Cassie is Ryder’s daughter and Jack is Brewer’s son, and they have grown up together as best friends. When they went to Rockwell Academy, Ryder was happy because Jack had always looked out for Cassie. But shit got very real when they met Frankie Sontauro. The son of a mafia family with connections to all kinds of shit. Cassie was infatuated with him and being headstrong like her father, she got them all into deep shit that could have got them all killed.
It was carnage, and it was only when we stormed the building and rescued them from Angela Constable and Jenna Sloane that they were safe. Needless to say, Cassie is home with her daddy, and Jack is paying the price for not being better.
Razor sighs heavily. “Word is we’re riding out tonight.”
“What’s the story?”
“Usual shit. Some senator is being blackmailed, and it’s in the national interest to remove the threat.”
I can imagine what that will involve, and it’s the part of our job we hate. Protecting the corrupt against the corrupt. Sadly, the government pays our wages, and it’s big money. We don’t have to like it though.
“Stay safe, brother.”
I finish up because conversation is never our strongest virtue, but for some reason, I must check in on my twin every day.
“Enjoy your vacation.”
He cuts the call, leaving a wry smile on my lips. Vacation. He’s not wrong because babysitting Delilah in a remote cabin is my kind of vacation, and he knows it.
To spare her blushes, I wrap a towel around my waist and head for the shower. We have one rigged up outside, and as the cold water rains down on my body, my thoughts turn to my companion.
I hate what happened to her. It sickens me, and yet there is nothing I can do about it. I’m not used to accepting that, and as my rage boils inside me, one name plays on repeat in my mind. Jenna Sloane.
She is still living, breathing and haunting some other poor kid’s nightmares and is now number one on my wanted list. If Ryder called and told me she was holed up nearby, I would end that woman’s life personally and with pleasure.
Then there’s the man—the master. Who is he?
The head serpent, I’m guessing. Seven am every morning tells me he’s a creature of habit. He likes order, precision—a military man, perhaps.
Delilah told me one name. Gideon. Jenna taunted Angela with that. Is he the head serpent, the master?
The shower cleans not only my body but my mind as well, and I have new focus when I pull on my jeans and head inside for a fresh t-shirt. My hair long and damp from the shower, my chest bare.
Delilah is fixing coffee inside, and the sight of her long legs resting against the countertop causes the blood to thrum in my head. She sure is a beauty, and it’s unfortunate for her I’m a horny son of a bitch and locked away in the mountains with her. It’s messing with my mind, and when she runs her fingers through her silky hair as she glances out of the window, my heart hammers in my chest as I imagine what that hair would feel like wrapped around my desperate cock.
She turns as I enter, and I don’t miss the lustful gleam in her eyes as she stares at my chest, followed by a blush to her skin and a dazed expression in her eyes.
She likes what she sees for sure, and yet how can I act on that? She is emotionally damaged, and I will not add to her problems by hitting on her, no matter how much I want to right now.
“Um, how do you like your coffee?”
She shifts on the spot, her voice unnaturally high, and I bite back a grin.
“Black, darlin’. I’ll be right with you when I pull on a t-shirt.”
Why do I love that she appears disappointed about that?
When I return, the coffee is on the wooden table and she is holding her mug between her slim fingers, a contemplative expression on her face as she stares into oblivion.
For a moment, I enjoy the view, wishing things were different somehow, and I don’t know why.
Shaking inappropriate thoughts from my mind, I pull out the chair and sit astride it, grasping the mug with gratitude.
She raises her eyes and fixes me with a pained expression, and I register pure hatred burning in her eyes, causing my heart to freefall.
What the fuck just happened?
CHAPTER 9
