Flynn: Social Rejects Syndicate (Mackay Brothers Trilogy Book 1)

by Erin Osborne

  With no more time to spare, I leave my room. Imogen’s door is still closed so I walk over and gently knock on the door. Stepping back, I wait for Imogen to answer it. She doesn’t hesitate to open for me. The sight greeting me is one I will remember for the rest of my life. Imogen looks beautiful standing there before me with an uneasiness in her eyes. She’s nervous, something I’ve never seen from her before this moment.

  The green dress and smokey eye make-up only serve to make her normally bright, emerald green eyes shine brighter. They shine as if the sun is coming straight from her eyes and digging its way deeper into my soul. Her long, shiny, black hair is half up with curls winding down her back. A few tendrils blow in the gentle breeze coming in through the open doors of her room. Looking down her body, I take in the dress hugging her curves and showing just enough cleavage to make her look classy and sexier than any woman who chooses to show her body off.

  Women throwing themselves at me and wearing barely any clothing in order to gain my attention is getting old. In my twenties I was all about it. Spending time with Imogen, I’ve learned a good woman isn’t a man’s weakness. She makes him stronger than he’ll ever be on his own. It doesn’t take a smart man long to figure that out. I’ve just been stubborn and didn’t want to believe my way of thinking was wrong. Imogen is the kind of woman who will support her man no matter what’s going on in their lives. She’ll be the only one to pick him up when he needs it and a strong shoulder to lean on when his world gets rocked to the core. That’s who Imogen is.

  How do I know this? Not many women her age would go without hesitation with a man she hates because of her dad. Yes, she tried to argue and fight it. However, she still came with me and has been with me since then. She doesn’t go out of her way to cause trouble or stir the pot. Imogen sits out by the pool and reads, or she stays inside and helps Rosa clean the house. Rosa has told us more than once about Imogen helping her do the chores she does on a daily basis, the girl doesn’t listen. She doesn’t hesitate to step up and get her hands dirty. That’s not the kind of woman I’m used to having around.

  The women always throwing themselves at me are dressed immaculately with a ton of make-up caked on their faces, manicured nails, pedicured toes, plastic surgery to enhance the imperfections they see in themselves. They’re as fake as the day is long and not a lot of fun to play with. I feel as if I’m having sex with a Barbie doll because there isn’t an ounce of real on their bodies. Imogen is the complete opposite in every way. Her curves hold my hard body perfectly and I won’t have to worry about feeling as if she’s going to break if I go to hard with her.

  “You look stunning,” I tell her honestly, not being able to tear my eyes from her.

  “Thank you,” she responds, looking at the ground in front of her.

  Lifting my hand, I use two fingers to tilt her head up. Imogen is not going to be hiding from me anymore. I’m not going to let her. I’ll be making sure the good in her comes through and shines bright. The woman who knows she’s strong, capable, and ready to let go of all of her pain. I don’t want her to discount it, I want her to let me help her shoulder that pain and remove the burden from her. Imogen only deserves to have the good in her life and I’ll make it my responsibility to be the one to give it to her.

  “Imogen, you’re not hiding from me. Not tonight, not ever,” I state, keeping my voice firm so she understands there’s no room for argument right now. “Are you ready to eat dinner before we head out to meet the guys?”

  “Yes,” she responds, her voice low and husky.

  I easily read the heat in her eyes as she takes in my appearance. Her eyes scan me from head to toe. It feels as if her hands are tracing every single inch of my skin and leaving fire in their path. I’ve never had a reaction to anyone like this in my life. Not feeling the electricity or fire that only Imogen can ignite in my body. The currents traveling directly from her body to mine and back. Her reaction to me being close to her lets me know she feels the same charge in the air when we get close.

  Tucking Imogen’s arm into my own, I lead her down the stairs. When we come to the bottom, I see Rosa has the dining room table set for two. We have yet to share a meal in the dining room, so I figured tonight was the time to do so. To signify a turn in whatever is going on between the two of us. Something only the two of us can determine where it goes and how fast or slow it happens. No one will get in our way of seeing where this leads. At least not anyone who isn’t either one of us.

  Rosa made chicken parmigiana tonight for dinner. We have dessert waiting for us when we get back. If she’s in any condition to eat dessert. I’m going to let Imogen have a night out and do as she wishes. If that includes getting drunk off her ass, then she’ll do that. Or if she simply wants to dance and have fun, that’s okay too. Imogen is in charge of what happens tonight. No one will take it away from her.

  “This looks amazing,” she tells Rosa as I pull her chair out for her. “Thank you for making us dinner.”

  “You’re welcome, beautiful,” Rosa replies, winking at Imogen.

  Once she’s in her seat, I take mine across from her. We eat in almost silence, barely making any small talk between us. I keep my eyes on Imogen whenever she’s not looking in my direction. Even when she does glance my way, I don’t avert my gaze. I’m not some high school boy who doesn’t know what he wants. Or is too shy to be able to look at someone when she looks at me. If I can look half the people in the eye I work with, Imogen should get the same respect. She’s truly the only one who deserves it. Everyone else gets it because it adds to the intimidation factor.

  By the time we’re done eating, my phone is going off with a message from Tommaso. He’s letting me know they’re just getting to the club and saving a table for us. They’ll be in the VIP section.

  “You ready to head out?” I ask her, setting my phone next to me.

  “Yeah. Do I look okay? I’m not sure what I should wear tonight,” she questions me, once again averting her gaze from my own heated stare.

  “You look amazing. If only,” I say, breaking off from the thought in my head.

  It’s too soon for me to lay all my cards out on the table right now. Eventually Imogen will know what I want and what I’m willing to do in order to get it. Right now, she’s like a skittish colt, not ready for the world to breach her bubble. She needs to get me in slow doses until I know she’s ready to handle everything I have to give.

  Pulling out Imogen’s chair, I take her arm and feel the all too familiar tingle between us. I lead her from the house and get into the SUV Tommaso and Sal let me take earlier today. Once she’s safely inside, I make my way to the driver’s side and get in. Tommaso put the address in the GPS earlier as I turn on the engine and pull it up. It’s not going to take us very long to get there. Ten minutes at the most.

  Imogen looks out the window as the sun sets and casts shadows all around us. The fading light shimmering in her eyes when she chances a glance in my direction. With her eyes already reminding me of emeralds, now they shine like the gems they are. Yeah, tonight is definitely all about the beautiful, strong, and amazing woman sitting next to me.

  We don’t speak during the entire ride to the club or when I pull up in front of the club. A man immediately jumps up and opens Imogen’s door for her. I open my own as a valet comes up to park the SUV for us. He hands me a slip of paper which I shove in the pocket of my jeans. I won’t need it until later on, so there’s no point in making a big deal of it now. Walking quickly around the vehicle, I reach out and grab Imogen’s hand. She doesn’t flinch away from me. I’ll take that as a good sign. Even if it’s only because of the crowd surrounding us.

  One thing I know about her is she doesn’t like big crowds surrounding her. She’ll go out to small bars back home with her friends, but make excuses to leave early on. Yes, Liam is extremely detailed when I ask him to get everything he can on someone. I wouldn’t be as successful as I am if he weren’t.

  Every single application I
get, he goes over no matter what pile it’s in. Especially when it comes to the ones I put in the no pile. He’ll do a detailed report on all of them to see if they’ll be good on their deal. If not, we simply don’t work with them. A select few of them we accept to give a loan to. That’s the same way we run the underground casinos. No one gets in just because they have money. They get in because we know who they are and what they’re doing there. It also allows us to know we’re not letting in any cops. I’ll be damned if we’re not careful enough and cops get into our businesses.

  Walking in the club, the bass of the music vibrates from the speakers, through the floor, and directly into our bodies. People are almost wall-to-wall, dancing drinking, trying to talk, and whatever else they’re doing in the club tonight. Imogen’s body is almost pasted to my side as we move through the mob until we get to the bouncer guarding the VIP section.

  “Name?” he questions, holding up his clipboard.

  “Mackay. We’re here with Sal,” I state.

  Without another word, he removes the red velvet rope so we can make our way through. As we walk up the stairs and down the short hallway, the bass begins to fade, and our bodies aren’t vibrating quite as bad as before. I spot Sal, Tommaso, and Dom sitting in a booth. Women surround them as I feel Imogen’s body go rigid and move even closer to my own. At this point, if she could climb into my body, she would. This is definitely not her thing.

  “Flynn, Imogen, it’s good to see you,” Sal greets us, as we stop at the edge of the table. “Imogen, you look amazing.”

  Sal stands up and places a kiss on her cheek. He motions for her to slide in, allowing me to follow her before taking his seat again. I watch on as Sal nods his head and the women disappear. None of the other men complain as the scantily clad women scatter throughout the VIP section in search of their next target. These women are the same ones I would go out with back home. Looking for an easy lay who has more money than they’re used to seeing lining his pockets. Yes, I at least know what their deal is. The men surrounding me at this table also know the deal when it comes to these women. We don’t let them close. They get to spend some time with us before moving on to the next one.

  Well, all except for Dom. He’s already spoken for and doesn’t cheat on his woman. She’s the love of his life and knows it. I’m not sure why she didn’t come out with him tonight unless Sal didn’t want Imogen to be uncomfortable. She will be no matter what, but we thought other women would make it worse. Dom’s woman, I’m not so sure. She’s sweet and would probably make Imogen feel comfortable.

  “Imogen, do you want a drink?” Sal asks, motioning for a waitress to come over.

  “Just a water please,” she responds, ducking her head because she feels some type of way.

  Sal nods his head as he gives the drink order for Imogen and himself. Then we all order our own drinks. She saunters off as Tommaso keeps his eyes glued to her ass. Imogen doesn’t miss it as a light chuckle escapes before she can lock it down. I turn to look at her because it’s the first time I’ve really heard her laugh or anything close to it. In fact, all the men turn to look at her.

  “She does laugh,” Tommaso says, making her blush with all eyes on her. “Imogen are you gonna dance?”

  “I don’t know. If I hear a song that catches my attention, I may dance. Why, are you asking?” she counters, a smile on her face lighting up her eyes as the lights continue to flash on and off our table.

  “Nope. I’m not askin’. Only one man here is gonna be dancin’ with you,” he responds, catching my eye.

  Imogen looks at me and I carefully blank my expression. She’s not going to know yet what’s going on. At the same moment, the song changes and she taps Sal on the shoulder. He stands up and lets her slide out of the booth while I move after her. If she’s going anywhere, she won’t be going alone.

  “Flynn, where are you going?” she asks, raising her voice slightly so I can hear her over the music.

  “With you. If you’re dancing, I want to have eyes on you. You’re not gonna be out of my line of vision,” I state, needing her to understand this is more about anything with her dad. “I want to have my eyes on you at all times. Just because no one else is gonna dance with you.”

  She looks up at me before gracing me with a small smile and turning to continue on her way to the dance floor. We begin to sway our bodies to the beat of the music. I get as close to her as I can on the packed dance floor. Imogen leans into my body and continues to sway her hips in time with the beat playing for us. I swear, as pussy as it sounds to say, we’re locked away in our own little world. Imogen and I are the only two on the dance floor as I let her body slide and shimmy against my own. This is doing nothing for the hardon I’ve been sporting since she opened the door at the house.

  However, I wouldn’t change this for anything in the world. Imogen is exactly where I want her to be. Against me with our bodies grinding against one another. I’m surprised with the way she moves, seamless, fluid, and if she doesn’t have the attention of every single man in the room. When she turns her body and faces me, her arms in the air, her eyes are closed as she continues to move, her body getting coated in a fine sheen of sweat. My imagination runs wild as I think of other ways that will end up with her body being covered in sweat.

  The rest of our night out goes much the same. We dance, sit with the guys to take breaks, and spend some time with Sal and the rest of our table. Imogen loosens up as the night goes on. She jokes and laughs with the table. This is exactly how I want her; open and honest. When I see her yawn, I make our excuses to leave. Sal and Tommaso give her a hug before I take her hand and lead her through the club.

  She falls asleep in the SUV on the way home. When I pull up in the driveway, Imogen doesn’t even stir as I open her door and pick her up. I carefully carry her inside the house and bring her up to her room. After making sure she’s in bed, I slide her heels off before letting my hand trail up her leg. Her skin is so soft, I crave getting my hands and mouth on her body. Before leaving her room, I take a blanket from the end of the bed and cover her up. Placing a soft kiss against her temple, I leave her room. Going to my own, I close the door and flop down in bed. Phase one is complete is the last thought I have as sleep claims me.

  Chapter Twelve

  Imogen

  WAKING UP, I’m warmer than normal. The sun is beating down on me, heating up my body more than normal. Since I left before going to bed, I didn’t worry about closing the curtains on the doors. For some reason, I didn’t close them before going to bed. Thinking back, I try to figure out why I didn’t close them.

  I remember dancing in the club, drinking nothing but water at the club. At first, I didn’t want to be surrounded by so many people. Crowds scare the hell out of me. Nothing happened to me or anything like that. I just don’t like crowds and never have. Too many people squished together in one area means more chances for fights and other disasters to happen. For someone who hates confrontations, fights are one of my nightmares.

  When we left the club, I was so tired. I don’t remember any of the ride home. The only thing I can think of is I fell asleep in the SUV on the way home. Flynn must have brought me to bed last night and didn’t think to shut the curtains. A smile covers my face as I think of him taking care of me. Of putting me to bed and covering me up. I remember him dancing with me, not making jokes about how I dance or anything else. Normally, I don’t dance in public because I don’t think I’m very good at it. Flynn didn’t care, he danced with me.

  The feeling of dancing with Flynn in the middle of a crowded dance floor, I thought we were the only two people out there. No one was surrounding us, we weren’t being bumped into constantly, or jarred from other dancers when they got to excited. Flynn and I were the only ones there and that’s how I liked it. It’s easy with him when I feel that way. We’re not Imogen the shy virgin and Flynn a member of a criminal organization. We are two people who had fun together.

  Last night I saw a different side
of Flynn than I have so far. A side I’m not sure how many people actually get to see of him. He was attentive, funny, smart, and sexier than I’ve ever seen him. Not because of how he looked or the way he was treating me, or what he was dressed in. It was simply the change I saw in him; a lighter side than the stoic, hard businessman I usually catch glimpses of. If I’m honest with myself, the change began to come when we were in the pool and he opened up about his family business and his role in it.

  With the smile still on my face, I climb out of bed and head to the bathroom. Looking in the mirror, I take in the raccoon eyes, my hair all over the place, and my clothes wrinkled from sleeping in them all night. I’m a hot mess if ever there was one. Turning away from the mirror, I turn on the shower before taking care of the rest of my business. Once I’m done, I step under the hot water and let it take away the aches in my body. I’m not used to dancing like that. In fact, I’ve never once danced like that in my life. Flynn made me fearless and not noticing anything about the people around us.

  After cleaning up from last night, I get out and dry off. Instead of dressing in my bikini, I put on a pair of shorts and a tank top. Brushing out my hair, I put it up in a messy bun on top of my head so it’s out of the way. Grabbing my book and sunglasses, I slip into a pair of flip flops before making my way downstairs. I can smell breakfast cooking as I walk downstairs. The scent of bacon fills the air as I walk through the house and into the kitchen. Rosa is at that stove with her back to me.

  Looking through the open doors of the patio, the sun is barely over the horizon. Right now is one of my favorite times of the day. It doesn’t matter if the ocean is right outside or whether or not I can smell the salt in the air. It’s more about feeling as if I’m alone in the world to start a new day. A day I can be anyone I want and accomplish whatever I didn’t get done the day before. My second favorite time of the day is when I can catch the sunset. That’s when I feel as if the shitty events of the day are washed away. As the sun disappears over the horizon, it takes all the pain and worries of the day away with it.