Page 15 of Recaptured by the Crime Lord

Lyla’s eyes popped open. “What?”

“You own a considerable chunk of Pyre Casinos.”

Lyla didn’t know how to process that and then she narrowed her eyes. “And since you married me...?”

“Weown a considerable chunk of Pyre Casinos.”

Lyla snorted. She didn’t care about money or power so it meant little to her, but the fact that Manny put her in his will made her heart ache. He loved her more than her own parents.

“Dad left me his journals.” Gavin ate slowly, staring out at nothing as he considered his words. “I’ve been reading them since I got out of jail. Some of the entries are revelations and thoughts, but a lot of them are addressed to me.” He turned and looked at her. “He knew where you went the first time you left.”

Manny told her so, but she was wary of Gavin’s reaction. Manny went so far as to give Gavin’s investigator false leads to give Lyla more time.

“He wrote a lot about you,” Gavin said and shook his head. “Between the two of us, you never had a chance.”

Lyla mouth curved the slightest bit. It was true. Manny hired her as an assistant within two weeks of meeting her. She worked with him after school and on weekends during her senior year. When she met Gavin, their chemistry had been undeniable. Gavin claimed her before she had a chance to go off to college and meet anyone else.

“He thought you possessed a part of my mom’s spirit and that’s why we both fell hard for you.”

The faint smile fell from her lips. She couldn’t explain her connection to the Pyres. It was bizarre that she would have such a strong connection to people so different from her. They were the crime lords of Las Vegas and ran the Pyre Casinos. She grew up in a middle class family with a father who had a gambling addiction. They had nothing in common and yet she loved them beyond rational thought.

“Dad told you about it. You never said anything to me,” Gavin said.

“It was between him and I.”

“Maybe so, but you should have told me.”

“That your father believed I had a piece of your mother’s soul? EvenIdon’t know how I feel about it.”

“But you didn’t push him away once you knew. It meant a lot to him.”

She swallowed hard. “I know. He meant the world to me.”

He touched her hair. The brush of his fingers was so light that she thought she imagined it at first. Then, her hair shifted as he ran his fingers through the wavy mass. Her first instinct was to jerk away, but the motion so reminded her of Manny that she didn’t.

“He told me that he wanted to commit suicide before he met you. You gave him hope.”

A tear trickled down her cheek. “Gavin, don’t.”

“You give me hope too.”

“You both expect too much from me.”

“I don’t think so. You survived our worst. You’re still you despite our influence. You’re stronger than you think.”

“I don’t feel strong.”

“Neither do I.”

Lyla snorted. “But you are.”

“There’s strong and then there’s strong,” he said with a shrug. “You have inner strength. I don’t. That’s why you’re able to live without me. I can’t function not knowing where you are, without having you with me. I’m like my dad, I guess.”

Lyla rested her cheek on her knees as she regarded him. Gavin had a dominant, alpha personality. A keen business sense paired with lethal physical attributes ensured that no one fucked with him. His wealth gave him the power to do anything he wanted. To hear him admit that he wasn’t strong struck Lyla as ludicrous. He could kill with his bare hands and he thought of himself as weak?

“What else did you read?” she asked.

“He talked a lot about Mom. How he felt about her, how he suffered without her. He talked about life and how I need to focus on you because you're all that matters.”

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