Chapter Thirty-Eight

With Zayden gone and Maxim satisfied, I decide to take Blake to work with me. She needs to get out of the apartment more, and I need to be spending more time at work. For several reasons. I’ve almost dug up all the men she listed, everyone except Slinky. Once I have their habits and routines finalized, I’ll send it all to Zayden, and he will take care of the rest. Then again, a larger part of me wants to participate for the first time in a long time. This isn’t a job. These aren’t meaningless kills. These are necessary and essential, and they all deserve to fucking burn.

Blake is helping Jarod sift through some data reports. I told her she didn’t need to help, but she insisted she wanted to. Jarod’s ears instantly turned pink when she smiled at him and took up the desk beside his. His eyes were practically glued to her while my own narrowed on him, and when he noticed, he quickly dropped his gaze and focused on his work. I’m not threatened by him in the least. Doesn’t mean I appreciate him staring at my woman.

My eyes come to her, and I feel my body soften. God, I never thought I’d fall in love, ever. Look at Zayden and my childhood, we didn’t necessarily have great examples or a solid start, but here I am, so fucking gone for the woman in front of me. The way I worry about her constantly is maddening. I’m not sure if this is how love always is, or if we just have a unique situation that forces me to feel this way. It goes past her safety, though. I worry that she’s happy, I worry if she doesn’t laugh enough. With one look into her eyes, my entire world flipped on its lid, and suddenly all I could eat, sleep, or breathe was her.

She looks up at me, obviously feeling my eyes on her, and I give her a quick wink that sends heat rushing to her cheeks before she winks back at me. I chuckle in my seat before focusing back on the screen, determined to track down Slinky and exhaust all avenues possible to get Maxim out of our lives. Killing him may be what it comes down to, but if we were even going to attempt that, we would need to buy off the handful of personal guards he never goes anywhere without, at the minimum.

I’ve already reached out to a contact that is in touch with the Mariano Family. It would make things easy to just have the mob take him out for us, no guilt or blood on our hands to be found, but my contact said not to hold my breath. So, I’m working on alternative plans.

“Babygirl, can you come here?” I call out through the open door.

Blake smiles and nods before getting up. I watch Jarrod carefully as she does, checking to see if he will sneak a peek at her ass. Lucky for him, he doesn’t. Good, I wouldn’t want to have to kill my protégé.

“Close the door,” I say as she steps through the doorway.

She raises a mischievous eyebrow before sauntering toward me. Her long legs eat up the distance between us before she perches herself on top of my desk in front of me. I lean back in my chair to allow her room before scooting closer to her.

“I got you something,” I say as I reach into my desk drawer and pull out the black leather box.

Her eyebrows knit as a confused smile touches her lips.

“What for?”

“Well, Zayden got you an anniversary present. Seems only fitting I give you one as well.”

A choked laugh escapes her as she hesitates to open the small black jewelry box.

“It’s not someone’s finger or something, is it?” she teases.

“Afraid not,” I say as my mouth stretches into a smile. “Though if you need some fingers chopped off, you direct me to them, and I’ll take care of it.”

She squints her eyes at me before wearing a dubious smirk.

“I thought you didn’t kill people anymore.”

“I don’t, doesn’t mean I can’t.”

Something sparks in her eyes at that. It’s not fear, it’s not disgust, it almost looks like excitement. My babygirl is a lot more twisted than I ever would have imagined, maybe that’s how she’s able to love two broken men like us so well, even if she denies loving Zayden just yet.

When she flips open the lid, her breath catches, and her eyes come to mine. I rest my palm on her thigh, squeezing it softly as she looks back down at the necklace.

“It’s beautiful,” she whispers.

“May I?” I ask as I gesture toward the box.

She nods with a smile, and I pull it out as she lifts up her hair. My hands wind around her neck as I clasp it together before pulling back to admire it. It’s nothing too extravagant, not even close. It’s a white gold pendant custom-shaped into a daffodil. It was too unique of an item to simply purchase in-store, and I enjoyed having it custom-made, it made it more unique, more special.

“I love it, thank you.” She smiles, a tear dropping down her cheek as she smiles.

I frown at that, catching the tear with my thumb.

“Why are you crying, baby?”

“No one has ever given me anything like this before. This is?—”

“Just a necklace. You deserve far more, and I intend to give you the world.”

She leans down, wrapping her arms around my neck and pulling me into her. Her soft lips move against mine easily, like they were always meant to, and I just begin weaving my fingers through her hair when my phone rings. I debate on ignoring it, but Blake is the one to break the kiss, pulling away and glancing at the screen on my desk.

Without hesitating, she picks it up and answers it.

“Hello?”

I know it can only be one person that she’d be bold enough to answer on my phone, so I ease back into my chair and overhear Zayden’s rough chuckle.

“Hello, angel. You’re not my brother.”

“Nope. How is your…trip?” she says with an exaggerated pause.

“Finished early and am in need of a mood lifter. Got any ideas?” he asks her.

I’ll bet. Though Zayden might not have the same conflictions as I do, and despite him seeming like a cold sociopath, he does have a heart and a conscience, and he had to go against both today in order to protect the beautiful woman in front of me. A price he’s happy to pay but taxing all the same.

“Hmm, we could go dancing!” she suggests, a spark lighting behind her eyes as she speaks.

“Angel, do my brother or I seem like the type to go dancing?” he asks, voicing my own thoughts perfectly.

I watch as her smile dims slightly at his words, and I narrow my eyes in response.

“We’re going dancing, Zayden!” I shout so he can hear me.

Blake looks to me in surprise before I give her a reassuring nod and smile. Her light is back instantly as she does a little happy dance on the desk.

“Alright. Whatever you want, sweetheart. I’ll be home in five hours, and the first thing I want is a kiss, and then your lips around my cock.”

Blake giggles like a schoolgirl before she smirks.

“We could probably arrange something like that,” she says as she gives me a sly wink that has my cock stiffening in my pants.

Blake is finishing getting ready,and Zayden is taking a shower when my phone buzzes in my pocket, alerting me that there is someone trying to access the fire escape. I frown at that, pulling up the camera to see a familiar face. Christian Aranda.

Quietly, I slip out of the living room and onto the balcony, glancing down to see the walking dead man horribly attempting to shimmy up the broken fire ladder. Broken for a reason, we don’t need easy access for anyone to get to this place. It’s honestly impressive he’s more than halfway up.

I glance at the lock bracing the ladder to the side of the building before looking down at the patio below. I flick the lock, forcing the ladder to free fall. His screams rip through the night sky, but lucky for him, he lands with a rough thud onto the patio beneath him. Stepping on the outside of my balcony, I drop down to where I’m holding onto the edge before dropping beside him. I land easily despite the close to ten-foot drop before I stand to my full height.

Christian is still on the ground, but when he sees me towering above him, his face pales by three colors. I don’t waste any time, fisting his shirt in my hand before dragging his face to mine.

“Tell me, Mr. Aranda, because I may be mistaken. Are you attempting to break into my home?”

“N-no, he stutters. Of course not. I just…I wanted to check on Blake. She and Gabby had a fight, we haven’t heard from her in so long. I’m worried.”

“You’re such a good friend to care so much,” I say calmly.

He stares at me hesitantly like I’m trying to trick him before he nods slowly.

“Of course, she’s practically family. I’d do anything for her.”

“I’m sure you would. Most men will do anything for the woman they love.”

He scoffs, attempting to throw me off, but he’s a really fucking terrible liar.

“Yeah right.” He laughs. “She-s…I’m married. To her best friend! We’re all friends, just friends.”

“Really? Because she admitted to me the other night that she’s had feelings for you for a while, but she wasn’t sure if you reciprocated them.”

“Really?” he practically gasps, light and hope shimmering in his eyes.

I can’t help but let out a curt laugh as I shake my head.

“Fuck no. You’re a fucking idiot. She hasn’t spoken about you once. To her, you’re her controlling bitch of an ex-best friend’s husband. That’s it.”

Disappointment shadows his features, and if I was a nicer guy, maybe I’d give a shit. He should be happy I’m the one who found him snooping. Had it been Zayden, he’d be sent home in pieces.

Lowering my voice to a deadly tone, I look down at him, commanding all of his attention as I speak.

“Listen very carefully, Christian. You will never come here again. If you try to contact Blake, I will break your hands, if you chance a glance at her, I’ll pluck your eyes out, and if you so much as breathe a word in her direction, I will slit you from ear to ear.”

His body is shaking in my grasp, but he doesn’t respond. I shake him once, and he whimpers in response.

“O-okay. Okay,” he sobs, tears pouring down his face. Pathetic.

I scoff, throwing him to the ground before moving to the slider door of the apartment, pressing my thumb against the scanner, and forcing the door to whir open. It’s not like I’m going to buy a penthouse apartment and not buy out the surrounding units for added security.

Grabbing Christian by the scruff of his neck, I drag his sniveling ass through the empty living room, opening the front door, and jamming my finger against the elevator button. When the elevator doors open, I toss him inside, rolling my eyes as I smash the bottom floor button and close the doors.

God, he really is a worthless man. He and his wife deserve each other, and as long as they both stay away from my girl, they can have each other. If not, well, let’s hope they’re smart enough to stay away.