“True. Knowing Acer, I’m sure he got it all worked out.”
She wrapped her arms around my neck and said, “I’d like to work something out with you.”
“Yeah?”
“Mmm hmm.” Her lips peppered kisses across my chin.
“What might that be?”
“This.” Her hand unzipped my pants and stroked my cock, which had sprung from the prison of my jeans.
“Mmm. I’d like that too.” She dropped to her knees and wrapped her fiery mouth around me. Her tongue licked the sensitive spot near my tip and she slid me in deep as she sucked me off. God, she was a goddess at this. “That’s so good, princess. Yes, like that.”
One hand fisted me as she went down, over and over, until I was close to blowing. “I’m going to come, babe.” She kept at it until I busted one long and hard. “Damn, Scottie. That was really something.”
It was all I could do to rein myself in when she ran her tongue over her glistening lips. “You are the most beautiful woman.” I pulled her to her feet and pushed her backward until her ass hit the bed. “My turn.”
I gave as good as I got. She writhed beneath my ministrations, as I tongued and fingered her to a climax. Before she said a word, my mouth latched onto a nipple and I sucked hard. I had her moaning and squirming again. While my mouth worked her breasts, my fingers brought her to another orgasm. Then I kissed her.
“Your mouth is made for this,” I said. “Perfect lips I dream about.”
“You always know exactly what to say.”
“I only tell the truth and what’s on my mind.”
“Then I’ll tell you what’s on my mind. I don’t believe that one finds love. I believe love finds you. I was fortunate enough for it to find me twice. You may not be my first, Raiden, but I want you to be my last.”
I stared into her eyes, eyes that were windows into her heart, and all I saw was love shining from them.
“Scottie, I never knew love was such a powerful emotion… never dreamed how much it could change my world, until you entered my life. I want us to be each other’s last.”
Her smile lit up my heart like no other. We fell asleep in each other’s arms and woke up that way. I dressed, and she asked where I was going.
“I’ll be back in a few.” I went down to the kitchen and filled a tray with two cups of coffee and some fruit and carried it back up.
She was still in bed when I opened the door. “I figured you deserved some coffee in bed today. Take a little breather.”
“You’re so sweet. Thank you.”
We sat on the bed together, sipping our brews and eating the fruit. It was a pleasure making her happy, and I’d never been in this position before.
Approximately fifteen minutes had passed when my phone rang.
Glancing down, I saw it was my brother, Brax, calling.
“Brax, what’s up?”
“I need help. Someone broke into our house last night, and I’m worried about my wife.”
I shot straight up and caught Scottie’s attention.
“I’m putting you on speaker, explain everything.”
Chapter Thirty-Four
Scottie
Raiden’s brother’s worried voice came through loud and clear, agitating him. I grabbed my phone and texted Drex.
“Raiden’s brother in Atlanta needs help. Burglars hit their house. He’s worried about his wife. We need to bring her here for safety. Raiden is talking to Brax right now.”
Not waiting for an answer, I took a quick shower and dressed. By the time I finished, Raiden was off the phone.
“Drex called and we’re meeting in ten. Thanks for giving him a heads-up.”
“We couldn’t delay on this. What happened?”
“They broke in and demolished the place last night. Luckily, my sister-in-law wasn’t home, but she’s a wreck. They’re both staying with Isla’s brother.”
This pissed me off. “Maybe they all should come.”
Raiden suggested it, but they couldn’t. “They’re playing now.”
I snapped my fingers. “That’s right. It’s football season. I forgot.”
“So did I. He’s not worried because the team will handle their lodging. They don’t want Brax or Isla’s brother alone. They’re far too valuable to the team.”
“Right. Forget about how important their lives are, let’s just put a dollar value on them.” Men and their football.
Raiden shrugged. “What can I say? At least it gives them protection.”
That was hard to argue with since it was the truth.
“Let’s go.”
He reached for my hand. “You go and I’ll meet you. I need a quick shower first.”
I gave him a peck on the lips and was out the door.
Hitting the coffee pot first, I met everyone in the dining room. “Where’s Raiden?” Cruze asked.
“On the way.” He walked in and sat next to me then. I handed him the extra cup of coffee I made.
Drex opened the conversation. “I’ve notified the crew and they should be ready and assembled in an hour and a half. Acer has called Brax, so your sister-in-law will be here by this afternoon.”
“That’s excellent news. We could’ve used our plane,” Raiden said.
“No, ours is already at the Eagle County Airport. I was thinking one of you might want to go so she won’t have to fly back alone.”
Isla and Acer volunteered. That was kind of them, and they knew her the best.
Setting my coffee cup down, I said, “I’d like to suggest something. Instead of waiting until next week to do this film, let’s do it today.”
Gem, Drex, and everyone else objected. “Please hold on a second so I can explain. We won’t use state-of-the-art video images, right?”
Drex nodded.
“Then all we need to do is make her look sufficiently bruised and frightened, add some fake blood, and make her hair look like a rat’s nest. Gemini and I can do that. We won’t need to involve a third party to take that risk. We can haul her bratty butt upstairs with a pillowcase over her head and then set her in a room—I don’t know, maybe the attic or something, and work our magic.”
If I could persuade Drex to my way of thinking, it would be a shoo-in.
“You may have something there,” he said. “I’ll be honest. I’m concerned about having someone from the outside involved and this solves that issue.”
“Exactly. And I’ve done enough Halloween makeup to know it can be done, as long as the fake blood is good.”
“I’ll get someone in the office at WI on it,” Gemini said. “There’s bound to be somewhere to buy stage makeup.”
“Perfect. Then we’re set. Let’s go seek out a room.”
Gemini and I left to snoop around. We found the third story staircase, which was concealed by a door no one had opened. There were several rooms up there the owner built for servant quarters, or a nanny or two. The rooms were empty, so we used sheets to cover the walls and windows, not wanting to give any clues of our location away. Then we brought in some chairs, but the one she’d be sitting on had arms and was a ladderback style so we could tie her up.
Huff called that afternoon and said he had a package for us. It would be delivered in the morning.
“Is it our blood?” I asked.
He chuckled. “That and other goodies. You’ll love what we found.”
“Oooh, we can’t wait.”
The next morning our package arrived. It held all kinds of makeup, but he sent us ski masks for the video and black suits. We both cackled.
Gemini held one ski mask up. “It’s not like we’ll be in the video. Besides, they already know what we look like.”
“I think it’s brilliant. I want to scare the little shit.”
“You’re so mean.”
“Maybe, but that kid is spoiled rotten.”
“Hey, how would you act if someone kidnapped you?” She asked a valid question, and perhaps I was too harsh on the child.
“Now you’re making me feel guilty.”
“I have a confession to make. I’ve felt guilty about this all along.”
“You have?”
“Yes. I had the worst childhood. My mother was fearful someone would come and kidnap me any time, so I was never allowed to do anything. And here I am a kidnapper myself.”
“Wow. I didn’t know that about you.” There was a lot more she wasn’t telling me. Why would her mom be so concerned about that? What was in her past she wasn’t sharing? I didn’t pursue it though. I figured if she wanted me to know, she’d tell me when the time was right.
“Yeah. I feel for the kid. You don’t get a choice in life who your parents are. She just had bad luck in having an O’Brien as a grandfather.”
“You’re right. I’ll try to be kinder to her.”
“And her mother?” Gem asked.
“Her too. If you’re worried about your kid, you’ll do just about anything to save them.”
She took my hand in hers. “I’m sure. You would know too.”
And did I ever. My heart twisted in pain as I thought about my daughter, the one I’d never see again. Who had her? Did they love her when she needed it? Did they hold her when she was afraid or sick? Were they good parents to her?
“Hey, you okay?”
“Sorry.” I shook myself out of the past. “I’m back. I couldn’t help thinking about…” My voice drifted off.
“I’m sorry I mentioned it.”
“You shouldn’t be. I’m sorry I’ve been so insensitive to the girl. This has opened my eyes.”
“Hey, when we do this tomorrow, we have to clear the house. No one can see us bring her up here.”
Gem was right. We didn’t need that, and with Reynolds coming, it might make things more complicated. Isla could distract them. I told Gem, and she agreed.
“We can talk it over with Isla when they get back.”
Raiden was waiting for me when I got back downstairs.
“Everything okay?”
“We have it all set. The only thing, we’ll need the women to be away so they don’t see us bringing her to the third level.”
He agreed.
“How about a walk? There’s a beautiful garden out back.”
“I’d love it.”
We left and meandered through the flower garden and then further out.
“This property is vast.”
He stopped and took both of my hands in his. “Would you enjoy living out in the country? I mean, when everything is behind us?”
“I’m not sure. I’ve never lived this far away from things before. What about you?”
“I’m the same. While the house is grand and it’s beautiful, I like the conveniences of restaurants and things to do the city offers.”
“Like work.”
“Ha, yes. I love my work. It doesn’t feel like work to me. I enjoy getting new business too. I never thought of myself as a salesperson, but together, Cruze and I make a killer team.”
That was easy to believe, especially if their clients were women. “I’m sure. You certainly sold me on you.”
“I did?”
“You sure did.”
“You didn’t have to sell me. I fell hard before I knew what hit me. You wielded a serious weapon, Scottie.”
“Weapon? I have no weapon.”
“Oh, yeah, you do and it’s right between your legs.”
I had no response for him.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Raiden
When Reynolds walked off the plane, she was a ghost of her former self. I had no idea things were that strained.
“Reynolds,” I called out. She ran straight into my arms.
“Raiden. Thank you for helping me out, but I didn’t want to leave Brax.”
“He’s fine. Everything will be fine. I’m sure Isla and Acer filled you in on the house.”
“Yeah, but it’s been so stressful lately. I wish this would end.”
“It will. Come on, let’s get you to your temporary home and settled in.”
The drive was about forty minutes and when we got home, I introduced her to everyone, which was overwhelming. She looked exhausted. Mom took her to the bedroom we’d chosen for her, and that was the last we heard from her.
Isla and Acer filled us in on how frightened she’d been. “It took almost the entire flight before she stopped trembling. They really did some major damage to their house,” Isla explained. She pulled out her phone and showed us the photos Reynolds had shared. I wasn’t surprised, considering who we were dealing with.
“I’m just relieved neither of them were there,” I said.
“Same here,” Scottie answered, reaching for my hand.
Acer’s anger radiated from him as he clenched his jaw. This was the first time, other than the day at dinner, where I’d seen him close to losing his temper.
Scottie squeezed my hand. She’d noticed it too.
“Gemini and I are going to video the girl tomorrow. The supplies came today, so can you please keep the women out of the way.”
“What do you mean?” Isla asked.
“They don’t want anyone seeing them taking her upstairs,” I explained.
“Why don’t you use the back staircase?” she asked.
“What back staircase?” Scottie and I both asked simultaneously.
“Come on, I’ll show you.”
We followed Isla through the kitchen and then pantry. There was a door inside leading to a mudroom. We hadn’t noticed the other door off the mudroom. It was conveniently near the basement door, and it opened up to another set of stairs, which led up to both floors.
“I can’t believe we missed this,” Scottie said.
“Blame it on my snoopy self for finding it,” Isla responded.
“This is perfect. I can’t wait to show Gem.”
When we were back in the kitchen, Drex walked in for some water. Scottie asked him where Gemini was.
“In the dining room. We just finished a call with Huff.”
We followed him back in there, where Scottie mentioned the other staircase.
Then Cruze came in and soon the room became crowded with the rest of the family, minus Reynolds.
Dinner was served not much later and after we ate, Cruze, Acer, and I called Brax to see how he was doing.
“Thanks for getting my wife today. How is she?”
“Asleep. She crashed when she got here and we haven’t seen her since,” I said.
“Yeah, that’s what she said she would do. She’s been stressed.”
“Hey, Brax, you don’t have to worry about her. This place is a vault, and we’ll keep her safe. We are all worried about you, though. You sure you’ll be okay?”
“Yeah, Lenox and I are in the penthouse suite of…”
“Don’t tell us,” I blurted. “It’s need to know.”
“Right.”
“And we wanted to suggest you get rid of your phone, Lenox too, and get burners for now so your calls can’t be traced. Don’t contact us from your personal computer either.”
“Got it. Thanks for the heads-up.”
“Don’t worry, bro, this should be over soon, and we’ll get your wife back to you.”
That night, we reviewed the plans for the following day and called it a night.
Exhaustion claimed Scottie, so we both fell asleep quickly. I’d drawn the blackout shades before we’d gotten into bed, so her ringing phone woke us.
“Yeah?”
Rubbing my eyes, I checked the time as she climbed out of bed, chatting on the phone. It surprised me to see it was after nine.
I heard the shower turn on, so I entered the bathroom. “Everything okay?”
She chuckled. “I got scolded for sleeping too late. Gemini has been waiting on me for an hour.”
“Oops.”
“I didn’t apologize. I haven’t slept this long in ages. It felt great.”
“It’s the blackout shades. They work wonders.”
“Maybe too good.” She turned off the water and walked out. With her glistening skin, all I wanted to do was lick her. “Hey, don’t get any ideas. If I take any more time, this video thing won’t happen.”
I held up my hands and walked out. If I didn’t, I’d do something we’d both pay for.
Scottie dressed and left the room. I took my shower and went down to grab some breakfast.
Drex was there on the phone. I said nothing until he was off.
“How’s it going?”
“O’Brien made contact.”
The coffee cup in my hand almost crashed to the floor. “Say what?”
“Yeah. He’s threatened to bomb your headquarters. We’ve notified the local law enforcement, the FBI, and Homeland Security.”
There was a brick lodged in my throat and all the air in my lungs had whooshed out. I couldn’t speak.
“They’re combing the building now and have stopped anyone from entering. Deliveries are canceled, and if any came in, they’re inspecting them. They’re scanning the area around the building as well.”
When speech returned, the only two words I said were, “My people.”
“Are being evacuated.”
“We need to release that video today.”
“Raiden, they’re working on it.”
“What about your place?”
“We’re evacuating too. I was on the phone with Huff, making sure he backed up all the data.”
Shaking my head, I said, “This has to end. What if this doesn’t work?”
“Then we negotiate?”
“How? With what?”
“I don’t know. I’m at a loss too.”
Those were words that made my skin chill. I never thought I’d hear Drex Wolfe run out of options.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Scottie
The young girl, who cursed like a sailor, was afraid. I wanted to be kinder to her, but she made it damn difficult. She spit, swore, and kicked us all the way to the third floor. We’d blindfolded and gagged her, but once up there, when we took the gag off, all hell broke loose. She was a demon unleashed.
Gemini bound her hands, and she bruised my shins until I had her tied to the chair.
Raiden: A Stand Alone, Irish Mob Crime Romance (The Kent Brothers Book 2) Page 19