Page 18

After they were done showering, Kade kissed Isla’s shoulder and then got into bed with her as the big spoon.
He was surprised to see that the blonde was already asleep. He smiled and was about to fall asleep when he heard a buzzing sound from his desk.
He groaned softly, got out of bed, and went to his desk, where his phone was.
He narrowed his eyes to read the message, and his face got hard when he saw it.
He went into his closet, put on a white undershirt and black jeans, then put on his timberlands and walked out of the room and into the elevator.
When he heard a ding, he looked up and saw “X” on the screen.
He walked out and down the dark hallway, which had a lot of doors that all looked the same. Finally, he opened one of the doors and saw three men tied up and hanging by their arms. Another man, who wasn’t tied up, stood up right away when Kade walked in, and his Adam’s Apple bobbed nervously.
“Why haven’t these men been helped?”Kade asked in a straightforward way.
“We thought they would know about Lorenzo’s deal with Rhodes.” “After all, they were his men.” The man with the auburn hair said this. He was muscular, which was important for his job.
“If Lorenzo made a secret deal with Rhodes, he wouldn’t tell anyone about it. Not even his own people.
Kade walked around the three men who were with Lorenzo at the meeting. They smelt like blood and sweat, and he could tell that his men had already put them through a lot.
“But I guess it doesn’t hurt to try,” he said softly. “Did you get anything useful?”
The blonde man shook his head and quickly changed what he was doing. “No sir, nothing about Rhodes—”
“Then why the hell did you call me down here?” “I thought you had something to tell me that couldn’t wait.”
“He has been taking things from us.”
Even though Kade’s face didn’t change, his eyes got big with shock.
“Excuse me?”
“They said he’s been getting our stuff for free by using someone from the inside.” Someone has been cooking our books so we wouldn’t notice that he’s been getting kilos of coke for about a year now.
Kade was no longer shocked; he was now angry. Just the thought of being betrayed was enough to make him take a gun from the tray and shoot one of the men in the chest.
“Shit!”He yelled, “Then he threw the used weapon away.”
The man started to shake because he was scared of Kade’s anger and what it would make him do.
Kade moved closer to the man with auburn hair and spoke softly. “I need you to find out who is in charge of our books.” I want to know who writes it, who edits it, and who touches it. You can work with me, but don’t say anything about this. I need the rat to not know that we have it. Marco, can you handle that?”
Marco’s eyes widened when he heard his name and the job he had to do. The name drop was a show of power, a way to let him know that he knew who he was. If he messed up, he was done.
He nodded shakily but spoke up when Kade raised an eyebrow.
“Yes, boss, of course.”
Kade nodded, his eyes dark with rage. He left the room and walked to the elevator that would take him back to his room.
He was tense in his back as he left the elevator, and instead of going back to his room, he went into the kitchen.
He reached up and poured himself a glass of scotch, then sat down on the couch with his legs crossed.
He sighed before taking a sip of the drink. The taste alone made him feel better right away, and his tense muscles relaxed and uncoiled.
He kept drinking until he heard little feet pattering and echoing off the walls. When he turned his head towards the sound, he saw Isla, who looked sleepy and had a confused frown on her lips.
“Why did you go?”She said in a whisper.
Kade didn’t say anything. Instead, he took her hand and pulled her onto his lap, where she cuddled into his chest. Isla was still very sleepy, so she fell back asleep in his warmth.
He sank even deeper into the couch and stared out the window at the forest and the waning moon. He wanted to calm his mind before going to sleep, and he didn’t want to have to deal with his rat problem until the next morning.
He got up after a while and put his cup in the sink with Isla sleeping in his arms. He then laid her down in bed so he could take off his clothes and join her in the soft sheets.
He quickly calmed down when she cuddled up to him on his chest, and it wasn’t long before he gave in to the darkness.
A small hand stroked Kade’s hair and hummed.
He slowly opened his eyes, trying not to let on that he was awake. He saw Isla’s face buried in his neck, and her small hands playing with his brown hair.
When he felt her fingers move from his hair to the outline of his face, he closed his eyes again. They caressed his skin gently.
Isla giggled when she felt Kade lean into her touch. She knew he was awake.
“Good morning,” she said with a giggle.
“Morning,” Kade said in a low voice, as if he were still asleep.
He took Isla’s hand and kissed it over and over again.
“Stop,” Isla laughed as she tried to pull her palm away.
Kade smiled and turned them over until he was above her, making her small frame look even smaller under his tensed muscles.
He rubbed his nose on her cheek and moved his face down until it was nuzzled between her breasts. Her cheeky grin made his eyes soften.
Isla playfully slapped his back, but then she went back to playing with his hair while he lay on top of her.
Kade mumbled, “We have to get up,” and put his arms around her waist.
He let go of Isla after a few more minutes and stood up straight, then stretched his muscles all the way out.
Isla watched with hunger as Kade stood in front of her, showing off his muscles and tattoos. She couldn’t help but lick her lips as he walked to get his clothes from the closet, his back muscles rippling as he did so.
She got out of bed quietly and walked slowly to his spot in the closet. There, she lifted her small hand and put it on his back.
Isla whispered, “You’re literally a work of art.” Her eyes were wide and focused, trying to take in as much of the drawings as she could.
She had never really looked at his tattoos before, but now that she was, she couldn’t take her eyes off of them.
Kade stayed still and let her hands move around and trace the lines of the tattoos on his back. He didn’t want to bother her, even though most of the tattoos on his body were just there to feed his addiction to the pain that came from the needle.
After a while, she tried to wrap her arms around his waist and whispered softly.
“You’re so pretty.”
Kade smiled, showing off his dimples, and then he turned around to see the short blonde girl hiding her face in his chest and blushing a lot.
“Am I now?”Kade teased a little.
Isla smiled and nodded her head while pushing herself even closer to his toned stomach.
Kade laughed and went on. “Let’s get you some clothes.”
He looked through his closet for something she could wear and chose one of his thrasher hoodies that would reach about mid-thigh on her. He didn’t bother to find pants to go with it because she would be wearing the knee-high boots she wore here anyway.
“Put this on, baby.”
Isla thanked him as she took the sweater and changed quickly. She put on the same bra she wore the night before and a clean pair of briefs he lent her.
Kade was wearing a blue Champion hoodie and ripped denim jeans when she turned around. He wore black combat boots with it and just ran his fingers through his hair to tame it.
“We’re going to have to eat breakfast downstairs.” Kade said, “I don’t really have any food up here,” as he put on his rings.
Isla said, “Okay,” in a low voice, and then sat on the bed to wait for him after putting on her boots. She swung her legs, which barely touched the floor, while she looked around in boredom.