Page 96 of Shephard

He took a huge gulp of his drink. “The bastard and his soldiers had brought their families with them in an attempt to keep them safe. There were over three dozen innocent women and children inside that building when it blew up.”

He allowed the words to hang, the understanding hitting me hard.

For him.

I slowly eased off the couch, doing nothing more than moving toward him and wrapping my arms around his waist. There was nothing I could say that would matter. No one went through such a tragedy unscathed.

Several very quiet minutes passed.

“Anyway, that was the end of my career. It was decided it was best I move on. I wasn’t good to anyone at that point anyway. I floundered for several years not caring about anything or anybody. Then you dropped into my life, Denise. Damn it. I’m not good for you.”

“Maybe you are and maybe I’m exactly what you need to remember that living is a gift. You are a gift.”

“To whom?” he scoffed.

“To me.” I managed to pull him away from the fire and onto the couch. He wasn’t a romantic person by any stretch of the imagination, but he also wasn’t the cold man I’d thought him to be. He’d simply bottled his emotions on purpose. How could I blame him after what he’d been through?

He allowed me to curl into his arms, doing nothing more than holding each other as Pepper did her best to rest her head in both our laps.

I realized he was stroking my pup’s head only a few seconds later, hopefully finding the comfort he needed.

We’d been intimate several times, but right now, I felt more of a connection than I had during any of the electrified times. He was vulnerable yet still so strong. I adored him. There was no denying it. This wasn’t love at first sight, but there was something here than could be built on.

If either one of us allowed that to happen.

I hadn’t realized he’d brought his phone in with him until I heard a strange sound.

“A text?” I asked, lifting my head.

His initial scowl turned into a smirk and he purposely sat up on the couch. Pepper refused to move when he worked to get it from his pocket. At least that allowed him a smile.

I couldn’t see his screen and was somewhat surprised when he allowed me to read the message.

Unknown: Game on. Your time is up.

“What is that?” I asked.

“That is notification that we are now in the target zone. Boris is on his way.”

CHAPTER 25

Shephard

“You’re certain you had no clue what was going on inside your resort, Pops?” I was pacing the office, trying to keep my cool. My father was in denial, which usually occurred when he’d been caught in a lie.

I’d yet to broach the elephant in the room. The phone wasn’t the best method of doing so, but with Boris coming into town, I wanted to have all the ugly secrets out in the open.

I’d checked on Cane and his ‘family’ member, realizing Cane had a colorful past himself, which had included running with the wrong crowd in his teenage years.

Except for his family heritage. Should I find it just another coincidence his family had a Russian background? It was interesting that he’d ignored that part of his life. From what Denise had described about the man she’d seen with him, it was entirely possible he’d been on a search mission for more than just money.

I had plans on finding out.

“Don’t you dare speak to me like that, boy,” my father snarled, his anger flaring while I was trying to keep mine under wraps. If the man could provide even a single clue, then we might be able to get to the bottom of this mess.

I’d checked various operations, trying to make it look as if it was nothing but a typical inspection handled by the new owner. Everyone in the place was skeptical of us taking over. I had a feeling it was because our father had become generous to a fault.

Go figure.