were slurred.
“Same drug cocktail my girls put in Lex’s drink a few nights ago.” Troy gripped her arm and pulled her back to her seat.
Jillian wrenched her arm away, but she was growing weak fast and couldn’t break his grip. She was also processing information at a slower rate. Soon, she’d black out. She opened her mouth and screamed, but no sound escaped her. Troy had slapped his hand over her mouth.
“Damn it! You’re supposed to have blacked out by now,” he snapped. “I put enough drugs in your glass to knock out a horse.”
Jillian jerked her head sideways and sunk her teeth in his hand. He cursed, but his grip didn’t loosen. She pushed, kicked, and wiggled, but the world tilted and she lost balance. Troy fell on top of her, and the sound of breaking glass filled the air.
Her heart pounding, Jillian fought to stay conscious even as darkness crept into her periphery. Everything Troy had done played in her head like a B-movie. He’d hired the girls at Sloan’s party, which meant he’d hired the dancers at her bachelorette party, too. Was he even attacked that night, or had he just hidden somewhere and played the victim?
Fun, eager-to-please Troy. She should have listened to Chris. He’d warned her not to trust Troy. He’d probably seen through his fake gay act.
“Now look what you’ve done,” were the last words she heard before she blacked out.
~*~
“Follow the others to Torrance Memorial,” Lex said and closed the limo door.
He stepped back and glanced around, rage burning through him. He wanted to rip Warwick apart. When Troy had told him he was urgently needed downstairs, he’d thought another relative of Jillian’s had appeared. Instead, he’d found his guests doubled over in their seats and curled up on the ground clutching their stomachs in pain.
The chaos around him was heartbreaking. Cars were no longer in the driveway. They were lined up on the lawn and flowerbeds. As soon as one filled up, they took off for the ER.
How the fuck had Warwick’s people bypassed security measures Douglas had set in place and poisoned his guests? The question was driving Lex crazy. He hadn’t had a chance to talk to Douglas, but someone had better have answers.
The only thing Lex knew was that the poisoning had happened in the last hour and the medium had to have been alcohol. He, Jillian, Chris Lander, and Finnegan were in the den with the former crime lord at the time and weren’t affected. And the children were okay, according to Dom. Most of them were inside the house somewhere under Jade’s care. She didn’t drink.
His family and friends refused to leave until everyone was taken care of even though they were in pain, too. Lex didn’t bother to argue with them even though they looked like hell. Rake had quit drinking after college and was not affected. He was using the helicopter to transport the sick. Sloan drank, just not champagne. Since he’d escaped unscathed and was coordinating things at the hospital, whoever did this must have laced the champagne.
Lex glanced up at his bedroom balcony. Knowing he couldn’t protect Jillian from Warwick and his people ate at him. He might not have answers about how they had sneaked into his home, but he would break the news to her gently. He was sending her to Armenia with her grandmother until Warwick was no longer a threat.
He went in search of Mrs. Petrosian. The last time he’d seen the woman, she’d been with his mother helping some Armenians into a limo. The pavilion was almost empty. Dom was helping a woman—one of the circus people—to her feet.
“Has Douglas found anything?” he asked.
Lex shook his head. Dom looked like hell, but he wasn’t leaving until the last person left. “I haven’t spoken to him. Have you seen my mother or Mrs. Petrosian?”
“They’re in the house with Jade and the children.”
Lex passed the catering crew by the pool. From the looks of things, Douglas’ men were grilling them like they were responsible for the catastrophe. Deanne, who’d catered the event, had red eyes like she’d been crying. On a different day, Lex would have reassured her. Today, everyone was a suspect.
Lex went straight to the home theater. Nemo and Dory from the film Finding Nemo were on the screen. His first date with Jillian flashed in his head. That had been weeks ago, yet he remembered every expression on her face. Every sound. Every gesture. That was the night he’d asked her to be his wife and offered her a pittance. She could have asked for the world and he would have laid it at her feet. That was how much he’d wanted her. It had all been about sex then.
Now he couldn’t imagine life without her, yet he had to send her away. On the day of their wedding. It was insane, but he couldn’t knowingly keep her with him when he’d failed to protect her. She could have been one of the people writhing in agony at the hospital because of that asshole and his people. As long as Jillian was with him, her life would be in danger.
Lex pushed his thoughts aside and searched for Mrs. Petrosian in the darkened room. His sister was carrying one of the babies, but her twins sat close to her. Jade didn’t touch alcohol because
of her heart. To her left was his mother with another baby. The baby was asleep. But the surprise was Mrs. Petrosian. Lex could have sworn the woman hated children, yet Jillian’s niece was curled up on her lap. Sophia must have gravitated toward her when her mother and father became ill. Mrs. Petrosian also seemed okay, but his mother looked like hell. Knowing her, she was trying to be strong for her grandchildren when she ought to be at the hospital.
Lex went to his mother and took the baby. Jade indicated a playpen by the wall, and Lex carefully placed the boy in it and covered him.
“Come with me,” he told his mother, but she shook her head. “They need you, Mom, but you don’t want them to see you like this. The sooner you take the treatment, the better you’ll feel. Then you can do what you do best. Watch over all of us.”
His younger cousins glanced at him then his mother. He saw the questions in their eyes. Questions he couldn’t answer yet. He helped his mother to her feet and led her out of the room. As soon as the door closed behind them, he picked her up.
“Put me down, Lex,” she protested.
“You’re close to falling flat on your face, Mom. How are the cramps?”
“Not so bad, and I can walk, you silly boy. You have a wife to carry now, not me. Where’s Jillian?”
“Upstairs with Troy.” He pressed a kiss on her temple. “And I’m allowed to carry you, until you remarry and become someone else’s responsibility.”
Silence followed. Usually, she’d be insulted that he dared to insinuate she needed a man to take care of her. This time, she buried her face in his shoulder. Before they reached the helicopter, he realized she was crying.
Lex cursed Warwick to hell and back. His mother was one of the strongest women he knew. She’d worked so hard to make this wedding happen, even putting up with a change in venue, and now this. She must be devastated. The fact that she didn’t ask who’d want to ruin his wedding said that she already knew the answer.
“I noticed you’ve been spending a lot of time in Vegas,” he said, hoping to distract her. “I thought your plus-one was going to be a certain silver-haired business associate of mine.”
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