Total pages in book: 135
Estimated words: 130512 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 653(@200wpm)___ 522(@250wpm)___ 435(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 130512 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 653(@200wpm)___ 522(@250wpm)___ 435(@300wpm)
Her walls grabbed onto me, and I moaned all over again from that sensation.
After she fell asleep, I stayed awake just a little longer—long enough to know my hatred was now divided. Kai Bennett had some of it, but so did Garrett Brickshire.
He’d hurt Samantha, made her feel the way she used to when I first met her.
Garrett’s name was added to my list.
I was going to destroy him.
20
MASON
None of this made sense. Not one bit of it. I’d been sitting in my dad’s office all day, going through his business accounts. Granted, my head was a little slow since last night had been brutal (but needed), and I’d been here since this morning. I couldn’t find any reason he should have been scared for his life.
The numbers were good. They were better than good. A solid profit had been coming in for years, and based on the projections, it didn’t look like it was going to stop any time soon. Why the hell had my dad been scared enough to take his life?
I shook my head and reached for my phone. I needed answers from my P.I.
Me: I need an update.
Lael: I know. There’s a reason for the silence. I’m still digging.
Me: Look into the shareholders. See if anyone is having problems and needs to sell.
Lael: On it. I’ll have Ben start looking tonight. You think someone is trying to buy shares secretly?
Me: Maybe.
Lael: That should be easier to find out. Looking into the Bennetts has proven a challenge. I’ll need to update you in person.
That surprised me. Lael was usually too in-demand to travel for a debrief in person. Whatever she’d found had to be significant.
I didn’t reply, and the desk phone rang a moment later.
It was the guard at the front gate. The offices were closed. They’d been closed the whole week, though we’d kept a full detail of security guards still on staff around the clock. When I came in, I’d told them not to disturb me.
I pressed the button for the speaker. “Yeah?”
“Sir, your daughter is at the gate.”
Whoa. What? I switched the feed to bring up the front camera, and sure enough, Maddy was behind the wheel of one of the cars we let her use. She was still grounded and shouldn’t have been away from home, but I could see how tightly she was gripping the wheel. She’d picked up her mom’s nervous habit of chewing her bottom lip.
“Send her through. Let Rich know as well.” Rich was the front desk guard. He’d buzz her in before she reached the door.
“Will do, sir.”
When she walked in carrying a latte, I had to suppress a grin. She paused, uncertain. “What?”
I shook my head. “Nothing. You just look more and more like your mom.”
“Oh.” She went to the chair in front of the desk and sat. She put the coffee on the edge of the desk before sitting back, hugging her knees to her chest. “Pumpkin spice. Don’t hate me. It’s pumpkin season.”
I didn’t care. I was just happy to see her. I’d drink anything she brought me. Which she knew.
I waited, but she didn’t say anything else for a few moments. She only watched me, her eyebrows pulling together.
I leaned back. “What’s up, kiddo?”
She bit her lip, her eyes widening before they fell to my arm. Her face cleared, and she leaned forward. “You got another tattoo?”
I glanced down. I’d almost forgotten, but she was right. The guys all got matching skull tattoos after I officially retired from the NFL. Myself. Logan. Nate. Channing. Matteo. But Logan wanted something just for him and me.
I ran my thumb over it. “It’s a tribal tat. Me and Logan. Not real original, but Logan liked the look of it.”
“A lot of guys have tribal tattoos.” She looked over the rest of my arm. “Tell me about the others.”
I half-grinned. She was stalling before getting to the reason she was here, but I knew she liked to hear about some of the rest of my tats. I had a few before football, but had been indulging myself once I joined the Orcas team. I pointed to the orca tattoo, starting there. “I got this one because of my time on their team, but also because orcas stand for family, longevity, protection, and community. Which to me, stands for you all. My family.”
She grinned, softly.
I pointed to the small butterfly tattoo on the side of my finger. “Because of your mother.” I held up the finger where I had the other butterfly tattooed under my wedding ring, then moved to another under the orca. “The astrological sign for Gemini, which stands for the twins. I wanted it small, but looking half-carved into me because when Nash and Nolan are older, I’ll get another tattoo for each of them. Their choosing. Then there’s yours.”