AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Maisy glances out the window, and the faint line between her brows puckers. “Where are we going?”
Perceptive little thing.
“I need to make a quick stop to see a business associate. I’ll be in and out.”
She eyes the murky waters of the Hudson as it speeds by. “You could have just let me walk ho—to your place.”
It’s the second time she’s almost called my penthouse home, and the pleasure it brings me is absurd. Once I hit thirty a few months ago, I’d convinced myself I would be happy living out my life as an eternal bachelor. Then this woman appears in my life and everything changes.
“I’d rather have my eye on you at all times until Jasper is six feet under.”
Her mouth curves into a capital O, and cazzo, my thoughts instantly go back to a similar expression when my tongue was buried between her legs.
“Do you not want me to kill him, little fox?” I watch her carefully, eager to make out any subtle tell.
“No,” she finally murmurs. “I want to.”
Just when I think there’s nothing this woman can say that would surprise me, she does it again. The calm, icy tone reminds me of… of me. It makes me wonder if Jasper hadn’t been completely honest as to the extent of torture he put his ex-wife through.
I pivot my body toward her, my thigh brushing her bare one. Even with the slacks between us, that faint touch has me hardening. “What did he do to you?” I growl, low and deadly.
She shakes her head slowly, tears glistening in her eyes. “I just want him dead, okay?”
I nod. “Your wish is my command, little fox.”
The remainder of the ride to the Lower East Side flies by in a weighty silence. I will find out exactly what Jasper did to her so that when I find him, I can repay the kindness. I know my little fox, and despite her brazen talk, she would never be able to kill him. More than that, I wouldn’t want that eternal stain on her conscience.
Max pulls the BMW up in front of the sleek, modern warehouse along Grand Street. It seems completely out of place beside the dilapidated, graffiti-covered ones surrounding it. I reach for the door handle, then spin back to Maisy. “Stay here with Max. I’ll be right back.”
She eyes the structure, and a tremor shakes her slim shoulders.
Shit, I never should have brought her here. It’s likely dredging up old memories of when I held her and Rose captive at that old shipping yard. Fucking idiot.
“Who’s in there?” she asks as I open the back door.
“Just an associate, like I said.”
“Is it Dante?”
“No,” I hiss.
Her brows knit as if she doesn’t believe me, and my irritation rises. I’ve never lied to her about anything. I’ve been as honest as possible given the nature of my business. I rush out of the car and slam the door behind me before I get more wrapped up in this nonsense. I need a clear head to deal with this shit.
Exhaling a frustrated breath, I march toward the entrance. A prickle of unease raises the hair on the back of my neck as I approach the double stainless-steel doors. I slow, my feet dragging.
The sharp slam of a door closing spins my head over my shoulder. Maisy stalks toward me with her hands on her hips and a slight hitch to her step.
I spin around and glare at the obstinate woman. “Get back in the car,” I snarl.
An explosion vibrates the air behind me, the heat from the blast razing across my jacket. I leap forward, wrapping my arms around Maisy, and we fall.
CHAPTER 27
SLEEP NOW, FIGHT LATER
Maisy
I blink slowly, my ears ringing so badly I can’t focus on anything else. A jackhammer pounds at my skull and an immoveable weight pins me to the concrete sidewalk.
