by Gwyn McNamee
She may be submissive, but she’s got fire just below the surface. When a match is lit, she will ignite.
But this isn’t the time or the place. It’s never going to be the time and place with Nora. It can’t be.
Keep it platonic.
“Aren’t we having a friendly get-to-know-you conversation? Did you ask me about working for Dom? I answered your questions, even if they weren’t totally comfortable for me.”
That was likely admitting too much. I can’t ever tell her, or anyone else for that matter, what happened to indebt me to Dom. It’s not that I don’t want to tell her. Honestly, there are times I feel like talking about it instead of burying it as deeply as possible, all these years would have been a lot healthier mentally. Plus, it would help her, and Savage, understand why I owe Dom so much. But opening up about it isn’t an option. And I don’t want to encourage her to pry. So hopefully, she lets the fact I didn’t really reveal anything in depth slide. I need her to open up to me even if I can’t fully to her. She needs it.
Her eyes close momentarily before they return to mine. She offers a tight smile. “You’re right. You did. I’m sorry. I just…”
I wait for her to finish her thought, but instead, she tosses back what’s left of her drink and sits fiddling with the cup.
Whatever happened to make her leave school, it’s obviously still weighing on her heavily. It’s not in my nature to back down from a challenge, but maybe Nora Eriksson is weaker than I initially thought.
That mix of submissive and spitfire I’ve seen had me convinced she could stand up to me and hold her ground when pushed. Maybe I was wrong. She’s not ready for me to push her. She’s not ready for any of this.
“Look, you don’t have to—”
She shakes her head. “No, it’s fine. I just wasn’t cut out for the pre-med program. It was more work than I was able to handle, and I got overwhelmed. It’s as simple as that.”
Somehow, I highly doubt that. She doesn’t strike me as the type to give up easily, and from what I’ve heard through the family grapevine, Nora was the valedictorian of her high school class. Someone capable of that kind of achievement doesn’t just quit. Something happened. Something specific. Something she doesn’t want to talk about.
Which only makes me want to press her more.
I lean forward again, putting myself closer to her personal space. Her eyes widen slightly, but she’s otherwise unflinching. There’s the strength I know is buried underneath her fear. “There’s more to it than that, Nora, and we both know it. If you don’t want to tell me, fine. But don’t lie to me or give me half-truths. That’s not what friends do.”
Her nostrils flare. The empty paper cup crinkles and finally caves between her clenched hands. “I’m not lying. You’re an A-hole for saying that. Pre-med was just too much for me. Do you have any idea what that class schedule is like? How much studying and homework it takes to not fall hopelessly behind? I couldn’t hack it. End of story.”
“Bull. Shit.” She may talk a good game, but the slight waver in her voice and tremble in her bottom lip give her away. “Don’t talk to me like I don’t understand, Nora. I went to law school, remember? And then studied for and took a bar exam in two different states. I understand what working hard means. And I don’t believe for one fucking second that you just said, ‘fuck it, I can’t hack it’ and gave up.”
Her blue eyes blaze, and she shoves back from the table, taking her crushed cup with her. “You are a real jerk, Stone.”
Before I can formulate an apology, she turns and storms out of the coffee shop.
Well, shit. That did not go as planned.
Stone Hawke is the single most infuriating person on this planet. I’m one hundred percent convinced of that fact.
I mean, come on! Where does he get off accusing me of lying?
Yes, he’s right. I wasn’t telling him the whole story. But the last person I’m going to tell the truth to is that man. He wouldn’t understand. He made it through law school and two bar exams, apparently, easily. The stress and pressure of it didn’t cripple him, it didn’t make him do things that will haunt him the rest of his life. Stone is a powerhouse. He doesn’t break; he doesn’t cave; he doesn’t back down from anything. The continuous pressing, probing, pushing…I just couldn’t take it anymore.
How can he see right through me so easily? I never thought I was transparent. I’ve managed to make it through almost two years without having to explain myself to anyone more than telling them I wasn’t cut out for school and I wanted to dance. Why can’t he just leave it at that?
His need to know more, to delve into the depths of my soul to find the truth, is unnerving. No one has ever pushed me before, not like this. Of course, Mom and my teachers wanted me to succeed academically, but that was never a problem. Not until I hit Tulane. But this is different. It’s like he’s dismantling my carefully constructed world one piece at a time and trying to draw me out into the world I left behind intentionally. One where I make terrible decisions. And I can’t let Stone Hawke become another one, no matter how much I may be drawn to him.
If I had my way, I would never see his handsome, arrogant face again. That would make things so much easier.
Too bad that’s virtually impossible. There’s no doubt he’ll be at the club, and I likely can’t avoid Hawke family gatherings forever. This was so much easier when he was living across the country and hadn’t weaseled his way under my skin. Men don’t usually look beneath the surface. They see a beautiful blonde dancer with a nice body and that’s all they care about. Not Stone. He sees me. He sees things I don’t want anyone to notice. And that’s thrown me more than I care to admit.
Instead of heading back to my apartment like I had planned, my run-in with Stone has left me needing a little one-on-one time with Kennedy and Dani. Maybe it’s time she knew what’s been going on. She could help me run interference with him when we’re forced into “family” events together in the future.
Then again, revealing why I’m so pissed off would only encourage her to press me more about returning to school. And that’s the last thing I need.
Crap.
The elevator ride to the top of Savage and Gabe’s building gives me some time to formulate a plan. The plan is…wing it. I can fudge what really happened with Stone and avoid opening the door to yet another conversation with her that’s going to lead nowhere.
I knock lightly before pushing the door open. They never lock the place since you need a code for the elevator to get up here, but I learned my lesson the hard way that not, at least, knocking can lead to seeing my sister and my boss in very compromising positions. By this time, Savage should be at the club, and the coast should be clear. Still, better safe than sorry.
“Dani?”
A sharp cry draws me down the hallway toward the bedrooms.
“Dani?”
She sticks her head out of the nursery and smiles. “Hey, come on in. I’m just getting her dressed.”
I follow her into the pale pink room and grin at my niece on the floor. At only a few months old, she already has everyone wrapped around her tiny fingers. Dani finishes buttoning up her adorable outfit and hands her off to me before rising to her feet.
“So what’s up? I wasn’t expecting to see you today.” Sudden panic flashes in her eyes. “We didn’t have plans, did we? Shit, I knew I was forgetting something.”
Laughing at her would be bad form, but she’s been so spacy since having the baby, it’s almost comical. “No, we didn’t. I just wanted to stop by to say hi.”
Dani pins me with a knowing look and ushers me out of the room and down the hall to the kitchen. “You want some coffee?”
Ick.
Under normal circumstances, I would take her up on that, but after what just went down with Stone, even the thought of coffee puts a sour taste in my mouth. “No thanks, I just had some.”
Kennedy grabs a fistful of my hair and tugs at it playfully.
“Come
put her down in the highchair. I haven’t fed her breakfast yet.” Dani moves around the kitchen while I settle Kennedy in her chair and strap her in.
Seeing Dani in mom-mode is still a little weird for me. Dani from two years ago would have already been at the office or out chasing down a lead on some ground-breaking story. Mom-Dani is one hundred percent focused on her daughter, at least right now. She goes stir-crazy and wants to go back to work, but I know she will always choose what’s best for her child, even at her own expense.
She drops down into a chair next to Kennedy with a bowl of baby cereal and motions for me to take a seat across from her. “So, you want to tell me why you’re here. You don’t just drop by.”
Got me there.
And I really need to talk to someone. I suppose I could call Caroline, but knowing her, Dani would find out about it anyway. Might as well cut out the middle-man.
“Do you promise not to say anything to Savage?”
It would be an epic disaster if he found out. Talk about awkward. He would definitely tell Gabe and probably confront Stone. Work would be unbearable.
Her head jerks in my direction with narrowed eyes. “Why? What’s going on?”
“I’m serious. Promise me you won’t say a word.”
She rolls her eyes and turns her attention back to feeding the baby. “Fine, I promise.”
Where do I even start?
There’s no way I can tell her everything. She would freak out if she knew Stone has been watching me at the club, and that I kicked him in the nuts, and that we almost kissed, and that I had an almost-date with him today.
“It’s Stone…”
She chuckles and glances over at me. “What did he do now?”
Just pushed every damn button I have.
I shrug and try to sound nonchalant about the whole thing. “Nothing specific. I ran into him grabbing coffee this morning, and we sat down for a while to chat.”
A blonde eyebrow arches at me. “Chat? Stone Hawke does not chat.”
Poor choice of words on my part. It’s only piqued her interest more. With a sigh, I slump forward onto the table. “No, I guess not.”
“So what happened?”
He stripped me with barely more than a look and then tried to dismantle me with questions designed to open my soul to him.
I watch her continue to feed Kennedy while I try to come up with an answer that won’t give too much away. “I don’t even know how to explain it. He’s just so…”
What’s the right word here?
Dani jumps in to fill the void before I can get anything else out. “Douchey?”
I scowl at her and shake my head. “No, I was going to say intense.”
She nods and smiles at the baby. “Yes, that’s certainly true too. But if you hadn’t already noticed, it’s kind of a Hawke trait. Hell, even Gabe has that same intensity going on.”
Her observation isn’t anything I don’t already know. I must make some sort of noise in response because she looks over at me with concern etched on her face and narrows her eyes at me. “Is he still hitting on you? I can have Savage talk to him, or hell, I can talk to him again and get him to back off.”
Was he hitting on me?
When he first came up to me at the coffee shop, yes. But once we sat down and started talking, it moved into something much deeper than simple flirting. It felt…intimate.
“No, nothing like that. I guess I’m just not sure what I should be doing when I run into him. I mean, Savage seems to have some real issues with him and he’s my boss, and your husband. I don’t want to step in the middle of some family drama.”
She sighs and sets the bowl down before giving Kennedy the spoon to play with. “Look, Savage’s issues with Stone shouldn’t affect your feelings about him. I’m sorry if I pushed you to feel or think a certain way about the whole situation. The only thing I’m going to say is this…be very careful around that man and the company he keeps. There are things you don’t know about Abello, things that would make you run the other way as fast as your feet could carry you, things I’m not even sure Stone knows about. At least, I hope he doesn’t. Because him continuing to work for that man would be a thousand times worse than it is now if he did know.”
“What the heck are you talking about? Does this have to do with what went down before you guys got married?”
Dani shakes her head and pushes up out of her chair. “Shit, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. Just be careful. Even without his connection to Abello, Stone is not the kind of guy you want to get tangled with.”
The cryptic stuff is starting to get on my nerves, but I know better than to press her for more information. It hasn’t worked in the past and only manages to strain our relationship. Even without his connections to the mob boss, I know Stone is dangerous. He’s dangerous to my heart. With his uncanny ability to read me like an open book, I know I can’t spend time with him and retain my sanity.
“Well, you have nothing to worry about there. There is no way, under any circumstances, that I am getting involved with Stone Hawke.”
“Thanks again, Mr. Hawke.”
I pause in the hallway outside the courtroom and turn back to my client. Michael Figueroa is far too young to be facing this many felonies. The laundry list read by the commissioner today at the initial appearance made me cringe. Maybe because I could have been exactly where he’s standing if things had gone differently…if Dom hadn’t stepped in, set me straight, and covered my ass, I would have been toast.
It’s ironic that working for Dom is what put Michael here. His men know the risks they take when they sell their souls to him. But he also takes care of them if one of them goes down.
Michael won’t pay me a dime, and his parents and pregnant girlfriend will never want for anything if he’s sent away. I’ll do everything in my power to keep that from happening, but shit, getting caught with ten kilos isn’t something you just walk away from most of the time. If I can’t find some decent motion issues to get the case tossed, he’s going to be spending a huge chunk of his life behind bars.
Fuck.
“Don’t thank me yet.”
“But you got me out on bond.”
I didn’t do shit. Dom’s vast network got him out on bond before he even made his initial appearance. All I did was prevent the commissioner from raising the amount by pointing out that he hadn’t fled in the twenty-four hours between his release and his court appearance.
If he didn’t have his connection to Dom, he would have been sitting on a massive cash bail for the entire time the case is pending. And he certainly wouldn’t have me as a lawyer, unless I took him on as a pro bono client. I’ve been waiting for the court to call with some appointments to cases for indigent clients, but thus far, I’ve mostly been working for Dom and his friends and employees. It’s good money, but it doesn’t feed my soul the way helping the truly needy does. I can only imagine where I would be without what Dom did. That’s all I see every time I see an indigent client in court with some bumbling lawyer who doesn’t know his ass from his elbow.
Getting a lawyer who actually knows what they are doing and is willing to fight for you is like hitting the fucking lottery. And Michael gets it just because he was willing to do Dom’s dirty work.
“Just don’t blow it. You know the terms of your release. Stay out of trouble, make your court appearances. We have the prelim in a couple days. Given the evidence they have, we’ll likely waive it but I want to talk to the district attorney first. We’ll get the discovery after that and then we’ll sit down and go through everything together. Any questions?”
He shakes his head. “No, man. Just thanks.”
Watching him walk down the hallway, I can’t ignore the twinge of guilt in my gut.
Don’t, Stone.
He’s an adult. He made his choice. He wasn’t blind to this possibility.
Just like I’m not blind to what I’m doing for Dom.
But I also know what’s it’s like t
o grow up without a father. And there’s a pretty good chance Michael won’t get out until his son is the same age he is now. There’s no telling what that will do to the poor kid. I was lucky. I had Dom, and as much as I may complain about it, I also had Savage who did everything he could to step in as man of the house. That’s a lot for a ten year old to take on, but he stepped up and helped Mom with everything and anything he could. Michael’s son…who knows.
Shit.
I scrub my hand down my face and make my way out to my car in the parking lot.
It’s been a long fucking day.
And it’s only going to get worse. I still have to touch base with Dom before I go meet Savage and Gabe tonight.
That’s two meetings I am not looking forward to. As expected, Dom was less than pleased with the outcome of my sit-down with Castillo. Things are going to get very messy soon. And that means more work for me dealing with aftermath.
Today, we talk strategy, and it will get heated. But at least with Dom, I know where I stand.
The same can’t be said for Savage.
Fucking douche.
I don’t know exactly where things took the turn between us but working for Dom has clearly put extra strain on an already tenuous relationship. Whatever he wants to discuss, it must be important. Or at least, he thinks it is. That doesn’t always equate to important for anyone else. But I can’t deny the fact that he said Gabe should be there for this conversation has been sitting uneasily in my gut since last night.
Gabe has always been the buffer between us, the third Hawke brother for all intents and purposes. His ability to rein Savage in when he gets out of hand has prevented many fights over the years. So if he is joining the meeting, that either means he agrees it’s important enough to require his presence, or he doesn’t trust Savage to remain objective during the conversation. Either way, it doesn’t bode well.
Two shit meetings, back to back. What a fucking wonderful evening. The only thing that could make it worse is if Nora’s working tonight.