He considers my words for a while. “I would have chosen someone for you without ties to a crime family.”
“You didn’t answer my question.”
“That’s not my thing, having all the answers. I’m not Lucius. I have no room to judge. I barely know you. I’ve caused you more grief than any girl should have to bare.”
He squeezes my hand as he smiles at me and for the first time, I recognize a glimpse of my father in him.
“All right,” he says, patting my hand fleetingly as he lets go of it. “There’s something I need you to do for me.”
“Dare I ask?”
“It’s simple really,” he says, raising his hand above his head, signaling to someone I can’t see.
A second later, an impressive-looking man walks into the room. He’s tall and awesomely muscular with spectacular shoulders and biceps, and a close crew cut that accentuates his angular features. Whoa. Whoever this is, he could give Dwayne Johnson a run for his money.
“This is Tanner Hayes. He’s the top man in his profession. That means he’s not cheap.”
“What exactly is his profession?”
“He’s your bodyguard.”
“I thought I had two already.”
“Trust me, Ella. If the shit ever hits the fan, Tanner is the exact man you want around.”
I glance at Tanner who’s listening to all this without moving a muscle—not even blinking actually. What Carter says isn’t a compliment to Tanner, it’s the simple, factual truth.
“I have Jaxson,” I say, not wanting to submit to anything without discussing it with Jax first.
“Ella, start thinking for yourself. This isn’t about love now. It’s about your survival. You need protection and there is no one more suited to do that than Tanner. He’ll be your shadow. He’ll let you know when it’s safe and when it’s not. He’s never lost a client and all his clients were targets.”
“And where are all those clients now?” I say, suspiciously looking at his shoulder holsters.
“Safe,” Tanner says calmly. “Alive.”
The fact that this beef locker talks confuses me. “That’s good,” I say.
“Please, Ella,” my father says, “let me do this for you. Getting Tanner was not easy. He has a waiting list longer than Spago.”
I don’t have the energy to refuse and besides my safety is as important to me as it is to my father. “All right,” I say. “You win. We can try it.”
—six—
Ella
Jax folds his arms around my shoulders from behind and places a kiss on my neck, startling me. The indoor pool sparkles with the glow of green and yellow lights, creating the illusion of movement in the water, like a lazy tidal wave.
“What time is it?” I say as he tickles my ribs, because truth be told, I’ve completely lost track of time since I found the door to the room with the small swimming pool and hot tub. I got myself comfy on a lounge chair to contemplate the water, letting the warmth engulf my senses as I inhale the steam and chlorine from the hot tub.
“It’s after ten,” Jax says. “I’m sorry I left you alone for so long, baby. They have meetings about every detail around here.”
I don’t even want to know what they plan to do. It’s not like I would have any input. His arms wrap around me tighter until his hands land on my breasts, gently squeezing them.
“What did you do while I was gone?” he says.
My mind is numb with the steamy heat of the room, almost like in a sauna. All I want is for him to keep touching me like that, fondling my breasts until the last pieces of resistance in me are broken down.
“Well?” he asks, one hand traveling down to my stomach and under the shirt to tease my bellybutton.
“I had an interesting encounter with your uncle.”
His fingers freeze instantly at my pronouncement, staying still.
“What did Lucius want with you?” His hands get busy again with my skin, reaching up underneath my shirt to cup my breasts in the bra.
“Nothing, we kind of accidentally bumped into each other. It wasn’t planned,” I say lazily, letting my weight fall back on the lounge chair, relaxing into his touch. “He did inform me I cannot forget what you are and that you’re not going to play house with me forever.”
“He’s an idiot,” Jax says, moving the fabric of the bra out of the way on my left breast to get to the nipple.
“I told him that much,” I say, arching my back so my breasts perk up in his palms.
“Good girl,” he says, walking around the chair to sit down at my feet.
“Play some more with my nipples,” I say, shutting my eyes. There are butterflies in my stomach but also lower, between my legs, where I’m getting wet and needy. So many butterflies and he must rub them away for me.