Protecting My Hart (Protectors Series Book 1) (33 page)

Two hours and four test drives later, Slyde and I are signing the papers for my new car. It’s a mid-size, blue SUV with all the upgrades. I fell in love the instant I sat in it. I’m much higher up than I was in my car, it will handle much better in the snow than my car and, well, it’s pretty. Slyde approved and did the negotiating with the sales guy until he was satisfied with the price. The sales guy walks us back out to the car and tries to hand Slyde the keys. Slyde shakes his head and points to me. Smiling, I take the keys from the guy who shakes our hands again and goes back inside. I have to admit that since the worry has melted away I’m really excited about the car. I step to Slyde, throw my arms around his neck and tangle my fingers in his hair. Then I pull his lips down to mine and kiss him hard and deep.

“Thank you for the car.”

“You are very welcome. Thank you for accepting it.”

“Just so you know, you are so getting laid tonight.” I smirk.

“So buying you a car gets me laid?”

“Actually it was the books.” I smile wider and he bursts out laughing.

“Good to know that books equal sex.”

“You being you equals sex.”

“Mmmm, well let’s get back home and I can make you scream again before our son gets home.” His voice husky, my breathing hitches and his eyes darken. “I’ll follow you home.” He waits while I get in the car and closes my door before heading to his truck. True to his word he follows me home and it’s a fucking miracle that we made it because I sure as hell wasn’t focused on the roads. My sole focus was on the promise of my husband making me scream. Again.

“Babe, we are gonna be fine. Leia is here, we have enough stuff to last us days. I swear we won’t be leaving this house for anything. Mark is here too. I know that he isn’t you or Beamer or Kash, but you said he was trained by Kash and Beamer. I’m not getting any weird vibes from him and you said you trusted him.”

“I do, it’s just,…I don’t like leaving you alone like this.”

“I know, but this is the last time. I need you to not be worried about us here. I don’t want anything bad to happen to you, so you need to stay focused.”

“I will. I promise. Maybe Mack will let Kash stay.”

“No. You need both of them with you. I need to know that they have your back. I’m locking this door as soon as you walk out and we are staying locked in this house.” He pulls me closer and I wrap him tight, inhaling his scent and soaking up the heat of his body.

“Will you keep this safe for me until I get back?” he asks softly, pulling back just slightly and pulls out a silver chain with his wedding ring on it and places it around my neck.

“Always.”

“I love you, mi Tesoro.”

“I love you too. Be safe and come back home to us.”

“Always, Hartley.”

I get a final kiss and he and the guys leave. Slyde said goodbye to Ethan last night as usual and Leia showed up with Beamer early this morning with her stuff to stay several days. Truth is, I’m glad she’s here; I think I would go completely crazy if it was just me and Ethan these next few days.

“C’mon sweets, let’s get breakfast going.” Leia gives me a hug and we both head into the kitchen for the distraction.

“They are gonna be fine, man. Mark can be trusted.” Beamer reassures me.

“I know. I just hate leaving them.”

“Focus, man. You better be focused when we meet Mack. If you’re not he is gonna flip his shit.”

“I’m focused. I’ve been focused for nine fuckin’ years. I’m just ready for this shit to be over so I can enjoy my family. Too much of my life has been spent on this and I’m done. I’ve put in more than my time.”

“Just a few more days, man.”

“Yep. Let’s go.”

“Make sure this doesn’t get disconnected. We will be recording everything from the moment you leave. If something happens to the connection, Kash will text you. Once we have the information we need, we’ll let you know that we are on our way in. If you think that shit is gonna go down or that we are losing them, say the code word and we will move in early. Watch your back too, Cardoane. We know what Hart said about Mason not knowing the connection but still, keep your eyes open.” Mack rattles off again. We have already gone over all of this and I can’t tell if he’s just anxious, nervous or scared. I think a mixture of all three. “Keep your cool, and your head, Slyde.”

“Got it, Mack. I won’t fuck up. Worked too hard for this and I need all those motherfuckers to go down.”

“They will. We have your back.” He stares at me, conveying more than he is willing to say out loud, but I get his message loud and clear. So I just nod my head in silent thanks. We all know what’s at stake here, and we all know that there is more at risk than there was ten years ago. I also know that we are all ready for this operation to be over with.

“Thanks, Mack. I’ll see you guys in a few days and I will let you know if anything changes or of any new developments.”

“Be careful man,” Beamer states evenly.

“I will. Remember your promise.”

“Yeah I got it, but we won’t have to worry about it, you understand.”

“I do.” I nod back at him. “OK. I’m out.” I tell the guys, nod at Kash, and leave, jumping on my bike and riding away. I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t a tad nervous. If this was just me, I’d have no problem with any of this, but I have Hartley and Ethan now, and they need me. There is no fucking way that I’m NOT going home to them. I send up a silent prayer to my parents to watch over me, to watch over my wife and son and to help me return to them. I clear my head and focus on what needs to be done in the coming days. A decade’s worth of work, all comes to an end in two days, and I can’t fuck this up.

“Slyde, man, where you been?”

“Yo, JD. I was out scouting. I’m thinking that once this deal is solid, we need to branch into Canada. Met with a guy, Tripp, in Tecumseh, he’s got a whole line of pretty, pretty, women. I’m thinkin’ the exotic factor could play well in our favor for the guys in Texas, also sending the girls we can’t get rid of here, over to him. He also has some connections with the powdered sugar.”

“Nice work, man. We need to set up a meeting with him.”

“Already done, we go next Friday.”

“Excellent, bro. I have a really good feeling about all of this. We are gonna be kings, Slyde. Motherfuckin’ kings.”

“I think I’d like being a king.” I grin at him.

“Man, you’re gonna fuckin’ love it. More money, more pussy, more everything than you can imagine. Once we combine forces with these other players, we are all gonna be fuckin’ unstoppable.”

“Have they started to show up yet?”

“Yang and Tommy G are here. They are upstairs enjoying themselves. Rex, PK, and Playboy should be here in the morning. Blade, Wolf, Sonny and Ringo will be here by tomorrow night. If all goes well, in two nights we will be celebrating victory and the fact that we will be fuckin’ kings, nobody will be able to stop us.”

“Fuckin’ kings.” I grin.

“That’s right, man, fuckin’ kings.”

We talk for a few more minutes before JD disappears upstairs. I head to my room down the hall and collapse onto the bed and try to find sleep. It doesn’t happen. I pull out my phone, I wish I had their picture so I could see them, or that I could call them, but I can’t. I have to keep them safe and any contact with them while in this house is dangerous, so I text Beamer.

*Hey*

*
They are fine. He’s fast asleep and the girls are watching movies. I just talked to Mark, no problems.*

I let out a sigh of relief, Beamer knows what I need to know and he will keep an eye on them during all of this.

*Thanks*

*
No problem, get some rest and focus. All is good here.*

I erase the messages and toss my phone on the table. Then I stare at the ceiling, just stare until at some point, I stare myself to sleep.

“So, gentlemen, that’s the idea. We have all worked with one another in the past, and all of you have done deals with me and Slyde. With all of us the top dog in our specialty or region, we figure by joining forces, we can control the organized crime rings, we can set the prices for our products and better dictate who gets what. We buy from one another strictly and sell to our individual clients. Profits are split sixty-forty, with whoever’s product, getting the sixty. There’s less risk as well when transporting the products. We all have our own ways, but combined we can provide more cover and security, we’d be less traceable and would greatly reduce our risks of being noticed.”

“Let’s say we all agree, what’s to stop one of us from betraying the deal?” Blade asks.

“Death. We have a code, gentleman. We may be criminals and break the law, but we do have an honor code among us and if that gets broken, then the punishment is death. Plain and simple.”

“How do we run this?” PK inquires.

“Us, right here. We run things, we vote if need be on issues that affect us all, other than that business runs as usual.”

“And if we can’t agree on something?” Rex pipes in.

“Then we can decide to let the involved parties hash it out, figure out a new way or toss the idea out the window. I’m not seeing a whole lot of issues with this gentleman. Business is going to continue like normal, we just become more solid.” JD explains. The guys talk among themselves and with their VP’s of sorts, JD and I wait. I can hear several of them agreeing that this is good.