Page 57 of Savage Promises (Quinlan Empire #2)

Shane - August

L ennox and I enter the loft’s elevator after a long tough afternoon.

“What a day.” She puts a head on my shoulder. “I loved the tribute you made to your father. Your speech was perfect.”

We had a gravestone unveiling and a memorial service honoring my father. I’m wrung out.

The elevator does that little jolt reaching our floor and I steer Lennox out.

She kicks off her sandals before the front door even shuts, one hand braced on the curve of her belly like she’s instinctively guarding something sacred.

Her soft cotton dress of pale yellow, clings to her in all the right places.

The summer heat has her glowing like a flame I’ll never stop burning for. Three months ago, I didn’t think peace like this was possible. But here we are. We live above the chaos, where her laughter fills every corner.

I lock the door behind us and just stand there for a second. Watching my wife move through our home like this place was built around us. It’s adapted to us and not the other way around.

She hired an interior designer named Jolie Leitner who worked on The Sterling. While I often referred to them as the she-wolves when they’d get together, they’ve made his loft utterly stunning.

Seeing I haven’t moved past the open kitchen, Lennox immediately pads back in my direction. Raising an eyebrow at me, she purrs, “You up for a shower? Clear your head after today?”

Clear your head: Our code word for hot, dirty sex.

I pull her in for a kiss. “Hell yes, I’m up for it.” My cock is always up for her.

I plan to spend the rest of this sticky August day exactly where I belong. Pressed against her skin, under a cool spray, then hours tangled in sheets, reminding her that every part of her is mine. Especially the life growing inside her.

My future. Our future. And the future of Quinlan Empire’s pure Irish legacy.

Her kisses soothe every ache in my body. Mostly my heart.

“That feels so good,” I say, giving in to my wife’s touch. It’s days like today that I thank God, I have her in my life.

And I pity Connor who had to go home alone after such an emotional day that centered around love and family.

When my phone buzzes on the kitchen counter, vibrating against the quartz stone surface with a persistent rattle, my anger goes nuclear. One damn day off. One night. That’s all I fucking ask.

“It’s Rhys,” Lennox says, handing it to me. “That means it’s important.”

“You fucking understand me better than any woman ever could.” I pull her down for another kiss.

“I tried to tell you that almost seven years ago, sonny,” she says wryly, using that secret nickname sparingly, but effectively.

“I’ll never doubt you again, Lenny.” I narrow my eyes on her.

“Brat.” She shuffles toward the bathroom. “I’m taking that shower.”

“Hold on, Rhys,” I say before the call doesn’t go to voicemail and he starts leaving me a ten-minute message. “Stay in there, lioness, I will be joining you.”

“Good.” She shakes that ass I love to feel against my cock in the middle of the night. Her belly will be nice and swollen with my child soon, sparking a feral beast within me.

“What?” I bark at my cousin.

“We’ve got a problem,” Rhys says without preamble. “I’m with Trace.”

My heart lands in my stomach getting a call from both my enforcer and his top assassin. “Trace, what...what’s going on?”

“I’m letting Rhys talk,” he says. “But I’m here to help make a decision.”

My body goes rigid with worry. I slowly lower into a club chair, my legs suddenly feeling weak. “Lennox!” I call out to my wife.

If this is bad news, I need her. She’s my rock. My lifeblood.

“What?” she peeks around the corner.

“Please, just come here, baby. Hold my hand.”

Her face pales seeing me on the phone, knowing I’ve either gotten or am about to get bad news. As a dutiful mob wife, she sits at my feet and cradles my hand, resting her cheek on my knuckles.

“One of you fucking brats talk,” I bark into the phone. “Did something happen to Griffin?”

The legacy of Quinlan Empire dawns on me for the first time. What would happen if someone took Griffin out? By order of our birth, Connor would assume the role of Don. Or would Ewan step in? I’m the fucking youngest. Heck, they might hand it to Sabine before me.

“No. Griffin is fine,” Rhys answers. “It’s Connor.”

My stomach heaves. I saw him and Rhys dip out of the memorial service after terse words with Griffin earlier.

To go somewhere or deal with something Griffin didn’t want them to handle by how annoyed he seemed.

No one bothered giving me an update. I thought it was the usual business they have on the streets.

God, did Connor finally go too far?

“What happened to my brother?” I yell.

“Oh no,” Lennox whispers, her eyes glassy.

“He’s fine, Shane,” Trace interjects. “He’s alive.”

I swear I’m going to ring my cousins’ necks when I see them. “Okay. And?”

“I got a call from one of my informants that the DEA planned to take down Havok,” Rhys explains. “Found out where he’s dealing these days.”

Havok...

“The Albanian drug dealer?”

“Aye,” Rhys says.

I’m not sure why this has Rhys sounding like he’s the one who’s strung out on drugs.

“Noel Tahiri, the new kyre won’t meet with us,” Rhys continues, reminding me. “We thought if we took out the DEA agent and saved his ass, he’d owe us one.”

“Smart play. Clean up his mess and make him beg us for a sit-down. Who came up with that idea?” I ask, impressed because it’s brilliant.

“Connor,” Rhys laughs. “You sound surprised.”

“He’s been more transactional lately. Deleting people.” I clear my throat. “Where is Connor? Did he take the agent out? Is he dead?”

“ He is a she. And no,” Rhys reports cautiously.

“One of Tahiri’s guys shot at her first. It got fucking messy, Shane.

Lots of gunfire. She took off. I also didn’t want to kill a woman to be honest. She chased Havok, but he got away.

Then Noel disappeared. He was in the club while Havok did the deal in the stockroom. ”

Fuck. Talk about a missed opportunity down the drain.

I kiss Lennox’s hand and give her a nod. She stands up and heads back to the bathroom. I stand up, too, and kick off my shoes, wanting to take that shower with my wife. “Okay. Thanks for the heads up.”

Especially for an operation they never bothered to tell me about in the first place. That’s when it hits me, there has to be more. The real reason my enforcer and lead assassin are on the phone.

“Wait, is that it?”

There’s silence for a few moments filling me with dread all over again.

“No,” Trace says. “There’s...something else. Something you should know.”

I stand to my full height. “Spit it out.”

“The DEA agent running point on that raid?” Rhys says. “I saw that blonde leaving Connor’s apartment. In the middle of the night. Looking...well fucked.”

My stomach twists. Blonde. A face flashes behind my eyes. Poorly dressed, eyes wild, in my trailer, looking for a dealer named... Havok. Fuck, she was undercover. I knew it.

Then shit starts to unfold in my head.

“You think Connor backed off taking her out on purpose?” I ask tightly.

“It happened so fast,” Rhys answers. “I can’t be sure.”

So much calculates in my head. The damage control. The fixing this mess needs.

“Did Connor recognize her?”

“I think so,” Rhys sounds concerned. “He wasn’t the same. He took off shortly after she did.”

“Is he... Is he with her now?”

“No idea,” Rhys says tightly.

“Did you get a photo of her?” I ask, already knowing it has to be that woman from the trailer months back, the night before the warehouse fire.

“Sending now.” Rhys is one step ahead of me. “According to the department, her name is Raina. ”

My phone dings and I open the message.

Fuck.

“That’s her,” I grit out, putting my shoes back on my feet.

“Then we’ve got a problem,” Rhys says.

“No,” I growl. “We’ve got a ticking bomb.”

Thank you for reading Savage Promises! A Bonus Epilogue is included. Connor and Raina’s story is Lovely Venom , Quinlan Empire Book 3. Keep scrolling for a Sample.