Page 81 of Hart of Vengeance
I wouldn’t blame her if she didn’t want me. I didn’t deserve her. She was pure and perfect, and she should be with someone who hadn’t been in jail for murder or had an enemy or enemies who could use her to get to me.
But she had a magnetic pull on my heart, and I was done pushing her away. Whether she was with me or not, she would always be a pawn to anyone who wanted me dead. I crossed my fingers she would take me back. If our mind-blowing, dick-squeezing, heart-pumping kiss was any indication of how she felt, then I stood a good chance.
Dillon waved a hand in front of me. “Earth to Denim.”
I stared at myself in the reflection in the window. My face looked like the monster inFrankenstein. I had two black eyes, a split lip, and my upper torso still throbbed in pain. If it weren’t for four Advil, I might not be upright.
“I’m here. What was the question?”
“It’s nothing,” Dillon said.
I glanced at him. “You look worried.”Or maybe tired.Like Duke, Dillon didn’t wear his emotions on his sleeve, but as his brother, I could tell. It was barely noticeable, but he got faint little lines in the corners of his eyes when he was concerned.
“In a way, yeah. I don’t agree with what type of business Duke’s in, but he’s still our brother, and I don’t want to see him go to prison.”
Deep down, I hoped Duke knew what he was doing or that he had a back door he could escape through if things went haywire for him. He would survive in prison, but I didn’t wish that on him.
“I don’t either, bro. Come to think of it, maybe that was the reason he never bothered to visit me in the joint. He didn’t want to see where he could end up one day.” It was the only thing that made sense to me.
The sun was tucked behind buildings as dusk set in. The traffic below was heavy. Pedestrians entered and exited the shops and hailed cabs.
Dillon lifted a shoulder. “Do you really think Duke will roll over for Tito?”
“Not at all. But I promised Tito I would get him a spot at the table, and if we can convince Duke to help us formulate how to take Tito down, I think he’ll bite. Plus, handing Tito to the Feds will get him off my back and maybe keep the Feds away from Duke for a little while.” I didn’t think the Feds would give up on Duke even if they put Tito away. But that was for another day.
Dillon scratched his arm. “Don’t get your hopes up.”
“When it comes to Duke, I don’t.”
Dillon checked his phone. “Duke’s late.”
Duke had given the bellman the okay to let us up to his place to wait for him.
“Did you get a chance to tell Jade how you feel?” Dillon asked.
“Kind of. But after Travers left and you came in, I didn’t get a chance to finish. Now we’re here.” I’d thrown a lot at Jade, caught her off guard, and if I knew her, she would want time to think. I would wait for as long as it took. “I need to keep her somewhere safe. The shit with Tito could go south. And Grace, man. Tito will pick off everyone I love if he doesn’t get what he wants.”
“Then we need to make darn sure he does,” Dillon said on a growl. “Grace can’t get mixed up in this shit.”
“No fucking kidding.” I hadn’t been there for Grace, but now that I was a free man, I would do whatever it took to make sure no one ever hurt her again. “What about your shelter?”
Dillon shook his head. “I’m not putting the women in jeopardy. Grace will be safe at my house. She can handle herself. Maggie can too. I’m worried about Jade. She isn’t trained in combat or guns or fighting. Anyway, Duke agreed Jade could stay here.”
I could feel my eyebrows lifting. “For real? Wait. She won’t stay here. She hates Duke.” I was shocked my brother had offered. After Jade had let loose on him the other day, I didn’t expect Duke to be hospitable.
“You’re going to convince her,” Dillon said. “She gets out of the hospital tomorrow.”
I wanted to argue with him that he shouldn’t get involved, but we’d already been down that road. Yet I had to say it one more time. “Don’t get involved with all this shit. I’m a big boy. I survived prison. I can handle this.” I had no idea where Jade lived, but Duke’s penthouse wasn’t a bad idea to keep her safe.
Dillon grinned. “You can’t handle Duke. Sorry, bro. But I can.”
“How? Duke isn’t going to roll over and let you pet his belly.”
Dillon choked out a laugh. “He will.”
The elevator dinged just before the door slid open.
Perfect timing.
