“I think Raven is my Kaci.”
“Oh, shit, D.”
I can’t say anymore, I just nod numbly as I
allow the realization to soak into me. Troy doesn’t allow my
silence for long.
“Are you telling me that you are in love
with this girl?”
I glance his way, and instead of the shock I
expect to see there, his face is a mask of concern. “I don’t know,
dude. I think I could love her.” I shake my head. “I want her to
love me. I don’t know if I love her.”
“Have you told her yet?”
I don’t have to ask what he’s referring to.
He never had to explain his clover tattoo to anyone. Hell, Kaci has
one of her own somewhere on her flawless body. I’ve never explained
it to anyone either, but I’ve never been serious enough about a
woman I was planning to fuck to care. I can think of only a handful
of girls who have even questioned the clover on the underside of my
bicep. Raven would question it. I have no doubts.
I shake my head again in response to his
question. “Fuck, D. You gotta tell her.”
The panic in my chest explodes at the
thought. I find myself shaking my head without realizing I’m doing
it.
I have to make her love me first.
“If you’re serious about this girl, then you
have to tell her, D. What the fuck will you do if you don’t, and
she walks away when she finds out? I know you, D.” Troy exhales a
harsh breath as he switches lanes to pass a semi. “You’ll
self-combust. I’ve seen you like that before, and it’s not
something I want to see again.”
I can’t say anything through the lump that’s
lodged in my throat. This whole realization has just fucked with my
head in a very big way.
At my silence, Troy pulls out his phone and
calls Kaci. I worry for a second that he’s about to tell her what a
pansy I am, but he just asks her how she’s doing. I block out their
conversation, and pull out my cell to start one of my own.
DYLAN: I should be back late tonight. Can I
see you?
Raven’s reply is almost instant. My chest
tightens at the thought of her.
RAVEN: You know where to find me.
Yeah, I’m fucked for this girl. I don’t even
realize I’m smiling as I tuck my phone back into my pocket until I
glance over at Troy.
Both eyebrows are pulled into a frown as he
studies me. “Well, fuck. I guess it’s too late. You’re already
fucked.”
I want to deny it, but Troy knows me better
than anyone. There would be no point. So, I just shrug. “Yeah. I
am.”
***
When we pull up outside the warehouse it’s
already dark, and both Ronan and Ardon are there to meet us. Sean
and Ethan step out of Sean’s SUV at the same time that Troy and I
step out of Ethan’s car. I can tell Roy is conscious because of the
way the back of the SUV is bouncing around with his attempts at
getting free of his binds.
“Tell us what you know.” Ardon is the first
to speak, which is usually the case.
“I found Callie after I found Roy. I sought
out Roy thinking he could help me search the area for Callie before
I moved on to the next town, but when I came up on Roy’s compound I
could hear him fucking someone.” Sean runs an agitated hand through
his hair. “I fucking laughed about it at first. I didn’t realize it
was Callie he was fucking. I thought I’d hang around long enough
for him to finish up, and then give him a hard time about it before
I asked for his help.
You can imagine my surprise when Callie
stumbled outside after him. Roy couldn’t keep his damn hands off of
her. Even with them being fully dressed at that point, he still had
his hand down her skirt. So, I kept watch for a few days. I was
hoping that maybe it was a one-night thing. He was going to fuck
her, and then call us to come take her off of his hands.” Sean
pauses to light a cigarette, and then continues.
“After three days of basically watching them
fuck, I decided to call. I told Roy that Ethan and I were heading
that way to search out Callie. I asked him if he’d seen her or
heard about her being in the area. He told me no. He said that he
would have called you if she had been. I called you guys the next
day, and the rest you know. Roy Elliot is no friend of Fianna
Fáil.”
“Shit.” Ronan mumbles.
The SUV is still rocking back and forth, but
I know it won’t be for much longer. Either Ronan will shoot Roy
now, or he will have us haul him inside to for questioning. More
than likely it will be the latter. We still don’t know where Callie
is.
“What happened to Callie after you grabbed
Roy?” Ardon questions.
“Callie has gone back into hiding with Roy’s
help. I haven’t seen her since I made the call home, but I have no
doubts that Roy knows where she is.”
Ardon nods. “Bring him inside into the
interrogation room. We need to know where Callie Maloney is
now.”
The four of us head to Sean’s SUV, and lift
the back hatch just as Roy Elliot’s tied up frame rolls out and
onto the pebbles of gravel under our feet. He hisses in pain, but
we waste no time grabbing him up, and carrying his struggling frame
through the warehouse.
Ardon and Ronan follow us in. Roy is
screaming now. He knows what’s coming, and he knows it will be the
most painful thing he’s ever experienced. He can scream all he
wants. No one will hear him out here, and even if they did, most of
the cops around here are on our payroll.
As soon as we get him chained down in a
metal chair bolted to the floor, we step out into the hallway.
Ardon stays inside, but Ronan follows us out. A firm grip tightens
on my shoulder. I turn to look into the intense hazel eyes of Ronan
Quinn.
“Follow me, Dylan.”
I don’t ask questions. I already know what
this is about. They have Fuentes. This is my retribution. Troy nods
a goodbye in my direction, and leaves to be with Kaci. Sean and
Ethan stay just outside the heavy metal door that Roy Elliot is
behind. I follow Ronan down a separate hallway.
The warehouse is huge, and underneath it
there are a series of underground rooms that act as makeshift
prison cells. The lighting down here is nothing more than candle
light, and that’s only when Ronan lights one to lead us down there
with. I can’t imagine being trapped in the impenetrable darkness
that Fuentes has been, but the fucker deserves it.
Just the thought of what he did to us has my
blood boiling beneath my skin. He tried to fucking kill us. He
thought he could weaken us, but I was about to show him just how
strong Fianna Fáil
is.
I follow behind Ronan down the
cracked cement steps and past the rows of stone lined cells.
Fuentes is in the very last one. The flash of fear in his dark eyes
is a small victory in itself. His left eye is swollen shut, and his
lip is swollen and bloody. He isn’t standing, but is instead
crumpled to the ground in defeat. As soon as his eye meets mine, it
widens in surprise. He knows that his life is at an end, and I am
the mother fucking grim reaper.
Chapter Nineteen
Raven
Even though it’s
after one in the morning, I can’t sleep. Dylan said even though it
would be late when he got back he still wanted to see me. I really
want to see him too. After my chat with Trisha, I have so many
questions I need answered.
I practically fly out of bed when my cell
phone rings in my hand, Dylan’s name flashing up at me. I really
wish I had a picture of him that showed the amazing green color of
his eyes every time he called me.
“Hello?”
“Angel? You are still awake. I was hoping I
would still get to see you.” His voice is deeper than it usually
is, and I can’t help but think maybe he didn’t get enough sleep
while he was gone.
“You can come here. Trisha is out, and
everyone else is sleeping. I will call the gate, and tell them to
let you through.” Trisha had been unable to hang around the house
with Ethan gone, so she has gone with her friend Jordan to a party.
I really wish she would just talk to Ethan.
“I’m already on my way. I’ll see you in a
few.”
I hang up. Immediately call the guard at the
gate to let him know to let Dylan in this late at night. Then I
rush around my room making myself look halfway decent. I was
wearing my usual sleep shorts with stars on them and a gray tank.
My black hair was in a messy bun on my head. After I pull myself
together, I feel much better in a jean skirt and a red tank with my
hair falling loosely around my shoulders. When my cell rings again,
I know I am out of time. My heart rate speeds up and my palms start
sweating.
When I connect the call, I don’t even have a
chance to speak before Dylan starts talking.
“I’m standing outside your door, Angel, and
I really need to see you. Come let me in.”
I rush downstairs throw the front door open,
and am greeted with his handsome face. His intense eyes slowly
drift over my body and the groan that leaves his lips vibrates
through my body as it works its way through the phones we are both
still holding. My body is on fire with every caress of his greedy
eyes. I watch the column of his throat work as he finally moves to
shove his phone back into his pocket.
“Damn, Raven.” The words leave him in the
most desperate sounding plea I’ve ever heard from him. I like
it.
I don’t get a chance to respond before he
reaches for my arm, and pulls me up against his chest. Warm lips
meet mine in a fiery crash of desire. He kisses me like a man
possessed. As if he couldn’t breathe without my lips attached to
his. I hear my cell phone crash to the ground, but I can’t bring
myself to care as the hum that only Dylan causes works through my
now shaking limbs. I grip his sandy hair in my fingers, and allow
myself to be swept away by his kiss.
His strong hands are on my hips, holding me
close against his firm, muscular body. His mouth tastes rich and
forbidden, like something I shouldn’t allow myself to have, but I
want more than my next breath. The scent of his skin is an
intoxicating mix of cool water and something dark and heady. His
effect on my body is pure—almost addicting, but the feel of his
arousal pressing against my belly shoots a spark of fear into my
lust-laden brain. This is so fucking wrong.
With a force I wasn’t sure I was capable of,
I rip myself away from him. Our chests are heaving in sync with
each other, and my body is begging to be back in his arms. How the
fuck could I be okay with this after what happened to me? I know
that I’m not ready for this, so why was I letting him kiss me like
that?
“God, you look so fucking beautiful right
now. Your lips are all swollen, and your nipples are so fucking
hard under that flimsy ass top you have on.” Dylan’s words shoot
sparks to my clit, and I instinctively reach up to cover my
nipples.
“God, Raven, don’t touch them. Damn, Angel.
You know how to bring a man to his knees.” The green of Dylan’s
eyes has darkened to an almost golden color.
“I’m not ready for this, Dylan. I shouldn’t
have kissed you like that.” I try to keep my voice from quivering
under the strain of my desperate body. I must be successful,
because Dylan’s face drops. His carefree smile no longer present. I
hate that I’m the reason for that.
“Fuck, Raven. I’m sorry.” Dylan runs both
hands through his hair. I absolutely love the way it sticks up
where his hands had been. He steps toward me, and I don’t step
away.
I know he’s not Steven, my body knows that
he is not Steven, but my head is still really fucked up, and I hate
that Steven still controls me like this.
Dylan tenderly reaches up to place his warm
hand against my cheek. Our eyes lock, and my chest tightens with
the emotion I can see in his deep green depths. “I’m sorry.” His
thumb moves softly across my cheek with every word out of his
perfectly sculpted lips. “I won’t lie and say I didn’t fucking love
that, or that I don’t want to do it again, but I understand that we
need to take this slow, and I am sorry.”
A piece of my heart breaks off—lost to him
and this moment completely.
“I liked it too.” I barely mumble under my
breath, but his smile lets me know he heard every word.
“I know you did.” His hand drops back down
by his side. He takes a step back putting some much needed space
between us.
I feel like I can finally breathe again, but
I also feel cold. I desperately want his body pressed close to mine
again.
What in the hell is wrong with me?
“Can we go talk?” He asks. I nod before
turning to head back into the house, but Dylan’s loud groan stops
me in my tracks. “God, Raven you have to put something on.
Something big that doesn’t frame your ass so fucking
perfectly.”
I look over my shoulder at him, my breath
catching in my throat as his deep-set eyes lock on my bottom. When
his gaze finally moves up to mine again, I nod, and rush inside
leaving Dylan to follow in behind me.
I don’t look at him as I move through the
dark house to my room, but I can hear the front door close behind
him. His steps follow closely behind me. As soon as I get to my
room, I jump up on the bed, throwing my comforter over the bottom
half of my body to hide it from his gaze. Then I finally let my
gaze move to meet his.
Dylan is leaning against the doorframe. I
drink him in from head-to-toe. His sandy hair is messy, and hanging
slightly over his sculpted face. Green eyes are piercing as they
stay locked on me, and he has his bottom lip tugged in between
straight white teeth. His wide shoulders are braced on the frame,
and thickly corded arms are crossed over his chest. I can just
barely make out the play of muscles beneath his green t-shirt. His
faded jeans are hanging perfectly on his narrow waist. Just the
sight of him has my pulse thundering through my veins. He is just
breathtakingly perfect.
“Come sit down.” I pat the bed next to me,
and his eyes seem to darken a bit.