Page 11 of Bastard

Todd shifted, resting his elbows on the desk. “I’m not talking about that money.” Silence filled the room while Todd expected me to say something or ask questions. But when it came to this, when it came to what I knew he was about to propose, I would never be the one to say the words out loud. He sucked his teeth again. “I’m talking about position. Access, you see? We’ll never get an opportunity like this again. Use that bitch you’re so fond of to get us in position.”

I didn’t react to the word he used because it would only please him. So I let the insult roll off my back even though all I wanted to do was pin Todd to the wall and rip his intestines out with my bare hands. “You sound like you have a specific position in mind.”

“I have a few. Any of which will be just fine. I’m not picky.”

But he’d love it if all of them did. “What do you have in mind?”

“Surveillance for one. A little bit of their top-secret tech could change the way we do business. The Feyereisens are where we really need to focus energy though. Between their, shall we say, less than desirable business interests, and their control over the Dragons, a little meet-and-greet from you, plus some good will? We could have the two most powerful men in America in our pockets. An alliance between Devil’s Wrath and the Dragons would be iconic, don’t you think?”

All I wanted to do was stretch my hand so I could make a nice, tight fist, crack my neck, and punch a wall. But I couldn’t. All Todd wanted was chaos and power. The man cared about nothing else. Not that it was ridiculous to think the Feyereisens would see a business proposal from Todd as anything other than a joke. Or that Dragons and Devil’s Wrath could work together.

But then again…

“I’ll see what I can do. When Sam returns to New York I’ll be in the same building with the brothers. As head of security I should be able to get some face time.” It felt like holding a lighter to gasoline but doing what Todd wanted might be the best idea yet.

Agent Steel wanted Devil’s Wrath and Roark Corp. I’d never give him that. But I could solve a lot of problems—for me, for Steel, and, most importantly for Sam—if I could get Todd into bed with the Feyereisens.

“I have to do a thing,” Sam said from the pool. She wore a red bikini that looked like it was rippling under the water. Her hair was wet and slicked back. “Which day would be better for all of my favorite guys to be my security team? Friday or Saturday?”

“Wait, what thing? You don’t have anything on the schedule this weekend.” I sat in the shade reading. Well, sort of reading. Mostly I was using the book as an excuse to think without having to explain what I was thinking about. I was pretty sure Sam knew what I was doing, and I appreciated her giving me the space.

“Something came up.”

I set the book down. “Okay, why won’t you tell me what it is? Is this about Hazel?”

“No. And I’m not not telling you. It’s just a thing I’d rather keep to myself until it’s absolutely necessary. Call it…need to know. And right now, you don’t need to know.”

“How am I going to know how to plan your security then?” I studied for signs of nervousness or anxiety, but she was calm as ever as she tugged on her earlobe and tried to wiggle the water out.

“I need a car and the guys we trust most. So you, Storm, Riddick, and Teddy. That’s it. Is that doable? It can be Sunday instead if you guys have club business.”

This was weird and I didn’t like being left out of the logistics. So I set my book down and slid into the water beside her. “Sam, it’s my job to know absolutely everything about you.”

She came into my arms easily, still no hint of something big and bad looming in her request. “You do know everything. Except this. Just trust me, okay? It’s important and I don’t want anyone but the four of you in on this.”

I tried to find a clue in her eyes. If she was acting she was very good and should consider a third career in Hollywood. “Promise me you’re safe.”

She grinned wide. “Oh, I’m safe. There’s nowhere safer than your arms.”

“Not what I meant.” But I let her kiss me even though it was a distraction. “Promise.”

She sighed dramatically, going limp in my arms so I had no choice but to hold her up. “I just need my security team. That doesn’t necessarily mean there’s a danger.”

“Then why is it a secret?”

“Because it’s ‘need to know’ and you don’t need to know.”

Sam had never been this secretive or frustrating about anything. It was weird. It annoyed the shit out of me. And I could tell no amount of questioning was going to get her to share the secret with me.

We went through a normal night routine. We cooked dinner together, read for a while, fell asleep on the couch and stumbled to the bed when she woke me up bleary eyed and one hand stuck between me and the couch. It was really nice to fall asleep like that, but not so great for blood circulation.

As I finally tumbled into bed I realized that the only thing still rolling around in the back of my head was Sam’s secret. And while she drifted off to sleep I lay there staring at the ceiling. I wasn’t just annoyed. I was hurt. It was a shitty thing to feel considering how many secrets I kept from her. Secrets she knew were secret and secrets she didn’t know I had. I really had no right to be hurt. It wasn’t like she was intentionally withholding something important from me. She wasn’t trying to hurt me.

It was just a secret.

5

I met with clients, handled business with the club, and spent my nights with Sam. Meanwhile she spent a lot of time working and taking online meetings. She met with Hazel and Yara a couple of times. Hazel still wasn’t comfortable with me or with Sam putting herself in the line of fire. I respected the hell out of her for being so upset. I felt bad that Yara continued to play the in-between, trying to get friends to find a new way forward.

---