47

Clinton
Love.
I’d grown up accepting the fact that love wasn’t a possibility for a monster like me. At first, I’d told myself the reason was because the woman would be considered a weakness, which still held some merit. Then I’d been certain there wasn’t a woman who could tolerate my needs. That no longer remained true. Ava had been… perfect.
My cock twitched just thinking about how passionate we’d been, her needs paralleling mine.
The final reasoning would remain locked in my mind.
I didn’t deserve to have joy and happiness, love and passion because of who and what I was. A killer. An evil man. That much she’d known, even accepting who and what all three of us were.
The simple truth was that I wanted Ava in my life so badly I would do anything to keep her happy. Hell, I would lock her in a cage, protecting her against the evils of this world.
Including me.
Including the two other men who wanted her heart.
And I would hunt down the people responsible for hurting her.
I glanced at Weston and Christian as they studied the arrival board for at least the third time. I’d thought about taking my jet to San Diego, but she’d gotten on the plane returning to Chicago, or so I’d been told. She was coming back.
But in what capacity?
As a woman determined to destroy the three men who had a part in the tragedy that had altered her life, or as the girl we’d fallen in love with years before?
I’d seen the notes she’d written down and had been able to feel her anger and anxiety in every word scribbled on the pieces of paper. Then there was the story, one so breathtaking that I hadn’t been able to breathe. Now, I paced the floor of the airport, hoping I’d get a third chance to make it right.
Which I didn’t deserve.
Weston turned to face me, the look on his face the exact one on Christian’s, and if I looked in the mirror, I suspected the same version would be reflected.
She’d managed to get so far under our skin that we had difficulty functioning.
Weston swaggered towards me, his eyes boring into mine. “We will protect her. We will care for her. She belongs to us.”
He made the statement as if I’d argue with him. I couldn’t blame him for that.
“I have the jet standing by if she didn’t get on that plane. We will find her.”
Christian overheard and returned. “She’s on the plane. She’s as connected to us as we are to her.”
The tension between us was almost laughable. The few times we’d made incredulous plans of finding the right girl, settling down together had made us laugh. We’d tried to tell ourselves it had been the alcohol talking, but the seed had been planted, watered the night we’d gotten a taste of Ava .
When I tried to look away, Weston got in my face. “Admit it. You’re in love with her.”
I lifted a single eyebrow and exhaled. “Yeah, man, I am. That doesn’t mean shit if she doesn’t want to be with us.”
Christian studied the runways outside the oversized window. Her flight was due in fifteen minutes.
“Your men are in place around the airport. Right?” he asked.
“No one is getting to her here. In addition, I have Brogan finding out everything he can about Watkins’ activities over the last few days and his current location. We’re going to pay a visit to the man.”
“That’ll add gasoline to the fire,” Weston threw in.
“Maybe so, but we’re going to start ruling out candidates one by one. Besides, it’s time we address the fact that he made our lives a living hell for years.”
“I’m down with that,” Christian threw in.
“Who else could be behind this bullshit?” Weston was as exasperated as I was.
“We’re going to make a list and check them off one by one.”
Christian nodded. “Do you think Ava ‘s father admitted he killed your brother?”
I raked my hand through my hair. “I don’t know.” All the years I’d wanted to hunt the man down, taking my time to torture before killing him remained in my mind. However, if I followed through with acting on my revenge, I’d lose Ava forever. “The truth is that I’m not certain I care.”
Weston opened his eyes wide, then offered a nod of respect. “But it might matter to her.”
He had a good point.
“Did she answer your text?” I asked him.
“No. She read it.”
There was nothing to say to that.
“Whoever is behind this will try and take Ava away from us.” Weston’s voice was haunted.
“They won’t be able to touch her. But l hope they try.”
As a grin shifted across Christian’s face, I sensed he knew what I was thinking. “You want to call them out in the open.”
“You bet I do.”
“That’s dangerous,” Weston threw in.
Danger.
The word had been one of the first ones I’d spoken as a kid. I’d grown up on adjectives and verbs that most mothers would attempt to keep stricken from a child’s vocabulary for as long as possible. I’d valued their meanings because that’s what was expected of me.
I’d also learned that danger fed adrenaline. If controlled properly, the rush could be used to generate boosted strength and agility. However, once anyone fell into the darkness that danger often provided, there was no chance of using its core value.
Given I’d never allowed it to happen, I hadn’t been prepared for the anger and trepidation that had already spread throughout my system.
There was no doubt in my mind that whoever was behind the charade would make good on their threat. My bets were on William Watkins, although a strange nagging remained in the back of my mind. There were too many cryptic pieces, oddities that seemed amateurish but in truth, were brilliant crumbs dropped in hopes that we’d spend time going down a wrong path.
The driver’s license found on the assassin inside the SUV had turned out to be just another part of the game. While the picture had been of the dead man, the reality was that the social security number and name had been stolen from someone who’d died several years before.
While we were completely aware whoever was doing this wanted the three of us, it was also obvious they didn’t mind creating collateral damage.
That included the ultimate revenge, taking her life for real. Nothing else could be worse.
If that was the case, then whoever was behind the game knew how much we cared about her. Watkins wasn’t the obvious choice. Not for this. But the person responsible had hoped that’s what I’d think.
I’d grieved Ava ‘s death more than I’d let on to anyone. I’d thought of her so often at times it had felt as if she were standing in the same room.
It wasn’t about ghosts. My reaction has been caused by the desire that had never truly been fulfilled even once.
Did I feel guilt for what had happened to her? Without a doubt. But I didn’t feel any remorse for ending Theo’s life. He’d deserved what he’d gotten.
We stood in the airport near the terminal where her flight was due in any minute. It was entirely possible once she’d spoken with her parents that she wouldn’t return. Why should she? Did that mean I wouldn’t hunt then down in San Diego? No.
The sound of my phone drew Weston and Christian’s attention.
“Brock. You found something.”
“You’re not going to like it,” he said.
I took a stab in the dark. “William Watkins is dead.”
“How the fuck did you know?”
“Call it luck.”
Weston snorted. “What the hell?”
“How?”
“He was shot leaving a restaurant in New York.”
“Interesting. See what else you can find.”
“Already on it.”
Just as I ended the call, all three of our phones made noise.
I took a deep breath before shifting to the correct screen.
A long time ago I met three men who I fell in love with. They were rugged and dangerous, requiring my surrender. They thought me to be innocent, a budding flower. However, in their arms, the woman inside was awakened, the passion we shared undeniable. Until tragedy brought the budding romance to an end. Yet fate had other things in mind. Together again.
Ava …