“When he brings you the thumb drive, you’ll let him go, right?”
“I don’t know. I have enough reasons to kill Teague and eliminate him as a problem.” He leaned back in his chair, the leather creaking under his weight. “I haven’t decided yet.”
His calm demeanor, the matter-of-fact way he talked about killing the man she loved, was so cavalier she was really afraid for the first time since he’d walked into the room. She couldn’t help what came next.
“No. Please don’t.” Her hands were icy cold and sweaty all at once. The thought of Teague hurt because of this mess put her in a panic. “Just let him go. Don’t hurt him. He was just…” She struggled with what to say next, settling on the truth. “He was just being Teague.”
Big Tony observed her for several long moments and she felt exposed and raw under his scrutiny. He was sizing her up, and she realized too late that she’d probably given up too much with her request.
“You love him.”
She refused to answer. Not wanting to give him this part of her.
“You do.” Big Tony laughed, dry and brittle. “Another good reason to kill him.”
“But you won’t.” It wasn’t a question, and she made sure her voice stated her message loud and clear. Tony read it right away, raising an eyebrow at her audacity to imply that she would do something about it if he did anything to Teague.
It wasn’t an empty threat. She didn’t know how she would do it, but she’d find a way to make sure he paid. She hadn’t forgotten anything she learned on the street and it wouldn’t take much to bring that girl back with a vengeance.
“Are you threatening me?”
“I’m just making sure you know how unacceptable his being hurt would be. It would probably force me into action.”
God, she sounded like a bad action movie. The girl who’d stolen the thumb drive was still inside her and she wasn’t going down without some sort of fight.
“You are threatening me.” He shook his head and stared at her hard. “Jesus. You really do love this guy.”
Risa didn’t answer.
“Well, maybe he’s not as smart as I thought he was.” Big Tony rose from the chair, looking down at her from his vantage point. She stared back at him, unwilling to let him have one more minute of her fear. “I always thought you had spirit, Risa. It’s a shame you had to waste it on a guy who didn’t appreciate it.”
He turned away, wrenching the door open and exiting the room as he hit the lights and plunged the room into darkness. Risa didn’t scream for help—she knew no one would be coming with Big Tony’s men just outside, and she didn’t want to give them the satisfaction.
She could do nothing but wait for the time to pass and pray Teague didn’t come.
…
“Teague Elliott. You’ve got big balls, man.”
Teague stood in the office, staring Tony Giambetti down across his desk. The office was ostentatious, but well appointed, and it gave Tony an air of respectability. But he wasn’t crazy enough to underestimate him because no matter what he looked like, Big Tony was a thug and he made lots of money on the backs of other people. And he didn’t think twice about making people disappear.
“Thank you for noticing, Tony.” Teague gave him a slight twist of the lips, not quite a smile but close enough. “I’ve heard that before.”
“I’m sure you have.” Big Tony did that finger-steepling thing Teague remembered from gangster movies. Was that something they taught in gangster preschool? “I know you aren’t here to pull them out and measure them, so let’s stop dicking around. Where’s my thumb drive?”
Teague liked a man who got to the point, especially today when he was itching to free Risa and get the hell out of here. But first things first.
“Where’s Risa?
“Thumb drive first.”
“It doesn’t work that way. I get proof of life or this ends now.” He took a step closer and made sure Tony saw how serious he was. “I’m not fucking around on this, Tony. Risa. Here. Now.”
“Fuck you, Teague. You don’t get to come into my office and make demands.”
Tony made a signal to his men, and around him Teague felt the swift movement of bodies as everyone reached for the weapon of their choice. The Vegas goons were fast but his guys were faster. Nonetheless, they were left in a standoff of wills with guns drawn.
Tony stared him down, sizing up his threat as he glanced at Lucky, Jack, and the two other ex-Special Forces friends Lucky had called in. Huge guys who didn’t look like they would hesitate to elevate this encounter if necessary. Apparently, what he saw was convincing because he nodded toward Frank Gazarra and the other man went through a side door to an adjacent room.
Nobody moved. Nobody breathed. Everyone…waited.
The door opened and Risa stumbled through the opening, Frank Gazarra clutching her arm, ……and Teague could almost hear Jack murmuring in his ear to “calm the fuck down” because one look at her scared eyes, wrinkled clothes, and the suspicious-looking bruise on her right cheek made him want to be anything other than calm.
She pulled away from Gazarra, a muffled “get the hell off me,” and he breathed a silent sigh of relief. She was still fighting. That was a good sign.
“Hey, baby. I’m going to wrap up my business here and then we’ll go, okay?”
“Oh my God. Put down the guns,” she said, her eyes huge when she saw Lucky, Jack, and the two man-sized mountains of mean standing behind him. “Please.”
“It’s going to be fine. Big Tony and I just need to iron out the details. Why don’t you sit down?” She didn’t look like she believed him, but she sat down on the couch to watch the proceedings.
Teague turned back to Big Tony. “I want to pay you what Risa owes you. The full amount, including interest.”
Tony’s eyes widened slightly. He was surprised, but recovered quickly. “Risa has already made arrangements to repay her loan.”
“She doesn’t have the money and I don’t like your idea of repayment terms.” Teague reached into his pocket, keeping his eyes on the guys flanking Tony whose hands reflexively tightened on his weapon. Lucky and Jack moved behind him, making sure everyone remembered that everyone had lots of firepower.
Tony wasn’t the only one prepared to do what was necessary.
Teague pulled out his phone, flashing it to all the parties in the room before continuing, “I make a call to my banker in DC and the money is in your account within the hour.”
“And why should I let you pay what she legitimately owes me?”
“Because you’re a businessman who knows that you strike while the iron is hot.” He took a step forward and sat down in the chair in front of the desk without being invited. This was a power play between them now, and Teague was not about to let him think he had the upper hand. Tony knew the Teague who didn’t need a gun to take someone out. This was just a reminder. “And your business associates would prefer you receive the money sooner rather than later.”
“What do you know about my associates?”
“Quite a lot, actually.” Teague leaned back in the chair, reciting what he’d memorized from the files on the thumb drive in his safe. “I know you owe money to some people who have even bigger”—he ran a hand over the surface of the furniture in front of him, making sure to maintain eye contact—“desks than you do. I know they are tired of waiting on you to fix your cash flow problems. Risa’s money isn’t going to solve it all, but I think it just might cover a payment you have coming up with a very anxious investor.”
He held his hands out in a “how am I doing?” gesture, continuing when Big Tony gave a terse nod.
“I also know that due to your financial problems, you’ve been crossing the streams between your legitimate and illegitimate businesses. Something that would be very interesting to a US Attorney I know from law school. We’re pretty tight, and I’m sure he’d take a phone call from me right away.” He decided to stop while he was ahead. There were many more
secrets in that folder of information, but he might need them if Big Tony didn’t agree to his terms now. “You see, Tony, I know quite a bit about the situation.”
“You know a lot, Teague. But we discussed this before. Knowledge can be a dangerous thing. What’s to keep me from making sure you don’t ever get the chance to share that information with anyone?”
“The fact that I know much, much more.” Teague made sure he locked eye contact with Big Tony at this point of the game. This was not the time to show any weakness. “You were worried I knew too many secrets and you were right to be worried. If you hadn’t fucked with what’s mine, I would have kept your secrets. But as we say back home, you messed with the bull and now you’re going to get the horns.”
“And I’m sure you have copies of this information in several different places.”
“With a few different people.”
“Like I said, you’ve got big balls, Teague Elliott.”
Teague shrugged. “I had to be sure.”
“Of what?”
“That this would end today.”
“The debt.”
“Your interest in Risa. All of it.”
“Goddamn, you two deserve each other.” Tony shifted in the chair. “She practically threatened me when I mentioned your name.”
“She did?” Teague tried to pull back the grin that tugged at his lips at the news, but he failed. If she’d faced off with Tony over him, then it meant he hadn’t killed this beyond repair and might still have a chance. “So, I take it that my terms are understood and acceptable?”
“Aren’t you forgetting something?” Big Tony held his hand out across the desk, his eyes cold with fury. “My thumb drive.”
“Now you see, that’s where you’re just going to have to get used to disappointment. I’m not giving you the pictures. I think ten grand is more than the going rate for that sort of thing.”
Big Tony laughed, shaking his head slowly as if he thought Teague didn’t understand how this was all going to play out. “No. I want those pictures.”
“You’re not going to get them.” Teague stood, making a show of adjusting his jacket as if he didn’t have a care in the world. The next part was crucial if he and Risa were to have any chance of living their lives in peace without looking over their shoulders. He walked over to where Risa sat on the couch and extended his hand, locking eyes with her when she took it, and moved to stand beside him. “You won’t need them anyway.”
“I won’t?”
Teague turned to face Big Tony again, holding tight to Risa and giving her hand a squeeze. “No. I resigned from Harrison & Duff this morning. I’m heading back to Elliott. You have no reason to need those pictures.”
“No. You can’t do this,” Risa said.
He looked down at her, pulling her flush against his body. “It’s done. I’ll be handling the personal and messy stuff from now on.”
Teague returned his attention to Big Tony, who was fuming behind his desk, his face red from the strain. “You get your money and my silence. I assume those terms will be enough and we can leave without anyone having to open fire.”
Seconds ticked by and Teague wondered if he’d overestimated his power of persuasion. He really hoped not, because the end result could be deadly. With the number of armed people in this room, his options for getting Risa to a place of safety were nonexistent. The thought of Risa caught in the cross fire made him slip his arm around her waist and hold her as tightly as he could.
“I can accept those terms,” Tony said, rising from his desk and walking toward Teague. Teague placed himself between Tony and Risa, unsure about what the man was going to do. “Get out. Don’t ever come back.”
He didn’t hesitate, following Jack and Lucky’s lead as they exited the office in a tight cluster of big men and bigger weapons that protected Risa from harm. They hustled down the hallways that made up the administrative end of the Gold Coast Casino, not stopping until they left the artificial climate control of the building and stepped into the oppressive heat of a Las Vegas afternoon.
Teague led Risa over to the waiting ruggedized black Suburban in the parking lot, helped her climb inside, and slid in next to her. He immediately pulled her into his arms and held her close, so relieved to have her safe and out of Big Tony’s control.
Risa would always be worth it.
He was shaking, the combination of adrenaline and fear wreaking havoc on his control. Teague pulled her closer, inhaling her scent deeply, burying his face in her hair as the silky strands absorbed the tears that leaked out in spite of his determination not to give in to his emotion.
“Jesus. Risa.” He pulled back to get a good look at her. “I’ve never been so scared in my life.”
“You didn’t look scared.”
“Didn’t you call me a con man the first night we met?”
“Yeah.” She nodded, her lips quivering with either laughter or emotion, he couldn’t tell. “Yeah, I did.”
“Just a few more minutes and we’ll be out of here.”
“Where are we going?” Risa eyes were glassy as she dazedly stared out the window. He worried that she’d gone into shock
“The airport. I’ve got a private jet on standby. Beck is there and he’ll make sure you’re okay.” He brushed her unruly hair from her face, tracing the bruise with his fingertip. It took every ounce of will he had to not turn the car around and kill Big Tony anyway. His chest seized with pain and panic over what she’d endured over the last day. “You are okay? Do you need a hospital?”
“No. No hospital.” She burrowed closer into his body, her arms trapping him in a tight grip emphasizing her words. “All I want to do is take a shower, eat, and figure out what the hell you just did.”
Chapter Twenty
Risa snuggled down into the luxurious leather seat in the back of the private jet. There hadn’t been a shower on board but she did get to wash away some of the grime of her captivity and change into her favorite yoga pants and T-shirt. Her abrasions and cuts—all declared relatively minor by Beck Sutherland—were sore but not bad enough to warrant a hospital visit.
She watched Teague at the front of the plane, chatting quietly with Jack, Lucky, and Beck as they all cast quick glances her way. He was handsome and polished, no sign of having gone head-to-head with a mob boss just a little over an hour ago. Risa drank him in, so grateful that she hadn’t gotten him killed.
In the time since she’d left Elliott, Teague had monopolized her thoughts and she’d given up trying to stop the constant loop of pictures playing in her head. Her emotions had fluctuated between heartbroken and angry beyond reason, and the effort to maintain them both was exhausting. Awake, asleep, it hadn’t mattered, but she’d resigned herself to the knowledge that sooner or later she’d have to tuck them away in her top drawer with her wedding band and copy of the annulment decree.
When he’d walked into the room at Big Tony’s she’d almost wept.
She leaned against the window, watching the world go by far below her. Teague would come back here in a moment and she was afraid to face him, afraid to take whatever step was next in her life because she wasn’t sure if it really could include him. In spite of the drama of the day, the grand gesture, there was still so much that could stand between them.
“Risa.”
Turning toward the voice behind her, she looked up and saw him standing in the aisle next to her seat. Teague was ringed by the sunlight behind him, the blond strands in his hair catching the light, accented by the late summer tan he earned on his long runs outdoors. He was beautiful, and she could do nothing for a few moments but stare at him, soaking him in.
He sat down beside her, settled his arm on the armrest, his tension only evident in the tight grip on the leather. His eyes tracked over every inch of her, concern, desire, and something else battling for predominance in his eyes and on his face. When he was done he looked into her eyes again. “I meant to give you some space but I needed to see you were okay.”
“I’m so sorry.”
He didn’t move, his voice low. “For what?”
“For ruining everything. Your career…”
“It isn’t ruined.” He gave her a little half smile, as if it were an inside joke. “It’s just delayed a while.”
“How can you say that? You lost everything.”
“Not everything. Not what was important.” He reached out to her but stopped, dropping his hand in a very un-Teague-like move. He swallowed hard. “I love you.”
His voice, low and intimate, pulled a long, shuddering breath out of her chest. A beat passed between them and then he lifted the armrest, one arm circling her waist while the other cupped the back of her head and pulled her close, bringing their mouths together. She went with it for a moment, allowing herself the briefest indulgence in his comfort before she realized what she was doing.
“No.” She pushed him away, giving herself room to breathe and think. “No. You don’t get to come here and say that.”
“Yes, I do.”
“No, you don’t. Don’t you understand? I ruined everything. I don’t deserve to get you.”
“You deserve everything.” He cupped the back of her head, leaning in close and taking up all of the oxygen in the space. She wondered if the yellow cups would fall down from the bulkhead to prevent her from passing out. “I want to give it to you.” He shifted even closer, pressing her into the supple leather at her back. Her mind and body were in overload.
“I love you.”
“Stop saying that.” She couldn’t believe him. This was the kind of stuff she dreamed about and never thought she’d actually get.
“Why not? It’s true.” Teague closed what little distance remained between them, placing his palms on the seat cushions on each side of her head. He surrounded her with his scent, his strength, and the power of his words. “I love you.”
Sweet Southern Betrayal Page 18