“Have you decided what you’re going to do with your division?” He leans back, taking a mouthful of his drink.
I shrug. “I have an idea, but that’s all it is at the moment. If it comes to fruition, I’ll let you know. What about you?”
He blows out a breath and looks at me. “From what I can tell, the guy before me ran a pretty tight ship. He has a large scale car ring going on the side, which makes a pretty penny, but it’s not exactly inconspicuous. With Lily, I want something that will skate under the radar, not attract cops from far and wide.”
“From what Aries says, most other divisions run protection as a side business. You could always do that, or maybe a loan shark. You do seem pretty good at the whole breaking kneecaps kind of thing,” I tease.
He contemplates my words before nodding. “Actually, that’s not a bad idea.”
“You could sell the car ring and your contacts to another division head or just have someone else run the business and you could be a silent partner. Maybe use it as a dummy corp to take a percentage of the profits or something.”
“How old are you again?” he asks, looking at me with wide eyes.
“Twenty-one?” It comes out more as a question than an answer, making him laugh.
“Jesus.” He swipes his hand over his face before focusing on me once more. “Okay, tell me what you need from me to get us out from under Zodiac’s thumb, and I’ll get the ball rolling. I have Jenny here as a full-time nanny, but I want to spend time with my kid outside of this place and not worry about being seen.”
I sigh and shake my head. “At the minute, neither of us is powerful enough or have enough resources to take him on. It’s going to take time. I’m sorry.” And I am.
“I get it, and it’s my own fault. We all make choices. I fucked up and have nobody else to blame but myself. How long do you think this will take?”
“It will depend on the other players. A year, maybe two. We need to put a contingency plan in place for Lily in case something happens to both of us. I also want Jenny to know how to get to my place and be able to get Lily inside to one of the panic rooms I’m having installed. She’ll need to come by so my security team can get her sorted out. I also want her to know where my secondary safe house is located should we need it.”
He reaches over and snags my bottle before tossing it on the floor along with his.
“What the—” I don’t finish because I find myself yanked across the sofa and pulled on top of his lap. I’m forced to straddle him, which in this outfit means my tight dress has no choice but to ride up my thighs.
“Cash?” I question quietly, unsure how I’m supposed to react here.
“You know there is nothing sexier in the world to me than someone who cares about my kid’s safety as much as I do,” he growls.
“Wait, is this your way of trying to tell me you find Jen attractive because I don’t want to step on any toes,” I tease, laughing lightly until he presses his mouth against mine. His kiss is softer than I expected, especially after the last time, making it easy to melt into.
“I haven’t been with a woman since Lily was born. She has been my sole focus since then. But watching you take that blade to your hand at the planetarium that day while your red hair gleamed like blood under the lights, well, it made me fucking hungry for something other than violence. You stood your ground in a circle of wolves ready to pounce and made us all look like chumps, and damn if that didn’t make me harder.”
He tugs me closer, letting me feel the hard length of him pressing against my core.
“Now the wolves are dead, yet your blood still calls to me, drawing me in, and I have no idea why. What makes you so special, Viddy?”
“I’m nothing special, Cash, and the truth is, for every wolf slain, there are dozens more waiting in the wings to strike. That’s how pack mentality works.”
“You should move in here with us so we can pool our resources,” he suggests, but I shake my head even knowing how hard that must have been