Today was not a good day.
Oh, sure, the caffeine and disdain were there. But the sleep was a far-off, impossible dream.
How the fuck was he supposed to sleep with River right there, only a door away?
She’d been without orgasms for far too long. He imagined it wouldn’t take much effort to talk his way into her bed. He didn’t want to do that, though. He wanted her to come to him. To beg for the orgasms she deserved.
To realize he was the only one who could give her what she needed for the rest of their days.
Which was not going to happen when the mere suggestion of orgasms struck his normally hyper-verbal fiancée mute.
So, he’d wait until she was ready. It wouldn’t be easy, but something told him River was worth the effort.
Sleep was out of the question, though. Especially since his brain kept reminding him she was right there.
With an irritated sigh, he got out of bed and pulled on a pair of sweatpants before stalking back down to his office. Might as well get some work done while he was up.
Once he was in the only sound proofed room in the house (other than the basement where a gorier type of business was typically conducted), he placed a call to the only man he’d ever met who slept less than him.
“It’s late,” the grumpy bastard said in lieu of an actual greeting.
“It’s actually early,” Nico answered, glancing at the little clock on his desktop monitor. “But what difference does that make when we both know you were up, obsessively checking your cameras?”
He had not met Ren Solace through traditional means. In fact, their paths might have never crossed at all…if Nico hadn’t accepted a contract to kill the woman who was now Ren’s wife.
Of course, he’d never actually planned on killing Lark. It was a long story that dated back to way before Nico became a mob boss. But when Ren and Lark convinced him to team up with them against the real villain of their story, he’d immediately recognized Ren for the scarily talented (and just scary in general) bastard he was.
Ren was a genius-level hacker. Put a laptop in front of him and he was unstoppable. He was also a monster of a man who looked like he spent all of his free time in a gym. Without him, Nico wouldn’t be where he was today. Which, lately, hadn’t been that great of a place.
Until today, that is.
After a loaded pause, Ren said, “Being right doesn’t make it any less rude to call at 2am.”
“I know. Apologies. But we do have an emergency on our hands.”
He sighed. “I already talked to Van. Don’t worry. I’ll find Ricky. He’s not smart enough to hide for long.”
“I have another job for you.”
Nico gave Ren a quick rundown on Jeremy Lang. “I want to know everything there is to know about that motherfucker. Then I want him found and brought to me. Alive.” He paused, giving it some thought. “Bloody and broken would be fine, though.”
“Consider it done,” Ren said. “But can I ask you a question?”
He smirked. “You have details about me and my operation that could put me away for life. I think we’re beyond secrets. Feel free to ask me anything.”
“Are you sure I shouldn’t be looking into this girl? Your fiancée?”
Nico sat up straighter. “I’m sure,” he said, struggling to keep the menace out of his voice. He couldn’t blame Ren for having questions. “I trust her.”
Another long, loaded pause before Ren said, “Interesting.”
He paused, but Ren didn’t elaborate. No one could ever accuse the man of being overly chatty. “Why is that interesting?”
“Because you don’t trust anyone.”
“I trust you.”
“Mutually assured destruction. We have enough dirt to bury each other. What does she have on you?”
