Page 11 of Kade

His car was parked in the small lot right behind the building. Kade glanced around, nervous for the first time in years. No one seemed to be watching, but you never really knew. He hurried to the SUV as quickly as he could and breathed a sigh of relief once he closed the driver’s door.

He started to turn the ignition but paused, another old fear coming back to haunt him. The cartel—or any major drug syndicate, for that matter—was a fan of car bombs. What if they’d found him and had hidden a bomb under the vehicle tied to the ignition, or worse, under the seat? Those were dangerous. They armed when you sat down and exploded when you moved your weight off the trigger.

Fuck.

He’d put all this shit behind him, and now he had to go back to those days of constant worry and vigilance. Worse, he’d involved his family and put Angel at risk.Fuck, fuck, fuck.

He called Dylan to come out and sweep the vehicle for bombs. They both agreed it would be a good idea to increase security at the office, including a thorough walkthrough of anyone’s vehicle before they left.Los Muertoswas too dangerous to leave any detail to chance.

Once he was clear, he drove the short distance home and found Watkins drinking a cup of coffee in the kitchen.

“The boys got here a few minutes ago. I set one up in the lobby and one at the end of the hall. The third is outside, watching.”

Kade nodded his thanks and went in search of Angel. She wasn’t in the bedroom, but the bathroom door was closed. He found her in the bath, soaking. She still looked pale, but at least her eyes weren’t so wild.

“Hi.”

She looked up, startled, but gave him a small smile. “Hi.”

“Feeling better?” He tossed off his jacket and got down on his knees beside the tub, his hand tracing the outline of her face.

“Yes.” Her voice came out husky, and he tamped down every lustful thought he had. She needed be taken care of now, not fucked. “I don’t know why I reacted like that…”

“It’s okay,moye serdste.” He cupped her cheek. “I’m just sorry you’re in pain.”

She rubbed her cheek against his palm, almost purring like a kitten. Her and those cat eyes. Right now, she reminded him of a small kitten, hurt, lost, and confused.

Angel let Kade’s calming presence soothe her battered nerves. Her body still ached the same way it had when she’d woken up with the news her son died and was told he’d been disposed of. It was a pain that never lessened, only retreated to the darkest depths of her soul. The little boy brought that pain roaring back to the forefront of her thoughts, and she couldn’t make it go away.

She hurt.

“Why is Jasper here?” Distraction had always been the key to managing her grief.

The guarded look that flashed in Kade’s eyes caused her to sit up straight. What was going on?

“I had hoped to be back before you woke up.” He reached for the washcloth and soap. “There’s a situation.”

“Situation?” She let him push her back into the water as he soaped up the cloth. Kade picked up one hand out of the water and began to gently wash it, sweeping up her arm and ending at her shoulder. The simple motion was erotic as hell, and she had a suspicion that was his goal.

“Los Muertos.” He swiped the cloth over her collarbone and up the side of her neck, eliciting a moan and a gasp.

The fear that came a second later overpowered everything else. The same cartel that had killed her brother. All the desire she’d been feeling fled, replaced by a cold numbness.

“I had Dylan look into the situation in Miami to see if it was safe for us to go.”

“And we can’t go.” She slumped, her pain driving deep. Her one bright spot was being able to go say goodbye to her brother, and now she couldn’t even do that.

“No, but there’s more.”

“More?” He sounded harsh, and it brought her gaze up to study his expression. Anger vibrated in his black eyes, but she knew it wasn’t directed at her. “How can there be more? What do they want?”

“Me.” That one word sent chills ghosting along her skin.

“Over my dead body.” They’d taken her son and her brother. She’d be damned if they took her husband too.

“Easy,kitonya.”

“Don’t easy me, Kincaid. Tell me what’s going on.” She pushed his hands away and stood, grabbing the towel as she did. He tried to take it from her, but she knew if he did, they’d just end up in bed. “No. We are going to talk about this.”

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