by Ali Parker
"Holy shit, Jenna. Did you tell your father?"
"No." I reached up and tugged at my hair. "I don't want my father involved. If someone killed Darek, and he's as high up in the city as he is, why would they spare my father? No. I'm taking care of this myself."
"Wait. Taking care of this?" The door opened and she grabbed me as I tried to move through it.
"I'm going over there tonight. I have to get his laptop so I can review the files. I know Denise was involved in his death, Grace. My brother wouldn't kill himself."
She released me and we turned and yelped as a dark figure moved out of the shadows. Erik.
"Sorry. I didn't realize how late it was." He glanced from me to Grace and smiled. "You have to tell me if I break the rules. It's in my nature to do so."
"It's okay, no worries at-"
I cut her off. "Erik. I need your help." I moved toward him as he stiffened.
"How do you know my name?" His eyebrow lifted.
"My father is the DA of New York City. I know a lot about you." I stopped in front of him and glanced up into his beautiful face with what I prayed was a pleading expression. "Please. I need your help."
"I love helping a pretty woman, miss, but you being the daughter of the DA doesn't exactly score you any points with me. Your prick of a father has been trying to take down my family for ages. Why in the world would I help you?"
"What if I could delete a few files from the system? My father's computer is completely accessible from his library. He wouldn't suspect me."
He watched me closely as Grace moved up beside me and grabbed my arm.
"What are you doing right now? You can't delete files from your father's library. There should be backups and stuff."
"She's right." Erik glanced toward Grace. "But a well-planted virus would help out a lot."
"Can you get me the virus?" I kept my eyes on my target. I didn't have to figure this out alone. Erik would help me. I had something he wanted. Too bad Nate hadn't felt the same.
"I can." He licked his lips and tilted his head a little, looking like sin incarnate. "What do you want help with, Jenna Webb?"
I stiffened, though I should have known that he knew who I was. Everyone did.
"My brother was murdered last weekend. I want-"
"Your brother committed suicide. I've seen the files." He crossed his arms over his massive chest and Grace sighed and walked away.
"I'm closing everything down. Don't leave without me."
"I won't," I mumbled, grateful that she gave me and Erik a minute alone. "He wouldn't do that. If you know anything about my family, you know that Darek was my father’s pride and joy. He wouldn’t kill himself."
"Agreed. So who fed him the sex drug, little girl? Three of those bitches and your heart will stop." He watched me with an intensity that rivaled Nate's.
"I don't know, but I would bet it's his fucking widow. Something is off about her."
He nodded. "Very off. Her last husband died too. Not four years ago. Seems very suspicious."
"What?" Shock raced through me. "She's not been married before."
He clicked his tongue against his teeth. "Don't challenge my facts, Jenna. Tell me what you want from me for this quid pro quo. Take care of my needs, and I'll take care of yours."
His line was far too sexual, but maybe it was just me. He was overwhelming that close up.
"My brother left a laptop at his place. He gave me the password."
"Don't need it."
"What? We do need it. It should have evidence that-"
"Don't need it. She killed him. Plain and simple. She's a black widow."
I pressed my hands to my face and breathed in slowly. "How do you know this?"
"I know everything, Miss Webb. You want her dead? Is that the payoff? Or you want the evidence delivered on your doorstep?"
"I want two things." I dragged my fingers down my face. "Please."
"Sure. Seems doable if you're really willing to fry your daddy's files for me and mine."
"For you. Not the rest of your family." I shook my head.
"Easy enough." He shrugged. "Two things. What are they?"
"Get the evidence that she forced those drugs on him somehow and go with me when I kill her."
He snorted. "You're going to take out the girl?"
"Yes." I nodded, fully aware that my life would change forever, but I couldn't let someone else clean up the mess. She killed my brother and destroyed my father. I needed closure. Even if it changed me forever.
"I'm getting hard just thinking about it." He licked his lips again and smiled. "Deal, Jenna Webb. Set me up with your pretty friend when this is all over."
"Fuck no. Set yourself up." I turned as he walked past me and chuckled low in his chest. Grace would never survive him.
"Expect to hear from me by this weekend."
"Wait. You need the password to Darek's computer."
"No, I don't."
I stood there in the dark, watching him go until Grace jogged back toward me.
"What did I miss?"
"Nothing. Everything." I turned my attention to my best friend. "Would you still love me if I killed someone?"
"Was it an accident?"
"No."
"Did they deserve it?"
"Does anyone deserve to die?" I reached out and ran my hand down her arm.
"Yeah, some people do." She glanced over her shoulder. "Awww... did I miss him leaving?"
"Yeah, but stay away from him Grace. He's a really bad guy."
"I realize that. It's his name I scream when I masturbate."
"Really?" I glanced over at her and shook my head at the silly pink dress she wore. "You're killing me here."
"Speaking of killing... who are we offing?"
"We? No one." I stopped and glanced around. "I'm not letting you get involved."
"You don't have a choice. Where you go - I go."
I nodded as emotion choked me. Of course, my best friend was willing to have my back. Nate wasn't. My sister wouldn't. But Grace... I could always count on Grace.
No matter the request.
Chapter 21
Nate
Two Days Later
I poked my head around to the living room to see which of the two people with a key to my place was coming in - uninvited.
Mikey.
"You can't just fucking knock?" I gave him a look. It had been a long two days trying to get Jenna to talk to me and getting the cold shoulder from her. It would seem she never did go over to Ashley’s Thursday night seeing that I headed over there when Ash wouldn't come to heel.
We spent the evening on the couch, bullshitting until she tried to get in my lap. She was less than happy when I denied her a long ride on my cock, but as far as I was concerned, my body belonged to one woman.
Too bad she wasn't interested in servicing it for the time being.
"Since when do I knock? I'm not the cops." Mikey closed the door and followed me into the kitchen. "Where you been? Working and shit?"
"That and sleeping." I walked to the fridge and pulled out a beer.
"You know most people drink coffee or hot tea in the morning."
"Right. Well, I ain't a hipster or an old lady, so try again." I turned to face him and chugged the beer.
"What's going on with Jenna and Ashley? You made up your mind yet what you're going to do?"
"I'm not killing Jenna. I know that much." I shrugged and burped loudly. "I can't off Ash either, man. She's stood beside me through every shitty thing in my life. I need to just disappear."
"And let them kill each other?" He crossed his arms over his chest. "That sounds like the manly thing to do."
"Fuck you too, Mikey." I walked past him and picked up my phone as it buzzed on the table. Ashley. "Damn. This bitch is calling already this morning? What now?"
"Ashley?" Mikey dropped down on the chair beside the couch.
"Yes." I pressed the talk button and put the phone to my ear. "It's Nate. W
hat's up?"
"Someone stole Darek's computer last night, Nate. Do you know anything about that?" Ashley's voice was stone-cold. I'd only heard her sound that way a few times, and none of them turned out really well for anyone involved.
"Nope. You sure you didn't just misplace it in a drunken cleaning spree?" I sat down on the couch and took another drink of my beer.
"It's not funny. Darek kept everything on his computer. I mean - everything. I need it back. It has the codes to our bank accounts and the insurance documents."
That caught my attention.
"Don't you guys have cameras around that place? Seems like something you would-"
"Yes. That's the problem. The guy that took the computer isn't someone I would ever in a million years mess with."
Confusion rolled over me. "Who are we talking about here, Ash?"
"Erik Bertinelli. Why was he in my house last night? What the fuck are you up to, Nate?"
"Nothing. I didn't send that asshole over there." I sat upright as my pulse sped up. Why the fuck would Erik be in our shit. "I'm scoring a huge sum of money from you over this, Ash. Why would I mess it up? You're not making any damn sense."
"Only two people would have sent that cold bastard to my house while I was sleeping."
"Well, I ain't one of them." I stood up as my thoughts scattered in a million directions. Who the hell had sent Erik to Ashley's place, and what did he want with Darek's computer? Shit. Jenna? No way.
"He's your best friend from grade school, Nate. Maybe you wanted to get the numbers yourself and close me out of the deal."
"I haven't spoken to him in years, and you know that. Besides, if I wanted the goddamn computer, I'd have come over, fucked you, drugged you and taken the damn thing. I don't need a hitman to steal for me, Ash. Use your pretty blond head and think."
"Then it was Jenna, which is still your fucking problem. Get the laptop back. Now. And put a bullet in her fucking head before I do it."
Every muscle in my body locked. "Don't touch her, Ash. She's a goldmine, and I'll not have you fucking that up. You'll implicate us both. Just chill out and I'll go pay our old friend a visit and see what's up."
"You do that. I'm on guard against all you bitches right now. Especially you. Asshole."
"Sorry you feel that way, baby doll. I'll be in touch." I dropped the call and glanced down at Mikey. "Erik Bertinelli took Darek's laptop out of Ashley's place while she was sleeping last night."
"And he let you guys see him on the camera?"
"Oh yeah. I'm more than sure he meant for that to happen."
"What?" Mikey snorted. "Why the fuck would he want that?"
"To send a message. When the Bertinellis get involved, death is soon to follow."
"Right, or that he wants you to come see him. Maybe he understands what you're up against."
"I don't need Erik's help, Mikey. He's a back-stabbing bastard. My days of covering his ass are over."
"He probably feels the same." Mikey shrugged as I growled at him.
"Stay out of it."
He lifted his hands. "No problem, but you need to go see him. You can't protect the woman you love when you're the one being sent to kill her. The math doesn't work out, man. I promise."
He was right. Fuck me. He was right.
***
I decided to forgo the visit to see Erik just yet. Finding him on the streets or getting him alone was a bad idea. Our last face to face had our guns drawn and some nasty words between us. He wanted me inducted into the Bertinelli family and I couldn't live that life.
You might get welcomed through the front door, but there was no exit once you were in. Fuck that. I needed to know my life was my own. Erik had put his ass on the line with his Papa to get me a spot. Me refusing was a big damn deal.
"Too bad, bitch." I walked into Kadia and pulled out my phone, checking to see if my woman was done being pissy with me. She had another night alone before I showed up at her door and forced myself on her.
She belonged to me. Somehow she kept forgetting that shit.
"Damn," one of the guys beside me muttered as some of his friends started making catcalls.
I turned to watch a pretty woman walk across the dance floor, around the edges, and my blood ran cold. That wasn't just any woman. It was my woman.
"Hey. Watch your fucking mouth." I backhanded the guy nearest me and walked toward the dance floor as Jenna was jerked into some big guy’s arms. She pulled away, but he wasn't having any of it. "Wrong girl, asshole."
I grabbed him by the front of the shirt and popped him three times in the face before turning to her and growling, "What the hell do you think you're doing, dressed like that?"
Her tight black dress left little to the imagination, and all I could see was red. She'd come there to teach me a lesson, or so she thought. The joke was soon to be on her.
"You don't own me, Nate. You made your choice." She moved back as I reached for her.
"Jenna. I'm not playing right now. There's a lot of shit going on. I didn't make a choice other than to be your man. Get the fuck over here." I reached for her again, and the dude stepped back in my way, his face already busted up from our first encounter.
"Hey. The woman said no, asshole." He reached for me and I slapped his hand away.
"I'm gonna break this poor guy's neck because you wanted to reject me for not supporting your brother's situation. Is this really how we're going to do this?" I glanced around the guy and caught my girl's eye. "I didn't say that your brother didn't kill himself. I just didn't want you running into danger. Fucking sue me for caring."
The guy swung at me, and I spun him around and locked his own arms around him, starting to slowly choke him out.
"Nate. Stop it. Shit. Stop." She reached out and touched my arm, pleading with me with her big brown eyes. "Please."
"Come upstairs with me and stop this shit. I'm not the man to play tricks with, girl."
She nodded. "Okay. Yeah. Just let him go."
I released him and kicked his big ass out of the way before grabbing her and tossing her over my shoulder. I gripped her tightly and made my way to the stairs.
"I'm going to lay waste to your ass when we get somewhere private. How dare you come in here looking like that? Letting other men touch you. You have no fucking clue who you're dealing with, woman." I pushed some guy out of my way and stormed to my office before setting her down. "And don't try to get out of this shit. I've missed you so goddamn much. Sorry-"
"Shut the fuck up already." She came at me faster than I expected her to be able and pressed herself against my chest, half-crawling up my body. "I hate you so much."
I grabbed her and turned, slamming her against the wall as I consumed her mouth in a fiery hot kiss. Bitch needed to know who was in charge. It was me. It would always be me.
Gripping her hair tightly, I pulled her head to the side and licked at the long column of her neck. "You love me, Jenna. You don't hate me. I didn't reject you, baby. Stop being a bitch."
"You did reject me." Her voice broke, the sound of her pain shot a knife through the center of my chest. "You left me standing there alone when I needed you most. I had no choice but to get someone else to help me."
Erik. Fuck. My girl was wrapped up with Erik. Not good.
"Hush. That's enough out of you." I gripped her skirt and pulled it up before toting her toward the couch and laying her down. I pressed myself on top of her and kissed her a few times slowly. "I don't have a condom with me."
"Then you're not-"
"Yeah. I am." I ran my nose down the side of her neck and reached in between us, pulling her panties to the side and dipping my fingers into the sloppy wet mess between her thighs. "You came in here wanting to be fucked. It better have been by me, Jenna. I'll kill every mother fucker in this place."
"Of course it was you." She gripped my face with both hands and pulled me up to look into her eyes. "I need your help. My brother's wife killed him. Please, Nate. I don't want anyone
but you helping me."
I kissed her palm and reached between us, freeing my cock from my slacks. "I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere."
She groaned loudly and arched her back as I sunk deep inside of her. "Make love to me," she whispered in my ear.
"Yeah," I responded and slid my hands to cup her ass softly as I worked myself in and out of her liquid hot body. The sound of her moans in my ear worked me up and over the edge fast. "I wanna see your tits, Jenna."
She worked to get her dress up, dragging her bra with it, as her large breasts bounced out, her nipples budded and dusty pink.
"Beautiful," I whispered and leaned down to suck one of them deep into my mouth. She came hard, wetting my fingers as I spread her ass a little wider and drove a finger into her as my cock stretched her open for the next hour.
I collapsed after I came, and she cradled me against her soft body. "Please help me. All I have is you and Grace. She's not capable of-"
"You love me?" I had to hear it straight out.
"You know that I do."
I ran my hand up her chest and squeezed her throat softly. "Say it then. If you've felt it for the last year, why the fuck didn't you say it?"
Her eyes filled with unshed tears and her lip quivered. "I didn't know if you could say it back. I was scared. I still am scared."
"Don't be, Jenna. Just say it for me." I leaned down and brushed her hair back before kissing the side of her mouth. I was beyond lost to her. So far in love that it hurt to think about moving off the top of her. I needed her in my life. Wanted her right beside me.
She wouldn't love me if she knew...
"I love you," she whispered against my neck and held me tightly to her. "I want to spend my life beside you. Beneath you. I need you so bad right now. I'm not a killer, Nate, but justice has to be served."
"And you know this chick did it?" I turned to face her.
"Yes." She spoke with clarity. With conviction.
"I love you too, baby." I licked her lips. "Then the girl has to die. Get me the information and I'll take care of it."
