Page 117 of The Trouble With Bad Boys

“Yes, baby, I know. But you mean the world to me, and I will do everything to make sure you and our baby are taken care of.”

Lee and one of Sparacello’s guards helped King out of the room and down the hall. We went up in an elevator at the back of the property, coming out through the kitchen before settling him on the couch in the living room. The doctor checked his wound and ran some tests before diagnosing him with a concussion. She told me to keep an eye on him to make sure he didn’t suffer from long-term effects that could need further medical intervention.

Once we were cleared to go, Lee drove us home to King’s apartment and helped us inside. King stopped him as he tried to leave.

“Thank you,” he said, offering the man his hand. “If you hadn’t shown up when you did, I’m not sure what Sparacello would have done.”

Lee’s mouth tilted in a crooked smile. “You would have been fine. Vinny called him right before we got there. Told him it was a misunderstanding and asked him to meet us upstairs. Sparacello might be ruthless in business, but he’s got some morals left in him.”

King pressed his lips together, then scratched at the side of his neck. “I could have handled this whole thing better.”

“You could have,” Lee agreed. “A single phone call coulda cleared all of this right up. But sometimes, when you care enough about someone, the lines between doing the right thing and doing something right now can get crossed.”

King grimaced but nodded. “Thank you, again. For everything,”

“Not a problem.”

After Lee left, I sat next to King on the couch. He put his arm around me, and I tossed mine over his chest.

“What am I going to do with you, Kingston Donaghue?”

He took a deep breath, then pressed a kiss to my head. “Have patience with me,” he finally said after a long beat. “This doing good thing doesn’t come naturally.”

“Sugar, you are more than good. You have a good heart, and you’re a good man. Just because you came from a bad place doesn’t mean you’re unable to rise above that and do the right thing.”

“I’m trying.”

I looked up at him, pressed a kiss to his lips. “You’re succeeding. I know you, King. I know you’ll do the right thing.”

Fourteen

KINGSTON

It’s amazing what trying to do the right thing will do to a person. Carina woke me the next afternoon, telling me I had a visitor. It was Mr. Leonetti, and he was none too thrilled to find out what had happened. But it wasn’t me rushing out to find Nevaeh Vega that was the problem.

It was the head wound I’d sustained.

He thanked me profusely for taking such care of his employees, for risking my own life to ensure Nevaeh was safe.

“Your dedication to me never ceases to amaze me, King,” he told me. “Without you, The Starlight Club wouldn’t be what it is today.”

“Thank you, sir. That means a lot to me.”

At my side on the couch, Carina took my hand. His gaze dropped to that point of contact, and when he lifted his eyes to hers, he gave her a smile.

“And you, my dear. The same is true of you. I understand working for men like me and King can be a hardship, but your ability to take control and get things done despite our interference is something I will forever admire.”

“Thank you, Mr. Leonetti.”

He gripped his hands together, pinching the skin between his thumb and forefinger, and somewhere in the back of my mind, an alarm went off.

But it was too late.

“This is why it pains me to do this,” he said, licking his lips. “I want the two of you to take some time off.”

“What? No.” I shook my head and Carina’s hand tightened on mine. “We can’t do that, sir. The club needs us. With the troubles with Nevaeh, it’s important that we keep things steady, keep our presence there. We can’t risk the others thinking?—”

He raised a hand, cutting me off. “The troubles with Nevaeh are exactly why you two need a break. You have both gone above and beyond. You got a concussion, King. You need to take it easy and take care of yourself. Because if you don’t, the club won’t have you at the helm, and that’s a risk I can’t take. You, of all people, should understand that.”

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