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“I didn’t see a thing. I was checking out the blonde in the red sports car next to us. Then boom!” He smacks his hands together. "I was out like a light and so were you."
Leo runs a hand through his short messy curls. “This has to have been a threat on Kobe. No one except the people in this house even knows how important you are to us. Why would someone target you?”
I have known this guy since we were kids, but the last few years have taken a toll on him, and the stress is starting to show. To the outside world he’s tough as nails, the kind of guy you don't look twice at for fear of what he might do to you. But I know the real him. We’ve been through a lot together, me and these boys. Today isn't the first day one of us looked death in the face and survived, but we usually know our threats and deal with them when necessary.
Kobe taps on the table, already bored of being stuck in the house for too long on bed rest. You can't force him to sit still, let alone rest. “You could be barking up the wrong tree. What if it has nothing to do with the takeover? This could be some crazed football fanatic that just got too close trying to catch a glimpse of the star in the flesh. Or the paparazzi, they follow you around, don't they? Freaked when they realized how bad the crash was. Stranger shit has happened.” He shrugs.
Leo lights up another cigarette sucking it back. “An attack on two of my brothers the week I take over looks like a direct hit on us.”
What Leo is saying makes more sense than Kobe’s ramblings. No one is going to drive that close to get a photo of a football has-been. I left the big league, so I'm no longer relevant to them.
I wasn’t thinking straight earlier when Cassie was here, but now I am. I’m worried and need to get in contact with Cassandra, tell her about the danger she could be in. “I shouldn’t have let Cassie go home if someone knows about us and they go after her.” My brow breaks into a sweat at the thought of how much danger she could be in because of me. I hate being stuck here with a concussion, so weak I can barely move. I’m no good to anyone like this. “She doesn’t understand any of this.”
Leo gives me a look. He knows what I’m trying to say, even though my words are disjointed. “Yeah, I’ll deal with that. She’ll be back here tonight. Get some rest. We’ll take care of your girl.”
I trust this man with my life and that thought should ease my mind, but it doesn’t. I won’t stop worrying about her until I see her in the flesh and she is here with me. “What’s next then?”
“We put the word out to the rest of the Acevedo boys. Everyone needs to be vigilant until we know more.”
Leo’s cell rings, and he answers it, switching it to speaker so we all can hear. “Boss, there’s a tiny redhead at the gate. She says she knows Mr. Lewis. She was here earlier, and she says she’s not leaving till she gets to see him,” comes the voice on the other end. Must be our security.
I breathe a sigh of relief. Here we can protect her, at least until I’m back on my feet and able to watch over her myself again.
“Looks like your girl found her way back here safely by herself.”
“Sounds like her.”
"We can talk about all of this tomorrow. I'll go greet our guest."
I give him a nod, almost too weak to bother with anything else. My girl is going to be here by my side tonight where she should be, where she belongs.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CASSANDRA
Ishuffledownthehall with Jett close by my side, a little too close for my liking. Why have I felt like all eyes are watching me since I got out of my Uber and walked up to the front gate like I was supposed to be here?
My head swirls, so many out-of-control thoughts going through it. Why did this happen? How deep is Brandon in with these guys? What will all of this really mean? Why was Amelia so pissed with me? I don’t like unanswered questions, and today has been nothing but. I’m so tired. I just want to find Brandon so I can curl up with him and sleep, and now I have this big scary dude watching me. I try to calm my breathing so I don’t spin into a panic attack. Brandon needs me in my right mind so I can take care of him.
“Where are you two going?” comes a deep voice from behind us. Something about it sends a chill down my spine, and I want to hide in the shadows. I turn to see who I can only assume is Leo Rivera in the flesh. He’s a dominating presence of a man, dark features just like his brothers, but somehow, he looks so much more threatening in his fancy dress pants and crisp black shirt.
“I’m taking her to Brandon. This is Cassandra Harper, his girl.”
“I know who she is.” Leo looks me over, his gaze slowly dropping down my body, assessing me in a way I don’t like. “You came back.”
“My sister’s wedding is over. I wanted to make sure Brandon was okay.” My voice wobbles, his intense eyes making me nervous.
“Good. I was minutes from coming and removing you from that wedding myself. I can’t believe you let her leave earlier.” He looks to Jett like it was his fault.
What the hell? “Um, I’m going to be leaving whenever I want. You can’t stop me,” I tell him, finding my voice. He can’t tell me what to do. He might be in charge of some gang, but I have nothing to do with any of this and nothing to do with him.
He stalks toward us with a fierce look in his eyes, stopping just in front of me, and I want to take back my words. He towers over me, and I bite the inside of my cheek to stop myself from saying anything else stupid. His grin transforms into a sort of smile, I guess you could say. A mean one. “For your own safety, you will be staying here with us until I say so. You’re important to Brandon, and while he’s recovering, I won’t have something happen to you because I let you leave before we know exactly what we’re dealing with.” Without another word, he turns and stalks away.
I let out a breath I didn’t even know I was holding in. That was intense. With eyes the size of plates, I look back at Jett. He’s unfazed by his brother’s behavior, but I guess he would be used to it. Am I reading too much into that weird interaction, or was that what he was trying to say? He thinks someone might target me.
“Looks like I will be organizing you a room for the night, sunshine.”
“Does everyone just do what he says?”
