TWENTY-FIVE
One month later
Anthea
The best thingabout the apartment was the windows. A whole wall of them stretched from the living room through the master bedroom, floor to ceiling, giving a view over the south end of Manhattan and the East River beyond. It wasn’t quite the penthouse level of the new modern building, but I figured there was nothing wrong with leaving something to aspire to.
The morning sunlight spilled through the glass over my skin. I inhaled deeply, drinking in the warmth in every possible way.
“It’s perfect,” I said. “I’m taking it.”
Darius walked over and wrapped his arms around me from behind. “Finally we found an abode that our Lady Noble is satisfied with.”
I swatted his bicep. “Hey, I had a lot of important criteria. Some of which should be important toyoutoo.” Like my vicinity to Brooklyn, so the Rosano brothers could drop by on a regular basis. And the very wide master bedroom, which was going to allow for a custom bed large enough for four, if I had anything to say about it.
Felix sauntered up beside us and elbowed his older brother mischievously. “Don’t give her a hard time, or maybe she’ll decide this one isn’t good enough after all.”
Lucan had gone to stand by the windows, gazing out over the city. “We’ll need to get you a good security system.”
Always the most practical one. I shot him an affectionate smile. “I trust you to recommend the best options for me to pick from.”
My phone rang in my purse. I fished it out of my purse and stepped away from Darius when I saw the caller ID. “It’s my brother.”
The three men remained still and silent as I answered the call. “Hi, Ezra.”
“Anthea,” he said, careful but not cutting. He’d been less stern with me since I’d announced my intentions to move to New York permanently. “I thought I’d check in and see where you’re at—and whether there’s anything to report as far as the Hell Kickers are concerned.”
As far as Ezra knew, part of my new role in the criminal underworld we all moved in was as liaison between him and the Rosanos—with me being more on his side than theirs. It was part of the way I’d sold him on not fighting with me about this additional bid for independence.
Over the past few weeks, with his business in Brooklyn restored to him and the true culprits of the deal-gone-wrong revealed, my brother had re-established a tentative peace with Marcel. But neither the guys nor I were telling our respective families that we were involved in a lot more than business when it came to each other.
Our personal lives were none of their concern. And frankly, my family had already gotten to dictate too much of what happened in mine. The three men around me and I had made our commitments to each other, and that was all that mattered, not anyone else’s opinions.
“I’ve just found an apartment,” I told Ezra. “So I can finally get out of the hotel. Everything seems to be going smoothly here with the recent joint operations between the Hell Kickers and your local business. You know I’d contact you as soon as I saw any reason to worry.”
“Of course.” He sighed. “Are you sure you won’t reconsider? I’d feel better having you close at hand—for your own security. You’ve been through enough already.”
He didn’t know the half of it. But he also didn’t know how much joy I’d found here that I couldn’t imagine getting anywhere near back in Paradise Bend.
Besides, I was pretty sure what he wasreallymost concerned about was keeping a tight leash on me and my skills, which I’d just proven were even more valuable than he’d expected.
“I think it’s time I spread my wings a little,” I said lightly. “We’ve talked about this. It’ll be good for me to establish connections of my own and broaden the Nobles reach that way. If you ever need me for a job, all you’ve got to do is give me a call.”
My success at uncovering the rot inside the Hell Kickers had also made it impossible for him to argue that I couldn’t hold my own. He hummed noncommittally but couldn’t actually offer up any solid reasons why I should come back into the fold. He was smart enough to realize that as long as I wasn’t outright defying him on any essential matter, having a happy ally was more important than having that ally nearby.
“If anything goes sideways, don’t hesitate to reach out to me,” he said.
“I know you’ve got my back.” I just couldn’t be totally sure he wouldn’t be standing there fitting a collar around my neck if I gave him the chance. “I’ll stop by just to visit regularly too.”
I wanted to keep an eye on Wylder, make sure Ezra wasn’t pushing my nephew too hard now that he’d lost his grip on both his older son and me. The kid needed to have someone around who’d havehisback without any alternate agenda.
Just seconds after I’d hung up, my second phone—the one I’d set up for my new line of work—pinged with an incoming text. I swapped it for my regular phone, glancing at the message.
I hear you deal in accidents and illnesses.I may have a job for you.
Another smile tugged at my lips. With the help of the Rosano brothers, I’d been surreptitiously getting word out on the streets that for anyone who needed help of the subtle variety, either committing a crime they didn’t want to look like a crime or investigating a supposed accident that they thought mightnotbe one, I was the new resident expert. I’d already handled a couple of jobs that’d covered my hotel stay and the deposit I’d need for this apartment.
“Looks like I’ve got another client,” I told the men, waggling the phone. “Business is picking up!”