Page 12 of Keeping Kasey (Love and Blood #3)

CHAPTER NINE

Logan

I’m not exactly surprised when I walk out of the bathroom—towel wrapped around my waist—to find my bed empty, aside from a small note on the pillow. But I am disappointed.

I read the elegant script.

I’m not your toy.

If you want to play, enjoy doing it with yourself.

P.S. I caught a ride with James.

I go straight to my office when I get to the base, intent on immediately summoning Kasey, but my plans are halted when I walk in to find the only person who can piss me off more than she can.

Joshua Moreno stands in front of my desk with his arms folded.

“What do you want?” I ask, striding around the desk to my chair, but not taking the seat.

“To talk about our new roommate.”

“Last I checked, you’re leaving at the end of the week.”

“And until then, she’s under the same roof as Elise.”

I’d enjoy throwing him out of my office, but since my sister’s safety is the one topic we actually agree on, I reluctantly take the bait.

“What’s your problem with her?”

A beat of understanding passes, and we both sink into our seats, momentarily forgetting the usual power struggle.

“There’s something off about her. I don’t think we can trust her with Mason’s case.”

“That’s all you have? A bad feeling ?” I let out a dry laugh. “If we’re going off feelings now, I should deal with you immediately.”

He ignores the jab. “Usually, Elise is an excellent judge of character, but I don’t think she’s seeing this clearly. I don’t want her alone with Kasey.”

He and I have very different opinions about my sister’s judgment of character.

“You think I can control what my sister does?”

“No, but you should be able to control Kasey. If you can’t, she’s a threat that needs to be eliminated.”

I’m not convinced Kasey is a beast that can be tamed, but I do intend to try.

“Where are they now?”

He leans back. “Ford’s office with Kade. Donovan is with them and won’t be leaving Elise’s side without my say-so.”

“I assume Elise has no idea he’s acting as a bodyguard and not a friend?”

“She doesn’t need to know. They have the same schedule today—she won’t suspect a thing.”

“And what does she think about your concerns?”

“She thinks I’m being overprotective.”

I don’t trust Kasey, but I don’t think she’s as much of a threat as Moreno is making her out to be. We need to be wary, but I hardly think shielding my sister is necessary.

Still, I’d be ignorant to brush him off completely.

“I’ll assign Damon to Kasey’s security,” I tell him.

I was already planning to assign Kasey a guard. My base is full of loyal men, but it’s still dangerous. Putting someone I trust on her will ease my mind—and if it shuts Moreno up, even better.

“Damon?” Moreno shakes his head. “He’s made a lot of progress, but I don’t think he’s ready to—”

“Don’t pretend you know him better after one month than I do after thirty years ,” I bite out.

When Elise offered to let Damon stay with them in Los Angeles, I’d thought time with her would be beneficial for him. I never imagined he’d get along with Moreno, of all people.

“He has a weakness that Kasey knows about and can easily extort. He isn’t ready for that.”

"Kasey will know her ‘security’ is actually surveillance, but Damon is disarming—she won’t see him as a threat,” I explain. “She’ll let her guard down, and that’s when we’ll see if she can be trusted with Mason’s case.”

He doesn’t say anything, and I lean back in my chair.

He knows I’m right.

I’ll be the first to admit my brother is a mess, but the desk work James gave him will bore him to death—and a bored Damon is a dangerous Damon.

Kasey will brush him off after a single afternoon.

“Fine,” Moreno relents. “Put Damon on it.”

“Are we done here?”

“We need a contingency plan.”

“Concerning?”

“Kasey’s loyalty,” he says. “She’s going to have too much information on our families by the time this is over, and we need a way to keep her quiet. I plan to have Kade dig into Kasey’s life to find anything we can use against her if she poses a threat.”

I almost laugh. “You really think he’ll find anything she doesn’t know is out there?”

“I think it’s better than doing nothing at all.”

“Whatever,” I say with a wave. “I want progress reports as he works.”

Moreno stands, bracing his hands on my desk and glaring at me. “I want to be crystal clear: if anything, and I mean anything, happens to Elise because you brought Kasey in, I will hold you personally responsible, and I will retaliate.”

I slowly stand, matching Moreno’s height and aggressive stance. “Let’s not forget whose territory you’re in. I’d think twice before threatening me in my own office —especially when my desire to keep you alive is already nonexistent.”

His lip hints at lifting as he nods his agreement and promptly leaves my office.

Moreno’s impromptu visit effectively ruins my mood, and I tell James to keep everyone out of my office. My original plan to summon Kasey is postponed until I’m in a smug enough mood to enjoy messing with her.

For now, I schedule a meeting with the heads of several families in my territory to settle a turf war.

While half of my job consists of running my own family, the other half is fixing issues within others.

I could let them battle it out themselves, but I prefer to have a hand in the affairs of those within my territory.

A yellow circle flickers onto my screen, and my stomach drops.

Pac-Man.

I grab my phone, ready for the power to go out… but nothing happens. The circle doesn’t take up the entire screen, only the center, and nothing else seems to be affected.

The mouth of the Pac-Man opens and closes, and after a full minute of watching it, I slide the mouse across the screen and click it.

The message appears on the screen in big, black letters with a text box below.

Kasey: Did you have a good morning?

It’s like everyone is trying to piss me off for sport today.

Logan: My office.

Kasey: And here I thought you learned a thing or two from this morning about how to ask for what you want.

The nerve.

Logan: My office. Now.

Seconds pass with no answer, and when the text disappears from my screen, I take it as a sign that Kasey is on her way.

It’s not even ten in the morning, and I’m already contemplating double homicide.

In true Kasey fashion, she doesn’t bother knocking. She throws the door open and strolls in.

“What?” she demands, one hand resting on her hip.

She’s wearing a more sensible outfit today: loose jeans and a plain tan T-shirt.

“Want to try that again?” I ask. “Where’s the respect we talked about yesterday?”

“I agreed to show respect in front of your men.” She makes a show of looking around the room. “I don’t see anyone else here.”

I take a step forward, then another. Just as I’d hoped, Kasey takes one step back, matching each of mine.

“No,” I say, just as her back hits the door, and she’s trapped against me.

Her breathing quickens, but she lifts her chin. “No?”

“ No , I did not have a good morning.”

“I can’t imagine why,” she says with a delighted smile.

“Let me help,” I whisper, dipping down to brush my lips against hers. “It started around four in the morning.”

My lips skate over Kasey’s skin, and her shoulders shake with a delectable shudder.

“I couldn’t sleep and spent two hours trying before I gave up and went to the basement gym,” I murmur against her skin, reveling in the floral scent that clings to her.

It’s a distinct smell that I might be able to name if I knew anything about flowers—I don’t, so all I know is that it’s quickly becoming my favorite scent.

“After an hour, I still had energy to burn, so I went for a run around the estate at sunrise.”

I plant kisses across her collarbone, alternating between swipes of my tongue and the gentle pull of her soft skin between my teeth.

Her gasp is a thrilling sound I commit to memory.

“Two laps later, I realized that wasn’t going to work either, so I gave up and came inside.” My hands lightly grip Kasey’s hips, and she relaxes against the door—against me.

“Then, in walks the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen,” I tell her, “and suddenly, I knew exactly how to work off the energy.”

“Hmm,” she hums. “And you thought ordering me to your bed was the way to achieve that goal?”

I take my time before answering, still nipping at her. “Were you under the impression I was a gentleman?”

“Gentleman? No. Civilized human? Also no. Right now, I’m thinking ‘mangy dog’ would be an insult to canines everywhere.”

I laugh, soaking in the taste, scent, and feel of her.

I doubt she’ll let me anywhere near her after this.

“And what does it say about you that you still want me?” I ask.

“Who says I do?”

“Your body, for starters.” I emphasize the point by swiping my tongue across the hollow of her throat.

Kasey shudders, body melting into mine, whether she wants it to or not.

Her gasp morphs into a hum when I place one last kiss on her neck and pull away.

"Your body doesn’t just act like it wants me”—my eyes drop to take in my absolute masterpiece—“it looks like it’s already mine.”

One beat of silence.

Two.

Three.

My awe and satisfaction increase tenfold as her face turns ghostly white with realization.

“You didn’t,” she whispers.

She shoves me out of the way and races to the bathroom mirror. Her horrified gasp is music to my ears as she takes in my work of art.

“ What have you done ?”

The dark red and purple swirls of fresh hickeys line her collarbone—some still shining from where my tongue brushed over them. I left five, but only three are deep enough to last.

It’ll probably take a few days for those to clear up.

As sweet as victory tastes, it pales in comparison to Kasey—and I decide marking her is my new favorite pastime.

The best part of the marks is their placement—right beneath the collar of her shirt. She can hide them, but only if she’s constantly readjusting her T-shirt, which shifts out of place with her movements.

She seems to realize this as she yanks at the fabric to keep it in place.

“You were right,” I say, leaning back against a bookshelf, folding my arms over my chest with a cocky grin. “You’re not a toy, but you sure are fun to play with.”

I think she might lunge at me from across the room, but a knock on the door stops her, and I’m tempted to laugh as she desperately pulls at her shirt while muttering curses under her breath.

I open the door to the goofy grin of my most irritating sibling.

“You called?” Damon asks, striding into my office before I can change my mind about this whole mess and slam the door in his face.

“You’ll be Kasey’s security for the duration of her stay here. This means staying with her at all times .”

Kasey’s head snaps up. “No one said anything about security.”

I shrug. “Goes without saying.”

She crosses her arms over her chest, no doubt ready to press the topic, but she remembers the marks and quickly adjusts her shirt before Damon can see them.

“Whatever,” she mutters and storms out of the room.

Damon is about to follow her when I stop him with a firm grip on his arm. He lifts an eyebrow, and I level him with an uncompromising glare.

“Do not screw this up.”

He smiles. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”