Page 50 of The Boss

I stood staring out at the water, determined to keep this meeting entirely professional. Whether or not that was possibleremained to be seen. Earlier in the day, I’d experienced another bout of rage, one severe enough I’d sent Willow away.

She had her own loss to deal with, our strange yet highly connected relationship still something we were working through. What continued to trouble me about fucking her was that the woman could make me lose my edge, succumbing to irresponsible actions.

That was only the tip of the iceberg with regard to Willow. I could see losing myself in her. Even her offer to help in hunting down Shane continued to bother me. Could I trust her enough to allow that to occur? And what would that mean?

I sensed the presence of my brother as he moved slowly toward the deck railing. When Cristos said nothing, merely doing the same thing I was in staring out at nothing, I cleared my throat. He’d volunteered to handle the arrangement for Leandro’s funeral. I was grateful I didn’t have to take care of it.

Doing so would likely throw me into another series of rages.

“Is everyone here?” I asked.

“Atticus is on his way. I’m surprised you left your houseguest at your estate.”

“What would you have me do, bring her here to learn more about our business operations?”

Christos snorted. “I have no idea what your plans are.”

Hell, neither did I.

“Shane contacted her. He told her to run.”

My brother slowly turned his head. “That’s telling. At least he’s alive so we can cut his heart into little pieces.”

“Willow is insistent Shane isn’t responsible.”

“And you believe her?” He laughed when I didn’t answer right away. “My God, Dimitrios. You care about this girl. Is it because of time spent with her in the past?”

I’d been asking myself the same question over and over again. “I don’t know.”

“I wish I could say it’s nice to see for a change, but she’s a little young for you, let alone she could be the enemy.” At least he had a glint in his eyes. “But it shows you’re still alive. I was beginning to wonder since you haven’t enjoyed the company of a woman for years.”

“Don’t go down that road, Christos.”

He threw up his hands. “Fine. I’ll just say this. You need to let the past go, but Willow is a bad choice.”

“Maybe so, but a body wants what it wants.”

“Ugh. I do not want to know.”

“Hey. You’re the one going out with all the sexy models lately. I can’t keep up with their names.”

“They’re just eye candy. Good for the body, good for the soul.”

We stood in silence for a couple of minutes and all I could do was think about her. Taking her before had been extraordinary. My cock still throbbed.

“You need to know something before this meeting.”

His tone no longer reflected his need to tease me. “Another incident.”

“Michael, the American kid?”

“He’s dead.” Shit. I should have seen that coming.

“A hit and run when he left the club last night. No one witnessed a damn thing. The bouncers had already left at that point.”

Exhaling, I turned toward him. “Have Sophia escorted out of town. Make certain she has everything she needs.”

“Okay. This asshole is eliminating everyone who might have information about him.”

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