Dare to Dream: The Maxwell Series (5 page)

I threw my hands on his desk and got in his face. “Why should I trust you?”

“You shouldn’t. Although if I’m willing to trust you with someone precious to me, do you think I’d blow smoke up your ass? Don’t you think I’ve done my research on you, Kade Maxwell? I know you’re fiercely protective of your brothers and your family. I know you are an excellent shot with a gun. Honestly, I wouldn’t trust anyone other than myself or my wife when it came to my daughter. But you… I know my gut is right. I know you wouldn’t touch her, harm her, or let anyone get near her. I also know you have a way of getting people to listen to you.” He sat back in his chair.

I didn’t want to know what he meant by his last statement. Or how any of what he said related to tutoring. My head was throbbing to the point where my vision was blurring. I blinked twice before the panoramic view of the Boston skyline became crystal clear. Snow was falling, blanketing the rooftops of the buildings around us. I needed to get out of there and release some tension and think. I tapped Hunt on the arm as I started for the door.

“You’ll be back,” Pitt called after us.

Like hell I will.

T
wo and half
hours later I was standing in the reception area of Whitaker Manor. After Pitt brought up my mom, I had to see her. Not that I thought he would do something to her, I just hadn’t seen her in two weeks. And seeing her always helped me put life in perspective and settle my nerves.

Robin, the receptionist, looked up from her computer. “Kade, your father mentioned you would be visiting.” She tucked a strand of her red hair behind her ear. “You just missed him.”

“I know.” I’d called him on my way to let him know I’d be here. He was heading back to the apartment he rented close by to take a shower. He spent most weekends up here with my mom. I signed in before Robin buzzed me through the door.

Once inside, I wound my way to the nurses’ station. Lynn, the gray-haired nurse on duty, stopped writing in a chart as I approached. “Kade, good to see you.”

“Can I go in?” I dipped my head at my mom’s room on the right directly across from Lynn.

“Yes. Your father told her you would be here. She’s been quiet all day though.” Sorrow shone in her dark eyes.

My mom had days where she chatted about nothing in particular, and sometimes she didn’t talk at all. It was hit and miss with her. After my sister died four years ago, she fell into a deep depression and even tried to commit suicide. My heart ached every day for her. I wanted more than anything in this world for her to heal, to have her home with us, to sit in the kitchen and watch her. She loved to bake. Kody was our baker in the house now. He’d always helped her when she was baking cookies or cakes.

I ambled over to her doorway then hesitated. A vase of lilies graced the wooden dresser on the right wall, the perfumed fragrance filling the room. As I inhaled, I angled my head to find my mom sitting in her fabric armchair on the other side of her bed near the window. She was dressed in a violet silk robe that fell to her feet. Her black hair flowed around her while her long lashes framed her deep ocean-blue eyes. She lifted her chin and beamed at me.

Tears burned my eyes. “Hey, Mom.” I went over to her and bent down to kiss her on the forehead.

“Kade.” Her eyes lit up. She caught my cheeks between her soft palms. “I’ve missed you.”

I was about to lose my shit, and I tried not to cry in front of her. My father said to show happiness. Our positive energy would help to elevate her mood. I should’ve told the triplets to meet me here. She always came alive with them. They had a way of acting like hams and not dwelling on the sadness of the situation.

I dragged an ottoman from in front of the window over to her and sat down. I grabbed her hands. “How are you? Have you been watching any movies?” She loved old movies like
Gone with the Wind
.

She smiled. “I watched
Cleopatra
today, the one with Liz Taylor in it. Your dad fell asleep.”

Over the years, several people had said my mom resembled Liz Taylor.

She lost her smile. “Then…” She glanced out the window. Her eyes lost that spark.

I rubbed the backs of her hands and looked out the window with her. When she got quiet, we weren’t supposed to press her. So, we sat there. Manicured shrubs and trees poked out of the snow-covered landscape.

“The angels were out last night,” she said. “Isn’t it pretty?”

The snow sparkled as if tiny diamonds littered the ground, which was what she used to tell me when I was a little boy. She’d also told us boys that snow was an angel’s blanket. Water filled my eyes. “Diamonds are a girl’s best friend,” I said softly. “The angels sprinkled a lot of them last night, too.”

She turned her head slowly, her teary eyes locking with mine. “Karen is with the angels. I saw her. She’s happy now.”

Don’t lose it, man. Be strong for your mother.
It was so fucking hard. I swallowed and smiled as best I could, lifting her hands to my lips. “She certainly is, Mom. She’s among the beautiful angels.” After a soft kiss, I lowered her hands to her lap but didn’t let go.

She dozed until my old man came in an hour later.

“Good?” he asked in a low tone, shifting his gaze between my mom and me.

Despite his weather-worn skin from all his missions in Afghanistan and the streaks of gray in his brown hair, he and I greatly resembled each other—more than he and the triplets. Sometimes it was like I was looking at my older self.

I carefully let go. She moved a little but didn’t wake. Then my father and I left, closing the door softly.

“Mom seems good one minute, then the next she shuts down. Is today an off day?” I asked. Dad had told me a couple of weeks ago that she was responding better to her new medication.

“The snow sometimes sends her into a deeper depression. I’m not sure why.”

I guessed because she associated angels with Karen.

“You look tired, son. Is everything okay?”

No.
I was a minute away from bawling and throwing myself at my father so he could hold me like a baby and tell me we would be a family again, to tell me my mom would come home again. “Yes.”

“Go home and get some rest. And inform the triplets I want them here tomorrow,” he said in a gentle but firm tone.

I had a long haul home and suddenly felt drained from the fight last night, Pitt’s conversation earlier this morning, and seeing my mom. Not to mention, I was missing Lacey terribly. But something told me I probably wouldn’t be able to sleep.

I
rubbed my eyes
, trying to clear the blurriness. I’d gotten up early and was sitting at my desk in my room, surfing the internet for anything on the Lorenzino family. I replayed the conversation Hunt and I had had with Pitt over and over in my head. Was Lacey in danger? What did Mr. Robinson have that the Lorenzino family wanted? Were the deaths of Lacey’s sister and mom a result of a deal gone bad? Did Pitt know who killed them? Then there was this nagging voice in my head that Pitt was involved somehow. Maybe it was the way his eyes pierced through me when he asked me if I knew what the Lorenzino family wanted.

The more I thought about his offer, the more I was leaning toward accepting it. He had a good relationship with the law, which might help to find out what the LAPD knew. I would have more protection on Lacey, not that I couldn’t handle that on my own. But I had to table my pride. Her life could be on the line, and if I took the job, I could leave my brothers to concentrate on school and staying out of danger.

I scrubbed a hand over my face. First and foremost, I needed Lacey with me. I needed her in my arms so I would know she wasn’t in any danger.

I stretched then cracked my knuckles, staring at the computer screen at the pictures I’d found of Lorenzino. Harrison Lorenzino was a gray-haired man with a gray beard to match. LA news dubbed him a knight in shining armor since he’d recently donated fifty thousand dollars to a children’s hospital in LA.

I was about to do more surfing when I checked the time. I bolted out of my chair. I was supposed to tell the triplets to head up to see our mom, and I had to get a shower and get ready to head to the airport to pick up Lacey.

I stalked out of my room. On Sundays, the triplets were either lounging in our theater room or in the garage working out. I found them in the theater room in the basement. We all loved it down there. No windows, two comfortable leather couches positioned in the form of an
L
, a fifty-inch TV, a fridge, and thick carpeting. It was a perfect place to watch movies, and a cozy place to curl up with Lacey.

“Where’ve you been?” Kross asked in between bites of popcorn.

It was eleven a.m. So there was still time for them to drive up to the Berkshires. I dropped down on the coffee table, blocking their view of
The Italian Job
. A slew of popcorn flew at me. “Dad wants you guys to go up and see Mom today.”

“Was that why you came home late last night?” Kody asked as he snagged the remote. The sound from the TV vanished.

“After I left Pitt’s office I needed to think. She needs to see you guys.”

Kelton sat up straight. “Is she okay?”

I held up my hand. “She is. But she could use some cheering up. You know how she gets in the snow.” I massaged the back of my neck.

Kody smoothed a hand over his hair. Kelton lowered his gaze. Sadness swam in Kross’s eyes as he set down his popcorn. “We’ll get dressed and get on the road,” he said. He rose then sat back down. “Everything else okay, bro? You want to talk about your meeting with Pitt?”

Kody and Kelton fixated on me.

Hell, no. I didn’t want them involved, especially after seeing Kelton. His face was all fucked up with bruises, a split lip, and the beginnings of two black eyes. Kross looked better than Kelton, and his opponent had delivered several punches to Kross’s face. Then images of Kody beaten to a pulp by Sullivan and his buddies surfaced. His eyes had been swollen shut. His nose and jaw had been broken. I’d barely recognized him. Still, if I didn’t bring them up to speed, then I would be violating our one rule—band of brothers, which meant we told each other everything.

I launched into the details of the conversation with Pitt, from how he wanted Hunt to work for him to the deal he’d offered me and everything in between, including the Lorenzino family. I also shared with them what Lacey had mentioned about the lead in the case. Usually Lacey didn’t like others knowing her personal shit. I knew I didn’t like people knowing mine. Since we were dating and she knew my brothers well, she shared things with them.

“So, let me get this straight. Pitt wants to put men on Lacey for protection in exchange for you tutoring that beautiful goddess.” Kelton sucked in his bottom lip as he groaned.

One of my hesitations about telling him had been the girl. “That’s all you took from everything I just said? This is about Lacey’s life.” I flared my nostrils. A pain began in the back of my neck. “I told you. Stay the fuck away from Chloe. Now, I haven’t decided yet if I’m working for Pitt. I’m not even sure if what he told me is true. So until I get my head around this, I don’t want you guys to breathe a word of this to Lacey. I don’t want to scare her, not with her PTSD and with baseball starting.” It was bad enough Seever’s threats to hurt Lacey lingered.

“Let’s say all this is true,” Kody said. “And you do work for Pitt. Are they going to follow her? Are they going to go to school with her? In my opinion, they may only serve to scare her even more. And her panic attacks may be epic if she thinks someone is following her. Have you thought about that?”

I hadn’t thought through any of those scenarios yet. I was still trying to get my head around my conversation with Pitt. But Kody was right.

“If we protect her, she may be none the wiser,” Kross added.

“And how will that go over?” Kelton asked. “She’s not stupid. She’s going to figure out we’re up to something if we’re on her ass constantly.”

They all had good arguments. Maybe telling her would keep her safer. At least then she would be more aware, more alert. I filed that idea away for now. Her plate was full. She needed her head clear to concentrate on baseball. Her chance for a baseball scholarship at ASU was extremely important to her, and her PTSD concerned me the most. I wanted to shoulder the worry on this topic with Pitt until I knew more details. I wasn’t about to scare her when I didn’t even know what the hell was going on.

“I don’t have it all figured out yet.” I rubbed my neck again. “Anyway, all I need you guys to do is keep your eyes open. We have school. She shouldn’t be in any danger there. It’s the nighttime.”

“Look, bro. She knows how to handle a gun, and she’s good. Just make sure she has her weapon handy and not locked up. Plus, Mary will be with her at night when her old man works,” Kross said.

I wouldn’t be able to sleep, and I wasn’t taking chances in the event someone broke in and repeated what they’d done at her California home. She might not be able to get to her gun in time.

“What does her old man have that this mob family wants?” Kody asked.

All three of them braced their arms on their thighs.

“No fucking clue.” I shrugged. “I’ll be staying with Lacey for the next couple of days. I’m going to try and find out. Mary is out of town, and her old man is staying in LA for a few more days.” I glanced at my watch. “Why don’t you guys get going?” I still had to take a shower. “I’ll see you at school in the morning.”

“Hopefully you won’t be such a dick after you get laid,” Kelton said as I headed to the door.

Kross and Kody burst out laughing

I threw up my middle finger as I walked out.

T
he ride
to the airport was brutal for a Sunday. Traffic through the tunnel was stop and go. Hinder’s “Lips of an Angel” played on the radio. As I drove, I called Hunt. I wanted to bounce the idea of me working for Pitt off him.

My nerves were tight. I had to get it together before I saw Lacey. If she suspected anything, she’d fire questions at me, and I wanted one night where I didn’t have to think, just feel.

The line connected through my Bluetooth, and Hunt’s voice replaced the music of the radio. “What’s up?”

“I’m leaning toward taking the job with Pitt. Before you say a word, hear me out.” I took a breath. “If what Pitt says is true, then Lacey will be protected. He also has a connection with the law. Maybe BPD can talk to the LAPD. Or somehow I can get Pitt to trust me so he’ll tell me what he knows.”

“So, you’re going to tutor his daughter? And how are you going to explain that one to Lacey? Are you going to tell her why you’re tutoring a mob princess? Or why Pitt called on you for the job when there’s a whole fucking city of qualified professionals? Which bothers me. Why you? And the way he asked you if you knew what Lacey’s old man had that the Lorenzino family wants. My gut is telling me Pitt is fishing for them. Or maybe he wants in on the deal.”

Between all the valid points Hunt and my brothers were throwing at me, my head was about to explode. “I don’t have all the answers. I’m considering it. I haven’t said I would sign up for the job.”

“We can protect Lacey. But whatever you decide, I have your back. In fact, I was also thinking of working for Pitt. I could do some snooping on my end if I did.”

“You told Pitt to fuck off. How are you going to convince him? The man will see right through you.”

“You let me figure that out. You’re not going at this alone. Remember our motto. Thick or thin. Dead or alive. Friends until the end.”

“Man, that’s our motto if we decided to join the military. Not against the mob. At least I’m tutoring, not playing detective with an organization that could get me killed. Also, I can make demands if he wants information that badly or he wants a good tutor for his daughter.”

“My mind is made up.”

He did have his brother, Wes, if he got himself into a bind.

A door slammed in the background.

“Hunt, you better watch your ass.” Hunt was more than a best friend. He was the older brother I never had, and I couldn’t deal if something happened to him.

“One more thing,” Hunt said with a smile in his voice. “Kiss Lacey for me.”

The radio blared through after his parting words, leaving a grin on my face. I’d planned on doing more than that.

I wiped Pitt from my mind as I made my way through the tunnel and found a parking space at Logan Airport. I had to hoof it about a mile before I even got to the baggage claim area. The place was packed with people running and dragging suitcases and pushing strollers while others walked briskly out into the cold weather. Lacey was due to arrive at six. I was five minutes late.

I dodged a family of eight pulling their suitcases toward an exit. As I searched for a monitor, my phone went off.

The text read,
Just landed. Be down in five minutes.

I planted myself in front of the escalator and scanned the crowd. With each minute that ticked by, my pulse sped up. I felt like I was thirteen again, waiting for Jill Learner to walk out of school. She’d been my first crush. My stomach had hurt whenever I was around Jill. Lacey made me feel that first crush again and again.
Crazy shit.

I fidgeted. I was nervous and excited at the same time. On a slow blink, my breath caught when I latched on to her sultry green eyes. Time stopped, and so did my heart. She held onto the moving stairs, her brown hair in a mass of waves spilling over her shoulders. Her skin had a sun-kissed glow, no doubt from the California sunshine. As I followed the length of her curves, my dick hardened. She wore those over-the-knee fuck-me boots I so loved. All I could picture was her on a bed with nothing on except those boots. I was so screwed. No way was I going to make it out of this airport.

Chill, man. Be a gentleman.

That was my problem. I didn’t want anything but rough. What with all the pent-up frustration over the last three days coupled with Pitt’s enlightening conversation and all the shit with Sullivan, I wanted to strip her naked and bury myself in her.

A middle-aged guy behind her was staring at Lacey like he wanted to attack her. Seriously? She was jail bait to him. Then my antenna went up, and Pitt’s words roared in my head.
They’ll use Lacey as a pawn or worse.
I straightened, ready to pounce and beat his face red to match his hair. Then he turned to the lady behind him and planted a chaste kiss on her lips. Relief washed through me as I switched my attention back to the most beautiful girl I’d ever seen.

She waved, and her tongue darted out before she touched her lips. I almost fell to the floor. Gone was the need to kill. In its place was a need that grew inside me like wildfire. I was going to explode if she didn’t get off that fucking escalator. A little old lady shuffled off first, taking her time. Damn, if she didn’t move, I was going to pick up the fragile woman and carry her off the thing.

Finally, the people in front of Lacey exited. As she drew closer, my heart fluttered, beat hard, stopped, beat again. I would’ve run to her like a love-struck dude, but my jeans were so fucking tight it hurt to move. She dropped her bag near my feet then jumped into my arms, wrapping those toned thighs around me.

Fuck me.
I buried my face in her hair, inhaling her tropical scent of orange and sunshine. With my hands on her butt, I anchored her to me.

She tugged on my hair, and I almost threw her against the nearest wall. She knew I loved it when she did that.

“We’re in the middle of an airport, baby,” I drawled in a husky tone. I was surprised I could even speak.

“And I want you, Kade,” she breathed as she squeezed her thighs against my waist.

“Oh, fuck. Lace, you’re going to have to recite some nursery rhymes or something. Otherwise, I’m not going to be able to walk out of here.”

She giggled against my ear. “Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall…”

I laughed, the act freeing for the moment. Even a nursery rhyme sounded sexy coming out of her.