Page 8 of Fearless Protector
I finish up the meat, mushroom, and onion mixture and pour in the sauce to heat while finding the rolls in the freezer.I have them out and the oven preheated by the time he returns with Bobby Ray in tow and ties him to the chair.“Would you mind finishing those while I run out to get my bag?I have some handcuffs in the bag that’ll make things easier for the rest of the night.”
I look at the meat sauce gently bubbling.“Sure, no problem at all.I’ve got this,” I tell him.“The instructions on the rolls said to put them in the oven for a few minutes, until they’re golden.I think all this mystery around cooking is just a big over-exaggerated thing.A few minutes in the oven and dinner will be ready.”
He comes to stand beside me.“Time to drain the noodles, or they’ll be mush.”
I inhale deeply and laugh.“You didn’t tell me to drain the noodles.”
Mason laughs and grabs some potholders.“Well, move over, little missy, and let me show you how it’s done.”He adjusts the lid and tips the pot, letting the water run out.“No colander around here.”
I watch as the noodles drain.“Truth be told, I’m not much of a cook.I can find my way around the kitchen when I need to, but I’m a pretty simple person; no lavish four course meals or anything for me.”
Mason moves the pot back to the stove.He sure doesn’t act like the asshole I thought he was, and I know that’s not just my overactive and neglected for far too long libido talking.My eyebrows crinkle as I get out of his way.“I thought you were a city boy.City boys don’t say Mamma or little missy.Where are you from?”
Bobby Ray moves the chair he’s sitting in, and it scrapes the floor, causing both of us to look his way.He doesn’t say a word, just glares at us from the position he’s liable to be in all night long.
Mason grabs his coat.“I grew up on a ranch down in Texas, but my parents have both been gone for some time now.A car accident on a stormy night took them both.My aunt took me and my little sister in until we were grown in a suburb near Chicago.I guess a few phrases just hang on a little.”
My chest tightens learning his parents were in an accident, and still, he risked coming after Jules in bad weather.
He touches my shoulder and pushes a wayward piece of hair from my face.“It’s been a minute since I thought about that.I’ll be right back.”He looks at Bobby Ray.“You move an inch, and I’ll leave you in that chair all damn night.”
I pull my arms tight around my middle as he heads out into the weather, and the cold, damp air blows into the room, regardless of the heat generating from the stove.
Jules walks into the kitchen, looking much better than she did before.“A hot shower is all I needed.The beds are all made.A little food and something for this headache that’s already starting to throb, and hopefully I won’t be as hung over as I should be tomorrow morning.Note to PJ.Do not let Jules drink so much ever again.”She glares at Bobby Ray.“Then maybe I can be prepared the next time some asshole tries to slip drugs into my drink.You asshole.”She turns to me.“You should jump in the shower; the water should be warm again by now.”
I grimace, because the sheer fear and pure adrenaline of Jules being taken may have sobered me up some, but the after effects of all that alcohol is bound to hit me like a freight train later.“I’ll take one later.I don’t even want to look in the mirror right now.My hair is probably a mess, makeup is nonexistent or all over my face, dark spots under my eyes from lack of sleep this week, and…”
Mason walks in through the dining room, dangling three pairs of hand cuffs.“You look beautiful to me.”
Chapter7
Mason
PJ looks flustered as she and Jules get the meal and plates on the table.“I’m going to get Bobby Ray settled into one of the bedrooms for the night.These handcuffs will be a lot easier to deal with than untying and retying him.”
Bobby Ray glares at me.“I was just doing a favor for a friend.Just to scare Lacy into giving Jake what he wants.That’s all.I wasn’t going to hurt her.I may be an asshole, but I’m not an asshole like that.”
My eyes narrow.“News flash.You are that asshole.You’re just lucky PJ and Jules are here, or that I don’t want them to see anything that would keep them up at night.”I finish untying him and keep a close eye on every move he makes with the point of my gun.I’m not about to take chances with the lives of the ladies with a man who would probably do anything not to face the consequences he has coming.
I frog march the asshole down the hall to one of the bedrooms with a twin bed, cuffing him to the wrought iron headboard.“You even try to get out of that cuff, and”—I tap his chest with the point of my gun—“I won’t fucking hesitate.”
I walk back down the hall and dish up a bowl of spaghetti, then grab some utensils and a bottle of water from the fridge to bring back to Bobby Ray.The minute I leave the dining room, the ladies start whispering again.I smirk, turning to go give the man some food.
It’s not like I’ve never been the topic of a lady’s conversation, but not PJ’s.The one who seems to have wiggled herself right into my mind and doesn’t want to leave, no matter how many reasons I give myself for not getting involved any deeper than a kiss.
I place the food on the end table next to Bobby Ray, just close enough that I’m sure he can smell it and get good and hungry.“We have some friends who took Jake and his buddies away.They’re going to be spending tonight learning the plan for Lacy and Jules.I’m going to give you a chance to tell me your side of the story before I decide what to do to you tomorrow.”
His big beady eyes narrow.“I know who your friends are.I don’t want any trouble with the Larussio crime family.What do you want to know?”
“What was the plan for Lacy and Jules?”
He inhales a deep breath and gives the spaghetti a sideways glance.“They were going to take Lacy, and I was going to grab Jules.They were supposed to call me when they had Lacy, and then they were going to drive here, pick her up, and take them both to Chicago.”
Those Chicago boys don’t quit.I’ll give them that much.“The Bernatelli family?”
He glares at me.“What about them?”
I narrow my eyes at Bobby Ray.“Don’t play with me.Were they behind it?”
