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“Did you call the cleanup team?” Jay asks.
“You know that I did.”
“I have no doubt, but you know I have to ask,” Jay says.
“Uh-huh, sent their pics to intel, too,” Dereck says.
“Status on the ground?” Jay asks.
“Mission accomplished, and Giovanni Larussio is on his way home. The cleanup crew is working overtime tonight,” the one that goes by Nick says, smirking.
Marenah just takes it all in. No drama, no surprised looks, just takes it for face value, but her eyes don’t leave her sister, and I have no doubt that if Jay’s finger were to come off her sister’s pulse, it would be replaced by her own.
It’s another thirty-minute car ride until we get to the Prestian Estate, and we pass through the stone and wrought iron gates. Nick keys in the passcode to the guest house, and Jay carries Sasha up the stairs.
“I’ll tuck Marenah in and be back down in a bit,” I say to the men, and Marenah blushes and tells Jay how much she appreciates what he’s done and why it’s so hard for her sister to trust men.
* * *
I’ve been thinkingabout the quandary we’re in all night long while my princess sleeps beside me. Jay and I haven’t had a chance to talk, but the intel that’s been found on Sasha relates to Marenah as well. I read and reread the report that she and her sister are without a doubt the daughters of Bernatelli, but he has never claimed them, and in fact has repudiated them. Regardless, if she’s in any way tied to mafia, I need to make sure that Jay, Chase, and Brian know it. This team has come to mean the world to me, my family, and the thought of leaving them weighs heavily on my mind as I finally doze off.
* * *
The meeting is setfor an hour from now. I send Marenah a text to let her know that I’ll be back shortly and to meet me for breakfast, because I have no idea what’s going to transpire between now and the time I spill what’s on my mind. If this is the last time that I get to hold Marenah while on the Prestian Corp payroll, so be it. I have saved and invested well.
I’m almost at Chase’s office when a text from Jay comes through, letting me know that Chase is aware of all the family involvement of both girls and things are fine. Jay’s in Chase’s office when I walk in. Chase is wearing a three-piece suit and gestures for me to take a seat next to Jay. Chase tells us that the plan to solidify the expansion of the security company is sound, and the family has approved it.
When we finish reviewing the contract, Jay and I walk out of the room ecstatic. The guys are never going to believe not only the salary that has been offered, which far exceeds their overly generous one now, but the perks and benefits that have been provided. Chase and Brian blow any other competition out of the water with their hundred percent contribution to the 401(k), one hundred percent medical and dental in addition to the jets, helicopters, luxury homes, and resorts available to the crew as an added benefit to taking care of their family.
We walk back across the lawns to the guest house where we are both staying, and Jay tells me he’ll catch up to me later and heads upstairs. I walk into the dining room, and the look on Marenah’s face tells me that something has gone south. “What’s wrong, Princess?” I ask, stalking toward her, pulling her toward me and then noticing her sister, sitting in one of the chairs in the dining room.
“She needs to go home before Jay finds out she’s not upstairs. Can you get her on a flight right away? If not, I can see what I can do,” Marenah says, pushing the breakfast plate on the table in front of her away.
I take in the situation, assessing it like I’m trained to do. Sasha wants to leave, and regardless of anything else, even Jay’s desires, we don’t keep people against their will unless they are in danger. I text instruction to have a plane readied and on the private tarmac of the airport ASAP and a car pulled around to the front. “Go with her, Nick, take her out the front now. I’ll deal with Jay,” I say as Marenah hugs her sister and Nick leads Sasha, who looks solemn and thoughtful, through the kitchen and out the door, and I pull Marenah into my lap. Marenah is quiet and pensive, too, and I slide into the seat beside her and take her in my arms. “She’ll be okay, Princess. Nick will take good care of her,” I whisper.
I knew it wouldn’t be long, and it isn’t, before Jay’s boots are stomping down the steps and into the dining room. “You know where Sasha is?”
Marenah is still curled up in my lap and gives him a little nod and I applaud her honesty.
Jay doesn’t say a word for a bit, but then the silence gets the best of him. “Um, you gonna tell me where that might be?”
“She went back to Chicago, Jay. I’m really sorry,” Marenah says.
“What the hell do you mean, she went back to Chicago? How the fuck did she get out of here and how she is getting home?” Jay says and I brace for the wrath that is sure to follow.
“I arranged it for her. She was going to try to find a commercial flight. I sent Nick with her, and we have a team safeguarding her once she gets on the ground. She’s safe, Jay,” I say, knowing at the end of the day, whatever is happening, her safety is his ultimate concern.
“Why did she leave?” Jay asks Marenah, avoiding me all together. I get it, because if he had done the same thing, I’d want to throttle him, but I also know he’s a man of integrity. He would do the same thing if positions were reversed. He’ll figure it out, of that I have no doubt.
“She doesn’t think you care about her. I told her that you do. Hell, anyone can see that you’re crazy about her, but that’s not what she feels, and she’s been through a lot over the years. She has an overwhelming need to feel loved, and unfortunately although our mother loved us dearly, we didn’t ever get that from the men in our lives. It’s affected each of us in different ways. Sasha, unfortunately, has a habit of being clingy with breakups, and she’s trying to be different this time,” Marenah says, and while I know that’s true, having read all the manuscripts, and see the pain on my dear friend’s face hearing it, I also know that my princess has scars as well. She’s just a little better at keeping them buried.
Jay takes it all in with a nod, and the only tell he gives that he’s completely agitated is the tightening of his jaw as he turns and heads upstairs. I was prepared for a demand from my close friend to stop the plane, to do something, but not this. I already have word that Nick got her on the plane and is getting her comfortable before takeoff, but I don’t dare tell Jay that. If they want to sort this out, they will. If they don’t, she’ll be safe, because she means something to my friend and is my girlfriend’s sister.
“He didn’t even go after her,” Marenah huffs, nuzzling in against my chest. I hold her tight, pulling the warmth of her body against mine.
“Jay will never go into a situation without a comprehensive plan, and I have a feeling that carries over into his personal life as well, Princess. They’ll sort it out if it’s meant to be. We’re in one of the most beautiful spots in the world, let’s go exploring,” I say, knowing we need to talk, but right now I just want one day with her, just one normal day showing her around the beautiful country of Italy.
I send a text to the driver on standby that we’ll be ready in half an hour. It’s still early, just after eight, and while the ladies already ate I have not and I snag two of the biscotti that I know from experience will be infused with chocolate, a perfect complement to a morning coffee or latte. The driver sends me a message that he’ll be here soon. “Go get ready; I’ll make us a cappuccino,” I say, swatting Marenah’s ass playfully as she stands up and walks by me.
