Page 1 of Protective Phlox

Prologue

NATHANIEL

Paperwork, always fucking paperwork. It felt like that was all I ever did anymore. Well, that and had meetings that led to more paperwork. Getting to kill the odd fucker was the highlight of my life these days.

I glanced at the monitors and the people partying. Heart-shaped balloons filled the club as silver and pink confetti floated around with the wind machines. God, I hated Valentine’s Day. I hated it more now than before my time with Savannah. Every fucking February was a reminder of what I gave up for this family or what Savannah refused to give up for me. Either way, it bit my ass. It wasn’t that I didn’t love my family…most of them anyway, but Savannah had felt like my future, while the Mikhailovs were a merry-go-round of the same shit. Did they hold me back? I couldn’t tell anymore. Did I choose to continue to live this life because I loved it and was loyal to my family, or was it simply easier?

Everything had been simple before Savannah marched into my life, but now, with each year that passed, I wanted to reach out and see how she was doing. Was she married? My hand tightened on my pen. She’d better not be fucking married. Did she still think of me at all, or was I the only one who thought about our time together? Memories normally faded, but my time with her grew clearer with each year. I kept waiting for my heart to stop aching with a longing that I knew only she could fill, but it never did.

Fuck.

My phone dinged, and I jerked out of my thoughts. I had a message from Aaron, a stupid gif of a dog giving me a heart. Really? At twenty-eight, my life was reduced to getting dog gifs from my cousin. I should probably just agree to the arranged marriage my father was once more trying to set up. This was his third attempt in four years, and his persistence surprised me as much as it annoyed me. Why he cared, I had no idea. Ronan was going to marry whoever Father chose and take the throne, so what did it matter if I ever got married?

I shot Aaron a gif of a middle finger, and he laughed. I envied my cousin sometimes. His parents were killed when he was seven, which was how he came to live with us. It was a tragic situation, and yet he never had anyone telling him who to marry. In fact, my father was so lenient with Aaron that it bordered on favoritism.

The soft knock on the door made me sigh. No one ever bothered me with good news. “It’s open.”

“Boss?”

“Hey Goran, everything good down on the floor?”

“Yeah, the crowd is loving the extra additions, and the bar is making a killing.”

“Excellent, finally, some good news,” I said.

“About that…can I come in? I need to talk to you about something not club or business related.”

That caught my attention, and I looked up from the contract I’d been signing. “You know you can. For the last time, you’re my friend, not just an employee,” I growled, annoyed that he still acted like this after all this time. I’d grown up with Goran, but he’d also taken a bullet for me. Nothing solidified a friendship like that.

Goran stepped in and closed the door before walking closer. His face was pale, and his gaze darted around the room like he was avoiding looking me in the eyes.

“What’s wrong?” He opened his mouth and closed it again. “Shit, what the fuck is going on?” I stood from my desk, worry etching my mind. “Are you trying to quit? Are you dying of some terminal disease? Did you kill someone and need me to send out a clean-up crew?”

He sighed. “No, it’s nothing like that. Cesare is on the warpath again,” he said.

“Jesus fucking Christ. What is it this time? Does he think we stole his gifts out from under the tree at Christmas? Better yet, I hired the fucking Easter Bunny to shit on his lawn.”

“No. According to my sources, Aldo called Cesare from Italy and has been yelling from the rooftops that you’re a double agent and are trying to push Cesare out of the round table. You know that it doesn’t take much to get him stirred up.” What the hell did Aldo have to do with anything? I’d never even spoken to the man before. “He is also claiming that you’ve sent the FBI after him.”

My heart sped up with those three letters, but I didn’t know why he would think that. I’d only given over three names, and they were all people the council was trying to get rid of. To the best of my knowledge, none of them knew that the information had come from me.

“I don’t understand. Why does Aldo think I’m after him and Cesare? I swear that family is more paranoid than my father, which is saying a lot.”

Goran cleared his throat, and I eyed the beads of sweat on his forehead. This had to be really bad, and I braced myself for the information.

“Aldo thinks you’re after him because there is a certain FBI agent, who you know, working in Italy. She may or may not have been involved with a raid where some of the Mancini family members were arrested. I don’t know if she was personally investigating them or just part of a larger team based in Italy.” I licked my lips. Shit, Savannah.

“Okay…well, I can solve this with a phone call,” I said and grabbed my phone.

“Wait…Nathan, that’s not all that’s going on.”

He stared at me and didn’t say anything more. I wasn’t even sure if he was still breathing, so I waved my hand. Goran swallowed hard. This wasn’t good. If he fucking said she was married, I was going to lose my mind. I could feel the pressure building in my head, worrying over what Goran would say next. “Just spit it out already before you give me an aneurysm.”

“Aldo didn’t want to wait for answers. He said he was done with Russian lies.” What the fuck was it with this guy? “He’s put a hit out on Savannah Freeborn.” Fuck, fuck, fuck. “And….” Goran paused. “Promise me you’re going to say calm, Nathan.” My brows knit together as he pulled out his phone. “You promise? Better yet, give me your gun. I don’t trust you not to shoot me.”

I waved at his hand. “What the fuck is this? Are you going to make me pinky swear next?”

“Fuck,” Goran mumbled. “Fine, but if you shoot me, just remember you’re losing an employee and a friend, your words.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and handed it over. One look at the image of Savannah brought back all the emotions I’d been trying so hard to bury. She had the same fire in her. It practically glowed around her. She was walking across the street, her strawberry hair blowing behind her, a commanding air to the way she held herself. Fuck, she was more beautiful than I remembered. The reaction was instant, and my body hardened, including my cock, as the memory of being buried deep inside of her came rushing back.