“It was the motherfucking job,” he insists. “And it sucked, but it was just the job. And maybe because of that, I can’t do it anymore. But I won’t leave this land. I won’t run away and hide. If they’re brave enough to come here and fuck with us, we’ll show them just how stupid they are.”
I nod grimly. “Damn right. But this isn’t your fight.”
“It’s yours, and that makes it mine.”
He says it so simply. As if there’s no other way of doing things. As if it’s as easy as breathing.
“You’d do the same for me,” he continues.
“Without hesitation.”
His lips twitch.
“So, you’re not leaving, then?”
“Not yet.” I shake my head and rub my hand over my lips in agitation. “But I need to call my brothers and Cox. I need to know what the fuck is going on. If that piece of shit Billy Sergi is behind this, I’ll kill him myself.”
“And start a war in the process,” Curt adds, knowing very well that the Sergi family is a force to be reckoned with. The mafia family is based in New York, and our families don’t always see eye-to-eye.
I wouldn’t put this past them.
“If they’re trying to kill Ivie, it won’t be a war. I’ll end them.”
Curt stares at me for a moment and then mutters, “Fuck,” under his breath before scrubbing his hands over his face.
“Sure you don’t want to go lay low somewhere for a while?” I ask.
There’s no humor in his laugh. “Oh yeah, I do. But I won’t. We’ll finish this. I’m going to go secure that fence line and make sure the alarms are set. I don’t want any more surprises.”
“Great. I’m going to make some calls. I’ll be sticking close to the house while Ivie sleeps.”
He nods and stands, but then turns back to me. “You’re in love with her.”
It’s not a question.
“I know that it can’t go anywhere.” I sigh again. “But, yeah. She’s incredible.”
“Does she know? What you do?”
“No. And she won’t.”
“Shane—”
“The less she knows, the better.”
“I’m just going to say this, as your friend. She’s a smart girl. She’s not weak. And she deserves to know the truth so she can make the decision for herself. It’s not your place to decide for her.”
“I’m protecting her.”
“Did she ask you to?” He raises a brow, and with that, he walks out of the house.
It’s damn annoying to have people in my life who are so fucking smart—and stick their noses into my business.
I reach for my phone and start with Cox.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m working on it,” he says by way of greeting.
“Work faster,” I suggest and fill him in on what happened today.
“If I move any faster, I’ll raise flags, and people will start asking questions,” he says, frustration heavy in his voice. “Jesus, Shane, what did this girl do?”
“Nothing. That’s just it. This is all about her father. And it’s pissing me the fuck off.”
“Yeah, well, I’m moving as fast as I can without putting everyone at risk, but I should hear back from the one contact I’ve reached out to tomorrow morning.”
“Meet me in Denver at noon tomorrow.”
He blows out a breath. “No pressure or anything.”
“Oh, there’s plenty of fucking pressure. I’m going to call my brothers and ask them to meet us there because this goes deeper than I thought. I don’t want to talk about it over the phone.”
“Yeah, okay. I’ll see you tomorrow. You’re annoying, you know that?”
I grin. “Yeah. I know. Thanks for noticing.”
I hang up and immediately dial Carmine’s number.
“Yo,” he says, his usual greeting. He only does it with Rocco and me because it always made us laugh as kids.
Old habits die hard.
“I need you guys closer,” I say and explain again what happened today. “I have details that I can’t talk about on the phone. Cox is meeting me in Denver at noon.”
“We’ll head that way tonight. Nadia wants to do some shopping for the wedding anyway.”
“I’m so glad I could accommodate your fiancée’s shopping needs.”
“I heard that,” Nadia says into my ear. “And thanks. I can kick ass and shop.”
“Who says I need you to help me kick ass?”
She laughs. “You three wouldn’t know how to kick ass without me, Shane.”
“We did just fine for a long time without you,” I remind her.
“Okay, kids,” Carmine interrupts. “We’ll see you tomorrow. Noon.”
He clicks off, and I feel marginally better after some light verbal sparring with Nadia and knowing that I’ll have my brothers nearby in just a few hours.
I know that I can do this without them. But I don’t have to. And that feels damn good.
“Hey.”
My head whips up at the sound of Ivie’s voice. She’s standing at the edge of the room, her hair tousled from sleep. She’s chewing her lip as if she’s not sure what to do.
“Come here.” I hold out my hand for her, and when she crosses to me, I tug her into my lap where I can cuddle her. “How do you feel?”