forced to realize I’d fallen hard for the girl with the sassy attitude and stunning eyes.
As I moved behind Lindsey, her entire body tensed.
“What are you doing?”
“Just…” She turned around slowly, searching my eyes.
When I gripped her arm, yanking her closer, I noticed the look of concern on the clerk’s face. “You could have been killed. We were both frantic. You have no idea what could have happened.”
“If I didn’t know better, I’d say you actually cared, Jack.”
“Yeah? Well, maybe I do. I’m never going to lose you again. Do you hear me? Never. You. Belong. To. Me.”
Chapter 13
Lindsey
Love.
Through Jack’s dark and dangerous demeanor, eyes that could penetrate the darkness, I’d seen something I never expected to see. A flash of love. I was thrown, my heart racing, and the entire rest of the world seemed to go away.
I also saw the look of horror, as if I’d been abducted, taken away by monsters in the night. Then there’d been the expression on Diego’s face as he’d rushed into the store, as if a tremendous weight had been lifted off his shoulders. The connection the three of us shared was unusual in every way. I wasn’t supposed to care about them.
But I did.
I wasn’t supposed to find myself falling hard for both men.
But I had.
Confusion rocked the hell out of me as they escorted me away from the streets, both men remaining silent as they tossed me into the back of the Jeep. They were also furious with me, as if I’d violated every code and rule that they’d set in motion. Yes, I knew what I’d done was wrong, even dangerous, but after all they’d done to keep me alive, I’d simply wanted to make some kind of restitution.
Maybe I’d been reckless, enough so that I deserved their silence. What I had learned is that both men cared enough to put their lives on the line yet again.
As Diego drove, taking back roads away from the onslaught of traffic, I huddled in the seat, trying to make myself as small as possible.
I realized that all the dirty little family secrets were likely the reason that I’d been kidnapped in the first place. I could no longer pretend that I’d simply come from a decent household with loving parents. I had to confess their sins, which likely meant I was admitting my own.
As I sat up, I closed my eyes, trying to remember a time that I hadn’t known what my father was or who his affiliations were. He’d been around the kind of people that I’d refused to have anything to do with. Even though I’d attempted to pretend I wasn’t a part of such a treacherous world, a part of me had known I’d never be able to get away.
Not for a minute.
Certainly not for my entire life.
And so, I started to speak.
“Everything I told you about my father is true, but he lives a double life.” When they remained quiet, I continued. “I knew from the time I was a child that he was a very important man, paid extremely well for his extracurricular activities. What I didn’t know until I was older was how important he’d become to organizations that often refused to be seen by hospitals or other doctors.”
I found it more difficult than I was prepared for.
“Go on,” Jack said with no inflection in his voice.
“He was the doctor for the Mancini crime syndicate, although I believed he performed surgeries for other wealthy criminals over the years. While my parents attempted to keep me shielded from the danger by sending me away to boarding school, making certain I went to college out of state, I was home during the summers. I knew. I wasn’t stupid. When I was old enough to ask, my father didn’t like it very much.”
“Is that why the arranged marriage?” Diego asked.
“Yes. I think both families wanted to keep me in line.” I choked on the last words, tears forming in my eyes. “I didn’t think my father would go that far. I’d dated Michael on and off over the years. He ended up at the same university. I honestly believed he wasn’t like his father or the rest of his family, but I was wrong.”
“That’s why you took the position.” Jack laughed. “The tangled webs required by secrets hidden in dark crevices.”
I sighed, anger breaching the surface. “I’m not proud of my family, Jack, but my father isn’t a bad man. He got swept up in the power that