by Apryl Baker
Her phone interrupted her thoughts, and she picked it up off the desk. Roger had called her several times, which she’d ignored. Listening to his voicemails proved disastrous after the first one. He’d been hurling accusations at her along the same lines as the ones his mother tossed out. Her lawyer could go through the voicemails.
Dimitri’s name flashed at her, and she debated answering it. He knew her well, and he’d know how flustered she was right now, but she had a couple questions. Things he may be able to shed some light on.
“Hey, baby doll, what’s going on?”
“Didn’t think you were gonna answer there for a minute,” Dimitri said around a yawn. Did he just wake up? It was after ten in the morning.
“Sorry. I’m trying to get everything organized for this weekend. There’s so much to do.”
“Gah, don’t talk about it!” She could almost see the grimace on his face. “I’m not ready.”
“I guarantee Becca is, though.”
“Hell, yeah. I don’t know what I’d do without that woman. She’s more organized than I can ever hope to be.”
“How’s she doing?”
“Better than she was. She hated LA, though. It’s why I decided to move us to New York to be closer to my family. We’re in Chicago now, trying to get her apartment packed up. Woman lives in the middle of gang territory. One of her fucking neighbors is in a gang. Fucker has a hard-on for her.”
Sara rolled her eyes. “I seriously doubt that. You’re just seeing things through the green-eyed monster.”
“Fucker glares at me like he wants to shoot me, chop me up into tiny pieces, and then scatter said pieces all over the city. And he watches her ass. Right fucking in front of me. Carlos better keep his fucking eyes off my woman.”
“You shifted from ‘best friend’ to ‘my woman’ almost overnight.”
He laughed, but it wasn’t funny. It was a harsh sound. “I should have seen it a lot sooner, but I’m an ass. If I had taken five minutes to really look, everything I knew would have slapped me in the face.”
“What do you mean?”
“My brothers knew I loved her before I did. Hell, I should have known it when I jumped on a plane to search her out when she quit and wouldn’t answer my calls.”
“Wait, what?”
“This was before I knew about her anxiety around crowds. I told her she was coming with me or I would fire her, and she fucking quit. It felt like my entire world bottomed out when I couldn’t get her to pick up the damn phone. I panicked and flew to Chicago to make her talk to me. Then she answered the door with that just fucked look in nothing more than a nightshirt and panties…” He trailed off, and she laughed. His mind went straight to the gutter.
“So, her refusal to pick up the phone made you realize how much she meant to you?”
“Fuck, no. I kept telling myself she was the BFF and off limits, but, damn, my woman has boobs you can’t ignore.”
Sara laughed. Leave it to Dimitri to notice Becca’s boobs first. His eyes had zeroed in on her chest the first time she met him too. It was simply who he was. He did it without even thinking about it.
“It was my dad who put it into perspective for me.”
“Your dad?”
“Yeah, I’d just realized Becca was in love with me, and I ran like a coward, scared witless. I had no fucking clue how I felt, I just knew losing her wasn’t an option. So, I called my father. He asked me a simple question. How would it feel to go the rest of my life without her? It made me think, and I knew there wasn’t a world I could live in without that girl. She’s the only person I always made a habit to talk to at least once a day since she was fifteen.”
“Hmm…I’m thinking I’m going to write this story.”
“Don’t you dare. It’s mine.” He laughed then paused. She could hear Becca speaking softly. “No, it’s Sara Jane.”
“Tell Becca hi for me.” She liked Becca. They’d gotten to be good friends over the years. She’d only met her for the first time at the last signing, but they’d spoken so often it hadn’t mattered they’d not met in person before that.
His loud sound of frustration made her sit down. “Trouble in paradise already?”
“I keep asking her to marry me, and she keeps saying no.”
“What?”
“Well, I did get her to agree once, but she says it doesn’t count.”
“Of course it counts.”
“See? Sara Jane says it counts,” he shouted.
“Tell her why it doesn’t count,” Becca shouted right back.
Sara grinned, hearing the sass in that girl’s words. “Why doesn’t it count?”
“Let’s just say I had her at a point where she either agreed or…”
“You asked her while you were having sex?” Oh, good Lord. It was something he’d so totally do.
“Well, yeah.”
“Dimitri, a girl wants her marriage proposal to be special.” Not like her own where Roger just announced they’d get married because no kid of his was being born a bastard.
“Special? Fuck, woman, I am special.”
“That’s very true,” she returned sarcastically.
“Sass from Becca, sass from you, next Delia will be sassing me. What am I going to do with the all the women in my life who seem to want to sass me?”
“You love us, and you know it.”
“Fuck, yeah, I love my girls.” He cleared his throat. “That’s why I’m calling. I know Viktor’s there, but I wanted to check on you. How is everything?”
She sighed, suddenly feeling weary. “Not good. He caught Mom out and threatened her. Not physically. He’s too smart for that, but he made sure she got the point. Scared her half to death.”
“Shit. She okay?”
“Yeah, but it shook her up pretty bad. Viktor has banned anyone from leaving the house without either him or Gabe.”
“Gabe?”
“One of the guys Viktor works with.”
“Yeah, I know who Gabe is. He loves that bastard as much as he does me or our other brothers. I just didn’t realize he’d called him in on your case.”
“He had to drive the Jeep here and didn’t want us flying without someone, so he called Gabe. Once he was here, he decided to stick around.”
“Well, that’s good. I’m not so worried about him now. Viktor’s good, but he’s not infallible.”
“And you don’t trust Roger any more than I do.”
“I’m just glad he’s got a brother to watch his back. So, how it’s been going with Viktor?”
“What do you mean?” She cringed when she heard the high pitch of her voice.
Dimitri was quiet for a heartbeat, but she imagined that knowing grin slide across his face. “Well, well, well. What are you getting all girly about?”
She cleared her throat. “I’m not getting all girly.”
“You like my brother. I already know this, but Viktor is usually hardcore when it comes to his policies on clients. He doesn’t get involved. Only one problem.”
“What’s that?”
“I saw the way he looked at you, and you admitted my brother was smoking hot.”
“Now who’s girly?” she grumped. “You sound like you’re the bestie trying to get all the details.”
“Hey, I’m a writer. I’m allowed to dig for gossip.”
“What the fuck is all this?”
Sara looked up, startled, to see Viktor in the doorway. Technically, she was in his bedroom, but she needed to pull out everything book signing related. Currently, boxes and other signing paraphernalia were scattered all over the place.
“It’s all the stuff for the signing this week.”
“Why is it all over the damn floor?”
“Because I have to sign most of it.”
“You have to sign all this shit?”
Dimitri laughed. “That’s exactly what I said when Becca handed me a Sharpie and told me to ‘get to work.’”
“Are you coming to Texas
this weekend?” Sara frowned when Viktor navigated through the mess on the floor to reach the dresser. He pulled out a white t-shirt. Stripping his shirt off, he tossed it on the bed. Her mouth went dry at the way his muscles rippled across his back.
“Sara?”
“Huh?”
Dimitri laughed. “Did you hear a word I said?”
“No.”
Viktor turned and caught her staring at him. He flashed her a grin.
“I’m not even going to ask what’s got you rattled, but yes, we are going to Texas. I tried to cancel, but Becca insists on going.”
“Are you sure she’s healed enough?” Concern for her friend finally made it through her ever-increasing fog of lust.
“I don’t think so, but she’s being as stubborn about this as she is marrying me.”
She let out a sigh. “Do a grand gesture, Dimitri. Everyone woman wants that. Make it the most romantic thing you can think of. You’re a romance writer. I’m sure you can come up with something special.”
“He hasn’t got Becca to wear his ring yet?” Viktor scoffed. “He’s losing his touch.”
“Tell that fucker I said to piss off.”
Sara was not repeating that. “I’ll see you guys on Thursday. Are you driving down or flying?”
“Driving. Airports are not her thing.”
“Yeah, Delia gets nervous around so many people in airports too.”
“You flying in?”
“No. We’re driving. I can’t afford to ship everything there then pay the hotel fees for holding it. Add in the cost of the tickets, the hotel, and everything else, it’s cheaper to drive. There’s a few on the west coast I’m going to that I’ll have to fly, but anything along the east coast I can drive to.”
“Dimitri!”
“Fuck, she’s waving a Sharpie at me. I gotta go before she stabs me with the damn thing. I have to sign my shit too.”
“Talk soon, baby doll.”
“Bye, doll.”
“Baby doll?” Viktor regarded her curiously, a hard edge in his eyes.
“He calls me doll and I call him baby doll. It’s our thing.”
“Becca’s fine with that?”
“She sure is.” Sara set her phone down on the desk and waded back into the mess. She plopped down in the spot she’d made for herself. It took every ounce of strength she had not to ogle Viktor’s very chiseled chest. Why didn’t he put his damn shirt on?
Viktor grunted and leaned against the desk. “I already mapped out where we’re stopping to eat.”
“Did you, now?”
“Hell, yeah. I checked my show and found the places I want to stop.”
“Your show?” What was he going on about?
“Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.” He cracked a smile. “I love that show. I’ve eaten at a lot of the places.”
“I didn’t peg you for a foodie until we went to dinner in Charleston, but you are, aren’t you?” A lot about Viktor kept surprising her. All the Kincaid men did, for that matter. Delia had taken to Mason like a duck to water, and he was never impatient with her. She’d been his shadow while he installed the security system, and he hadn’t gotten irritated once. He explained to her what everything was. He’d even let her help him do some stuff. Then, every night, he had a tea party with her before bed and took over Sara’s role of reading her a story. Delia insisted on it, and Mason seemed to enjoy it. She’d made him watch her favorite cartoon at least ten times already. He’d done all this and never once scowled. He was well on his way to being a good man.
“Ha, woman. I love food. I can even cook.”
“You can cook?”
“Hell, yeah. I watch the Food Network all the time. I try all that shit out. We have a full kitchen at the office. My team are my guinea pigs.”
She chuckled, imagining all of them sitting around, staring at what he put in front of them and praying to God he didn’t poison them.
“Is there anything I can help you with?”
She glanced up and met the sight of his bare flesh, his abs on full display. Why didn’t he put the damn shirt on?
All the keychains and charm bracelets she’d spent the morning making needed to be put into baggies, and she still had to sign all the bookmarks.
“Will you put your shirt on?”
He threw his head back and laughed. She wanted to smack him. It wasn’t funny.
“Mommy!”
Delia came running into the room and tripped on the first box she met. Viktor caught her before she face-planted. “Whoa, there, malyshka. What’s the big rush?”
Her face screwed up and she burst into tears, burying her little face in Viktor’s chest. The sound broke his heart. “Hey, now, tell me what’s wrong, and I’ll fix it.”
“Ma….ss…oon,” she wailed. Viktor’s fear ratcheted up.
“Mason? What’s wrong with Mason?”
She pointed to the door and cried harder.
Viktor stood with the kid and went running, holding her tight so she wouldn’t fall. “Where?”
“Outside. I couldn’t wake him up.”
Viktor threw open the door, and sure enough, Mason was sprawled out on the porch, pale and unmoving.
“Delia, did you see what happened?”
She shook her head, and he turned, preparing to set her down, but Sara was right there and took her daughter. Viktor knelt beside his brother and checked for a pulse. He let out a breath when he felt the strong, steady beat beneath his fingertips.
“Mase.” He shook him, but when that failed to wake him, he started searching for an injury. He turned his brother’s head and found the knot at the back of it. It was a good-sized goose egg, and his fingers came away bloody. The kid took a hit. He checked him for other injuries, but it was only his head.
“Did he fall?” Sara asked, coming to stand beside them.
“Maybe.” Viktor didn’t think so, though. There was nothing here for him to stumble over. Mason may not look it, but the kid played football in high school. He wasn’t clumsy, and he sure as hell knew how to fall to protect his head from injury. “Where is everyone?”
“Mom is over at my Aunt Betty’s. Gabe dropped her off a couple hours ago, and he’s in the barn with Dad working on the tractor.”
He fished his phone out of his back pocket and dialed Gabe, who answered on the third ring.
“What?”
“Mason took some kind of fall, and I need to get him to the ER. Can you get your ass over here and help me load him into the Jeep? Kid’s unconscious, and I don’t want to jostle him too much. He took a hit to the head.”
“Shit,” Gabe swore. “Foul play?”
“I think so.”
“Be right there.” Gabe disconnected the call, and Viktor spotted him running out of the barn and toward them.
“Sara, you and Delia go on in the house. Gabe will stay with you while I get Mason to the doctor.”
“I’m going with you.” Sara held up a hand when he tried to argue. “You can’t watch Mason and drive at the same time. Besides, do you even know where the hospital is?”
“No, but I have GPS. I want you here where you’ll be safe.”
“Viktor, I’ll be safe with you, but you can’t do everything. Let me you help you.”
As much as he wanted to argue, he couldn’t. He needed to get his brother to the doctor as fast as possible.
When Gabe got there, they picked Mason up and started for the Jeep. Sara was right behind them. “My keys are in the front pocket of my jeans. Can you get them?”
Sara’s fingers dug into his pocket and found the keys. She unlocked the doors and told him to get in the back with Mason. She’d drive.
“I want to come.” Delia’s tearstained face begged both of them. “Please.” There was no denying that face.
“Come on, malyshka.” He waited for her to crawl in and settle herself into the car seat. He’d put it in the Jeep yesterday when he took her to town with him.
Holding Mason made it awkwa
rd, but with Gabe’s help, they managed to get him in. The kid should be waking up. It was worrying him.
“I’m going to look around here and see if I can find anything.” Gabe shut the door. “Call me as soon as you know something.”
Viktor thanked him and told Sara to get a move on.
The ride to the hospital was tense. Delia cried when she shook Mason’s foot and he wouldn’t wake up. What the fuck was wrong with his brother?
As soon as they arrived, the nurses brought out a gurney and rushed Mason into the ER. He told the doctors everything they knew. A nurse drew blood, and they took him for a head CT. They were also concerned he hadn’t woken up yet.
Delia curled up in his lap, her tears making wet paths down his abs. He stroked her hair and hugged her close. She’d really taken a shine to Mason. “He’s going to be fine.”
“What if he isn’t?”
“He will be, malyshka.” God, he hoped the kid was fine.
Sara sat beside him in the other chair in Mason’s little ER room. At least they hadn’t sent them to the waiting room. He’d see the kid as soon as they brought him back from radiology.
When Sara took his hand, he gripped hers tight. He was scared. He’d never seen his baby brother so still and pale. Head wounds were tricky, and if he’d done some damage, Viktor hoped they got him to the ER in time.
The three of them sat there for what might have been five minutes or an hour. Time seemed to crawl for Viktor. All he could see was his brother lying there, unmoving. Being football players, they’d all taken some pretty brutal hits before, but they always got back up after a few minutes. Mason still wasn’t awake, and it scared him. What was he going to tell his mother if Mason got seriously hurt on his watch?
When the doctor finally came back, Mason still hadn’t returned from radiology.
“Mr. Kincaid?”
“Yes?” He sat up, shifting Delia so she wouldn’t slide off onto the floor.
“Your brother has been admitted. He’s being taken to his room now. He has a concussion, but there doesn’t seem to be any serious damage. We are concerned about his lab work.”
“His lab work?”
“He had a large amount of ketamine in his blood. It’s a drug used in tranquilizer darts. We checked him and found a tiny pinprick in his neck. Did you happen to look around and find a dart anywhere?”