Ruthless Bastard: Rich Ruthless Bastards Book Two

by Tonya Brooks

  “Anything,” Dane readily agreed without hesitation.

  “Swear to me that you’ll make sure that Jolie and the children are always happy and cared for, no matter what it takes,” he requested because he had to know that his wife and children would never want for anything if he wound up in jail. His brother was the only person in the world that he trusted to guarantee it happened.

  Dane looked perplexed by the request, but he replied, “You know I will.”

  “Swear it.”

  “I swear,” he readily confirmed.

  “Thank you,” Reece said as he rose and walked toward the elevator. “I don’t want to leave Jolie and Bryce alone after what’s happened, so I need you to stay with them. Tell Jolie I’m sorry and I love her.”

  “Where the fuck are you going?” Dane asked in confusion as he stood.

  “To hell,” he confessed grimly before the elevator door closed. Because to do what needed to be done, he was going to have to let his demons come out and play.

  Malachi

  Malachi Black had not informed the detectives of the real reason why George Patterson had been at the Lassiter’s penthouse. He’d given them just enough information to form their own conclusions, which they had. With the uniformed officers' eyewitness testimony, there had been no need to go into the sordid details.

  However, he had known that Reece would go after the private investigator at the first available opportunity, which was why he’d been waiting patiently for him in the parking garage. “Going somewhere?” He asked through a cloud of smoke when the elevator door opened and its occupant stepped out.

  When Reece turned to face him, he read the truth in the other man’s wildly glittering gaze. There was no need for him to answer. They both knew where he was going and why. Reece Lassiter was not the type of man to allow a threat to his family to remain unsettled. He really was ruthless to his core.

  “I thought you left.”

  “I told you I was always available to help a friend,” he pointed out and ground the cigarette beneath his heel. “It looks like you need it.”

  “This doesn’t concern you, Malachi,” Reece denied in a warning tone that would have most people backing off as he walked toward his car. Unfortunately for him, Malachi was not susceptible to intimidation from anyone.

  “It does if I want to keep that hundred in your pocket,” he countered as he walked around to the passenger side. Because the last thing that either of them needed was Reece facing a murder charge, which is exactly what would happen if he got his hands on Bartles in his current mood. “And I really want to keep it there.”

  He knew that a man as powerful as Reece was not used to people ignoring his dictates, nor was he likely to tolerate it without a fight. Malachi was willing to oblige him in that area as well if the need arose. “Then you should understand why I don’t need a witness,” he bit out bluntly and climbed into the driver’s seat.

  “I’m just here to provide you with an alibi,” he clarified and slid uninvited into the passenger seat.

  The multi-billionaire scowled at him, and Malachi could tell that he was trying to figure him out. “Didn’t you swear an oath to uphold the law?” He finally demanded and appeared to be suspicious of his motive. After being brutally betrayed by his former right-hand man, it was completely understandable.

  The attorney laughed in genuine amusement and admitted, “You weren’t the only one raised on the streets.” He didn’t miss the other man’s look of surprise that he knew about his well-guarded past. “The law of the jungle is the only one that really matters, Reece. And we’re two of the biggest, baddest predators around.”

  Having come to the determination that he wasn’t going away, Reece cursed fluently before demanding in a snarl, “Why are you doing this, Malachi? What the fuck is in it for you? Money? Leverage?”

  Up until this point, they had been the casual kind of friend you had a drink with, not the deep-rooted kind that helped you get rid of a body, so he fully comprehended the other man’s confusion and skepticism. You didn’t get to where they were by trusting the wrong people as the other man had just been forcefully reminded.

  “Justice,” Malachi confessed succinctly and held his gaze so Reece could see the truth in his eyes, hear it in his words. “I see too much injustice in court on a daily basis and the only thing Bartles would get from a judge is a slap on the wrist. He needs to be punished for helping to terrorize an innocent woman.”

  “Justice. For a woman you barely know. That’s your motivation for risking your career and a jail sentence?” The other man demanded, those intense turquoise eyes boring into him as if searching for a hidden agenda.

  “I’m not planning on risking either one.” Malachi assured him, but his eyes shone with suppressed fury when he admitted, “I’ve got a soft spot for single mothers. Mine had a hard enough time trying to survive without a psychotic bastard sabotaging her at every turn. The thought of it happening to anyone infuriates me.”

  “Then you should be able to understand why I don’t need or want your help,” Reece insisted in a tone as menacing as his expression.

  “What I understand is that rage, fear, and the primal need to protect your family are riding you hard right now,” Malachi opined honestly. “I also know precisely what you’re risking by going after Bartles. I’m here to make sure you get back home to your wife and son where you belong.”

  “How the hell do you plan to accomplish that?” The other man demanded impatiently.

  “Just think of me as the voice of reason,” he said with a mocking smile. “Or your conscience if you prefer.”

  Reece gave a bark of dark laughter though there was nothing pleasant about the sound. “I’d prefer you get the fuck out of my car.”

  “Do you have any idea how lucky you are?” He asked and had no intention of complying with the order. “I’d give anything to have a woman look at me the way Jolie looks at you. Finding a woman who loves you like that is nothing sort of a miracle for men like us and I’m not going to let you fuck it up for revenge.”

  The other man's expression changed drastically, and he knew that he was getting through to him. “You’re right,” Reece agreed in his normal tone, the anger appearing to have ebbed when faced with reason. “But I can’t let Bartles get away unscathed.”

  “Which is why you’re going to kick his ass and leave him alive for me to deal with legally,” Malachi explained. “Trust me when I tell you that I can make his life a living hell he can’t escape from. Now, turn off your phone and the car’s navigation system so you don’t leave a trail of location evidence, and let’s take that piece of shit down.”

  Reece stared at him hard before a genuine smile touched his lips. “Malachi, you really are a devious bastard,” he said in admiration.

  "Only when it matters," he replied with a self-satisfied smile.

  Jolie

  “He said what?” Jolie gasped in outraged astonishment and could not believe that Reece had left without a word after the harrowing experience they had been through. Not to mention his cryptic comment to Dane scared the hell out of her. What could he have possibly meant by he was going to hell?

  “I think the situation with George has really fucked with his head,” her brother-in-law said reasonably. “Reece isn’t behaving rationally right now.”

  “Ya think?” She bit out and was livid over his actions. Reece had seemed as shaken as she had been by the attempted murder, but there had been nothing in his behavior to indicate that he’d just up and leave the minute her back was turned. If anything, she had expected him to continue hovering over her for days. “Where is he?”

  “Now, Jolie,” her brother-in-law said calmly. “It might be better to let him have some time to deal with this alone.”

  “Oh, he’s going to deal with it alright,” she assured him vehemently. “Just as soon as I find him. Where the hell is he, Dane?”

  He sighed in resignation and checked an app on his phone. “Reece must have t
urned his phone off because he’s not showing up,” he replied hesitantly.

  “I am so going to kick his ass for this,” she assured her brother-in-law and meant every word. She had known that Reece was hurting and had fully expected to discuss how he felt about George possibly being his father once they were alone. She had not expected him to turn tail and run to deal with the situation on his own.

  Over the next few hours, Jolie did a lot of pacing and fuming as she tried to figure out what was going through Reece’s mind. Was it possible that the attorney’s death had triggered a traumatic event from his childhood? Like the memory of his mother falling down the stairs and breaking her neck?

  Having both parents die in such a horrific manner would be hard for anyone to deal with. Even though he hadn’t known that George was his father, the man had been a trusted employee for years. It was only natural that his death would affect Reece deeply. But she was afraid the attorney’s betrayal had hurt him even more.

  Knowing Reece, he was blaming himself for George’s actions even though none of what the crazed man had done was his fault. Which she would gladly tell him if the stubborn ass would just come home. Then a horrible thought occurred to her. What if Reece wasn’t coming back?

  All of the old doubts and fears came rushing back to torment her. The main one being; had he left her? It was a logical conclusion, she realized. Why else would he have Dane tell her that he was sorry? And his comment about going to hell would make sense in that context because them not being together was pure hell.

  For both of them.

  But no, she assured herself. Reece had fought like hell for the last two months to regain her trust. There was no way that he would just walk away now that they were getting back together. Would he? Yes, she knew that he was ruthless enough to do so if he thought there was a good reason for it, but there wasn’t and there never would be.

  Not if she had anything to say about it.

  And Jolie had plenty to say.

  Dane had been a rock with his constant assurances that his brother was alright and that everything would be fine. But as the minutes continued to tick by, she was almost frantic when he finally said, “His phone’s back on.”

  Hope leaped in her chest as she demanded, “Where?”

  “Your old penthouse.”

  His answer was surprising since it was the last place she would expect him to go. Unless he was planning to move back in. Without her. The hell he would! “I need you to watch Bry and make sure the doorman lets me in,” she said as she stalked toward the elevator.

  “Jolie, you might want to change clothes first,” he advised in amusement since she was barefoot and wearing pajamas.

  Less than five minutes later, she stormed out of the lobby and into the car that Dane had thoughtfully arranged for her. The ease that the Lassiter brothers made things happen in the middle of the night no longer amazed her. At the moment she was too furious to think about anything except giving Reece absolute hell for disappearing and worrying her half to death. Now that she knew he was safe, her anger had returned with a vengeance.

  When she arrived at the iconic building, the doorman hastened to open the door and greeted her with a deferential, “Welcome back, Mrs. Lassiter.” She acknowledged him with a curt nod and headed straight to the private elevator as if she owned the place and jammed the up button with more force than was required.

  When Jolie stormed out of the car, and into the exterior foyer, memories of being dragged away in handcuffs amped her fury. She stepped through the open door only to stop short when she entered the living area because not one thing had changed. Every detail was exactly as she remembered it. This place had been their home once and now it was as empty and desolate as their lives had been without each other.

  That would never happen again.

  Fiery determination filled her as she walked to the open French doors where the curtains were billowing in the breeze. Stepping outside she saw him leaning against the banister looking as defeated and broken as he had that first morning at breakfast and that just pissed her off even more.

  She walked right up behind him and delivered a good solid Gibb's smack to the back of his head. Reece whirled to face her in disbelief, and she went on the attack by accusing, “If you think for one minute that you’re leaving me then you’re out of your goddamn mind, Reece Lassiter!”

  His eyes widened in shock before he said, “I...”

  Not willing to give him a chance to defend such an idiotic notion, Jolie poked her finger in his chest and laid down the law. “We are going to get married and raise our children together just like we planned,” she insisted and was madder than hell that she had to tell him that. “So suck it the fuck up, buttercup, and get your ass home now.”

  The stunned expression slowly faded from his too handsome face and was replaced with a simply lethal smile that never failed to leave her weak in the knees. Without a word, Reece hauled her into his arms and kissed her until everything else was just as weak, and she had to cling to him to stay upright.

  “So fierce and demanding,” he said in amusement when the kiss finally ended, yet his hold on her didn’t loosen a bit. “I like this side of you, Sunshine. It’s hot as fuck.”

  The steel rod pressing insistently against her abdomen was proof of that, but she refused to be sidetracked. “Oh, you have no idea how fierce I can be,” she assured him and shoved both hands against his chest to put some space between them. “You scared the hell out of me when you disappeared, Reece. I thought you’d left me.”

  “Sunshine, I will never leave you,” Reece hastened to assure her. “I was afraid that being at the penthouse might remind you too much of George’s attack, so I thought I’d make sure that this place was habitable in case you wanted to move back here for a while. Or permanently. Hell, we can live anywhere you like as long as we’re together.”

  His declaration soothed her fears and the offer to move so she wouldn’t be reminded of the traumatic incident was exactly the kind of thoughtful gesture she should have expected him to make. But even so, she wasn’t about to let him off the hook that easily, so she grasped his hands and glared at the bruised, bleeding knuckles.

  Reece had obviously taken his fury out on something, or someone, and at this point, she’d really rather not know which. The only thing that mattered was getting her point across to him so she pointed out sternly, “When people are in a relationship, they do not go off on their own to process. They discuss the issue with each other.”

  “Why the hell would I burden you with the shitstorm going on in my head?” He queried as if such a thing were preposterous.

  “Because I love you and I’m here for you through the good and the bad,” Jolie insisted and took his stubble covered cheeks in both hands. She had mentioned a few weeks ago how sexy it looked, and he hadn’t shaved since. “Just like I expect you to be there for me.”

  “Sunshine, it seems like everything I do ends up hurting you,” he confessed painfully. “You deserve better.”

  “What I deserve is a man who keeps his word,” she corrected in exasperation.

  “I know, and I’m sorry,” Reece replied in a tone dripping with remorse. “I swore not to hurt you again and then I let this happen.”

  “You didn’t let anything happen,” she denied seriously. “It wasn’t your fault, Reece. George obviously had mental issues and you can’t blame yourself for his actions. I certainly don’t.”

  “I trusted him,” he bit out in a tone filled with bitterness and self-contempt. “And he betrayed that trust by tormenting you. By trying to kill you. All in some twisted effort to protect me.”

  “Bullshit,” Jolie countered. “He did it because it was what he wanted to do. He was jealous of the time that you spend with me and Bryce, and it didn’t matter to him that being with us made you happy. If George had really had your best interests at heart, he would have put your happiness before his own.”

  Reece pondered the statement, and she could see
when he accepted the truth of her words. “You’re right,” he confirmed. “That is what a man does for the people he loves. What a father does for his child.”

  Which caused her to ask hesitantly, “Do you think he really was your father?”

  “It’s possible he could have been the sperm donor,” he confirmed without inflection as if it really didn’t matter one way or the other. “But the judge loved me unconditionally and was my father in every way that mattered. That’s exactly what I plan to do for Bryce and the baby you’re carrying.”

  “I’m glad to hear it because like Bryce, this baby is a Lassiter,” she confessed with a brilliant smile and had been dying to tell him all evening.

  “A Lassiter?” He repeated and hope shown in his tormented turquoise gaze.

  “Unlike you, Gavin is sterile.”

  “It’s really mine?” Reece asked hoarsely and laid his trembling hand over her abdomen where their child lay.

  “Never doubt it,” Jolie confirmed happily and was wrapped in a fierce embrace before he kissed her insensible.

  “Sunshine, you’ve made me the happiest man alive,” he assured her and the truth of it shown in his sparkling turquoise eyes. “How soon can you plan a wedding?”

  “Not so fast,” she chided. “There are conditions attached this time.”

  “Name your terms,” he replied without hesitation.

  “They’re non-negotiable,” Jolie insisted.

  “Jolie, everything is negotiable,” he cajoled and stole another kiss that left her weak in the knees.

  “Not kidding, Reece,” she denied seriously. “You have to give me exactly what I want or no deal.”

  His expression became concerned before he asked, “What is it that you want, Jolie?”

  “You have to swear to love me and our children for the rest of our lives,” she demanded and saw his expression change to one of pure happiness.

  “I swear to love you and our children for the rest of our lives,” he vowed solemnly before his lips claimed hers in another of those bone-melting kisses. “And I’ll never stop proving that I’m not the same ruthless bastard that hurt you.”