“Grave?” I shove my jeans down my legs and fall into my bed. My sheets feel nice and cold. I close my heavy eyes but open them a second later.
“Here. Take this,” Grave says, standing next to my bed with a glass of water and two aspirin.
I toss them back and take a sip of the water before handing it back to him. He places it on my nightstand and pulls the covers up to my neck. Then he sits on the edge of the bed and runs his warm hand over my forehead.
“Thank you,” I whisper, my eyes growing heavy again. It could be the loss of adrenaline or the drinks that I had. Possibly a combination of the two.
Grave smiles down at me, his perfectly straight teeth glowing in the soft light from my window. “I’m always here for you, April.”
“I like you,” I admit without shame. The sober me would have a red face, but drunk April doesn’t give a shit. It’s why I don’t drink very often; the truth will always bite you in the ass the next day. That’s how I ended things with Derek. I was drunk and told him that although the sex was good, I didn’t see us having a future. Thankfully, he was able to still be my friend.
He chuckles. “I’m glad to hear that because I like you too.”
I sit up, leaning in so our faces are inches apart. His panty-dropping smile disappears instantly. I run my hand down his shirt, feeling his muscles tense underneath the fabric.
“April…”
“Shh,” I say against his lips. “I want you.” My lips press against his as my heavy eyes close.
His hand cups my face, and he kisses me softly, delicately. I open my mouth for him to deepen the kiss, but he pulls away. “We shouldn’t. Not tonight,” he breathes, placing his forehead to mine.
My heart pounds as I take a deep breath. “Grave…”
My phone ringing interrupts me. He gets up from the bed and retrieves it from my purse on the floor. I lie back down, my mind foggy and my pussy wet. This is not how I pictured my night going.
“Hello?” I hear him answer it. I don’t even bother to ask who it is. “Yeah.” He lowers his voice and turns his back to me, but I can still hear him. “Can you come over to April’s and stay with her tonight?” He pauses. “We went out, and she had a few drinks.” I snort at that lie. “Thank you.”
He hangs up and walks over to the side of the bed again, placing my cell on my nightstand. The screen is busted, but it still works. I’ll have to go buy a new one in the morning. “That was Jasmine. She’s on her way to stay with you.”
“Why can’t you stay with me?” I ask through a yawn.
“I have somewhere to be.”
EIGHTEEN
GRAVE
THE AIRPORT IS to the Mason brothers what Kingdom is to us Kings—they rule their domain. But the Kings run shit through a legit casino, whereas the Mason boys run most of theirs illegally.
I pull into the parking lot that back in the day was filled with rental cars.
The Mason brothers live like the Kings. Nothing is out of reach. They live like the billionaires they are. Running a multi-billion-dollar business has its perks.
I get out of my car and stride across the parking lot, straight to the double doors in the back like I own the place.
“Grave. Didn’t know you were fighting tonight,” a man by the name of Miles says when I walk by.
“I’m not,” I call out, heading to the elevator.
It takes me up to the fifth level, and when I get out, two men greet me with machine guns pointed right at me.
“Oh,” Harry says. “Sorry, Grave.”
“No worries,” I say as they lower their weapons.
The brothers keep this place highly guarded for many reasons. One is that they always have a few million dollars on-site. They keep the cash in a safe room, but still. Over the years, men have tried to gain access to it. The place was even set on fire once, but not one penny was stolen. All four men were hung the following night.
The Mason brothers used them as an example.
