Hard Limits(41)

He braved looking at her. Her beautiful eyes were swimming in unshed tears. "Oh God, Nico. I'm so sorry. Did you find her?"

"No. By then fifteen years had gone by. Women in those places don't last that long." But he had dismantled the European ring that had snatched her-as in, killed everyone running it. Accomplishing that had cost him several years and half his soul, but he didn't regret a single thing. "I found out she'd been sold to the cartel. Apparently Slavic types do very well in South American countries. That's why shutting this cartel's drug operation isn't enough." 

The tears were now flowing, her expression so sad. She cupped his cheek, her voice a whisper. "What will be enough?"

"I want the cartel burned to the ground. I promised my grandmother I'd bring my mother back to Russia. That's not going to be possible, but I'll be damned if I quit before I crush all the players. The ones recruiting the girls, the ones arranging transportation, the ones moving them south. The ones selling them, night in, night out. Every single one."

He'd tried to find his mother's remains, but no luck. Records were sketchy to say the least. Girls were nothing more than cattle. The brothel where she'd been kept had used several dumping grounds. Looking for her had been like searching for a needle in a haystack. So far he'd only found her cross, around the neck of a bastard Nico had killed with his bare hands. Apparently the motherfucker had won it playing poker with his men.

"They're running a snuff video operation and other things you don't want to know about if you have any hope of ever sleeping again. We are so close to catching all of them. My people are coordinating assets in different countries. Getting them into position. I just need to hold everything together until they give me the go-ahead. That's why I didn't want you down here. Carmela knows about you. You need to disappear."

Carmela hadn't reacted when she saw Paige at the hotel, and hadn't mentioned anything during their showdown with the pictures, but he couldn't take the risk. Wouldn't.

With the drug and gun smuggling businesses compromised as they had been by Maldonado's actions, the cartel was relying on human trafficking. They were expanding.

Nico's dad had gotten chewed up and spit out by the corrupt power brokers, just as Nico's mom had. Nico had tried to right the wrongs done to his mom, but so far all he got was Paige in danger. She was going to be chewed up and spit out too. He had no illusions he could survive this. Trying to do the right thing didn't get you rewarded. It got you six feet under. He'd made peace with that, but by God, he would not drag Paige down with him.

"I can't disappear now," she said, taking him out of his thoughts. "Besides, what would she want with me?"

"You are my weakness."

"I'm just a girl you fuck when you come to Boston."

As if. "No, you're not. She will try to use you against me."

"Give me two days. I won't leave the Eternal Sun, and after the wedding, I'll disappear. Lay low, whatever. You don't have to worry about me."

Not worry about her? Please, he was fucking terrified for her.

"You haven't answered me yet," Nico insisted. "About having a relationship with me."

"Oh, you were serious? I thought it was one of those things that men say during sex."

"What things?"

"Dick talk."

"What the fuck is dick talk?" he asked, puzzled.

"Whatever words will keep your dick in action. Anything said while having sex or angling for sex is dubious at best."

"I meant every fucking word. I don't do dick talk."

Her smirk was so damn sexy. "Oh, well, in that case, I'm going to have to do a pros and cons list."




 

 

He knew she was lightening the mood for his benefit, and he loved her for that.

"Are there any cons to being with me?"

She snorted. "You mean aside from you being the head of a frigging drug cartel?"

"That's temporary." He just had to hold on long enough for his backers to take it down. "What else is there on that cons list, Goth girl?"

"You are too bossy."

"That's a pro."

"Sure it is," she said, laughing. "Let me see what pros, if any, I can come up with. You have a very talented cock."

"So you only want me for my cock?"

She shrugged. "Well, your hands are quite good. And your mouth too."

"What's it going to take for you to recognize you have feelings for me?"

"What makes you think I do?"

He tipped her head up to meet his eyes. "You have to. I can't feel this way about you and it not be mutual. If you feel even a smidgen of what I do, you have to love me."

"You have feelings for me?" she asked uncertainly.