Chapter 9

Stavros

Hearing Jenna’s words of hatred only made me grin. I’d had one of the staff switch the locks to the other side of the door. I hoped I wouldn’t need to lock her in on a regular basis, but the truth was I had a tiger by the tail.

I was uncertain what I was going to do with her.

The rationalization for capturing her had been spot on. The reality of what I’d done something else entirely.

Kidnapping.

I’d done a lot of sordid shit in my life, a dozen or so things I wasn’t necessarily proud of, but this had to take the cake and then some.

“Fuck. Fuck,” I hissed, unable to think clearly.

I trotted downstairs, heading for my private den off the office at the back of the property. I had a particularly gorgeous view of my entire grounds, the landscaping something that had been admired in the community’s newsletter and in one of the local magazines. They were always trying to get me to agree to a photography session where I posed like some fucking model.

Not a chance.

I’d leave that crap to my beautiful sister who owned the winery. She didn’t mind being the stunning woman fronting her fabulous business. Even if the fact she appeared on camera was dangerous.

There was no telling Elena what to do. She was stubborn, but I had a feeling Jenna was even more so. If I was ridiculous enough to stick the two of them together, my guess was they would control the entire world within thirty days.

Hell, twenty.

I snickered and moved toward the bar, still trying to process all that had occurred. It was almost impossible to grasp what had happened or who was behind the funny little ruse. Maybe that was the least of my worries.

With Viktor grasping onto the fact that Jenna had literally fallen into my life and making more out of it than it actually was, I had a feeling his thwarted attempt at taking her from me would occur again. It was only a matter of time.

But by whom?

I doubted it was Viktor who’d sent goons to kill her. Why wasn’t I convinced when he’d all but shouted it off the rooftops?

Something felt off and I was usually never wrong about these things.

“What about Viktor?” Christos asked as he walked into my office.

I brought the glass of Jim Beam to my lips, inhaling the aroma before taking a sip. “Find out what you can.”

“If he sent the Russian dude then he won’t like that his guy was murdered.”

“You’ve already mentioned that. I don’t care at this point and I’m not convinced he was behind the attack.”

“Why?”

“Because how would anyone know I’d slipped into a goddamn veterinary clinic late at night unless they’d been following me?”

“Could have been the same guy,” he insisted.

I swirled the drink, hating trying to solve some riddle. What happened to good old-fashioned business where you could easily recognize the bad guys? Those were my father’s days, not mine. Crime syndicates had gotten far too sophisticated at this point. “Maybe but we’re not taking any chances.”

“I hear you, boss. Now, onto more important details. What the hell are you going to do with your captive?”

My twisted mind had already thought of several dirty things, especially since her body had responded the way it had when I’d kissed her.

“Fuck if I know.”

He laughed. “I’ll let the men know you have a guest and to watch out for her.”

“Yeah, I have a feeling she won’t settle in easily or without added tension.”

“I kinda gathered that.” He was grinning.

I had to laugh, even if some of it was likely based out of frustration. “See what you can find.”

“Yes, sir.”

When the man called me sir, it was his ultimate taunt. He spun on his heel, taking military strides out the door. He was my cousin but protocol was still vital in our organization.

What did I do? I immediately refilled my glass. I had a feeling the next few days were going to be more than just a firestorm from hell. After powering back a huge gulp, I heard footsteps.

“You’re drinking that shit for liquor again, aren’t you?”

After swallowing, I grinned and turned my head toward my older brother. “I like it. You already know that. I don’t need no fancy-dancy liquor from one of your buddies in Kentucky.”

“Hey, that’s a member of the Brotherhood.”

The fucking Brotherhood, an alliance of the most notorious criminals in the world. My brother had never wanted to be a member of any sanctimonious fraternity or clique in college, so when he’d let the cat out of the bag, he’d joined the group of illustrious billionaires, I’d been the first one to laugh.

“So what? They only drink thousand-dollar bottles of liquor?”

“Well, maybe five-hundred-dollar bottles.” Phoenix snorted. “You have all the money in the world, yet you drink two buck chuck’s liquor.”

“Very funny. Make your own damn drink. And no, I don’t have a bottle of your favorite booze.”

“I believe I will and I’ll fix that. I’ll bring you a case of Kentucky’s finest. After all, it’s not every day your brother brings home a girl to play with and keep as a little doll.” His grin was wider than mine.

“You are hilarious. I’ll have you know she fixed me up, removing a bullet after I nearly got her killed not once but twice. What else was I supposed to do? Leave her to die?”

“Ouch. What the hell happened? Why allude to the Death Squad?”

“A storm. That’s what happened. A goddamn storm.” If only I would have needed to chase Viktor’s cowardly soldier from a subway car to a street in Brooklyn, then everything would have worked according to the plans I’d laid out. “Call it a gut feeling paired with the fact the asshole who tried to capture or kill Jenna at her clinic had a brand on his neck.”

“A brand.” Phoenix looked away. “Interesting.”

“Exactly. Plus, Viktor is little more than a thug but his business dealing with weapons has increased over the last few months.”

“Which would lead you believe he’s behind the attacks.”

“Unless somebody else wants his guns, ours as well.”

Phoenix’s eyes opened wide. “An interesting theory but I still don’t want us to jump to conclusions.”

I couldn’t stand when my plans went askew or when my instinct was working overtime. “Unfortunately, Jenna fell into the middle of the brutal storm.”

“All I’m going to say is you don’t need unwanted baggage.”

“Maybe not. However, she was almost killed twice because of me. The fucker was going to rape her first. I’m a bad dude, but no man touches a woman like that and should expect to live.”

“Shit. Only in New York. Well, think of it this way. You might have opened up a can of worms but at least you put Viktor on notice that this family won’t take his crap.”

“As if he gives a shit.”

“Oh, I assure you he will if he tries any additional shit. I’ve placed everyone on notice to keep an eye on our businesses. Whatever is going on, Viktor was stupid to try and come into our territory. Let’s hope he learned he can’t take what doesn’t belong to him.”

He held up his glass, as if making a silent toast before tossing back the single shot.

“If he does, I will be there personally slicing and dicing him like a slab of meat.” I growled after making the comment.

“Interesting hearing you talk like that. It must be because of your special guest. Now, what are you going to do with the woman? Is she important to Viktor to any degree?”

As usual, my brother knew when I’d taken a liking to any thing or person.

“No, she’s not one of Viktor’s whores if that’s what you’re getting at. She’s an innocent girl named Jenna Kilborne, a veterinarian in the wrong place at the wrong time. She walked into the arms of Viktor’s soldier and the bastard tried to use her as a shield. Nothing more.” I could tell he was mulling it over.

“You’re sure of that?”

“Yeah, I checked her out myself. Don’t go down that road. I’m not thinking with my dick. And she has nothing to do with the bitch from years ago.”

“It wouldn’t be the first time a man did. I assume she’s beautiful.”

Now he had me smiling. “Insanely gorgeous.”

“Just remember that looks can be deceiving. I know you don’t want to hear that, bro, but it needs to be said. Amara wasn’t the only woman in the world to be used to take down a powerful man.”

“I told you a long time ago never to mention her name again.” Shit. My entire body was shaking. I loathed that moment in my past, the ridiculous event something I’d worked hard to get past.

“I get it but keeping Jenna here is just as dangerous as if you’d left her there. You are aware of that.” He was acting more like my older brother than he was the leader of our illustrious organization.

I rubbed my eyes, a headache having formed the moment I’d put her on the plane. Seeing the hatred on her face shouldn’t have bothered me in the least. But it had. That was almost as jarring as the reprehensible situation. “I’m not a fool, Phoenix. However, for the first time I let my guard down. I was too goddamn cocky and it cost me. Whitie and Frankie weren’t worth the effort to track them down, especially in New York. They were bit players who fucked up royally. However, I think they were hired or forced to lure me there. I think whoever is behind the charade knew you wouldn’t think twice about sending me there given we are so territorial. Unfortunately, I stepped in the shit but that doesn’t mean I should take down an innocent girl who fucking did what she could so I wouldn’t bleed out.” When I glanced at him, his huge smile pissed me off. “Don’t you dare say a goddamn thing. You can’t tell me you weren’t like that when you met Whitney.”

He studied me for a full minute.

“I’m not saying a thing, brother, except you’re right in that you were lured there and we need to discover the reason. We need to ensure all our businesses are protected, extra soldiers put on notice. Now, I will ask. What’s she like?”

I closed my eyes, allowing several images of her face to cross back and forth across my mind. “She’s a handful, but she knows her stuff. She certainly didn’t flinch at the sight of blood. She’s beautiful and ballsy, just like our sisters. She had no issue fighting me not once but twice and there is no doubt in my mind she’ll do it again.”

“And you like her.”

“Yeah, I like her. Maybe a little too much. What I’m going to do with her remains to be seen.”

He finished pouring his drink, taking a sip as he walked to the window. “I’m curious. Where is she?”

“Locked in my bedroom. At least she’d safely tucked away for now. The future is what bothers me. Seriously, what the fuck am I going to do with her? I heard all the stories about your wife, but this is different.”

“Oh, I don’t know. Whitney was feisty and determined to get away from me until she saw the light. However, I can tell you do have your hands full. Fascinating.”

“Why fascinating?”

When he turned toward me, the bastard was grinning, pointing out the window. “She’s here?”

“Yeah, upstairs. What are you getting at?”

“Are we talking about the girl running toward the back of the property at this moment?”

My mouth dropped open and I rushed toward the window. “Son of a bitch. How the hell did she climb down from the third floor? She could have killed herself.”

“Women are resourceful. I’m just warning you. Maybe you should go get her and take a little time to explain some rules.”

“Fuck you, brother. Fuck you.” I moved toward my desk, yanking open two drawers before finding what I was looking for.

A thick piece of rope. I’d either corral her like a wild mare, or I’d secure her to a tree. I wasn’t certain which I preferred.

“Interesting, I can’t wait to hear about the outcome,” Phoenix said from behind me. He certainly had as much of a sick sense of humor as I did if not more.

I shoved the rope into my trousers, yanking off my coat and taking the time to roll up my sleeves. She couldn’t officially get anywhere. Why not allow her to tire herself out?

Now the remaining question was what in God’s name I was going to do with her.

The evil man inside of me already knew, the attraction I felt for the kickass girl more intense than I’d anticipated.

One taste hadn’t been enough, one kiss just the tip of the iceberg. Soon I would taste her all over, requiring her full surrender as I kissed and licked every inch of her voluptuous body.

Then I’d fuck her until she screamed out my name.

But she’d need to learn that fighting me wasn’t in her best interest.

Even if I had to break her in the process.

First, I’d need to catch her.

And there was nothing more exciting than the thrill of the hunt.