Page 60 of Recovering Ivy

“Stop being an ass.” I smacked him on his stomach. “And don’t threaten to shoot people. It’s not nice and makes you sound like a dick.”

“Baby, I am a dick,” he told me.

He kind of was. Especially now, telling Jaxon he couldn’t control his woman.

“Did you call Zane sweetcakes?” Jaxon asked, laughing.

“Sure did.” Violet smiled.

“Jesus, woman, you’re loopy.” Jaxon may have been teasing Violet, but the look of affection could not be missed. “Colin wanted me to tell you he won’t be by for dinner tonight; he had to go back to DC.”

“Well, damn. I invited the girl I’d met at the gym over to meet him,” Violet pouted. “She would be perfect for him.”

“Baby, I think Colin has more on his plate than he can handle. Let’s chill on the matchmaking,” Jaxon told her.

“Fine. But if he doesn’t spill his guts soon about this mystery woman that has him turned inside out or quit refusing dates, I’m gonna parade strippers in front of him until he breaks.”

“Fuck,” Zane huffed.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“Nothing.” Then he leaned down and whispered in my ear, “I’ll tell you later.” Then addressing the people in the room again, he said, “Ivy cannot go in public without a guard. Everyone has shit to do. The sooner that shit is done, the sooner she’ll be free to go out alone. So, I’m not pulling one of my men off the case. But if you want, I’ll drop her at our house and the two of you can meet her there.”

“Our house?” Violet asked before she smiled. “Nice.”

“Don’t start, Loose Lips,” Zane said.

“I’ve never been to Zane’s penthouse,” Olivia commented. “I wanna see it.”

“Jesus. Now people are gonna think they can just come by for a stop and chat,” he grouched.

I suddenly realized I had yet to address either of the women directly.

“Hi, I’m Ivy. It’s nice to meet you both,” I said. “I’d love some company if you wouldn’t mind putting your mall plans on hold.”

“Sweet. We’ll grab takeout and meet you there,” Olivia said. “We need your address.”

“I know where they live,” Violet happily supplied.

“Christ,” Zane muttered.

“You use the Lord’s name in vain a lot,” I complained.

“And…” he prompted.

“And nothing. Merely an observation.” I smiled.

“This is so awesome.” Violet turned to Jaxon. “See you at home later?”

“Absolutely.” He winked and kissed her forehead.

It hit me as I was standing in the small space, something I’d never experienced firsthand before. Adoration and respect. Seeing the way Leo had been with Olivia, loving and protective. Jaxon was tender with Violet. Even Zane, for all of his wicked sharp edges, was sweet to me and in his own way had shown me over and over how much he cared, a stark contrast to the dealers and addicts my mother had brought around. Their idea of affection was another hit of dope.

21

Zane

Declan and I had scoped out the warehouse Forester had rented. It was in a shit area and I was happy to see he’d gone the extra mile and set up security cameras on the outside of the building. It had taken Garrett two-point-five seconds to hack into his system and disable the feed after he’d downloaded the last months’ worth of footage.