The thought flittered through is mind before he could even stop it in its tracks.
“So I hear you know a lot of people,” Stefano said.
Zane nodded. At least Charlie had given him something to go on with all this. He actually did know a number of people. Most he’d like to forget, but the connections were still there.
“Yeah,” he said. “I know people all across the state.”
“Good. This is good. It’s useful.” Stefano nodded in excitement. “I have special job that needs connections,” he said and pulled Zane to the side of the room.
He could see the people around them giving a wide breadth of space and knew that most weren’t likely more than investors who liked the thrill of hanging around shady company, but who didn’t really want to know what sort of sordid things their hosts were up to.
“Last guy fuck everything up,” he said quietly. “So I fuck him up. You know how things go. It’s nothing personal. Is business.”
Zane nodded. A little intimidation wasn’t unusual in a situation like this. He just needed to keep his cool, let them know he was their man.
“So what’s the job?” Zane asked.
Stefano gave him a wide grin. “I like you,” he said with a laugh. “Right to point, right? No bullshit.”
Zane shrugged. Sometimes a simple shrug or nod was enough to solidify his reputation.
“You meet at back door at four AM. I show you job, and we talk shop.”
Zane nodded. “I assume we’ll talk pay then as well.”
Again, Stefano laughed. “Right to point. Yes, yes. We talk dollar bills, then. You do good, you get good money. You do badly…” He shrugged. “You won’t need money, right?”
Zane nodded, not worried about Stefano’s attempt at intimidation. He turned to find Ellen among the crowd. Above all, he needed to get her the fuck out of there before whatever was going down at four in the morning.
* * *
Ellen sipped her champagne as she stood near several of the women. Most of the talk was vapid and annoying, but it helped keep her from running back to Zane. The last thing she wanted to do was stand close to that killer Stefano.
“Your date sure is something,” the blonde next to her said.
“He is.” She smiled.
Ellen blushed. Even though things were absolutely insane right then, she couldn’t help but agree. She wasn’t sure what the future would bring, but the one ray of light in the situation was that she and Zane were together.
The blonde raised a brow. “So you together or what?”
Ellen opened her mouth to say something. “We—”
“Doubtful, but she’s sure as hell in love with him.”
Zoe. She turned to find her sister standing behind her in a beautiful red gown.
Ellen wasn’t really sure what to say. If Zoe wanted to, she could rat them out in an instant. Of course, it would also be like pulling the trigger herself. Although their relationship wasn’t the best, she doubted Zoe wanted to see her killed.
“Old friend,” Zoe said with a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. She smiled at the other women. “Can I have a chat with you?”
Zoe grasped her elbow and pulled her hard enough that she really didn’t have a choice in the matter. Ellen had to either come, or her sister would make a scene.
When they were just far enough away, Zoe whirled around on her.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” she hissed.
From this angle Ellen could see that no amount of makeup was going to hide how hollow Zoe’s cheeks were, and as she leaned in, she could see the faint purple on her sister’s cheek.
“Did he hit you?”
Instantly her sister looked around like they had been caught stealing the crown jewels.
“You can’t just say that sort of thing,” she said in a panic.
As much as Ellen didn’t want to admit it, she had to keep in mind just where they were.
Zoe glared at Ellen. “Why are you even here?”
Ellen swallowed the lump in her throat. “I’m here to take you home.”
Zoe shook her head. “It just doesn’t work like that,” she said. “You think I can just leave here? Leave him? Leave them?”
Ellen looked around. There were men with unusual bulges on their side. Bulges in the shape of a gun.
“We can get you out,” she said. “I’m sure Zane—”
Zoe got a sort of sad look in her eye as she shook her head. “I’m sorry I got you involved in all this, but I can take care of myself. You should get out of here before they catch on.” She leaned in. “Because they will catch on, and they don’t look the other way.”
Ellen shivered at the ominous tone.
“Go home, El. Be happy.”
Ellen didn’t even have time to call out before Zoe had slipped into the crowd and out of sight.
She jumped when a light hand landed on her forearm.
“It’s me,” Zane said. “Let’s get out of here.”
She turned to frown at him but didn’t question him. She’d found Zoe and then lost her again. There was no point chasing her around the room. Plus, she’d had enough of pretending to smile.
Ellen was over all this bullshit and just wanted to get out.
“Yeah, let’s go.”
Chapter Sixteen
Zane was glad when they pushed open the bedroom door and stepped inside. He started immediately searching the room for any sort of electronic listening devices. The mob might not be the CIA, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t borrow a few of their tricks.
If he learned anything in his meeting and research, it was that Stefano was much smarter than the playboy personality he showed off. The man didn’t get to where he was without suspecting everyone of foul play.
“What are you doing?” Ellen asked.
He glanced over toward where she stood by the couch. The unfortunate thing about being upgraded was that there was only more room to search than normal.
“Just doing a sweep,” he said.
Ellen frowned. “A sweep for what?”
He ran his hands across the mantel of the fireplace and decided that the heat from the gas fire would only hinder any audio from getting out and likely break the device.
“Listening devices,” he said. “It’s just part of the job. We can’t be too careful.”
After that she sat quietly on the couch and watched as he finished his work. Seconds turned into minutes. If there was one time in his life he was going to be overly thorough, this was it. He couldn’t take any more chances than he already had.
Once he was done, Zane sat beside Ellen on the couch.
“You need to leave,” he said.
After a few moments of silence, he glanced over at her. She shook her head, and her eyes filled with tears.
“Is this about last night? Because—”
Christ, he was such a prick. Zane pulled her to him.
“Of course not, El,” he said softly. “Nothing to do with that at all.”
Ellen leaned against him, and he enjoyed the silky feel of her in his arms.
“I just thought,” she said, “since you’ve been acting weird ever since it might be…”
Zane sighed and closed his eyes. “Last night was amazing,” he said. “I never thought someone like me…”
He wasn’t even sure how to continue. Being with her wasn’t even supposed to be a thing, for her sake.
“Someone like you?”
She pulled her head off his shoulder and stared into his eyes. Her green eyes were now even more striking with the red hair framing her face.
“I’m not a good guy,” he said quietly. “I’ve done some things I’m not proud of. I’m glad I have a job now where I can help people, but that’s not always been the case.”
Ellen frowned. “What do you mean?”
He sighed. This wasn’t what he wanted to get into.
“Look, I know more about these kinds of guys than I care to admit, and they
are bad. Very bad.”
Ellen shook her head and placed a hand over his. “I know you,” she said. “I know the sort of man you are, and that’s the man I have feelings for. The man I know you to be.”
His heart leapt up into his throat. She wasn’t supposed to be saying this. She wasn’t supposed to make his heart thump so hard he thought it might break free.
“You shouldn’t be with a guy like me,” he said. “You should be with a good man who deserves you. I don’t deserve you.”
“Don’t push me away,” she said as she brought her face close to his. “It doesn’t matter whether or not you deserve me, because I need you.”
Zane felt his heart breaking. This just wasn’t how his story would end. He wasn’t a happily ever after sort. He pushed past her to stand in front of the couch.
“Don’t you think I want to love you? That I can see the life I want to have, but it’s still just out of my grasp.”
Ellen stood and placed her hands on his chest. He could feel the chaos in himself burn to be set free.
“So love me,” she said softly. “Have that life with me.”
He stared into her eyes again and saw the love there that he always longed to have.
“I can’t,” Zane said and hung his head. “I just can’t.”
She wanted to be sad for him, but mostly Ellen was pissed. He didn’t get to make all these decisions on his own. And she’d be damned if she was going to let him. She’d ached for him for years, and she wouldn’t let him run away under the guise of protecting her.
She poked her small finger into his hard chest.
“Now you listen to me, damn it,” she said loudly. “I’m not listening to any more of this. I love you, and you clearly have feelings for me. That’s all I care about.”
He opened his mouth to say something, but she silenced him with a glare.
“And I don’t give one shit what you did before. I have a feeling anything you did was because you had to, and you’ve left all that behind. You said it yourself that you have a job now that lets you help people. No one can change the past, but we can all change our futures.”
She stared hard at him, daring him to say anything negative. Instead she was surprised by what he said next.
“I love you,” he said. “I’ve always loved you. Ever since I first met you. Pigtails and braces. When I’m near you it just feels like…”
She raised a brow but stepped forward. Her body pressed to his, and in the heels she was wearing, she could nearly reach his face on her tippy toes.
“Feels like what?” she asked.
“Home.”
The word came out just before he claimed her mouth with a searing kiss. One she hoped for but wasn’t sure would ever happen again.
His hands were all over her, palming any and all flesh he could find.
She shivered when he slipped the satin gown from her shoulders, revealing her mostly nude body.
“Beautiful,” he whispered just as he had the night before.
His mouth was back on hers, and she felt them moving back to the couch.
Ellen gasped when he turned her around and bent her over the end, her ass sticking up in the air. The cool air blew over her now hot center.
Zane yanked her panties down roughly before he pressed his mouth against her, lapping at the seam of her opening.
Warmth flared in her center, making her toes curl.
She cried out as his tongue invaded her and gripped the couch as a wave of pleasure passed over her. The pressure already threatened to send her over the edge.
“I can’t wait,” he mumbled against her as he undid his belt and dropped his pants.
Ellen nodded. She couldn’t wait either. All day she’d been so spun up that the ache for release had pent up inside her.
She felt his head slip over her wet folds. The blunt head pressing in just enough to make her insides start to squeeze what she wished was there.
In one quick thrust, Zane was deep inside her and so fully rooted his hips pressed firmly into her ass.
She groaned as he gripped her hips and ground hard against her.
It didn’t take long before he was slapping into her, his rough hands pulling her hard against him.
This time wasn’t slow and sweet. There was a hunger here, and both of them needed the release. To feel that connection once again.
He sped up. His movements became more erratic as his breathing grew hoarser. Ellen could feel her own orgasm mounting. Her insides fluttered hard with each pull, and she knew it wouldn’t be much longer for her.
“Fuck, baby,” he grunted.
He slammed in hard, and that was all it took. Her vision clouded over a bit as the soft glow of her orgasm washed over her body.
She shook hard around him as Zane continued to hammer into her.
He grunted with each thrust now, and it only turned her on more. After a few more thrusts, she could feel the rhythmic pulsing of his cock deep inside her as he came.
Ellen listened to his breathing as he slowly came down from the high of his climax. She waited to see if he was going to run. They hadn’t used a condom again. Each time they had increased their chances of ending up pregnant.
She didn’t care, but she wondered if he did.
Zane pulled out. Then she found herself being swept into his arms.
“I’m going to make up for all the times I didn’t have you,” he said as he carried her to the bed.
She wrapped her arm around his neck. “And after that?”
“After that we deal with some Russians so we can start building a life together.”
Ellen smiled brightly and placed a hot kiss against his lips. Her tongue slipped inside his mouth as she savored his words.
Below her ass she could feel his growing erection and pulled back to stare at him in wonder.
Zane shrugged. “I’m eager to get started on that lost time business.”
Ellen giggled as he dropped her to the bed, just as eager.
Chapter Seventeen
Zane kissed Ellen on the temple. She lay still wrapped up in the sheets, sleeping soundly after they had made love more times than he ever thought he could manage.
She was just as insatiable as him. It really was like they were trying to make up for the five years they’d been apart.
He gave a sad little smile before sending a text to Bryce. If anything happened, he wanted to make sure someone could get her out of there quickly. He knew he could count on the older man to make sure she was safe.
Already dressed in the jeans and t-shirt he had brought, Zane slipped his gun into the back of his pants. It wasn’t the most comfortable of spots, but he figured walking through a casino strapped so everyone could see wasn’t such a great idea, and would probably end with him dead or arrested sooner than later.
He crept his way out of the room and down the corridor to an elevator. Soon he was right back at the main casino floor. The slot machines were just as loud, bright, and annoying as they had been earlier that evening.
With purpose, he moved toward the back of the building until he found a door leading outside. After a brisk walk down the path, he was sure he was on the right track.
The building made a sort of small U where he found a white van idling nearby and Stefano chatting with some Hispanic men.
The sleazy guy Ellen had pointed out before at the party pulled out a gun and made a face at Zane. He stopped in his tracks, ready to draw if he needed to. If he was going to go down, he’d take at least one of those bastards with him.
Maybe they knew all along and decided killing him in the middle of the night was easier. Lord knew the local Russian mob got enough practice at that sort of thing.
Zane frowned. It didn’t make sense though. If that were the case, they would have just come in the room and taken them both out.
“Relax, Yegor,” Stefano said.
The other man continued to eye Zane but placed his gun back in his holster.
“Come. Co
me,” Stefano said.
He waved a hand for Zane to come to the back of the van. The doors swung wide open as they stared at something there.
Zane strode forth, not giving any hint of his nervousness. He needed to be as assured as any of the rest of them. It was the only way he would make it out alive.
When he was finally standing next to Stefano, he stared into the truck. He narrowed his eyes, sure that there was some sort of mistake.
“What?” he said. He turned to Stefano in confusion. “Computers? You want me to get rid of computers?”
Stefano snorted like it was the funniest thing he’d ever heard. “Not computer. Laptop.”
Zane blinked a few times. This made no sense. Sure, some of the small-time guys would deal in electronics, but most were too easily traceable nowadays, and there just wasn’t near the money in it that there used to be. This just didn’t seem like something that a man like Stefano would be personally handling.
Stefano nodded to Yegor.
The other man stepped forward and pulled out a blue handle. A sharp blade popped out, and he gave Zane little smile like he might enjoy using that blade on him.
Like he’d get the fucking chance. Zane shot him a smirk.
Yegor placed the blade at the edge of the laptop and easily popped the top part off. He lifted the screen, and it all became clear once Zane spotted the two large bags of white powder.
He nodded once. “That makes more sense.”
“You deliver this once the van is full and bring money back,” Stefano said.
Zane crossed his arms. Now it was time for the money talk. For a guy like himself, it was expected he would only care about the money.
“And my pay?”
“Two percent.”
Zane snorted. “With that much product, I get caught, I’ll never see daylight again.” Besides, there was no way a man like him would take that.
“Seven.”
For a moment he wondered if Yegor was going to pull out his knife again until Stefano laughed.
“See,” Stefan said and laughed even harder. “I like you. We do five and call it day.”
Zane: #7 (Allen Securities) Page 8
