BENEATH THE SILK
Page 19
Joey chuckled. "You're still one lucky bastard, Jacky. Sunni's a beautiful lady."
"That she is, Joe. I feel like the luckiest man in the world." He turned from the window, grinning. In fact, he'd been grinning nonstop since Sis had told him she loved him.
"Where's Mac this morning?"
"Downstairs with Sunni. He likes tagging along behind her these days. I think he's a little jealous."
When the phone rang, Joey picked it up. "Yeah? Okay. We're both here." When he disconnected, he said, "Lucky's on his way up. He sounded strange."
"Strange, how?"
"Sober" was Joey's answer. "I'll be glad to find out where the hell he's been. Gates didn't even have a number where he could be reached. Frank's been all over me for days for letting him run off without knowing where or why. Hell, it's been six days."
When the door opened and closed, Lucky strolled into the office whistling.
"Where the hell have you been?" Joey began. "Frank's been—"
"Worried?" Lucky spied Jackson. "Hey, bro, heard you got your case solved while I was away. Heard you put Williams behind bars, and got an extra bonus for your trouble. Congratulations on the new job. I hear there's going to be a wedding, too."
"I suppose you were as surprised as the rest of us to learn it was Stud Williams?" Jackson asked.
"Not really. Never trust a two-faced cop." Lucky took the chair facing Joey. "Speaking of Williams—" he reached into his pocket and tossed a picture on the shiny desk "—picked something up for you, bro."
For several seconds the room was quiet, then all at once Joey was on his feet. "Where did you get this picture?"
"I took it."
"Where."
"Key West, Florida."
"She's there?"
"That's right."
When Joe released a string of Italian that left a trail of blue smoke, Jackson sauntered to the desk to eye the picture. Holy hell, he thought. Lucky had located Rhea Williams.
"How did you find her?" Joey snapped. "Or did you know where she was all along?"
Lucky got to his feet. "Don't be crazy, Joey. I only learned where she was a few days ago. I had a hunch and I played it. It took me a few more days to put all the facts together for you, but in the end, you got your answer to that nagging question you've been living with for three years."
Suddenly the fight went out of Joe. "I need a drink."
"I'll pour," Jackson offered.
As Lucky and Joe straddled bar stools, Jackson poured Macallan Scotch for all three of them from behind the bar. Lucky said, "Rhea's been living there since she left Chicago. She lives on a private estate."
"How did you find her?" Jackson asked.
"I'll get into that later. The important thing is I found her and…"
"And?" Joe had already downed his glass of Scotch. He motioned to Jackson to pour him another.
Lucky slid his hand into his leather jacket pocket and pulled out another picture and laid it on the bar. The picture was of Rhea walking along a sandy beach holding onto the hand of a little dark-haired boy no older that three.
The minute Joe's eyes fastened on the picture, he said, "Whose kid, Lucky?"
The question hung in the silence for a full minute. Then finally, Lucky said, "Who does he look like, bro?"
Jackson angled his head to look at the kid and nearly choked on his Scotch. The boy looked like he could be Joe's twin.
"Are you saying he's mine? That she was pregnant when she left town? That I have a son I didn't know about?"
His gaze dropped to the picture and he examined it more closely. Jackson watched as Joey's fingers brushed over the little boy's face several times. "How could she do that?" he whispered. "How could she keep him from me?"
His voice was low, laced with a dangerous quality that hinted of the fury raging inside him.
"Take it easy, Joe," Jackson said. "First you have to make sure he's yours before you get—"
"He is," Lucky confirmed. "That's why I was gone a few extra days. I wanted to make sure I didn't come back bearing false gifts."
Jackson poured Joey another Scotch. "Here, bro. Down another one of these. I'll keep 'em coming." He glanced at Lucky. "You want another one?"
"No. I figure I'll be flying a plane out of here before morning, headed for the Atlantic. At least one of us ought to have a clear head."
An hour later Jackson stepped off the elevator. Joe was working toward a serious drunk, one Jackson couldn't blame him for. But he wasn't worried. It was time Joe faced the past. And Lucky had promised to be his brother's shadow for the next couple of days while Joe pulled it together. And he would pull it together—Joe was the logical one. He never did anything without thinking it through.
As he headed across the bridge to Silks, he noticed a crowd had gathered in front of the display window. Suddenly a little nervous, he shouldered his way through the crowd, then jerked to a stop as his eyes locked on Mac. Standing inside the window he'd placed himself between the beautiful mannequin and Sunni's lion. His hackles were raised an inch off his back, and his canines were gleaming in the spotlight.
"Oh, hell," Jackson muttered. He'd told Sunni just last night that Mac hadn't chewed up or broken anything in more than a week. Before he could get through the crowd, Mac sprang and fur went flying. He reached the door seconds later intending to rescue the lion, but when Sunni spied him and started to come toward him, he quickly changed direction. Hooking onto her arm, he pulled her close and stole a kiss.
Seconds later, she glanced at the crowd that had collected outside the door. "What's going on out there?"
"Let's go in your office, honey."
As he tugged her along, she glanced over her shoulder. "Have you seen Mac? He was here just a minute ago."
"He's entertaining a few people out in the lobby." Jackson waved to Mary as he opened the office door and ushered Sunni inside. "About that lion in the display window. Ever thought about changing the theme?"
"Of course not, silly. I shelled out five thousand big ones for him. Leo is Silks' mascot."
Jackson winced. He should have known the lion was the real deal. Sunni wouldn't wanted a fake-fur mascot.
"Jack … you look a little pale."
"Come here and kiss me, Sis." He drew her against him and nuzzled her lips. Fingering the buttons on her melon-colored silk suit jacket, he whispered, "The twins want to come out and say hi. You know we never did get around to making love on your desk." He reached behind his back and locked the door. "How about it? Let's make a memory. One I'll be able to feed off of for the next few days."
She kissed him and arched her breasts into his hands. "A few days? Are you going somewhere, Jack?"
"Not any distance. Have you heard the weather forecast for the next couple of days? Is it suppose to rain all weekend?"
"And possibly snow. But that shouldn't matter. Not unless you're planning on camping outside."
She unbuttoned his shirt and kissed his bare chest with her hot little mouth. When she unzipped his jeans, he squeezed his eyes shut in anticipation, and decided that the last thing he was going to think about at the moment was flying fur or sleeping on the terrace in bad weather. Pneumonia and anteing up five grand for a new mascot was a small price to pay for a touch of heaven. And Sunni's touch was pure heaven.
He really should confess just how much power she had over him. Tell her how much he liked her hands on him, touching and stroking. Massaging and tugging, and…
No, they were past words now. She was out of her skirt and he was definitely out of his jeans—in a matter of speaking.
Deciding to show Sunni instead, Jackson lifted her into his arms and headed for the desk.
* * * * *
t-filter: grayscale(100%); -moz-filter: grayscale(100%); -o-filter: grayscale(100%); -ms-filter: grayscale(100%); filter: grayscale(100%); " class="sharethis-inline-share-buttons">share