“I don’t think that’s a good idea. I think we should stay.” JT looked at his cousin. “I don’t know what the hell is going on, but I don’t like a minute of it. I think we should call someone in. If you’re so worried you won’t answer the door without backup, something has to be done about it. We’ll call in the police or the feds. I’ve got contacts.”
Michael groaned. “This is Simon’s gig. You can’t play the CEO card with him.”
“He’s my family,” JT replied with a stubborn look. “You watch me. I know you two think I’m the soft one, but I can be a ruthless bastard when I want to be. I will protect this family with everything I have.”
Simon softened slightly. “I’m asking you to let me handle my own business, JT. This is my territory. If I need help, I will ask you.”
“Come on, brother. I think he can handle it. He’s not the same skinny kid who showed up at the house thirty years ago. You don’t have to protect him anymore. The same goes for me.” Michael put a hand on his brother’s shoulder. “Let’s go get a beer and we’ll talk.”
With obvious reluctance, JT Malone allowed himself to be hustled out the door.
She’d known Simon had cousins here in Texas, but seeing them, being in a room with them, made it more real. So often he was some sort of god in her head. Cool, calm, collected. Infinitely sexy. He was damn perfect in her mind.
And he’d been a skinny little kid who needed protecting. She’d needed protecting, too. She remembered clinging to her sister’s hand during the flight from North Carolina to Moscow. They’d watched their father kill their mother and then they’d only had each other.
“I’m sorry about that.” Simon moved to the big bar in his kitchen and started unloading the bag he’d set there. “My family can be a bit overbearing at times.”
“They love you.” That was obvious. She’d made a study of Simon, but the truth wasn’t always in data. It was the frustrating thing about life. Data, information, numbers were her specialty, but while she’d known about Simon’s ties to Malone Oil, she hadn’t counted on the fact that Jackson Tyrell Malone, billionaire heir to what amounted to an American kingdom, would truly love and want to protect his family. Or that his family would buck and fight against the constraints of that protection.
“Of course they do. They’re my family.” He brought down a plate and began to spoon food onto it.
That was easy for him to say. Family hadn’t been so easy for her. Just thinking about her “family” made her leg ache. Of course the damn thing ached all the time, and running around the Metroplex for eight hours hadn’t improved the condition. She needed a distraction, and work was her drug of choice. “What’s your wireless password?”
She needed to get on the web and continue her investigation. Whoever was pissed at her likely had blabbed to someone else. There were always tracks. Always hints and clues there for a smart girl to connect.
“Eat.”
“That’s a terrible password.” They had to work on his security. A password should be something utterly random. At least seven characters long, and with a myriad of numbers, letters, and symbols. Too many people made the mistake of choosing something meaningful to them like “ilovedan” or “cutekitty.” Yeah, those suckers got hacked and fast.
She dragged out her computer. It was a lightweight laptop she’d had custom made and kitted out to do things ninety-nine percent of computers couldn’t. She had a hotspot, too, but it was almost out of charge. She’d run through her backup battery. Where to set up? She was going to be up all night, so she might as well make herself comfy. If she was smart, she could figure the whole damn thing out by morning and Charlotte never had to know how her baby sister had fucked up again.
A shadow fell across her screen. She glanced up, hating the way her breath hitched. He loomed over her. Simon, in all his suited up and very British glory. He’d ditched the coat, but his tie was still in place. The white dress shirt he was wearing couldn’t hide the lean, muscular lines of his body. She was alone with Simon. Simon, with his sandy hair and deep blue eyes and shoulders that seemed to go on for days.
“Put the computer away and come and eat.”
“I can eat while I work.” It damn near hurt to look at him so she let her gaze drift back to her screen.
A big hand came out and flipped the screen down. “You will sit down like a civilized person and eat until I’m satisfied and then we’ll have a chat about how this is going to work.”
Damn him. He was using his Dom voice on her, the dark, rich commanding tone he used on the subs at Sanctum. The one he’d used on her when they’d played together in The Garden. Play. It was a stupid word to describe what had happened between them. It hadn’t felt like play. It felt real and powerful and serious, and that was why she shouldn’t be here.
Do you know how I could make you feel?
She still heard him growling the words at her, offering to take her to an aftercare room. He’d asked her to give over to him, but she couldn’t. Not that way. She did know exactly how he could make her feel. Vulnerable. Lost. Aching.
“Simon, I’ve thought about this and I just need a place to stay for the night. Maybe two, tops. Just let me do a little digging and I’ll get out of your hair.” Now that she was here with him, she remembered how dangerous he could be to her peace of mind. “You don’t have to concern yourself too much with it.”
He nodded shortly and turned away from her.
Well, at least that had been easy.
He strode to the bar and picked up his cell phone. After a single push against the screen, he placed the phone to his ear. “Hello, Tag. I’m sorry to bother you.”
Fuck. Fuck. Mother fuck. She stood up and shook her head, keeping her voice down. “Don’t you dare.”
“Yes, it was a long flight. Hang on a moment.” He pushed the mute button. “I can tell him I’m not coming into work tomorrow or I can hand you over and let him deal with you. It’s your choice.”
“That is not fair.”
“I don’t care about fair. You’ll deal with him or me. Make your decision. If you’re going to deal with me, you will go sit down at the table and eat dinner. If not, get your bag together because I have the feeling Ian will move very quickly.”