Page 45 of Brutal Mercy

Her face scrunches up. “You’re such a dick.”

“I know.” I walk away, heading into my office. She knows what’s expected and has been warned. Although maybe I should put another two men on her. I didn’t like the last glare she lobbed my way.

In my office, I take a seat at my desk and pick up the phone. I’m doing something my father never had the guts to do. Maybe if he had, he and Mom would still be alive. Instead the cartel took them out in a car bomb.

Roman answers on the first ring. “What the fuck do you want?”

“I’ve got a proposition for you.” I lean back in my chair.

“I’m listening.” His slightly accented voice is gruff.

“What if I told you I could help you with your pest control problem?” I dangle the carrot.

“How?” he asks with veiled interest.

I fucking grin. Because I know the cartel and the Irish have been going after his interests this year hardcore. And it’s why he’ll realize my offer will help him defeat his enemies too. “We need to meet. Ten a.m. tomorrow at my place in the mountains.”

“I can be there at noon,” he offers. “And if I discover there’s foul play, the peace we’ve maintained will be done.”

“There’s none of that. Only an opportunity we’ve been waiting on for a decade.”

“Color me intrigued, Hades. I’ll be there.” He hangs up without another word.

We couldn’t go into explicit details over the phone, not with the FBI monitoring both of us. But the stars are aligning to take the cartel down.

And I had my wife to thank for it.

Chapter twelve

Luna

Littlethingswakeme.Light slanting in through the blinds as the late afternoon sun takes a swan dive toward night. Sounds outside the room that aren’t normal. Not that I know what normal is around here. None of this experience has been what I would call normal.

But what really wakes me is my need to pee.

Stretching my limbs, I notice my body is achy and feels well used.

Hades is behind me. Smiling, I let my thoughts drift toward my husband. It still feels weird that he’s my husband, but I never expected I would enjoy being married to him this much.

It’s been blessedly nice these past few days, not worrying about the store or paying bills. Everything here is taken care of without me needing to lift a finger. I can literally laze about in bed all day long if I want. The only chink in my fantasy life is my fear for Lyla.

She must be terrified. And it drives me crazy that I can’t do anything.

But I trust Hades. I know others might think I’m being stupid and rather ignorant to place any trust in the man who bargained with me to get me to marry him. But I’ve never cared for what other people think. They don’t know how hard the past four years have been. They haven’t witnessed the late nights working on the accounts or the crash course in parenting my younger sister I received or how many nights ended in tears or exhaustion or both simply because I was navigating responsibilities I wasn’t ready for, nor was I prepared to take on.

And Hades has lifted them all off my shoulders, giving me permission to lean on him for support. Marrying him is the best decision I’ve made since my parents died. And it doesn’t mean I don’t intend to work and run the store once it’s repaired.

Pushing myself up, I wince. My muscles, particularly those in and around my pussy, are sore. Shifting so that I’m sitting on the edge of the bed, I debate whether to attempt the bathroom trip myself or call Hades.

Before I can set a toe on the floor, the door opens and Hades strides in.

“You weren’t trying to get up out of bed on your own, were you?”

“I need to go to the bathroom. This would be a lot simpler if I had crutches.” I avoid his question because we both know the answer is yes.

“I prefer carrying you. That way I know you won’t injure yourself further.”

“Okay, but I don’t want to disrupt your work multiple times a day. And I don’t want to hold it, or I’m going to get a urinary tract infection.” I’m far too independent to rely on someone just to go to the bathroom.

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