of my day. Try to be a good Samaritan and it bites you on the ass.
“Which stairwell?” he demanded.
“Who are you?” People did not talk to me like that. The man obviously had no idea who he was talking to. At the moment, it was not the blessing it usually was. Now it just annoyed the fuck out of me.
“I’m the man who’s going to kill you if you take her somewhere. Where the fuck are you?”
I cut the call. Slid my phone into my pocket. He obviously didn’t care as much as she thought he did. “Call Baxter,” I said into my watch. The call connected almost immediately. “Meet me at the back entrance. Have the back door open for me.”
I disconnected as I eased my hands under her shoulders and knees. Pulled her body against my chest. Tried to keep the images flashing through my mind to a minimum. Her body was perfect.
I trotted down the last flight of stairs and walked out the rear exit. The black car slid to a quiet stop as my driver and bodyguard got out from behind the wheel. He darted around the car and opened the back door for me. I laid my package down on the back seat, moved around to the other side of the car and slid in next to her.
“Let’s go.”
“Where to?” he asked, his voice a gravely whisper.
“Home. For now.” I pulled my phone from my pocket, dialed my IT expert. “I need a run on a number.” I rattled off the number.
“It’s almost four in the morning, Ryker,” her voice was smooth and very awake.
I laughed. “And you’re either still awake or have been for hours. I need it Nik. Now. Highest accuracy.”
She laughed. “Hang on.” She let out a low whistle after a moment. “What the hell have you gotten into, Ryke?”
“Who is it?”
“Ever heard of the Amatuccis?”
It was my turn to whistle long and low. Looked at the unconscious woman on my car seat. “She’s mixed up with the crime family that rules most of New Trenadie?”
“What?” Nik asked.
I shook my head. “Nothing. Thanks for checking.” I ended the call before she could ask any more questions. Not that it would stop her from snooping, but at least I wouldn’t have to hear about her findings.
My phone rang. PRIVATE NUMBER showed on my screen. I clenched my teeth. Hit the accept button. “What?”
“I hope you have your funeral planned already, Ryker Penn. You took what’s ours.”
I smiled. “I’m not afraid of the Amatuccis. Which one are you, by the way? She didn’t get a chance to tell me before she passed out.’
Simmering silence filled the other end of the call.
I shrugged. Didn’t have time to play in pissing contests. “Well, thanks for calling.” I lowered the phone.
“Don’t you dare hang up on me,” he shouted down the line.
“Then start talking.” I waited a beat. Rolled my eyes as he stayed silent. I think I knew where Willow got her reticence. “Now.”
“Domenico.”
Finally. “And who is she? Some asshole was calling her Willow.”
He inhaled a noisy breath. “You kidnapped her and don’t even know her fucking name?”
“First of all, I didn’t kidnap her. Second, I kept her secret. Helped her escape down the stairs. If you care for her so much, where the fuck were you? Why was she running down the stairs when it looks like she can barely hold her head up?”
“Don’t worry about that, tell me where you are and I’ll take her off your hands.”
“She’s staying in my hands until she tells me, with her own mouth, that she wants to be in yours.” I clenched my fists. Set my back teeth. I wanted to rip something apart. Here was a guy who was more than happy to take her off my hands. What the fuck was I doing playing keep away?
“I swear by all that’s holy to you, if you touch her—”
“We don’t know each other well enough for you to be making that kind of threat. Despite what’s been written about me, I’ve never abused a woman so badly she needed a hospital. And I’m certainly not about to start now with one who is unconscious.” I could feel the adrenaline pumping through my veins. The need to break and maim curled my fingers into fists.
Domenico blew out a heavy breath. “What the fuck even happened?”
I took a moment to breathe deeply. “I don’t know. I was coming from a different floor. She was on the stairs, looking like