by Katie Reus
Alena grinned. “I can definitely see that. There always seemed to be a spark between the two of you.”
“She was always with someone at these stupid events. I didn’t realize she was single,” he grumbled.
“You’re always with someone at events like that—often with me. She probably didn’t realize you were single either.”
He let out a bark of laughter. “That’s exactly what she said. She thought we were an item until Andre showed up.”
Just the mention of Andre’s name had her shifting slightly in her seat. She wondered if he was with that woman right now, then cursed the stupid thought. She started to change the subject, then Nathaniel glanced down at his phone.
“Hold on, that’s the front desk.”
She half listened to his one-sided conversation, which was mainly just grunts, and looked out at the ocean. There were jet skiers, boaters, and hundreds of people sunbathing on the beautiful white sand. The weather was perfect, and with the cool breeze blowing over her, the only thing that would make it better would be if she could actually dip her toes in the sand.
“Excuse me for a moment,” Nathaniel said, rising from his chair.
She nodded and picked up her bottle of water as he stepped back into his condo. A few moments later, she heard Andre’s very annoyed voice. Turning, she found him and Nathaniel striding out onto the balcony. Surprise ricocheted through her.
“What are you doing here?” Water bottle still in hand, she stood, concerned. Was something wrong? How had he even known she was here?
“What the hell are you doing here?” he snapped.
His tone made her straighten. Nathaniel still stood in the doorway, his expression neutral, but he didn’t seem overly pissed off. Which surprised her. “Tell her why you’re here,” Nathaniel said dryly. “Instead of being a dick.”
“Yes, tell me why you’re here.”
“You said you had errands to run today,” Andre said, still not answering her question. And there was an accusatory tone in his voice.
Suddenly it hit her… “Oh my God, is there some kind of GPS tracker in your vehicle?”
He shrugged. “All my vehicles have that, and yes, that’s how I knew you were here.”
He would have had to have done some sort of search on the owners or occupants at this condominium and then narrowed down which unit she was at. She didn’t call him out on that. Instead she set her bottle down and placed her hands on her hips. “That’s insane.”
Again, he shrugged. Which just infuriated her more. He was so unapologetic about his behavior. “You didn’t answer your phone. And I got a call from Declan, worried about you.”
All of her annoyance bled out of her in an instant. She covered the distance between them, her heart racing. “Is my sister okay?”
“Yes, of course. She’s fine. Both she and Declan are.” The relief that slid through her was intense, until he said, “But…Harold Brady is out of prison. A couple hours ago there was a riot at the prison, and five inmates escaped. Three were found in the first two hours but two are still missing. Including Brady.”
Feeling the blood drain from her face, Alena sat back down. Andre shouldn’t even know that name. She’d never brought Brady up to him. But he did, so Declan or Nika must have told him about it. “There’s no way he could be here, in Miami.” Harold Brady was in a maximum-security prison up in New York, so even if he knew where she was there was no way he would be able to make it down to Miami in a couple hours. Nonetheless, that panic was back.
Brady had stalked her, but that wasn’t what landed him in jail. He’d killed three people—shot them point blank in the head—in his insane effort to win her affection. Over the years she’d had enough stalkers and weirdos that were harmless enough, but Brady had been batshit crazy. She knew that wasn’t the legal term and she didn’t care—he was. She’d never had much interaction with him, and he’d never actually hurt her, but the letters he’d sent her had been disturbing. And he’d sworn he would get out of jail. And that when he did he would “make her his” because he knew they belonged together.
It had just hit the media that she and Andre were engaged—and she was clearly pregnant, even if they hadn’t made the official announcement yet. “I don’t want to be anywhere near my sister or Declan,” she said. She had no doubt that Declan could protect Nika. And being around her sister would just make Nika a target if Brady ever made it down to Miami. She hoped that he wouldn’t, that the police would catch him and put him right back where he belonged.
“You’ll stay with me. And if they don’t catch him soon, I’m taking you to Vegas. My estate there is beyond secure.”
On shaky legs, she stood. They could talk about future plans later, but for now she needed to leave with Andre. Turning to Nathaniel, she gave him a wry smile to cover her anxiety. “Apparently I’m just full of drama lately.”
Laughing lightly, he shook his head and pulled her into a hug. Behind her, it almost sounded like Andre growled, but that was ridiculous. As she stepped back from Nathaniel, he gave Andre a hard look.
“You better keep her safe.”
“I don’t need you to tell me that.” Andre placed a gentle but firm hand at the small of her back as he led her back through the condo. Before she could say anything, he picked up her purse from the counter in the kitchen on their way out.
And apparently that was that.
* * *
Andre tried to keep his annoyance in check as they made their way down the elevator and to his waiting vehicle. Once he had Alena safely in the passenger seat of his vehicle and was steering out of the parking garage, the leash on his temper snapped.
“Why the hell were you at Johnson’s place?” He barely kept the growl out of his voice.
Or not at all, if the way she stiffened was any indication. “I thought we decided to be civil. And you don’t get to be annoyed at me for going over to a friend’s house.”
“Have you ever fucked him?” he demanded. Inwardly he winced at his snarly tone.
“Oh, you have a lot of nerve!” She turned away from him, looking out the window.
“That’s not an answer.”
Letting out an exasperated sound, she turned to him. “No. Not that it’s any of your business. And I don’t like this side of you!”
“Yeah, well too bad. I don’t want you going over to his place without me. Or any man’s place.” He knew he sounded like a jackass but couldn’t seem to stop himself.
She stared at him, her dark eyes wide.
He glanced at the light. Still red. “This can’t be a shock to you.” His voice was dry. How could she not realize how much she still made him crazy? How much he still wanted her? How he wanted her right fucking now?
“Is this…you being jealous?” There was a note of hesitation in her voice.
No sense in denying it. “Yes.”
“That’s really rich,” she snapped. “Especially since you had some random woman at your house this morning—with me there.” Fire sparked in her eyes. “Oh yeah,” she said before he could respond. “I saw you kissing her out by your pool, so save your bullshit jealousy routine.”
That surprised him. “You care if I kiss another woman?”
To his utter horror she started crying again.
“Damn it!” she snarled, more at herself, he thought, than him. “These tears aren’t because of you, so don’t flatter yourself!” She turned away again, crossing her arms over her chest. “Stupid hormones.”
Guilt filtered through him. He should have just told her right away. “The person you saw this morning is my sister. And if you were watching, then you saw me kiss her on the forehead. She stopped by unexpectedly and wanted to meet you, especially after that media announcement.” He could have kicked himself for not telling Kiley before she’d seen it on the news. But he’d been so focused on his plan to convince Alena to marry him, he hadn’t thought of anyone else.
Alena turned to him again as they pulled up to another
red light, her expression still wary. “Your sister has blonde hair.”
“She changes her hair color every other month. This month it’s brown.”
“Oh…I thought she lived in Vegas.”
“She does. She’s in town for business.”
“Oh.” She bit her bottom lip, her cheeks turning the sexiest shade of red.
His blood heated at the sight and, making a snap decision, he took a left at the next turnoff, stopping in a Publix parking lot. “You were jealous at the thought of me and another woman?”
“Yes. I know I have no right to ask, but I had wondered if you’d been with anyone since…” She bit her bottom lip again.
“No.” He didn’t want anyone but her.
“I haven’t either. Been with a man, I mean. Or a woman either, obviously…I’m rambling.”
Reaching out slowly, giving her time to tell him to stop, he cupped her cheek. He missed touching her.
Eyes heavy-lidded, she whispered, “What are you doing?”
“Nothing right now. But when we get back to my place I want to get you naked.” There. Might as well get it right out in the open. He didn’t want there to be any confusion about what he wanted. And that was her.
“How could you want me and hate me at the same time?”
“I don’t hate you.” He leaned his forehead against hers, closed his eyes for a moment before pulling back and dropping his hand. “I hated my father. Almost as much as you hated him. And…I understand why you used me. I hate that you did, but I don’t think I could ever hate you.” He turned back in his seat and stared blindly out the windshield.
“So…what do you want from me?”
“I don’t think you want the answer to that.”
“I do.”
“I want the real you. I got some of it before. And I’m starting to see more of it now. I like the fiery Alena, the one who yells at me. And…I want to ask you… When you slept with me—”
“I wanted to.” Surprising him, she took his hand, linked her fingers through his. “More than I should have,” she murmured. “So if you ever worried that…if you thought I didn’t want to, I did. Very much. It never occurred to me to tell you afterward because I assumed you knew how much I wanted you.”
Relief slid through him. When he looked at her again, her cheeks were that sexy crimson. “Yeah?”
“Yes. And if you want more of the real me, then the woman who sat by and let a man call her a whore at your dining room table…that’s not me. If it had been any other circumstances, I would have tossed a drink in Yasha’s face and slapped him. And probably had some choice words for him, but more likely his face would have met my palm.”
“Or his trachea would have met your fist.”
She let out an unexpected laugh at his reference to what she’d had to do to someone once months before. That seemed like a lifetime ago. “Or that… My uncle, the man who raised me, he taught both Nika and me self-defense. And I’ve kept up with it.”
With the amount of weirdos he imagined she dealt with, it made him happy she could take care of herself. But that brought him back to… “We need to talk about Brady.” And what they were going to do if the man wasn’t caught.
Sighing, she slumped back in her seat. “Yeah, I know.”
He pulled out of the parking lot. It was time to get Alena back to his place. If he had to keep her locked down to make sure she was safe, so be it. Staying under the same roof with her was certainly no hardship. He planned to keep her there, even after Brady was caught.
Chapter 9
Alena ended her phone call with her agent and before she’d put it down on the table next to her lounge chair, it rang again. Nika. “Hey,” she answered. Stretching out under the deck umbrella, she savored the view of the sparkling pool water and the light breeze.
“I would have called you back sooner but I was waiting for Declan to get off the phone with Andre. I don’t have anything new for you though. How are you holding up?”
“Honestly, I’m fine. The police are going to find Brady. It’s not like he’s some evil genius.” He was crazy, yes, but he’d killed three people and hadn’t hidden the bodies, hadn’t made an attempt to cover his tracks, nothing. The man lived in an alternate reality where he thought they belonged together and other people were simply keeping her from him. She just hoped the police found him before he hurt anyone.
“Come on, you can be honest with me.”
“I’m serious. If he’s not found in a few days I’ll probably start worrying a bit. But I’m going to be smart, and stay locked down here for a while. Have you…had any visions?” For all her psychic gifts, Nika almost never had any visions about those closest to her. It had only happened once and it had been so brief—and they’d interpreted it wrong.
“No, unfortunately. Not that I really expected to have one.” Frustration laced Nika’s voice.
“Is there any wedding stuff I should be helping out with right now?”
“Don’t change the subject.”
“I’m not. There’s literally nothing I can do right now about Brady.”
“Uh, yeah there is. You can stay put where you’re safe. And if you need to leave, for whatever reason, you can either come back to our place or Declan said he’ll set you up in a safe house.”
“Thank him for his concern, but I think I’m fine for now. I also think…” She glanced over her shoulder to the sliding glass doors. All of the windows and doors had a tint on them so it was impossible to see inside. But she was definitely alone on the lanai. “I think maybe something might be happening with Andre.”
“What do you mean?”
“Ah…never mind.” Gah, why was she even talking about this?
“Wait, you mean between the two of you?”
“No. Maybe. Yes…I think. Damn it, I don’t know. Maybe I’m crazy to even be thinking of this.”
“Uh, no.” Her sister’s voice was dry. “You were into him even when… Well, you know. And I don’t think you ever got over him. Tell me I’m wrong.”
“I can’t,” Alena whispered.
“Exactly. So…make a move on him.”
“What?” That wasn’t her style. Not even a little bit. She could admit she liked being pursued. But…this was different.
“You hurt him. You have to make the first move.”
“What if he doesn’t want me?” What if it was just lust for Andre? And that was the real crux of her issue. Because lust would fade. And she was in love with him. Big difference.
“Then you deal with it… But the man proposed to you. I’m pretty sure he wants you.”
“He proposed because… Damn it, Nika. When did you get to be so smart?” She couldn’t find the words to admit her deepest fear: that this was just about lust and control for Andre.
“I’m a genius. About time you recognized it.”
She snorted softly as laughter bubbled up inside her. “God, I’ve missed seeing you every day.”
“I know. Me too. The phone is good, but in person is a lot better.”
“Would it be too weird if I asked you and Declan to come over here for dinner one night? If Brady hasn’t been found yet?” Something she didn’t even want to think about. She’d come to Miami to see her sister and spend time with her. Alena didn’t want to be separated from Nika because of a madman.
“If Andre is fine with it, then we’ll be there.”
“Okay, I’ll talk to him.” She couldn’t imagine that he would mind.
“Why don’t you talk to him when you’re naked.” Nika snickered.
“Oh my God, hush. Also…I’m pregnant. What if—”
“Stop right there. He won’t care if your body is different. If anything, he’ll love it. He put a baby in you. It’s a total caveman thing.”
“Seriously?”
“Yes. I’m getting married to a caveman, so I know.”
“Are you guys talking about having kids?”
“Ah…not right after the wedding or anythi
ng. But yeah, we’ve talked.” She could practically hear the smile in her sister’s voice.
“Hurry up, then. We can be stroller buddies.” Words she never thought she’d say. So much of her life had been about her job, and then revenge. It had consumed her to the point where she hadn’t been willing to listen to reason. Hadn’t been willing to listen even to her sister. Alena was lucky that she and Nika were alive. Because if she’d lost her sister because of her own blind need for revenge, she wasn’t sure she could have lived with that.
“Eh, maybe not quite that soon. Yours might be in kindergarten by the time we start.”
“Whatever works for you guys. All right…I think I’m going to put myself out there with Andre.”
“Good. Do it now.”
“He’s working.” He’d told her that he’d be in his office for a while.
“So? I love interrupting Declan at his office.” Nika snickered again.
“All right, I so do not want those details. Not now anyway.”
“Prude.”
She laughed and when they finally ended their call, she felt lighter than she had in months. Her sister was right. She needed to put herself out there. If Andre rejected her, then so be it. It would probably be awkward for a while but that was a risk she was willing to take.
Pushing up from the lounge chair, she saw a slight movement from the wall surrounding the back of his property. For a moment, panic set in but then she recognized one of his security guys. Of course, she knew there were people patrolling the property. They were just really good at blending in.
No more excuses. It was time to make a move.
* * *
“I’m done with this conversation,” Andre said for the second time to Roger Thatcher, one of his attorneys.
“I’m just saying, I’ve drawn up a sample for you. You can use it as a guideline when working out a schedule with her. Don’t be stupid. People talk about being civil all the time and then shit goes sideways. You need something in place to protect your assets. And she needs something too. This isn’t about me not trusting her. I don’t know Ms. Brennan. But no matter what you two decide, you need to be smart about it.”
