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I tugged on the strands of his hair gently, urging him to raise his chin, and when he finally looked toward me, my heart gave a painful throb. My adrenaline surged and my fingers itched to murder, to slay whoever had put this expression on his face. “Tell me who hurt you,” I growled out, hot fury licking at my skin like flames.
His bottom lip wobbled and a sob slipped from his mouth. He shook his head, more tears trailing down his flushed cheeks. “It doesn’t matter.” He wiped at the tears angrily with the back of his hand.
I grasped his wrist and pulled it away from his face. Shushing him quietly, I pressed a kiss to a wayward tear, then another. “Tell me what happened, baby, and I will handle it.”
“It doesn’t matter?—”
“Ifsomeone made you cry, it matters. You are my wife. No one but me gets to make you cry, and I would only do it in the bedroom. Now, tell me.” I cupped his cheek and caressed my thumb over the redness, chasing more tears away. “Who. Made. You. Cry?”
He sniffled and laughed. “I don’t know why I’m so upset. I went to one of those stupid fancy boutiques to buy clothes, like you told me to do. The saleswoman was really nice. She helped me pick out some pretty things. Sexy ones.”
The flush on his cheeks deepened, and I wished I could bottle this version of him and store him away so no one else got to see him. He was mine and mine only.
“But then the owner came, and he found out the dresses and lingerie were for me, and he told me to leave. He Pretty Womaned me, and I told him that, but he said he wouldn’t have cared if I was a whore, as long as I was a woman. And after I got home, I realized that I left my messenger bag and my other stuff behind. I had some really nice perfume, too.” He dropped his face back between his knees and sobbed again. “He was horrible, and I don’t know why I’m crying, but I’m so humiliated. That guy was a... . Ugh!”
Oh, someone was going to die tonight.
I held Quin tighter and pressed his face against my chest. Laying a kiss on his head, I smoothed my hand over his shoulder. “Which store, baby girl?”
“It doesn’t?—”
“Tell me.” I tugged him back so I was staring into his glossy hazel eyes. With the tears swimming around, his irises were gems. “Which store and what was the prick’s name?”
He swallowed and tears beaded in the corners of his eyes. He was beautiful like this, vulnerable and in need of protection. As his husband, that was my job, and I was going to make sure anyone who hurt him ended up regretting it.
“The store is Sheer Avenue and the man’s name is Mr. Allard.” He sniffled some more. “If I’m Julia Roberts, are you going to be my Richard Gere?”
I snorted. “Aren’t you too young for that movie?”
He shrugged, and I loved that I won a small smile. “It’s a classic.”
“I’m hotter than Gere?—”
A smirk curled the corner of Quin’s mouth.
“And more dangerous.”
Holding up a finger to him, I moved him away and reached into my pants pocket to pull out my phone. I found the name I was looking for immediately, since he’d already done work for me and Derek today, and tapped it before placing the phone to my ear. A few moments later, he answered the call.
“Heya, boss man. What’s up?”
“Royal, I need you to do a collection. Tonight.” My hardened tone left no room for argument, not that Royal would. He’d been one of our employees for a long time now, straight out of the SEALs with another one of our guys, War. But unlike War, who worked directly under Derek as protection, Royal did the dirty jobs of retrieving men we wanted dealt with. Sometimes, he did the job of ending their life himself.
“Short notice, Boss. How dangerous is this person?” Royal’s voice was strong, much like his appearance.
“He’s the owner of a women’s clothing store. Rich, but has no reason to think he’s in danger. His name is Allard, and his business is Sheer Avenue.”
Quin grabbed my elbow, but I ignored him.
Royal whistled. “I’ve heard of it. It’s expensive as fuck, only for the rich wives of men who’ve got more money than God. Allard inherited it from his grandmother.”
“Do I want to know how you have that information?” I drawled, kind of impressed, which didn’t happen often. “Something you want to tell us, Royal?”
He laughed. “Well, you know I got that dude I’m seeing, Boss. He looks damned pretty in lingerie. Anyway, I got him in a sexy red baby doll thingy right now, if you wanted to know.”
I rolled my eyes. “I don’t.”
“Never been to Sheer Avenue before, though. I’ve been told about Allard. He’s a snotty shit. Not very well liked around New Gothenburg. D never has liked him very much.” That didn’t surprise me. Derek dealt with a lot of rich businessmen that he hated, but as far as I knew, Allard had no relationship with us. “Is there anything else I should know?”
