Page 11 of Love is Blind

When I find out who has been helping him, they will be on my shit list as well. I’ve had A.A.L. Banking, mine, and the guy’s financial company, liquidate all of Adrian’s assets. It’s taken some time, more than I would have liked, but piece by piece, everything Adrian West owns will be mine. I only feel slightly bad since his father was a half decent man, but his son dug his own hole.

A text notification pops up on my phone. Checking the time, I see it’s half past seven, meaning it’s just about time for dinner. I quickly reply to one of my men, letting me know the shipment was running an hour later because of some traffic. It’s no cause for concern usually, but lately, it’s the little things that have seemed off. Now that we know it’s been Adrian messing with our side business, we won’t take any chances. I let my guy know I’ll be there to receive the shipment tonight and to keep me posted. We’ve never had one of our men double cross us, but there is a first for everything and everyone can be swayed somehow. Blackmail, money, threats, there is something for everyone.

I figured I’ve worked long enough that I could use a break, plus it’s been a few hours since I’ve last seen my little bird. Standing, I stretch out my sore muscles before making my exit in search of my woman. I check the downstairs rooms first, the den, sitting room and kitchen before heading upstairs to her room. I knock first before opening her door, but to my surprise, her room is empty. Pulling out my phone again, I text the guys.

“Where’s Wren?” I turn back towards the stairs to head back down when my phone goes off. I almost take a tumble down the flight of stairs when I see the pictures Mav sent me. It’s Wren in a bikini, laying out in the sun. Another of her swimming in the pool with the damn mutt paddling after, but it’s the last one that really gets me. Wren, with her eyes closed, bright white smile, and head tilted to the sun as if she were a flower seeking warmth. The light is hitting her just right, that she practically glows in the setting sun. I didn’t think this woman could get any more perfect, but every day I find a new reason to fall for her deeper.

Quickening my step, I hurry to the back of the house, wanting to witness the beauty that is Wren. Even after everything life has put her through, she is a ball of pure light. Always wanting to see the good in people. She has no idea the effect she has on a room. It’s hard not to be drawn to her. I reach the back door in no time and catch a moment where Wren is throwing her head back with laughter at something Abby just said. She looks so free and happy. Jax and Mav can’t keep their eyes off her, either. It’s like no other women exist now that we have Wren.

I make a B-Line to my little bird and scoop her up in my arms. A startled scream cuts off her laugh. “Little Bird, I’ve missed you.” Her body instantly relaxes in my hold.

“Xander. You scared me half to death.” She lets out a cute little giggle before adding. “But I missed you too. Are you done with work?” I look over her head at the guys. I give them a look they know all too well. We might have an issue tonight.

“Yeah baby. At least until tonight. Are you hungry? I think dinner is just about ready.”

“Argh, Yes! I’m starving. I’ve been so hungry lately. Let me go change really quick and I’ll meet you all in the dining room in like twenty. Okay?” I give her a tight squeeze, holder her tighter to me, not yet ready to let her go, before kissing the top of her head.

“Yeah babe. Don’t be too long.” Setting her down on her feet, I smack her round, perky ass for good measure. She lets out a shriek before her, and Abby starts to head inside, giggling like schoolgirls. Ares trots along behind them like the attention stealing dog he is.

The moment she is back inside, I turn to the guys. “I have a bad feeling about tonight’s shipment. I got word it’s going to be over an hour late. Traffic.” I scoff. “I bet you it’s either another wrong shipment or a missing one. We need to head this off sooner rather than later, or we are going to start losing business.”

“Let’s head to the warehouse after dinner and straighten a few things out.” Jax smirks, and I can only imagine what he might have planned. The man has had no one to play with for a while.

We are barely ten minutes into dinner when my phone goes off, making me grind my teeth in irritation. Abby eyes me with worry before glancing at Wren, then taking another bite of her food. I glance at the guys before pushing away from the table.

“Excuse me. I need to take this real quick.” Wren frowns in my direction, but Jax distracts her with a question about the book she is reading. We’ve learned that it’s easy to distract Wren with book talk. Once I reach the doorway leading to the hall, I answer.

“What?” I growl. We were having a nice family dinner when the call came through. I hadn’t even got to the main dish yet. So, this better be good, plus the shipment was supposed to be delayed another thirty minutes.

“We have an issue, boss. I think you’re gonna want to come down to the warehouse a bit early.” The man on the phone sounds nervous.

“What happened?” I peek my head back into the dining room and make eye contact with Jax. I circle my fingers in the air, then use my thumb to point to the garage. He must see that I mean business because the smile he just had drops before nudging Mav. When he sees my look, he turns furious. I don’t blame him. Ever since Wren went back to work, we haven’t had time to just relax. Someone is always working or is too tired from working. Once I have their attention, I nod to get going. Jax says something to the girls before standing and heading in my direction. Mav walks around the table to kiss Wren on the head. He whispers something to Abby, who nods.

“The truck just showed up a few minutes ago. So I did what you asked and inventoried the shipment, but I can already tell it’s not right, Boss.” His tone has shifted from nervous to something else. Afraid, maybe?

“How?” I growl. I need him to get to the point, and fast. I turn once Jax is at my side and make our way to the garage. Maverick’s footsteps following just behind.

“H-he left you a note.” I halt at his words, ice running down my spine and almost causing Jax to railroad me over.

“What do you mean, a note?”

Chapter nine

JAXON

Xanderracesthroughthestreets at top speed to get to the warehouse on the other side of town. From what he told us, it appears Adrian made another move. The coward. Once we realized it was him stealing part of our shipments, we changed everything up. Alternative routes, new lines of communication, even new men. We couldn’t for sure say any of our previous men were helping him, since everything checked out. No connections to Adrian or the West corporation. None of the men had out of the ordinary bank deposits and no one seemed in communication with him according to phone records. But to be on the safe side, we gave them new positions within our business.

The normally thirty-minute drive across town took us fifteen as Xander pulls up to the gate. His knuckles turning white as he grips the steering wheel in a tight hold. The gate guard buzzes us in and I can almost hear the grinding of Xander’s teeth.

“X, man. You need to calm down. We will get him, I promise, but until then, we need to maintain a strong front for our men. We can’t let this bastard get under our skin. Not now. We have too much to lose now.” I give him a stern look with my words. He must know I’m right because he eases his grip and takes a deep breath, trying to calm his rage.

“You’re right. We have to play this carefully. Adrian could have eyes where we least expect it.” He pulls into our normal parking spot on the side of the large metal dark gray building. “Now let’s go see what we are dealing with.” With that, we all step out of the SUV. I crack my neck from side to side and swing my shoulders around a few times to stretch those muscles. I have a feeling I’ll need to do a small workout tonight.

“Jax.” Mav calls out. I turn and focus on our task as I go to follow my brothers. Thoughts of my fist pounding into someone’s flesh adds a pep to my step. It’s been a while since I’ve given someone a good bloody beating. I’ve been too wrapped up in my princess to really care, but with the news Xander gave us about this shipment, I’m eager to beat the living shit out of someone now. And someone will get a beating.

We enter the extensive building from the side and head straight for the office near the back. This is where we meet Bobby. He stands at the door, arms crossed over his chest, a nervous look in his eyes. Bobby has worked for us for a few years now. He’s a good man in his middle twenties with short, brown hair and bright blue eyes. You would think he was an all-American guy, if it weren’t for him being covered in tattoos.

“What do we have?” Xander demands, and Bobby jumps to attention, throwing his thump back at the door. He gives us the rundown.

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