Now, Devlin knew having a baby in the wilds of Australia wasn’t the norm, but he didn’t have a choice. It wasn’t like he could just check Lisset into a state-of-the-art hospital. They would ask too many questions. Questions, he couldn’t answer and if by chance she was spotted, well that meant he’d have to break his promise to his mother, and he refused to do that. Nope, killing wasn’t an option. So, he was left with the alternative. He had to give it to Lisset, she didn’t complain, not one bit. But damn, he knew she would if she ever found out that she gave birth to her daughter in a hut, surrounded by an aboriginal tribe, she would kick his ass to Timbuktu.
“Yes, Mr. Brothers?”
“When can we move her?”
“She needs rest, Mr. Brothers. Her body has just been through a trauma. She can’t be moved for at least three days.”
“What if that isn’t an option?”
“Look Mr. Brothers, I don’t want to know what kind of trouble you are in. My only concern is for the young woman and the infant. If you move them, before she is able to, you risk complications and infection. It’s bad enough, she gave birth in this place. I didn’t have all the equipment I needed. This place is unsanitary and prone to diseases. Do her a favor and give her the three days she needs. Which reminds me, I need names for the birth certificate.”
“Skylar Eugenia Brothers.”
“Mother and father’s name?”
“Lisset Boniet Brothers and Devlin Damien Brothers,” Devlin said nothing as he watched the doc write the names, he’d given him on the official document. When he was done, the doc handed him the paper and just said, “I’d like to be paid now.”
“The money has already been wired to your account. Your transport has arrived,” Devlin said, pointing to the helicopter off in the distance.
The doctor didn’t say anything more. Devlin watched as the man boarded the helicopter and took off before turning back to the hut. Devlin entered to find his brother holding the baby, Lisset sleeping on the small bed. Heading over to him, Devlin asked, “She okay?”
“Oh, little Peanut and I are fine.”
“I wasn’t asking about her or you.”
“Lisset is resting. Got the paperwork?”
“Yeah, but we’ve got a problem. We can’t leave for three days.”
“Uh, Dev, that isn’t going to work. We have to leave in ten minutes. I’ve already called for our transport. Our contact in Sydney called. We were made.”
“Fuck,” Devlin cursed. “We can’t keep doing this. I am getting tired of running with my tail between my legs. This shit needs to end, like yesterday.”
“I agree, but what can we do. We can’t just leave her and the baby and go off and take care of everything. We have to stay the course. When Lisset is better and the baby is bigger, we can revisit your plan. Until then, we are all she has. If he gets his hands on her, he will kill her. Do you want to tell the boss man, that you let his only sister get whacked because you had a penchant for blood?”
“I hate you, you know that?”
“Only because I am right.”
“What are we going to do with her and a baby? I don’t know anything about babies.”
“Me neither, so we’re going to take her to someone who does.”
“Who?”
“Were going to see mom.”
Chapter One
Atlantic City, New Jersey, Present day,
“I said no!” Damien heard, then sighed as he walked in the front door to find little Skylar wobbling on her little chubby legs towards him. Her little hands held out and her big doe eyes pleading with him to pick her up. She was a precocious little thing and the spitting image of her mother. Damien thanked God for that every day because the alternative wanted to make him gag. It wasn’t that he cared who Skylar looked like, but he was just happy she inherited her mother’s good looks and not her temper from the sound of it.
Dropping his jacket on the couch, he held on to the little fourteen month and blew raspberry kisses on her neck. Listening to Skylar giggle never got old with him. When she first laughed, he made it his mission in life to see that she smiled daily and often. He loved everything about the little girl, right down to her uncontrollable blonde curls that had a mind of their own. She was everything he thought he never wanted.
Damien never wished to be a father. Hell, he didn’t even like kids. Typically, when a woman got all mushy and started talking about place settings, window treatments or weekend vacations, he’d cut tail and run for the hills. It wasn’t that he was opposed to the idea of matrimony, it was just that spending twenty-five to life in a maximum-security prison sounded more fun. Nope, marriage wasn’t for him, so for the life of him, he couldn’t understand why seeing Skylar and Lisset every day put a smile on his face.
He was getting soft. That had to be the reason. He hadn’t shot anyone in almost two years. Yep, that was it. He needed to see some blood action. Lots of blood. All this running around, and playing homemaker was grating his nerves. He couldn’t understand how a man, any man, would want to live a life like this. It was boring. There was no substance and he wasn’t even going to start on the long, lonely nights. Dear God, how in the hell did a man survive?
Yeah, he also started talking to God, too. That was a mind trip. It started about three or four months ago. He was escorting his mother to mass, when suddenly, he found himself talking to the man upstairs. Shocked the hell out of him too. One minute he was scoping out the church, then wham! He found himself kneeling at the altar. He thought his poor mom was going to have apoplexy. Since then, his conversations with God were kept in strict confidence, mainly they were in his head, but at least no one was gawking at him anymore. Nope, everyone was too busy talking about garden parties and barbecues. He swore to the man upstairs if he had to muddle through another social get together, he was going to commit mass murder. Nothing said boredom like a bunch of yuppies gabbing over stale beer and hot dogs.
“When did you get home?”
Looking up, Damien grinned at his mother. She looked happy, which was odd since all he remembered growing up was her scowl and scorn where he was concerned. Her happiness was another aftereffect of marriage. According to his mother, he was tamed and on the path to righteousness. “Just a minute ago. How long have they been arguing?”
“Marriage is hard Damien. They are just communicating. It’s good for them,” she replied taking Skylar from him. “It’s time for her bath.”
Damien said nothing as he watched his mother and Skylar go upstairs. Listening to the voices emanating from the bedroom down the hall, he wondered what his mother thought an argument sounded like because from what he was hearing, it seemed like a war was about to start.
Living with Lisset Boniet wasn’t easy. The woman was headstrong, independent and cunning. Add in the fact that she was so fucking beautiful it made his eyes hurt and well it wasn’t easy being around her. Not that they had a choice in the matter. Nope, they were responsible for her in every way possible. So, learning to live with her was a challenge. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to. It was because he had too. There was a big difference on that aspect in his book and considering lately he’d been warring with himself over right and wrong, well it was getting harder and harder to contain the dormant demon within him.
Hell, just thinking about her lately got his blood pumping and not in a good way. Unlike Devlin, who preferred to fight his way out of any compromising position, Damien preferred the easier approach…cold showers. Lots and lots of cold showers and he desperately needed one right now. The problem? They were in the bedroom fighting. This meant if he wanted any kind of relief, he was going to have to navigate the explosive minefield to get to safety.
Mustering up what courage he had left, he braced himself for shock and awe because when Lisset and Devlin fought, it was spectacular.
Quietly opening the door, he spotted the targets. It was a Mexican standoff, and neither was backing down. They had all their guns out and aimed. The after
math wasn’t going to be pretty, but he didn’t care. His objective was literally seven steps away. Stealthily, he snuck into the room. The targets were too busy arguing to notice. Moving silently, he stayed close to the wall when he heard, “I don’t care Devlin. I’m tired. I like it here. Why can’t we stay?”
Oh, this wasn’t good. It was the talk. The same one Devlin had been trying to get Lisset on board with for over a month. Damien had to give Dev props. His brother was persistent, too bad for him because Lisset was stubborn.
“Because we’ve stayed long enough already. Skylar is older. Now is the time.”
“But I have friends here. Skylar has her playgroup. We’d have to start all over again.”
“I know that Lisset, but we have to go.”
“I want to stay.”
“You can’t. Eventually they will find us, and then what? Do you really want to chance them finding you and Skylar?”
“Of course, I don’t. I just don’t think we need to be hasty about this.”
“Lisset, we have to go,” Devlin said, and Damien cringed. His brother was using that I-Am-The-Boss tone, the one that pissed Lisset off every time.
“What about your mother?”
“What about her? She’ll be okay.”
“I don’t think she will be when I tell her that you want to take her only grandchild away from her and she’d never see Skylar again.”
Oh shit! She brought out the big guns. Lisset was playing dirty. This was not good. He needed to get to safety quick. Making a break for the promise land, Damien ran for the bathroom, just as Devlin shouted, “You wouldn’t dare!”
“Force my hand, and I will.”
Shutting the door behind him, Damien leaned against it and sighed. He made it. He was safe. Too bad he could still hear them clearly. Trying to ignore them, he turned on the shower. He had a rough day today and wanted to come home to a happy family, but that wasn’t the case. As usual Devlin and Lisset were arguing over the best course of action, Mom was running off somewhere with Skylar, and he just trying to survive the night unscathed. It wasn’t easy being the third person in a marriage.
Hell, he didn’t even know if what they were was called a marriage. All he knew was that when Devlin wasn’t around, he was supposed to be in charge…but never was. Now that he thought about, he didn’t even think Dev was ever in charge.
Nope, it was Lisset. Typically, what she said was law and they went along with it.
Huh, looking down, he checked to make sure his balls were still there. “Yep, I still have a pair,” he whispered to himself, before removing his boxers.
The steam from the shower started to fill the bathroom. Though the spraying water sounded soothing, it in no way eased the tension from hearing Devlin and Lisset argue. Those two were like bickering badgers fighting over a twig. Oh, they didn’t fight all the time, but when they did, neither held anything back. Dear God, if Lisset was that passionate during an argument, Damien wondered how she’d be in bed. And just like that, his nice hot shower was going to have to be a cold one.
Yes, he was technically married to the beautiful woman and according to the paperwork, he was technically the father to her child, but damn-it he hadn’t so much as kissed the woman!
Protecting Lisset had just become a way of life for him, so to speak. When Sasha, her brother told them to watch over his sister, he and Devlin did so think it was going to be an easy babysitting job. For Christ sakes…the woman was blind! How much trouble could get into?
Well, that question was answered when they arrived in Scotland two years ago to find her in the arms of one Sergio Pavlov. Of course, that relationship didn’t last, thanks to his and Devlin’s interference, but the shit really hit the fan when Lisset informed them that she was pregnant. Yeah, their little babysitting job went from easy-peasy to Defcon-1 in a heartbeat. Add in the fact that Pavlov had left behind an informant, and well, for the last two years, all their lives became a game of Hide-N-Go-Seek.
In the beginning it was easy. It was just the three of them. After the first encounter, Devlin sent off a message to Sasha telling him what was going on and that they’d moved to plan-B, and that he’d wait for further instructions. The only problem with that was when they reached the safe house, there was no message waiting, only a slew of goons with the intent of acquiring Lisset. So, plan-C was enacted. A total identity wash and a life off the grid. The only problem with that was when Skylar was born. It wasn’t easy picking up and starting over in a new place when they had a baby to take care of and there were three of them. That’s why after Skylar was born, they headed to New Jersey.
In the last two years, Lisset was able to heal and Skylar had some stability. It was nice and at times, Damien felt at home like this was what his life was meant to be like. Of course, notifying his ‘other’ family of their predicament wasn’t in the plan, but if they wanted to give Skylar a chance at something normal, then there was no choice.
Living in shadows of one of New Jersey’s major crime families was easier than he thought. Then again, having the family coordinate with the rest of the family did make everything simpler. So, for the last fourteen months, Damien could rest easy knowing that if Lisset left the house with Skylar, she was well protected. No one messed with his cousin, Giovanni Rossi or as the family called him, Big Gino.
However, it looked as if their family reunion hiatus had come to an end. Devlin wanted to move on. In typical form, when Devlin got one of his gut feelings, he went with it and nothing short of a nuclear bomb was going to stop him, or in this case a woman named Lisset. Damien had to give her props, she was holding her own. Damien liked that about her. Lisset gave as good as she got. The only problem was, he wished she’d give in other departments, like the bedroom.
His sex life had gone down the drain when he first laid eyes on the beautiful blond. She was tall, fit and had a body that would make any man weep. She was perfect…until she started talking, her one downfall. She was a bossy, opinionated, stubborn woman and at times a spoiled brat. Okay, maybe that was like four downfalls, but Damien didn’t care. He wanted her.
“Damn it Lisset.”
“Look, I get what you and Damien are doing, and I appreciate it all from the bottom of my heart. But enough is enough. I can’t do this anymore. I am tired of running. I am tired of getting comfortable, only to have you uproot me in a few months. That is no way to raise my daughter and I won’t do it anymore.”
“She’s my daughter too, Lisset,” Devlin said angrily.
“Don’t fight me on this Devlin, you will lose. I’ve made my decision. Skylar and I are staying.”
Ignoring the bickering duo, Damien was just getting ready to hop in the shower when Lisset barged in. Like a shy teenager, Damien quickly scrambled to cover his private parts and yelled, “Damn it Lisset, I’m naked!”
“And I’m blind,” She replied as if it were nothing to be in a room with him while he was in his birthday suit. “Besides, you’ve seen me naked, before.”
“You were giving birth!”
“Come on Damien. I can’t leave. If I do, I will end up saying something I regret. I won’t peek, I promise.”
“You can’t see shit, Lisset.”
“Exactly,” she smiled sweetly. “So be a sweetheart and go take your shower. I won’t bother you, I promise.”
Damien wasn’t so sure about that. He was antsy enough being around her. Now he was standing stark naked in front of her and nothing. It was like she didn’t see him. Then again, she couldn’t and that was the problem. There were so many times when he wore his heart on his sleeve around her and because of her impairment, she believed he was being over dramatic. It was annoying, but mainly, it hurt. In the short two years they had been together, Damien could admit one thing. He was in love with her.
“Lisset, please,” Damien whispered, pleading with her. He sounded like a man in pain, begging for his tormentor to ease up. It was humiliating. It wasn’t that he didn’t like her company it was that what
he wanted to do. Damien didn’t think she’d appreciate hearing him call out her name in ecstasy while he relieved the tension from his body. God, he wondered what it would be like to hold her in his arms while he made love to her. Would she writhe beneath him, would she claw his back with her perfectly manicured nails? Would she scream out his name as he pounded into her deviously exquisite body? What did her lips taste like? Were they soft and warm, or firm and demanding? Damn, just being in the same room with her caused his heart to beat fast. His poor libido was forever on maximum overdrive and with relief just moments away, Damien wasn’t sure he could do what she asked. All he wanted was to take her in his arms and devour her.
“If you’re not going to shower, do you mind if I do?” she asked standing up.
Dear God, she wanted to get naked right before him. He didn’t have the willpower to say no, even though he knew it was wrong. He was there to protect her, to make sure she was safe. That didn’t mean take advantage. He was screwed and not in a good way.
Reaching for a towel, he wrapped it around his waist and muttered, “I don’t mind.” Saying anything else, would give his predicament away. Of course, he was damn sure she was already aware, but he thanked his lucky stars she hadn’t mentioned it. God help her if she did because Damien wasn’t altogether sure he could continue being the gentlemen she believed him to be.
He stood silently as he watched Lisset undress. It had always been a favorite time of day for him, though he’d never let her know that. It was bad enough she thought she was alone, but to find out that he’d been her private peeping Tom for months, well that was just creepy. Wasn’t it?
“I can hear you breathing,” she smiled.
“That means my heart is still beating.”
“Why wouldn’t it,” she asked, letting her bra fall to the floor. Dear God in heaven, he was going to have a heart attack. He knew it. He could already feel the muscle straining heavily as is heart tried to beat normally.
Lisset: The Men of Treasure Cove Page 2
