Page 6 of The Mobster’s Daughter (Massachusetts Mafia #2)

“Yes, sir,” G rady said.

Caitlin sat up and rubbed her eyes. She peered out the window, but nothing looked familiar.

“Un derstood.”

Caitlin turned to look at Grady. There was only one person he spoke to like that, with that amount of deference.

H er father.

She stared at Grady, curious if Sean O’Reilly would want to speak to her.

Their relationship was difficult, something they were both working on, but they were a long way from things being good.

Part of her had hoped Grady wouldn’t call her father, though she wasn’t surprised he had.

He probably didn’t take a shit without Sean O’Reilly’s p ermission.

Grady held the phone out to her and muttered, “Take it.”

Caitlin plucked it from his hand. “Hey, Daddy,” she said non chalantly.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yes,” she replied. “ I’m fine.”

“Why didn’t you call me?”

“I don’t know,” she mumbled. “I ’m sorry.”

Her father sighed loudly. “You do what Grady says,” he ordered. “He’ll keep you safe. Do you un derstand?”

“Yes,” Cai tlin said.

The call ended, so she dropped the phone in the cup holder between the seats and glared at Grady.

“I cannot believe you called m y father.”

“Don’t start with me, princess,” he snapped. “I had no choice. He called me when I didn’t show up for our scheduled meeting, and I ignored it. I called him back as soon as we got out of the city.”

“Why?” she asked.

Grady shook his head. “Really? You hav e to ask?”

“Fine. What di d he say?”

“We’ll talk about it later.” He slowed down as they entered a small town, nothing more than a gas station, a diner, and several houses on a wide spot in the road.

To her surprise, he pulled into the gas station.

He didn’t park in front of a gas pump, though; instead, he parked under a tree at the back of the lot and shut off th e vehicle.

He pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, then held out his hand. “Give me yo ur phone.”

“What?” She clutched the pink iPhone in both hands and held it against her chest. “No. I’m not giving you my phone.”

“Now, Caitlin,” Grady demanded. “I won’t a sk again.”

She scowled at him, but she didn’t argue. She did n’t dare.

“Fine.” She tossed it to him, and he caught it with one hand.

He took the case off, pulled a knife from his front pocket, and used it to pop open the small compartment on the side. He removed the SIM card, broke it in half, and threw it out the Bronco’s window. Then he did the same with his phone.

“How are we supposed to get a hold of anybody?” she asked.

“I’ve got burner phones in the back,” he replied. “Come on, we’re going inside to pick up supplies.”

“I’ll wait here,” Cai tlin said.

“No, you’re coming in with me.” Grady got out of the Bronco and slammed the do or closed.

She stayed put, having no desire to go into some convenience store in the middle of nowhere for supplies.

Why the hell did they need to buy a bunch of stuff, anyway?

Caitlin was tired, she wanted a shower, and more than anything else, she wanted to lock herself in a room alone and take a minute to process e verything.

The passenger door opened, startling her. Grady grabbed her arm and dragged her out of the Bronco. She tried to pull away, but his grip on her was too tight.

Caitlin dug her heels in and tried not to move, like a toddler having a tantrum in the middle of the grocery store. “I said I wanted to wait in the car.”

Grady kicked the door shut and shoved her against the vehicle. He stepped close, so close she felt his chest rising and falling and the warmth of his body seeping into hers. She struggled to catch h er breath.

Grady’s upper lip rose in an irritated snarl. “You will do as I say, princess. You go where I go, you stay where I can see you at all times, and you follow every direction I give you. You are my shadow. Do you under stand me?”

“Yes,” Caitlin whispered.

“Y es, what?”

“Yes, sir,” she muttered with a hint o f sarcasm.

He raised an eyebrow and smiled. “Good girl.” Her heart skipped a beat as he took her hand and led h er inside.

Jesus Christ, why did Grady calling her a good girl make her break out in g oosebumps?

You’re out of your mind , Caitlin.

Maybe she was, but that didn’t stop desire from pooling in her stomach like a snake about to strike.

The store attached to the gas station seemed to be a one-stop shop.

Not surprising since it was obviously the only place to get necessities in the small town.

Grady grabbed a small basket as they entered and handed it to her.

She followed behind him as he picked items off the shelves and tossed them into the basket—soup, ramen, bread, lunchmeat, cheese, cereal, fruit, milk, eggs, and snacks.

When the basket was full, he set it on the counter in front of the cashier, then took Caitlin to the other side of the store, where a variety of clothing hung from rows of racks.

Grady grabbed several T-shirts, two flannels, a package of underwear, and a package of socks. When he noticed she wasn’t doing the same, he scowl ed at her.

“You’re going to need some clothes,” he said. “Grab them now or spend the next few days in what you have on.”

Caitlin wrinkled her nose, but the thought of not having clean clothes made her want to vomit, so she searched the racks, grabbing a few T-shirts, two sweatshirts, a pair of okay-looking jeans, a skirt, socks, and underwear.

She also grabbed some cheap slip-on shoes, as well as sweatpants and an oversized shirt to sleep in.

Once they’d made their selections, they dropped everything on th e counter.

“Lose your luggage?” the cash ier asked.

“Something like that,” Grady mumbled.

When the cashier gave him the total, he yanked a wad of cash from his pocket and handed it to her.

“You gave me too much,” the cashier said after she counted it. She held out a hundred-do llar bill.

He shook his head. “Keep it. For your trouble. And for helpin g us out.”

The woman raised an eyebrow. “Helping you how?”

“If somebody comes in here asking if you saw us, you say no. Can you do that?”

The woman nodded, shoved the money in her pocket, then quickly bagged up their things.

Grady scooped them up with one hand and thanked her as they left.

He grabbed Caitlin’s arm and kept hold of it as they walked back to the Bronco, as if he thought she would try to run away.

While she’d considered it, she knew she had to stay with him because he would pro tect her.

Besides, she couldn’t help but wonder where they were going and if it would still be just the two of them. Because there was nothing more in this world she wanted than time alone with Grady McCarthy.