But more importantly, Jess needed to talk to her mates. She had so much to say she’d be hoarse before the day was over.
Chapter 12
Fredrick sat in the lavish chair behind his desk and leaned back. The two imbeciles he employed as his right-hand men stood near the door, heads bowed. He doubted they were staring at their shoes as a sign of respect. Probably more out of shame. Fucking failures. “I need you to find this woman.” He held out a recent photo of Alyssa Franklin.
Everyone knew she was missing. It wasn’t new information to Alfred and Judas, but it couldn’t hurt to give them a photo.
“Do we know where she went, sir?” Judas looked up after staring at the picture. He held his hat in one hand and gripped the photo with the other, nearly wrinkling it with his trembling fingers.
“No, but I have a license plate number of the men she left the truck stop with.” Fredrick held the scrap of paper in the air, a slip of a receipt with numbers scribbled on the back. Thank God that kid Leslie had thought to write the digits. As he stared at the two grown men, Fredrick wondered who had more sense: the kid or his hired help.
Alfred stepped forward to take the paper with a smile. The man was clearly relieved they weren’t being sent on a random wild goose chase with no details.
“Do you two think perhaps you could find a way to trace the plate and find the runaway girl?” He was mocking them. And they deserved it after the last time he’d sent them on a mission like this. They’d come back empty handed, having killed the girl they’d been sent to retrieve. “Would that be asking too much?” He couldn’t keep the sarcasm out of his voice.
“Yes, sir.” Judas finally mumbled his assent. “We’ll get right on that.”
“Let’s, shall we? Huh?” Fredrick cocked his head and twirled a pencil between his fingers. “I want her back here. Immediately. And unblemished. You hear? Not accidentally shot. Not fucked by some other pack of wolves. Virginal and intact. Got it?” His voice rose with each word. He stood, planted his hands on the desk, and leaned forward. “Go. What are you waiting for?”
The men scrambled backward out of the room and shut the door with a snick.
* * * *
Several hours later, and after countless questions and answers, Alyssa headed to a guest room to sleep, exhausted beyond belief from the fear and stress she’d been carrying with her for most of her life. Charles felt sorry for her but was relieved she was here in his parents’ house where people would love her and help straighten out her life.
Jessica was no less tired, and truth be told, she’d suffered almost the same emotional highs and lows in the last twenty-two years as her cousin. Her exhaustion was written on her face in the form of worry lines. However, she now had two men standing behind her, guiding her away from the gathered throng of family members. Without a word, they eased her down the hall and into a room Charles had occupied for several years.
It was more of a suite, like all the rooms in the house. A huge, masculine space with a king-sized bed as the focal point in the center. He was glad for that detail.
“Sorry for the mess.” Charles charged past her to grab the clothes and shoes scattered all over the floor. “I’m a slob.”
“That’s the truth,” Reese muttered under his breath. He grabbed Jessica and half dragged her over to sit her on the bed. “You should have seen the hotel rooms we stayed in for the last several months. Couldn’t even find the floor most of the time.”
Charles swatted Reese on the back of the head. “As if you’re any better. Never heard a word out of you until now. Don’t be a showoff for the woman.”
“Guys?” Jessica looked into both their faces. Charles lorded over her, crowding her space. He and Reese inched closer, bumping into her on both sides. “It would seem I’m a sure thing, so you can stop posturing now and just fuck me, because afterward I could really use a good night’s sleep.”
Stunned—they hadn’t really expected her to consent so easily—both men wasted no time stripping off their clothes and then hers.
She barely had time to blink before they had her naked and spread out on the huge bed between them.
Chest pounding, Charles gazed into the deep brown eyes of his woman. Her irises were even darker when she was aroused, and she was most definitely aroused. He could smell her pussy from across the room earlier. The woman was insatiable, and Charles was a lucky man.
Jessica’s hair fanned out around her head, creating a brown halo. She was anything but angelic right now though. Her gaze bore into him with devilish intent.