Page 6 of Morally Gray Daddies

Yes, I was a conundrum wrapped in a mystery.

His gaze darkened, and I sucked in a quick breath, suddenly aware I had stepped onto dangerous territory.

For a big man, he moved fast, coming at me in a rush, and I stumbled back in surprise. He caught me, one arm around my back, one holding my bicep, and only the box between us kept our bodies from pressing together. I stared up at him, heart in my throat, all too aware of how vulnerable I was. Even if I wanted to shoot him, I wouldn’t be able to get into my purse in time… and to be honest, I didn’t want to shoot him.

I wanted to kiss him.

I was just afraid it wouldn’t stop with a kiss.

“Do you want me to take you out?” he asked.

Clamping my mouth shut to keep the wrong answer from popping out, I stared back at him. After a long moment of silence, he chuckled, then released me.

“Good answer.” Spinning me around, he placed his hand on the small of my back again, propelling me forward on the street. This time, I didn’t try to resist or get sassy with him.

Before he left me at Mrs. Cunningham’s door, he looked down at me, and I thought he might kiss me then… but he didn’t. And I didn’t know if I was relieved or disappointed.

Gio

Clara stayed on my mind all evening long, even though she’d claimed she wouldn’t be going out anywhere. Part of me didn’t believe her.

There were no more thefts from any of our product or cash that evening, which followed the pattern, which was the lack of pattern. The thief seemed to be taking things in rotation, going around as he pleased but without rhyme or reason. Large cash nights might be ignored, nights with fewer guards go quietly, then something would go missing again.

My uncle was getting angry. Not because the amount was all that detrimental—it was about the insult. I needed to find the thief and set an example before my uncle decided an example needed to be made out of me for being unable to catch the culprit. This thief situation had been going on for too long, and I knew it.

The best idea I’d had was to set a trap for the thief, which was going to be an exercise in frustration until he actually showed up, but the end result would be worth it. There was only one pattern that I’d discerned—he either went for our booze or our cash, and he usually preferred the cash. Therefore, I was going to make sure the cash remained heavily guarded… and I would watch the booze myself.

It was going to mean some long nights and giving up on watching over Clara, which made me want to howl like a predator protecting its meal. Especially after finding out the foolish girl walked home alone, in the dark, at least once a week, holding a box of cash. Our men already knew not to bother her, and I’d put out the word to keep an eye on her, but that didn’t mean she was completely out of danger.

Anyone could happen upon her on the street and decide they wanted the money she was carrying—or that they just wanted her.

Knowing it was probably the last time I would be able to do so for a while, I flitted down the street to her boarding house, keeping to the shadows, watching for signs of movement. There were none. It was a quiet neighborhood, which should reassure me, but at the moment, nothing made me feel better. There was an itch on the back of my neck, which I knew was from having to leave Clara here unguarded. Unwatched.

But the Family came first, especially over a woman I had laid no claim to… and did not intend to. I had pushed the bounds of what I could do as far as I could, aided by her relationship with Hailey, but unless I was going to make her mine, there was nothing more to be done. And I hadn’t decided if I was ready to pursue that path yet.

I went through the hallway, down to her room, and eased the door open. There she was, as angelic as ever, curled up in her bed. Ghosting into the room, I quietly closed the door behind me and moved next to the bed to look down at her. She looked so sweet when she was asleep, not at all like the sassy spitfire I knew her to be.

Her blonde curls and creamy skin gleamed in the moonlight that filtered in through the window, ivory against the crisp white of her pillow. Sweet pink lips were parted as she breathed deeply. As I watched, she rolled onto her back, arm draped across her belly, turning her head slightly, so it was face up, like Sleeping Beauty asking for a kiss.

Like the prince in Grimm’s fairy tale, I felt myself drawn inexorably forward, pulled in by her beauty.

Knowing it was the last time I’d be able to check in on her like this until the thief was caught propelled me to foolishness. Instead of standing beside her bed, I found myself reaching out, my fingers curved, drawing the back of my forefinger over her cheek.

Her eyes popped open, lips parting on a gasp, and I quickly covered her mouth with my palm, leaning over her. She started to move—then stopped… relaxed. Like she somehow recognized me in the darkness.

“Shh,” I murmured.

Now that I was touching her, I was unable to resist. I pulled my hand away from her mouth, only to move it to her breast, and when she sucked in a quick breath of air, I covered her lips with my own to muffle any noise she might make. The softness of her breast underneath the silkiness of the nightgown, the feel of her lips against mine, had my cock hardening so fast, I was nearly dizzy from the effect. The pert bud of her nipple pressed against my hand, I shifted so I could pinch it between my fingers, rolling it through the silky fabric of her gown, and she whimpered against my lips.

I should go.

I knew I should go.

But wild dogs couldn’t tear me away from her now.

Chapter Three

Clara

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