“Not even Olivia? Or Luke?”
“No. They worry about me enough as it is, with getting kicked out of school and all.”
“They’ll be happy you’re joining us.”
“Maggie told them about…this?”
“Yes. Scott knew from the beginning, but she told the rest of the family when Alex was put at risk.”
“Because of Miles and his father?”
“Yes. My father-in-law is an evil man, but he’s been contained now.”
“Will I get to hear about that?”
“You just might.”
“Thank you for this, Reina. For asking me to be part of what you do. I’d love to join you.” I take a deep breath, and add the rest. “And I’d love to talk to someone.”
“Perfect. I’ll take you to the counseling floor myself, and get you set up with clearance to reach that floor when you need to. No one else needs to know, unless you decide to tell them.”
“I appreciate that.”
“We won’t be starting everything for at least a few months, maybe more. Until then, you can try to learn some things you might need to know here, or just wait until we start. You’ll be tested on your aptitude in everything, but we expect everyone to have things they need to work on, so I honestly don’t want you putting any stress on yourself about those things, okay?”
“I’ll try. Is it guns, and stuff I should learn?”
“Weapons are a part of it. Languages, fashion, technology…there’s a diverse amount of knowledge we amass to fit in anywhere.”
“I know fashion, even though I don’t enjoy it. Technology, too.”
“Yes. As I said, there’s nothing to worry about. Do you have any other questions before we go?”
“Um, yeah,” I tell her, because I have to know. “Ares Dixon.”
“That’s not a question, Rose.”
“Does he know?”
“Yes. Ares has helped us out of some situations, and we all felt he deserved to know the truth. I didn’t know you knew him.”
“I don’t exactly know him, but I don’t like him,” I say, looking down at my hands.
“Do you want to tell me why?”
“Not really.”
“Fair enough. He’ll be around, but I’ll make sure he doesn’t bother you.”
“No,” I say whipping my head up to look at her. “Please don’t even mention me. We only met once, and I’m sure he doesn’t remember it anyway.”
“Did you…never mind, it’s none of my business.”
“I didn’t sleep with him,” I tell her with a smile.
“It wouldn’t be my business if you did.”
“True.”
“Anything else you want to know?”
“I’m good for now.”
She nods, and I smile at her when she leads us into a secret elevator hidden behind one of her walls. I think I’m right where I need to be.
Almost a year ago
Rose
I breathe deeply as I wait in the lobby with Alex. Reina’s going to go over my test results with me, and I’m scared, because I know I didn’t do well on some of them. My therapist has been working with me this last year, teaching me breathing exercises, meditation, and concentration games, and for the most part, it works. At times like these, when my stress level is exceptionally high, the numbers still slip in, no matter how hard I fight them off.
35. Stop. 58. I don’t need you. 39. NO!
“Ro? Are you okay?”
I look up, and smile at Alex. “Oh, yes. Sorry. I was in my own world for a moment. You know how I get.”
“It happens to all of us,” Reina says, stepping into the lobby.
“Honestly. Sometimes, I don’t even know how I manage to function properly,” Alex adds, laughing.
“You’re more than competent,” Reina tells her, before smiling at me again. “You ready, Rose?”
“Maybe.”
That makes her smile even wider. “Nothing to worry about, my friend.”
I’m still not sure I completely believe her, but I only count twice while walking down the hall behind her, so I’m calling this a win for me. 74, and 48 took over for a moment, but I hold the others at bay.
I don’t think Reina notices, but when she reaches back to squeeze my hand, I know she does. “Thanks.”
She doesn’t answer, until we’re in her office, and she’s sitting across from me at her desk. “How are things going?”
“You have my reports.”
“Yes, but I want you to tell me.”
“I still freak out sometimes, but I don’t disappear from reality as often,” I admit to her.
“Good. Are you ready to hear about your tests?”
“No,” I tell her, and we both laugh.
“You did extremely well on technology, science, fashion, and etiquette, which is no surprise. Languages will be okay for you, as you’re used to learning computer languages, and weapons won’t be so hard, either. Fitting in isn’t a problem, since you move seamlessly from the garage to galas as it is. Everything on paper looks great.”
“But you’re still worried about me, and my numbers.”
“Not worried, exactly, but I have to take it into consideration. Your therapist feels he’s helping you, and you’re telling me the same thing. I guess I just need to see it in action.”
“I’m fine with you watching me.”
“We’ll be watching everyone, Rose. Passing your classes, and your final mission, will require the dedication I know you have, and will prove to both of us that you can do this.”
Of course, she knows I’m questioning myself probably more than she’s questioning me. “I can do this.”
“I know you can.”
“It means a lot that you can believe in me, even though I have this…problem.”
“I have never met a person in my life who doesn’t have something they need to work on in their life. And none of them are the same thing. Your difference isn’t a bad thing, and I personally think your mind is awe-inspiring.”
I look at her, and see the truth in her eyes. This amazing woman thinks I’m amazing, too. “I am so ready to start.”
“I’ll be gathering all of you together later this week, and then you’ll all move into our apartment building. Right now, I’m going to send you down to Ainsley, who will get all your additional clearances taken care of, and give you a tablet to use. She knows you have clearance to the counseling floor, but she also knows not to ask you about it.”
“Sounds good.”
Actually, it sounds perfect, and I can’t wait to be part of all of this. I’ve been a loner for so long, but being part of a bigger whole isn’t scary to me. In fact, I have to admit I want it more than I’ve wanted anything else in a long time.
Ares
I do a double-take when I see her. It’s her. The woman I caught under the hood of my car, and who I wrongly assumed wanted me to bend her over the hood of said car. She slapped me, and my dick got harder than it’s ever been in my life. This version of her looks professional, with her hair and makeup making her look like she belongs here. Despite that, I know she’s the woman in the tight jeans, oil-smudged t-shirt, and ponytail. I’d be more than happy to take either one of them out on a date. Not just to bed, but on an actual date.
“Who is that? The woman with the brown hair, in the sweater,” I ask my friend, Audrey.
She looks across the cafeteria, and smiles. “Rose Murphy.”
“And?”
“She’s Luke Griffin’s sister-in-law, and he’ll kill you if you try to add her to your harem.”
“Why is she here, Aud?” I ask, ignoring her comment about Griffin. I’m not scared of a fight with anyone, and I’m not about to let some billionaire—no matter how buff he is—deter me from the woman I’ve dreamt of for years.
I also ignore the harem comment, because we both know I’ve had my share of women. Not Aud—or any other women in this building—but plenty of others. I’m not proud of it
, but I’m not ashamed of it, either.
“She’s training to be one of us.”
“One of…seriously?” I whisper, because I know the secrets hidden in this building.
“Yes.”
Relocating to Vegas just got a whole lot more enticing, because there’s no way our paths won’t cross with us both living here, and me being friends with the Society women. I’m not going to approach her today, because I need to put a plan in place for our second meeting, and make sure I let her know she’s unforgettable to me.
“If you’ll excuse me, I need to leave before she sees me.”
“Sees you? You know her? Oh, God. Ares.”
“Not like that, my friend.” At least not yet.
Prologue
Ares
Another boring party, and another boring princess beside me as I drive back to my hotel. This is what my life’s been reduced to, but I brought it on myself. I wanted the fame, the money, and the women. Or at least I thought I did, until I met the woman who made me remember it was about the cars, and the driving. The one woman who slips in and out of my grasp, no matter how hard I try to hold onto her.
As if she’s been conjured from my thoughts alone, I see Rose Murphy running down the sidewalk in front of me. Men in police uniforms are chasing her, and I’ll be damned if I’m gonna let them catch her. I don’t know what’s happening, but even if it’s not Society related, I’m going to help her out.
“Hold on, honey,” I tell the woman in the passenger seat.
“What are you doing?” she screams, as I floor it, while taking down the top of the convertible we’re in.
“Rose,” I yell as we bear down on her.
She chances a glance back, and her eyes widen, but she doesn’t slow down. I pull up next to her, and hear the men behind us shouting. She dives into the car as I turn the corner in front of her, and we’re off.
“Who are you?” the woman with me asks her, but she doesn’t answer.
“Buckle in, and tell me where we’re going.”
Police cars rush into the street in front of me, so I bump into the curb hard enough to make it onto two wheels, sliding between them. When I get us flat again, the woman’s crying, and Rose is cursing me. I don’t care, because my only goal right now is to get my woman to safety. Rose may not accept that she’s my woman, but damn if she isn’t.
The GPS on her phone tells me where to go, and I pretend the streets are a racetrack, keeping the cops a few blocks behind us. I hear the helicopter before I see it, and as I pull up to it, I disengage my seatbelt. Following Rose out of the car, I blow a kiss to the princess, and climb onboard the copter as it starts to take off.
“I cannot believe you did that, asshole.”
“Excuse me? I just saved your fine ass.”
“It was my final mission test, and I would’ve gotten out on my own. I had to get out on my own. Now, I’m going to fail.”
“Shit,” I tell her as she looks away, but not before I see a tear sliding down her cheek. She doesn’t cry often, but I just made it happen. “I’ll talk to Rei.”
“No need, Ares,” the woman herself says, her picture coming up on the screen in front of us.
“Reina, I didn’t know he’d be here. I swear.”
“I know that, Rose, but using his help doesn’t mean you failed. You took an opportunity that was offered to you, and passed your mission. Congratulations.”
She signs off, and I turn to Rose with a grin. “I deserve a kiss for helping you, don’t you think?”
“Ass.”
“Waiting.”
She leans over, and touches her lips to mine. It’s brief, and impersonal, but it lights me up more than any other woman’s passionate lip lock ever has. She’s the only one I want, the only one I’ve wanted since the day I met her. Now, I just have to prove it to her.
1
Rose
“I really didn’t know he’d be there,” I tell Reina again, as I pace back and forth in her office.
It’s been a week since my final mission test, but this is the first time we could meet in person, because Matt took her off to an island to get some rest. Having a baby isn’t easy, and with everything that went on with Kali, he knew she was at her breaking point. Her skin is a few shades darker, and there are almost not circles under her eyes, so it seems to have worked.
“I know Rose. It’s perfectly fine.”
“What was he doing there? In that country?”
“He travels all over, doing paid appearances.”
“Why there, though?”
“Because they are the ones who paid him.”
“You didn’t tell him I’d be there?”
“I wouldn’t do that, especially on your test mission.”
“It’s just too convenient.”
“Had he not been there, you would’ve been caught.”
“Maybe.”
Her left eyebrow raises as she shakes her head at me. “Rose.”
“Okay, fine. I didn’t factor in the secondary alarm, and if Ares and his princess hadn’t been there, I would’ve been caught.”
“I have to wonder if you’re more upset that he helped you, or that he had a woman with him.”
Both. “He can date whomever he wants. We just sleep together sometimes.”
“Admitting you care for someone is sometimes harder than facing down a loaded gun, but we all have to do it eventually.”
“He has a different woman on his arm every night.” A different, perfect woman.
“Maybe he wouldn’t if you told him you wanted him to have you on his arm.”
Never gonna happen. He’s not going to trade a beautiful, sophisticated woman for a math geek in coveralls, who has a problem with numbers taking over her brain sometimes. Speaking of those numbers, they’re threatening to come out and play right now.
“Can we change the subject?”
“Yes, and no. I won’t bug you about telling Ares how you feel, but while you’re waiting for everyone else to finish their missions, he has a job for you.”
“Is he going to let me work on his cars?” I ask, sitting forward in my chair.
“His classic cars, yes.”
I sit back with a sigh. I should be happy to get my hands on his collection, but I really want to play with his race car. Rationally, I know he can’t let me do things to his car when the season’s about to start, because testing new things is dangerous. I wouldn’t want to do anything to put him in jeopardy, but it’s still disappointing.
“Oh.”
“He has one of the best car collections in the world, from what I’ve been told.”
“He does,” I concede.
“I thought you’d jump at the chance to check them all out for him.”
“I am. Really,” I add, because I know it’s going to be fun.
“Great. Here’s your badge,” she tells me, handing me the lanyard covered in all things Speed Dixon. “He said you can come by his compound today, or whenever you want.”
“Okay.”
“Have fun, Rose. Once you’ve all finished, and graduated, you’ll be working right away. We all still have fun, but you won’t have many times when there’s nothing to worry about, or plan.”
“I know. I really do appreciate this.”
We hug before I leave, and I try to feel the strength I know she believes I have. The problem is, Ares lives where he works. The racing garages are separated from his house by a few acres of land, but they’re still close. I’ve been to the house, and I know you can see the garages from there. And therein lies the problem—I don’t want to see the women leaving his house while I’m in the garage. I do care, even while I won’t admit it to anyone else, and I know I won’t be able to handle seeing the part of his sex life that doesn’t include me. It’s going to be harder than almost anything else I’ve ever done. Maybe this is really my final mission.
Ares
I hear the whistles while sitting in my office, which overlooks the main garag
e space in my complex. It’s annoying to know another woman got in here, because I’ve been very clear to the guards at the gate about not letting them through. I’m not looking forward to firing another set of them, but I get out of my chair to deal with whatever’s going on anyway.
What I see when I step outside turns my scowl into a smile. Rose Murphy in jeans and a t-shirt, is facing off against the men on the floor. Her arms are crossed over her gorgeous rack, and her face is red. Fuck me, she’s as hot as ever, and I fight the urge to drag her down the road to my bed.
“Rose, I’m glad you could make it.”
“You know her, boss?” my chief mechanic, Jerome, asks me.
“I told you he did,” Rose says, and the tone of her voice would cause a smart man to back up.
“Yes, I’ve hired her to work on my classics.”
“Seriously?” Paulie asks.
“She’s the best mechanic I know, so yes.”
“Her?” Jerome sputters.
“Yes, her.”
Rose glares at me. “You didn’t tell them? No wonder I got such a warm welcome.”
“We thought you were…um, well, a pit bunny,” Alec tells her.
“What gave it away? My lack of make-up, hairspray, or cleavage?”
The guys all look at the ground, but I smile right at her. She’s not going to sugar-coat anything, and it’s one of the things I love about her. One of the many things.
“Get back to work,” I tell them, then look to her. “Let me show you the cars.”
I know not to reach for her hand, or place mine on her back, because they’re all watching us, and she needs to be taken seriously. I hired her because she’s incredible at what she does, but they don’t know that yet. It’s going to mean I have to keep my hands off her—for now at least.
“Wow,” she says, when I lead her into the garage that’s really its own building, but attached to the other one by a long hallway.
I cross my arms across my chest, and watch her walk around. She runs her hand reverently over my Fords, Chevys, and Dodges. When she gets to my classic 80s Ferrari, she turns and cocks an eyebrow at me.
“The Southern boy has some foreign toys, too, huh?”
Society Girls: Rose Page 2
