Jaxson: A Romantic Suspense (V Mafia Series Book 3)

by Karice Bolton

  I didn’t understand why, but I suddenly got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach as she edged closer.

  And then it hit me.

  This was Jaxson’s mother.

  What I’d read about her scared me to death. In fact, she was the woman behind the entire Volkov operation, dirty work included. She excelled in pulling the trigger from far away while all eyes were pointed in the opposite direction.

  From all appearances, Jaxson ran the business during the day and kept the streets calm at night, but the person sitting behind the veil and ensuring her family never had to want was his mother.

  The Volkov brothers, no doubt, owed their good fortune to their parents and grandparents. The V Mafia was a family enterprise, which made it even more curious to me how they’d gotten away with so much for so long.

  Mrs. Volkov drew a breath and let it out slowly as she stood directly in front of us, clutching a glass of champagne and eyeing us both. I waited for some sort of introduction, but none came.

  “I despise these events,” she muttered under her breath before leaning over to kiss both of her son’s cheeks. “How are you doing tonight?”

  “Doing well.” He nodded and scanned the crowd before bringing his eyes back to me. “This is Elena Egorov.”

  “So you’re the woman who’s piqued—”

  “No need for that,” Jaxson cut off his mother, and I stifled a laugh. “She actually came across some valuable information regarding Harner’s niece.”

  He slid his hand down his lapel, but it was too late. I’d learned that I’d been mentioned to his mother, and that made me extremely pleased.

  And frightened.

  “Is that so?” His mother raised a brow. “Is that why she’s by your side tonight? For Harner’s benefit?”

  A trace of humor ran through her gaze as she watched her son square his shoulders.

  “I was wondering that myself. It’s not every day a woman gets asked to a fundraiser by one of the city’s most eligible bachelors.” I took a sip of champagne and waited for his reply.

  His mother laughed and nodded, seemingly amused by my response.

  “Partially.” Jaxson traded a kind smile with his mom, and I reminded myself to take a breath.

  “So you’ve seen that article too?” His mom chuckled and shook her head. “I don’t know that I believed half of what was in that magazine.”

  “You should probably believe none of it.” Jaxson smiled, and I saw a glint of surprise flash through his gaze as his mother patted his back.

  “Do you have any plans for the upcoming weekend?” His mother’s eyes fell to mine, and I realized everything I had planned for the weekend involved digging up information about her son.

  “My sister is in town, so I’m going to take her around the city.”

  She reached her hand forward and touched my wrist. “Dear, you should take her to see the Nicholas Roerich Museum on the Upper West Side. They might even be having a poetry reading or a concert. His story is fascinating and the artwork is brilliant. The man had so many passions. In fact, he collected prehistoric artifacts, minerals, and coins.”

  There were very few moments I felt out of my league, but this was verging on one of them. It was as if his mother knew of my family’s connection to the art world and that of collecting. My blood chilled as I pushed away the ridiculous thought. This wasn’t a subversive message from her, but the coincidence was hard to ignore.

  Growing up, my parents owned their own company, which they still ran today with my sister. My family dealt mostly in European antiquities, and because of their unique specialty, we were afforded many trips overseas and unexpected friendships with some of the world’s wealthiest individuals. In fact, their wealth created my family’s wealth.

  “Thank you.” I nodded. “I’ll have to fit that in.”

  Jaxson turned to face me. “For the record, your lead this morning turned out to be solid. I have a team heading up to Rochester as we speak.”

  “Does the councilman know?” I asked, relieved to be on to a different topic.

  “He does.”

  “Good of you to take the time to help, dear. It’s not often people go out of their way to assist others in their time of need. Even politicians have souls, or so I’ve heard. I’ve yet to see one.” She flashed a devious grin and Jaxson shook his head.

  I laughed and nodded, still feeling completely unsettled, as his mother turned and walked away.

  It felt like the biggest weight had been lifted when she disappeared into the growing crowd of sequins and silk. When I realized Jaxson was watching me, my cheeks flushed and I looked at him.

  “She’s a beautiful woman.” I held my nearly empty champagne glass and hoped I could spot the server for a refill.

  “I was surprised she came tonight. She hates politicians, but I think she feels she should show support with Harner’s niece and all.”

  I nodded and scanned the room, noticing all the people clamoring to be seen and heard by the who’s who of the city. A server walked by and took the empty champagne glass from my hand while I reached for a full one.

  “Why did you really invite me? I’m sure you have plenty of women lining up to give you what you want.”

  “How do you know what I want?” His dark brows shot up and a faint smile touched his lips.

  “I’ve got a hunch.” I took another sip of the bubbly and felt my head spin. “I did read your bio in that magazine.”

  His laughter brought several pairs of prying eyes, and he took a step closer.

  “And you don’t think you could give me that?” He set his large hand on my shoulder and a current pulsed through me. Even the way he innocently touched me held a note of sensuality that I’d never experienced before. It was unnerving.

  And tempting.

  “I know I couldn’t.” I was being completely honest.

  He sucked on his bottom lip, and my eyes stayed on his mouth a beat too long.

  “I’m not so sure about that.” He touched my chin, and my breath caught in the back of my throat.

  I had to get over this with him—whatever this was—and concentrate on how best to get what I needed from him. It wasn’t like I thought I could trick a confession out of him, but I knew I had a chance at pulling enough pieces of information out of him to paint a picture of the man I believed him to be. If nothing else, this man could be tried in the court of public opinion since our public servants had failed my cousin so miserably.

  A cold, calculating, ruthless killer.

  That was who was standing in front of me. He might be better at hiding it than most, but that didn’t make his actions any less atrocious.

  “If you don’t support Harner, what made you come tonight?”

  His smile turned wicked. “I never said I didn’t support the man. I support any man who’ll help out our causes.”

  “What causes are those?” My heart skipped a beat.

  “Depends on the day.” His eyes narrowed on mine, and I became mindful of how quickly his opinion of me could change. “The homeless crisis, women’s equality, education…” His voice trailed off, catching my expression. “Not the answers you were hoping for?”

  His question shocked the seriousness of the situation into me.

  “Sounds just like the article I read.” I smiled and kept my breathing steady. “You certainly know the image you want out there, don’t you?”

  “What other image would there be?” His lip curled slightly as he canvassed the room. “I’m as real as they come, baby.”

  The cockiness from the first night I met him flashed through his gaze, and my chest tightened. His charisma could be deadly.

  “So, why don’t you answer my question? Why did you invite me tonight?” I asked again.

  “You make me curious,” he answered simply, and I took a sip of champagne.

  “Curious about what?”

  “You. You’re beguiling.” His eyes stayed on mine, and I felt my body temperature rise. “
Frankly, I don’t believe most of what’s come out of your mouth since I met you, yet here you are.”

  “Have some trust issues?” I only half-joked.

  “Yeah, actually. I do.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind.”

  I noticed Harner schmoozing the crowd and my stomach turned. If he was around, so were his female cronies, and I really had no interest in bumping into either woman again.

  “Let’s go visit with the man of the hour.” He laced his fingers through mine, and we made our way over to the councilman. I didn’t see either woman from the other night, which made me slightly calmer.

  Harner was standing next to the glass doors leading to an outdoor terrace.

  “Mr. Volkov.” Harner threw his hands into the air and excused himself from the group he’d been mingling with. “I didn’t expect to see you here tonight, and I certainly didn’t expect to be graced with your mother’s presence.”

  I noticed Jaxson’s jaw twitch and his grip tighten.

  “We wanted to show our support. May we step outside?”

  “Of course.” The councilman quickly nodded and pushed open the door that led to the expansive terrace.

  Several elaborately pruned boxwoods in cement pots sectioned off the terrace. Seating areas took advantage of the rare city view, but the slight nip in the evening air kept me from wanting to stay outdoors long.

  Once the door had closed, Jaxson began.

  “I know this is a difficult time for you with everything going on.” Jaxson gave a slight nod, and the man looked in my direction, suddenly skittish. “I think we have many good leads to follow. I feel confident we’ll get the answers you need.”

  I noticed he didn’t mention finding his niece as part of the promise.

  “Thank you. I know you must be working hard on this, and my sister and I are eternally grateful. It’s hard to believe my niece would do this to her parents and family. Missy was such a sweet girl growing up.” Harner glanced at me and brought his gaze back to Jaxson’s. “Also, Detective Larren will be in touch with you.”

  “Already has been. Spoke with him on the way over. Told him about our Rochester lead brought to us by Ms. Egorov.” Jaxson was telling Harner very little.

  “Good, good.” Harner glanced over my shoulder toward the ballroom and sucked in a breath, returning his attention back to Jaxson. “Your discretion and loyalty won’t go unrewarded.”

  “Which reminds me.” Jaxson let go of my hand and closed the gap between him and the councilman. The tension in the air became thick. “If you or your people come around Elena again, the press will have an absolute field day with exactly where those missing funds went. Got that?”

  I stood quietly in shock as Harner nearly cowered in front of Jaxson.

  “This woman, or any, for that matter, doesn’t deserve to have someone beating down her door and slinging threats in her direction,” Jaxson continued. “You’re not above the law.”

  I kept my face expressionless at the irony of that statement coming from the head of one of the most ruthless criminal organizations in the state.

  “I had no way of knowing she was with—” Harner stuttered.

  Jaxson’s eyes gave more of a warning than his words ever could.

  “I’ll let it slide this time, and I’ll continue to help with the search for your niece, but I won’t put up with my people being bullied. Understood?”

  My people?

  “Completely understood.” Harner’s lip trembled slightly just as I saw Carmella strut onto the terrace with a predatory ease. The same wicked expression plastered her face as she made her way over, her smug gaze settling on me.

  She slid her tongue against her bottom lip and crossed her arms as her eyes stayed on mine. “If it isn’t our little true—”

  “Enough.” Harner cut off Carmella.

  “I meant no—” Her expression instantly froze at his look.

  “That’s more than enough,” Harner repeated.

  Her mouth parted, but she slammed it shut and quickly slinked back inside, not giving me another look.

  My heart was still pounding from Carmella’s almost-revelation. I was pretty certain Jaxson hadn’t bothered in the time since we’d last seen one another to look up what I did for a living. Not that it would be immediately apparent, since I used a different surname online, but it wasn’t a chance I wanted to take.

  “If you’ll excuse me, I need to make my rounds.” The councilman touched his bowtie and cleared his throat. “Thank you for bringing this matter to my attention, and I apologize, Ms. Egorov.”

  I nodded.

  “Absolutely.” Jaxson tilted his head and motioned for the councilman to walk around him, which Harner did without another word.

  “Well, that was unexpected,” I told Jaxson once the councilman went inside.

  During the entire ordeal, I’d managed to step closer to Jaxson, so much so that if I moved just a few inches to my right, I’d find myself in his arms.

  “Which part?” he asked, his eyes darkening as he stepped even closer to me and turned to face me.

  “That you’d threaten the councilman.”

  “It wasn’t a threat, only a warning.” His eyes stayed locked on mine, and I felt my pulse quicken but not because I was scared.

  I was turned on, and I hated myself for it.

  My gaze dropped to the patio, but his finger tilted my chin back up.

  “I don’t believe even half of what’s come out of your mouth since I met you.” He stopped short and drew a breath. “Yet, I love hearing your voice.”

  Jaxson’s blue eyes darkened as his gaze fell to my mouth.

  My teeth bit into my lips as I fought the urge to fall into something I couldn’t get out of, but there was something about being in his presence that was mesmerizing and completely unexplainable.

  I closed my eyes and felt his lips coming near. I wanted to be kissed by him, but I knew that was too dangerous and completely outrageous.

  I needed more answers.

  I needed him to trust me.

  Eventually, my plan would lead to this, but I wasn’t ready. Not now.

  With my eyes still closed, I muttered, “Harner is the one who paid Missy’s tuition. He also put down money on an apartment.”

  I blinked open my eyes, and Jaxson went rigid as my words hit him.

  “Son of a bitch,” Jaxson breathed. “He’s playing us.”

  “Or he just wanted to get his niece out of the city for the sake of less mess and she really did happen to go missing.”

  “One way or another, I’ll get to the bottom of it.” He slid his phone out of his pocket, and I knew I’d dodged trouble for at least another night.

  Chapter Eight

  Jaxson

  I glanced up from my phone as my brothers made their way into the room. I’d arrived at our family’s estate in Oyster Cove, about an hour’s drive from the city, and I was sitting in the study waiting for them.

  “Hey, man.” Blake waved and walked over to the blue leather wingback next to me and took a seat while my two other brothers, Drake and Devin, sat down on the couch in front of us.

  My mother had recently redecorated the room, but it still looked about the same to me with the same built-in bookshelves wrapping the walls and a large, antique walnut desk sitting squarely in front of the window that overlooked the gardens. Her version of warming up a room generally only involved darker colors and more wood. My mother wasn’t a frilly kind of woman unless it came to her grandchild.

  “So, what’s up?” Devin asked, leaning forward and propping his elbows on his knees. “What’s so important that we couldn’t eat first?”

  I laughed and shook my head, knowing he was only partially kidding.

  Our family tried to have as many Sunday dinners as possible, especially now that so many of my brothers were growing their families. My mother loved being a grandmother, and any excuse to bring us to Oyster Cove worked for her.

  We used to use our Sun
day dinners to go over business matters, but now we tried to cover that before we sat at the table. It was quite the change for the Volkovs.

  “Harner’s screwing us over,” I told my brothers. “He’s been sending our men on a wild goose chase around the city.”

  “How?” Drake’s brows pulled together.

  I loved all of my brothers, but he was the one who was most like me when it came to business. He always went straight to the matter without sidestepping issues. Unlike my other brothers, he knew when to mess around and when to come to the plate ready to work.

  “Are you saying he actually knows what happened to her?” he pressed.

  I worked my hands together and leaned back. “I’m not sure what he does or doesn’t know at this point. He managed to leave out that he’d paid for an apartment for his niece up in Rochester where she’d recently enrolled in some classes, which he also paid for. She’d met some boyfriend in rehab, and that’s where he lived, so she followed him up there. He never mentioned any of this to me.”

  Drake blew out a slow breath and shoved his hands through his dark hair. “Makes no sense. Why would Harner call you to help and then not tell you everything you need to know to help find her?”

  “Maybe he doesn’t really want her found?” Devin offered, standing up and walking over to the window. “The girl has some big problems. The kind of problems most politicians wish would go away.”

  Devin turned around and glanced at Blake, who was nodding in agreement.

  “Should we start looking at the councilman?” Blake asked. “Because I can guarantee the police won’t.”

  “You don’t say,” Drake said, sarcasm dripping from each word.

  “I sent our men up to Rochester yesterday, and the apartment looks like it hasn’t been lived in for weeks. They found expired milk and luncheon meat, dirty laundry, and a disconnect notice for some utilities. They’re still up there, searching out any leads they can.”

  “She could have started using again and went to where she knew to get her latest drug of choice.” Devin shoved his hands into his pockets and rocked back on his heels.

  “Back to the city?” I asked.