But, if Luke knew her truth, would he be able to overlook it?
“It’s not my fault.” She pressed her hand over her foot so hard, her knuckles went bone white. I didn’t choose it. Any of it. Luke had been taken in by a kind and loving family, while she had been born into one that only knew hate.
The sharp rapping at the back door yanked her back to reality. Who could it be this early on a Saturday? She hopped over to the door and peeked out through the glass, pulling the door open as soon as she saw who it was.
“Luke?”
“Hi,” he said, the corners of his mouth turning up into … a smile? Had she ever seen him smile like that? Or at all? It made him look even more handsome. “I thought I’d bring breakfast.” He held up a large brown paper bag. “Is Grayson—” A familiar frown settled onto his face, and his gaze went down to her foot. “What the hell happened?”
“What? Oh—” She shrugged. “I dropped a glass while I was cleaning—Hey!” She yelped in surprise when she felt her feet lift off the floor. Luke wrapped one massive arm around her waist and carried her over to the kitchen counter.
He planted her on the granite top. “First aid kit?”
“On your left, second shelf.”
She watched him as he turned around to reach for the kit inside her cabinet. Grrr, how could one man look so sexy, even from behind? His back muscles rippled under the tight shirt he wore, and the way his jeans clung to his ass should be illegal.
Luke turned back, first aid kit in hand, and knelt down in front of her. He carefully cleaned the wound with an antiseptic wipe, checking her foot for any more glass shards before placing a plastic bandage over it. As he got up, his hands traced up her calves and thighs before settling on her waist. “You should really be more careful,” he said, his golden eyes staring right into her.
She couldn’t hold back her shiver, especially as his fingers played with the hem of her shirt. Though she was wearing a shirt and sleep shorts, she might as well have been naked, the way he was looking at her.
He moved closer, nudging her knees open so he could stand between her thighs. A hand slid up the side of her face and cradled her jaw. Her heart raced as he leaned down—
“Mommy? Luke?”
He practically leapt away from her when Grayson walked into the kitchen, rubbing his eyes sleepily.
Grayson let out a yawn. “What are you doing here?” He looked at Georgina on top of the counter. “Is there another mouse?”
Oh dear. “No, sweetie. I hurt my foot and Luke was helping me.” She wiggled her foot at him, showing him the plastic bandage. “See?”
“Oh Mommy, you have a booboo?” He walked over to her and peered at her foot. “Did Luke kiss it to make it all better?”
Luke coughed, and Georgina couldn’t help but smile. “Er, yes, he made it all better.”
“I brought breakfast. From Rosie’s,” Luke said, clearing his throat. “Fresh made pastries. They’re the best.”
“Wow!” Grayson’s eyes went wide, and he sniffed the air. “Smells yummy!”
“Uh, have you gone potty yet?” He shook his head. “Go on then. We’ll wait for you to start.”
The little boy nodded eagerly and then ran off. She turned to Luke. “What are you doing here? I mean, I know you brought breakfast, but I thought you said you’d be by at eleven?”
“I couldn’t wait to see you again,” he said, moving back to stand between her thighs. “And I was thinking, there are a couple of things I could do around here before we go.”
“Things? Like what?”
“Well, I noticed your gutters haven’t been cleaned. You gotta do that before the rains come. And there’s a board on your porch that’s loose. I don’t want you or Grayson tripping on that.”
She laughed. “My landlord can get that taken care of! It’s his—”
He interrupted her with a quick kiss. “I know, but I want to,” he whispered against her mouth. “I need to.”
Need? Why would he need to fix my porch and— “Hmmm ….” Oh, damn him and his kisses. She forgot what she wanted to say as soon as his warm lips touched hers. The kiss only lasted seconds before he pulled away, but Georgina felt like someone had squeezed all the air out of her.
“Why don’t you put those pastries on a plate and get a pot of coffee brewing while I clean up?” He nodded to the broken glass on the floor.
“O-okay.” She hopped off the counter and grabbed some plates from the cupboard.
As she prepared breakfast, she couldn’t help but smile as she glanced over at Luke. He had found the broom in the utility closet and was carefully sweeping up the broken glass, going over the area twice and then once more with a wet rag to make sure he picked up every bit of glass.
Soon, the coffee was ready and the pastries were laid out on plates. Grayson had also come back to the kitchen just in time.
“I’m so hungry!” He took a deep breath. “That smells sooo good!”
“Have a seat,” she instructed. Luke was already seated in one of the chairs around the kitchen table, and Grayson sat on the empty one next to him.
“Thank you for bringing us breakfast,” she said to Luke.
“It’s delicious!” Grayson said through a mouthful of danish, his face already covered with jam and flaky crumbs.
“Not a problem,” he said as he bit into the croissant she put on his plate.
Georgina took a sip of her coffee and closed her eyes. She was almost afraid to open them again and wake up and realize this was all a dream. But it wasn’t. This was real.
Grayson was babbling about the movie, and Luke listened intently, filling up his glass of milk and placing a chocolate pastry on his empty plate while nodding and asking questions.
Her heart clenched at the sight, and she pushed away all doubts in her mind.
After Luke had finished all the chores he wanted to do, plus mowed their lawn and threw out some junk in the garage she’d been meaning to get rid of, they all rode together to Main Street for lunch. Since they already had Rosie’s pastries for breakfast, Luke suggested they go to the Italian place. Georgina thought it was way too fancy, especially with Grayson, but he insisted and assured her it was more casual than it looked.
The owner, Giorgio Allementari, seemed surprised to see Luke, commenting how it’s been years since he’d been there. He also fawned over Georgina and Grayson and led them to the “usual table.” Georgina looked to Luke for an explanation, but he didn’t offer one. They followed Giorgio to the semi-circular booth in a corner of the restaurant.
The flamboyant restaurateur placed the menus on the table. “You aren’t allergic to strawberries, by chance, are you signorina? Or gluten? Nuts? Dairy?”
“Uh, no,” she said with a shake of her head.
He sighed with relief. “Good. I’ll be back with your bread.”
“Everything’s good here,” Luke said as he opened the menu. “Order what you want.”
“I will,” Georgina said. “And I’m paying.”
“No—”
“Nuh-uh.” She shook her head. “You’ve given me so much free labor today. The landlord said to take off what it cost me to get those repairs done, so you’re saving me rent money this month.”
He gave her another smile. “You have two shifters here, so I hope you won’t regret it.”
She laughed.
This was the first time she had taken Grayson anywhere more fancy than a diner or Rosie’s, but she was glad Luke was there to show him how to hold his knife and put his napkin on his lap. Despite his rough exterior, Luke had the manners of a prince, which told her a lot about how he was raised. She wondered what she would say if she ever got to meet Riva Lennox.
After lunch, Luke suggested they walk around Main Street for some shopping and then he would take them to the park. They walked into a couple of stores, and it was nice that Luke could watch Grayson while she looked around. Normally, if she even had money to shop anywhere, she couldn’t take more than five
minutes before Grayson got bored.
Georgina didn’t take too long, and she mostly enjoyed having time to herself as she browsed through the shops. She didn’t want to torture the two boys (though they seemed happy enough, walking around the bookstore) so she told them she was done and that they could head to the park.
“Can I go on the swings? Please, Mommy?” Grayson pleaded as they strolled over to the playground. “And the jungle gym? And the slides? And the bars—”
“Of course,” she said with a laugh. “You can go anywhere you want.”
Georgina and Luke accompanied Grayson as he tested every piece of play equipment in the park. They pushed him on the swings, hoisted him up on the monkey bars, and spun him around the Merry-Go-Round. By the time he had gone around twice, Georgina’s shirt was sticking to her skin, her brow was covered in sweat.
“Why don’t you go take a break?” Luke suggested. “You look tired.”
“I’m fine,” she insisted, her breath coming in pants.
“There’s no way he’s going to stop.” He nodded to Grayson, who was making quick work of the monkey bars. “Go and get a drink or something.”
“I guess I could use some water.” She was tired and sweaty. Oh God, she probably looked terrible. Not that Luke was the type of guy who would notice. But still, she should probably go splash some water on her face and clean up. “I’m gonna go to the ladies’ room first.” She nodded toward the small bungalow in the middle of the park, marked with signs for the male and female restrooms. “I’ll be back.”
“We’ll be here.”
Georgina took one last glance at Grayson and waved at him before turning her back and heading toward the restroom. When was the last time she had felt this carefree? Or even seen Grayson so happy? Not in a long while. Maybe staying in Blackstone had been good for him. Maybe, just maybe—
The thought cut off as she tried to scream, but the hand over her mouth muffled any sound that came out. An arm snaked around her waist and pulled so hard all the air was knocked out of her. She found herself being dragged into the ladies’ room, the door slamming loudly behind her.
“I’m gonna take my hand off, and you’re not going to make any sound. No screaming, no calling for help. If you do, your boy is dead.” The familiar voice made her blood freeze in her veins. “Nod if you understand.”
Georgina knew it wasn’t an empty threat, so she nodded. When he let her go, she took a deep breath and braced herself against the wall to keep herself from collapsing on the floor. “How … how did you find me?” she managed to choke out.
“Oh, you know I’ll always find you, Georgie.”
Oh God, how she hated that name he called her. It never failed to make her skin crawl. Slowly, she lifted her head, daring to face her attacker.
It had been five years since she last saw him, but he looked exactly the same. White hair buzzed close to his scalp. Weathered, scarred face. Usually, he wore fatigues and tight shirts that showed off his muscled body, but today, he looked more discreet in jeans and a button-down. Like he wanted to blend in.
“What do you want, Adrian?”
Adrian Vaughn, The Chief’s right hand man, spat on the floor. “Once upon a time, you knew exactly what I wanted.” She shuddered when he turned those cold dead eyes at her. “We had plans for you, Georgie. Me and The Chief. But you ruined everything by whoring yourself out to that animal!”
“I never would have agreed to marry you!” Adrian was nearly thirty years her senior, not to mention a sick bastard. The moment she turned eighteen, he didn’t even bother to hide the lecherous looks. He and The Chief had apparently been scheming behind her back to force her to marry him.
“And then you got yourself pregnant!” He grabbed her by the collar and hauled her to her feet. “I wouldn’t marry you even if you begged me! Not when you’ve spawned that abomination!”
“Are you going to punish me? Bring me back to The Chief?” she shouted at him. “Take me away and do what you want. J-just get it over with!”
He let out a cruel laugh. “Oh no, Georgie, you’re not going anywhere.”
“I-I’m not?”
“You’re not getting off that easy. Besides, you’re much more valuable to us now.”
“I don’t have a lot of money!” She tried to get away from him, but his grip tightened. “But you can have it all.”
“We don’t need your money,” he said.
“Then let’s go! Take me away, you don’t even need to tie me up and gag me like last time.”
He laughed. “Georgie, you know if The Chief wanted you back, you’d be on your way to HQ by now. Heck, we’d have taken you the other night after we spooked you in your car. That was just a warning.”
“What do you want, then?” Oh God, please, don’t let them be after Grayson.
“The Chief has big plans for you, now that you’re working closely within Lennox. With your position, you can do so much more for us.”
“Never!” She knew what he was saying. What he was asking. After all, she knew exactly how they operated. “I would never betray Matthew and Jason!”
“Have you forgotten who you are, Georgie?”
“Shut up!”
“If you don’t do as we say, then you know what we’ll have to do. Not only will we kill that boy of yours, but we’ll tell your new friends who you really are!”
“No!” He can’t. They could never know. Oh God. Luke could never find out. Not this way.
His face twisted into a cruel smile. “What do you think they would do if they found out you were The Chief’s daughter?”
“You can’t.” She already sounded broken with her secret laid out. All these years, when she never said it out loud, it was like it wasn’t real. But now, it was staring her right in the face.
“We will.” Adrian grabbed her hand and placed something in it. “Here. Just put this into Jason Lennox’s computer when you go back to work on Monday. You’ve got until noon.”
She stared into her hand. It was a small USB drive. “What is it?”
“What does it matter?” he said. “Just do as we say. Or else.”
“You’ll never get away with this!”
“Ha! And who’s going to stop us? The lion that’s been sniffing around you? I already tangled with the Blackstone dragon back in London and lived. Luke Lennox is no match for me.”
How the hell did he—Why did she bother wondering? Of course Adrian and The Chief would know. They knew everything.
Adrian continued. “I’ve got two snipers a hundred yards away. One word from me and your boyfriend and son get a bullet in their heads.”
Her lower lip trembled as she imagined it happening—Luke and Grayson on the ground. Blood pooling around them.
“We’ll know the exact moment you finish the job,” Adrian said. “Or when you don’t. So don’t even think of running away until it’s done.” He narrowed his eyes at her.
“And after I’m done … what happens? What do I do?”
“I don’t really give a damn. And it won’t matter anyway, but,” he looked her up and down, “I suppose if you needed protection of any sort, I could be persuaded—”
“Fuck off!” No way. She would rather rip her skin off than marry him.
He spat on the floor. “Uptight bitch. You think I’d even touch you after you’ve been with one of them? Or is it two now? More?”
“Get out!” She pushed at him, but he caught her hands.
“Such a waste.” He let go of her as she tried to pull away, causing her to slam back into the wall. “Remember what I said, Georgie. Monday. Noon. And, until you finish the job, you act normal. Don’t even think of running away from Blackstone, getting yourself fired from your job, or even breaking up with your boyfriend to save him. We’ve got eyes on you. We know where you live.”
She stood there frozen, watching as Adrian turned to the door and then left. It took her a few seconds, but she finally started breathing again.
Oh God. She lea
ned her head against the wall. No, no, no. This couldn’t be happening. Not now.
What was she supposed to do? If she explained everything to Matthew and Jason, would they even understand? And Luke. How could she even face him now?
She didn’t know what was worse, them finding out about who she really was or having to face The Chief again.
Georgina straightened her shoulders. No, the only thing worse was if Grayson got killed. He was her priority, she always knew that. Protecting Grayson from The Chief and from anyone who tried to hurt him was her only concern.
She looked down at the USB drive in her hand. No biggie, right? All she had to do was slip it into Jason’s computer. No one would even know it was her. Her gut tightened, but she ignored it.
Georgina walked over to the sink and splashed water on her face. Yes, no one would ever need to know it was her. And Grayson and Luke would be safe.
But, as she walked back outside to where Luke and Grayson were playing on the swings, a pain stabbed at her heart. Grayson was laughing and cheering as Luke pushed him higher and higher.
She was an idiot to think it would ever work out between them. He was a shifter and she was the daughter of one of the worst human beings in the world, one whose mission was to wipe out his kind. Even if she explained her side, he would never believe her. Why she even let herself get this far, she didn’t know.
As she came closer to them, her body tensed and a bead of sweat ran down her temple. Act normal, Adrian had said. He was probably watching right now. If she did anything unusual, he’d see it. And he would kill Luke and Grayson on the spot. A high caliber bullet to the brain was one of the few things that could instantly kill most shifters. It was a painful lesson The Chief had taught her.
“Hey.” Luke frowned. “You okay?”
“Me? Yeah, I’m fine.” She fanned herself with her hand, trying to act casual. “God, it’s sweltering out here.”
The Blackstone Lion: Blackstone Mountain Book 5 Page 10
