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Because that had to be this sweet, crushing emotion that consumed me under his drugging kisses and perfect dick impaling me as I came in the complete bliss that I feared only he could ever give me.
36
MAXIM
Despite the late night, I got up early. Sloane slept in, looking so peaceful with her head on my shoulder, but I didn’t try to wake her. She needed her rest too. After we got out of the tub together, we went to bed and fell asleep only to wake up to her having a bad dream. We’d fucked again, harder and faster that time, which resulted in her not getting much sleep altogether.
Will I ever get enough of her?I had to wonder if it were possible, but I doubted it. No matter how many times we fucked, I wanted her more and more.
Slipping out of bed carefully so I wouldn’t wake her, I watched her carefully and looked forward to getting a pregnancy test soon. She’d been here for one month now, and it would be time to start seeing if she would be expecting. In a twist of irony, it wouldn’t bother me if she wasn’t. The goal was to knock her up, but if it took a little longer, that was all that much more time that I could have her to myself.
I got dressed and left her sleeping to begin tending to business. Even though I could have slept in more, I was restless, asif the adrenaline rush from the danger last night hadn’t fully evaporated.
First, I went to check on my father. He was alive and as well as he could be, stable and recovering in his sleep.
Then, I checked on the nurse who’d literally saved his life. She’d never want for anything, and I personally ensured that the maid assigned to the woman was on task. I also asked around if the men had gotten any more details from her. She’d been hurt and shocked when that intruder snuck in. I knew how details could be blurred or locked away in a moment of high stakes and panic, but she was sticking with the same few details she had to give.
After that, I went down to Damon’s apartment and spoke with him.
“Nothing,” he said as we headed toward his kitchen. I wasn’t in the mood to eat with him, not when I had to get in the office and review the footage the security team had gotten together, but I walked with him anyway. “That fucker didn’t say a single goddamn word and I didn’t go easy on him.”
“I don’t doubt you,” I replied.
“He couldn’t take it. He bled out, but I stayed at it for hours, Maxim. He wasn’t going to say a word.”
I nodded. “Did you get any impression that he could be affiliated with anyone we know?”
He shrugged, but after he rubbed his stubbled jaw, he shook his head. “No. Not really. Even if I were to get a gut feeling… There’s nothing. Not a single thing he did or how he looked made me think of a connection with any other families we know.”
“Could it be the Feds?”
He scoffed. “Fuck no. They last the least amount of time with me in the dungeon. Nik came by when the man died.”
“He was up that late?” I asked, curious. We all kept odd hours, but Nik had seemed so tired when we both checked on Father. Or maybe he was tired inside, not physically. Nik, among all of my brothers, could be the biggest enigma.
“Yeah. He and Saul were with the security footage until late. But when Nik stopped in to talk with me, it seemed like he was convinced those two assholes who broke in last night had to be contractors.”
And that will complicate this investigation so much more now.Lots of crime families hired out for delicate jobs. Most times, hits were placed for the sake of a power play. That it was an honor to claim killing a member of a rival family. Other times, hiding involvement was a more critical need.
Having to look for who could’ve hired a contract killer added more stress to my life, but I was determined not to fail my family. I went to my father’s office and did as much searching as I could do there, but it was early yet. Whoever was behind this slow-building storm against us wouldn’t be found just yet.
After spending time in the office, my aggravation increased until that restlessness was replaced with full-on agitation. Within these walls, I felt stuck and overwhelmed. It didn’t matter how many times I reviewed what the men had found and reported on from last night’s incident. I felt further from knowing what direction to pursue. Worst of all, I had no clear sign of whether my first suspects could be related. The Romanos and Kozlovs were always the initial ones who came to mind as enemies who might have the reach to stage a prolonged war like this againstus, but I had nothing to go on as evidence to guess that they were behind my father’s poisonings.
What if it’s not one enemy to be wary of but two separate ones?
I groaned at the idea of a copycat attempt on my father’s life. Too fed up and frustrated with no answers, I left the office and went to see if Sloane was awake. She was just getting up when I strode into the room. Just seeing her and recalling how different she was when I found her, an outsider from the Mafia world, I wanted to escape from the reality of being a ruler within it. Just for a while, I wanted the peace of her company and nothing more.
Nothing more?
For the first time in my life, I considered being accepting of alotmore where Sloane was concerned.
“Get dressed,” I advised.
She raised her brows. “Where are we going?”
“To breakfast.” I adjusted the knot of my tie, determined not to overthink how I was risking a trip out of the house with her. She’d been cooped up inside for a month, only allowed to look out through windows at the city she called home.
Home.