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“Conor, who the hell could this be?” She blinks at me, searching my face for answers as she places her hands on my chest.
I brush her hair back from her beautiful face. “No idea, Angel, but if he is any threat to you, he won’t be breathing when he leaves this club, I promise you.”
I lean over and switch on the security monitor, then we both watch as Chester escorts our intruder to the bar and leaves him sitting on a stool.
“You recognize him at all?” I ask.
She peers closely at the screen. “Nope.”
He looks young. Maybe fresh out of college. He has dirty blonde hair and he wears glasses. He doesn’t look like much of a threat but I know that looks can be deceiving and if he’s looking for Jessica Ivanov then he obviously has some dangerous connections.
I take my cell from the table. “I’m gonna get Shane and the boys down here too. You want to speak to him, Jessie, or you want us to deal with him?”
“No, I want to hear what he has to say, but I’m happy for you to do the talking,” she replies and I feel a wave of relief. We need to know who this guy is and why he’s asking for a woman who is supposed to be dead. Because this woman here in my arms is Jessie Ryan. Jessica Ivanov is the true heir to the Russian Bratva empire, and she hasn’t been her for a very long time.
Chapter 16
Jessie
Conor returned my panties as soon as Chester left the room. Now, I sit between him and Shane as the twins escort our visitor into the office and close the door behind them. His face is pale and his eyes dart around the room, like a frightened rabbit trapped in the lair of a wolf. I suppose that Liam and Mikey are a pretty intimidating pair. I watched on the security camera as the twins placed their hands on his shoulders and the poor guy looked like he was about to pass out. And now he is confined in a tiny room with all four terrifying Ryan brothers – no wonder he’s as white as a ghost.
His eyes land on me and I offer him a faint smile and regret it immediately because we have no idea who this guy is, but something about him looking so terrified endears him to me. I have been where he is many times myself.
Mikey pushes him roughly onto a chair and all five of us stare at him while he keeps scanning our faces, blinking rapidly as a bead of sweat runs down his brow.
“Who are you?” Conor barks.
“H-Hayden Chambers,” he stammers.
“So, Hayden Chambers.” Conor clasps his hands together, placing them on the desk in front of him as he leans forward. “What the fuck are you doing in our club asking about a dead woman?”
Hayden blinks and shakes his head. “She’s dead?” he whispers.
“Why are you asking about her?” Conor snarls again.
Hayden’s Adam’s apple bobs in his throat as he swallows. “I think she might be my sister,” he says, the crack in his voice apparent.
My heart starts to hammer in my chest and I gasp quietly. Shane places a hand on my thigh and squeezes gently, distracting me enough to allow me to regain my composure. Ordinarily I have a great poker face but that was the last thing I expected to hear today.
“Jessica’s brothers are dead,” Shane says calmly.
Hayden nods. “I heard that. I suppose I’d be her half-brother really. I believe Alexei Ivanov was my father, too.”
“You looking for a slice of his empire, kid, then you’re looking in the wrong place,” Conor snarls.
“It’s nothing like that,” he stammers. “I was just looking for my sister. Since my mom died last year, there’s just me and I just wondered if I had some other family out there, is all.”
“You said you believe he’s your father, but you don’t know for sure?” I ask him and he turns to face me, giving me his full attention and offering me a chance to study his features. He has dark eyes like Alexei, but then plenty of people do. I see a resemblance when I look closely, but perhaps I am seeing one because I’m looking for one.
“My mom left Russia with me when I was a baby. I don’t believe he even knew I existed, but she told me he was my father before she died. I could hardly believe it when I discovered who he really was. I suppose that was why she never wanted me to know him, but she gave me dates and told me where they met and it all seems to add up. I don’t see why she would lie to me then after keeping it a secret for all those years.”
“Why did you come here looking for her?” Conor asks, his knuckles white as he clenches his fists on the desk.
“Because this is where the trail ended,” he says. “This was the last place she was known to be."
"And who told you that little snippet of information?” Shane growls.
“Some Russian guy I met at a bar. He didn’t give me his name.”
