Page 95 of Dangerous King
"I'll be okay," I assure him. "I'm a big girl; I can take care of myself."
"I don't doubt that for a second. But I wanted to take care of you. Give you a sponge bath." He winks, and my heart melts. God, that sounds heavenly.
Again, from out of nowhere, I say, "Maybe I'll give myself a sponge bath then, thinking of you."
The Hummer accelerates fiercely, like he just pressed the gas pedal down too hard, and I giggle.
"Fuck, Cat, youaregoing to be the death of me." He grins and brings the tank back under control.
When we pull up to the estate, I reach for the door handle, but Enrico's hand catches mine. His eyes search mine, fierce, protective, and something else I can't quite name. "I've got to take care of something," he says softly, thumb brushing over my knuckles. "But I'll be back soon. You wait for me, sì?"
I nod. "Always."
He leans across the console and kisses me. The kiss is deep, slow, and full of everything he hasn't said aloud. My lips tingle as he pulls back and steps out, rounding the front to open my door. So much for simply dropping me off. All these little gestures of his fill my heart, fill it with him.
The moment I climb out, Shadow bounds around the corner, chased by an exasperated-looking Julio. He's barking excitedly, probably cursing me in his language that I've been gone from his orbit too long.
"He's been running from me every time he heard a car," Julio pants.
"Oh, you missed me. Who is a good dog, hmm?" I fall to my knees to properly hug the little critter to me.
I look up to Julio and say, "Thank you so much for watching him."
He waves his hand dismissively, and his dark eyes land indulgingly on Shadow. "There's something about him that won't allow me to get mad at him."
Enrico grunts as if agreeing, watching our reunion and ignoring Shadow's growls in his direction, and I suppress a giggle because both men are trying so hard to appear tough. Then he helps me up and presses a final kiss to my cheek, murmuring, "Goinside, Cat. Before I change my mind and drag you back into the Hummer."
I wave at Julio and, with a grin, slip away, not looking back, but I feel Enrico's gaze like a touch between my shoulder blades all the way to the front door.
I watch her walk back toward the house, her dress swaying with every step, Shadow bouncing around her heels like he's guarding a queen.
Mine.
I like the sound of that. She is mine.
Unfortunately, now's not the time to fully claim her. As soon as the front door closes behind her, I slam the Hummer's door shut and shift gears, both in the car and in my head.
The call was from Marcello.
Somebody tried to kill Kingsley last night.
But they didn't get the job done.
Because Marcello—smart bastard that he is—had guards on Kingsley, too. Not just the senator's own detail, most of whom are dead. He gave me the address of a warehouse where he's keeping the senator safe for now. I drive fast, too fast, until the city's glitter gives way to the industrial sprawl on the edge of the Hudson. Broken streetlights, cracked pavement, the stink of rust and wet concrete. The location alone is enough to push all thoughts of Cat from me and put me into the right frame of mind.
The warehouse is one we've used before; it's a mirror of the one Giovanni was held in. The perfect place for talking or killing. Or both.
Marcello's guards recognize me and wave me in without frisking or asking me to hand over my weapons. A gesture of trust I appreciate. He's waiting inside, but he's not alone; Stephano is with him, and both look like they've seen a demon and are ready to perform an exorcism.
"You both look like shit," I say, stepping in, shaking hands.
"You look like you got laid," Marcello shoots back without missing a beat, making me want to punch him. I resist. Barely. On the one hand, he's right, but on the other… well fuck, this is Cat he's talking about.
Kingsley is standing apart, looking gray and fearful and bloody. He's pacing, limping actually, up and down, lowly muttering to himself. I notice a few bruises on his face. Marcello must have given him a good beating. Good. He deserves it for what he did to Barbie. He deserves a lot more, which he'll get as soon as he outlives his usefulness for us.
"Fill me in," I demand.
Marcello crosses his arms. "How about you start? Like maybe with the part where you identifiedLedyanoy Prizrakand forgot to mention it."
