Keep It Sexy (KIS Series Book 3) (24 page)

“Connor, if it’s all right by you, can you not show me that today?” I sounded pitiful, and at the moment it was how I felt. I could only pray to God he would take pity on me. Connor sucked his teeth and smiled.

“Fine. Tomorrow, okay?”

I smiled weakly, nodding in return. When he led me to his office and locked the door behind him, I knew what was coming next. I wasn’t sure how I was going to be able to do this.

Chapter Forty

Christian

Sunny, Marquis’s man, was an ex-Marine, ex-detective with a shaved head and brown eyes that were almost black. He looked like someone from the armed forces, but he wore these small rounded glasses that threw me off. Still, the dude was scary. I was beginning to piece together Marquis’s crew and wondered why, if he had such talented people working for him, he was only dealing in Aurora and not the entire state. Hell, with his
staff
he could run his drug business across the nation and be extremely successful.

Sunny and I were driving to an area in Boston that had nothing other than warehouses. Before arriving in the city, we managed to get Lincoln alone. I explained everything that was going on, and he already knew what Don had agreed to. Without hesitation, he gave me the security code to the warehouse where Connor would most likely take Billie. He agreed he would play along and pretend not to know that Billie would be there, since Connor hadn’t said anything to him. I also made him promise he’d keep her safe. When we spotted the warehouse, Sunny parked a good distance away so we wouldn’t be spotted.

“You don’t think the Feds are already here, do you?” I asked as we walked swiftly in the direction of the warehouse.

“No. That’s why they needed Billie. They have no idea about this warehouse. Connor’s good, man, he’s smart. But I’m smarter. You’d think with having the Grifter as your teacher your entire life, you’d be as good as or better than him, but I hear Billie’s the one who inherited her dad’s gift. And the Feds…well, let’s just say sometimes they can’t see what’s in front of their faces. Even when it’s in flashing lights.”

I didn’t think I could ever see Billie as this big criminal mastermind, nor did I want to. Just because she was capable of the things Don was, didn’t mean she would follow in his footsteps. Deep down, I knew she wanted a normal life. She wanted a white picket fence with a dog and two kids. After a life of a twists and turns, it was tranquility she was looking for, and I was ready to give it to her. Sunny handed me a black ball cap and black gloves when we reached the door. Quickly, I slipped the items on. Looking up, I noticed a small red light flashing at us. A camera.

“Sunny, we have eyes,” I said through gritted teeth.

“Ye of little faith. I’ve got it covered.” He laughed, opening the door with a key. My brows furrowed.

When I stood still, he chuckled. “Connor’s men aren’t very loyal,” he explained, “especially his computer geek, Hans. Marquis bought him out.” When my eyes widened, he added, “Don’t look so surprised. Marquis really cares for you, kid. He wants you out of the game, living the
right
way, the way you want to live.”

Sunny shoved me into a waiting area before pressing a code in the only other door available. He took in a deep breath before turning to me. “We know what’s behind this door. Don’t talk to them or look at them. Just stick to the plan, okay? As soon as we can, we’ll free them.”

I felt the muscles on my neck strain. It was one thing for someone to tell you what you’d find. It was another thing entirely to see it right in front of you.
These poor girls
.

Sunny doubled over at the sight and almost threw up. I stepped forward in their direction with the intention of letting them out of their restraints, but he stopped me by gripping my arm. “Tunnel vision, kid.”

We could have pounded on drums in here and the girls would never have noticed; that’s how out of it they were. The only thing they did was sway slightly back and forth and whimper at random times.

“Come, on. Let’s get in position.”

We waited almost an hour until I heard the door that led inside the warehouse slam shut. I was inside Connor’s office while Sunny was in one of the back rooms that had an exit. The plan was to get Connor to confess his crimes so the Feds would be able to arrest him, and then get Billie safely out of here with Sunny’s help. I was hiding inside of a small closet when I heard Connor talk to Billie. Then I heard the sounds of kissing and I lost it. Throwing the closet door open, I froze instantly when Connor held a gun to my head.

“You two think I’m stupid?” He laughed. I started panicking, and at the sight of Billie’s face I knew I didn’t care if I came out of here alive. I was going to kill him. “You’re being followed around by two idiotic detectives. You think I don’t know what you’re up to? Whose pocket do you think they’re in, huh? I
own
the Aurora Police Department. Nothing happens there without me knowing about it.”

Connor moved the gun, gesturing for me to step completely out of the closet, and that’s when I noticed he had a grip around Billie’s neck. She moved whenever he did. My hands were slightly raised in the air when I moved out in front of him.

“Let me guess, Lincoln is also in on this,” he said. “That’s how you were able to break in, isn’t it?”

I wet my lips before speaking. “Let her go and I’ll tell you.”

Connor grunted, then I saw his inner arm muscles constrict and instantly Billie gasped for air. My nostrils flared.

“Fuck off, Christian. That was a stupid thing to say, man.” He loosened his grip a little and Billie started to cough, but he held tight. “You know what?” Connor moved his hold from her neck to the back of her head. “I think I’m going to teach you a lesson. How you should never take a man’s girl.”

He brought Billie closer to him, and I fought the urge to lunge at him.
Not yet
.

“Billie’s going to suck my dick, and then I’m going to fuck her while you watch.”

Now
. I threw caution to the wind, not caring how this would end. I rammed into his body, breaking his grip from her neck. Now she had a chance to run. I screamed when his chest hit my shoulder. Suddenly, a shot was fired before the gun hit the floor. I cocked my arm back, connecting it to his face while I screamed for Billie.

“I’m fine, it didn’t hit me!” she shouted, frantic behind me as I punched Connor. He fought back, or at least he tried to. But this was my area of expertise. He had no chance, not without his fucking gun. My fists traveled from his chest to his face. He was taking my hits until one uppercut landed square on his jaw, and Connor fell on his back.

I jumped on top of him; he was lifeless on the floor. His face was warm and soggy against my fists while the blood gushed out, making my punches falter at times. My knuckles ached, but I kept hitting and hitting, taking out all my anger from the past two weeks on his smug face. For all the worries, the sleepless nights, the mental and physical harm he’d done to Billie, along with the ten girls that were outside this room. The rational part of my brain told me to stop, that I would kill him if I kept it up. But I kept going. I could live with that. I would live happily knowing I was the reason Connor was no longer breathing. From what seemed like far away, a voice cried out. It was Billie, but I wasn’t so sure.

“Christian! Christian, stop you’re going to kill him!”

“That’s the fucking point,” I thought I heard myself say.

By now I couldn’t recognize Connor’s face anymore, whether it was from the blood or how his skin shifted from my blows. Two small hands gripped my shoulders, trying but failing to pull me back. I wasn’t letting up.

“Don’t do this, baby!” Billie sobbed.

But I had to. It was tunnel vision. Suddenly, I felt something solid and hard hit me on the back of my head. Then I saw black. I was out.

Chapter Forty-One

Billie

Christian’s chest rose and fell peacefully while he slept on his hospital bed. God, he was beautiful. I had to break this habit of putting my boyfriend in the hospital. I sat forward with my elbows planted on my knees as a smear of blood on my shoe caught my attention. My stomach involuntarily heaved at the sight.

Five hours ago, I had to pistol whip Christian into submission. He was going to kill Connor, and even though the possibility of him going to jail was not likely, I wasn’t taking the chance. What sort of life would we have if Connor’s death lingered around us?

Christian didn’t want to be the man he was three years ago, yet he’d become that person again, right before my eyes. He wouldn’t forgive himself if he continued, and I couldn’t forgive myself if I let him. When I attempted to push him off Connor’s limp body, I failed. By then, I could hear a commotion outside the office. Men were yelling, “FBI!” I panicked, taking Connor’s gun and cocking Christian behind the head. I fell to my knees, holding him in my arms as the door was busted open. Agent Gilmore’s eyes widened in horror. I could only imagine how it looked from her point of view. Christian and I were covered in blood, while Connor lay next to us.

“I need a bus!” she yelled, rushing over to Connor. She placed two fingers on the side of his neck and lowered her head to his chest. It felt like an eternity until she finally said, “He’s still breathing, barely, but he’s still alive.” Relief washed over me, not for him but for Christian. Soon the room was filled with paramedics and police officers. First they took Connor, and then Christian. When they tried to take me, I resisted.

“Billie, you have to get seen.” Agent Gilmore spoke gently as she inspected my head.

“I want to be with Christian.”

She blew out a heavy breath before agreeing. “Yeah, okay, I think we owe you that much.” She helped me up off the floor and when we stepped outside the room, the warehouse was clear. The girls were gone and so were my brothers and Hans.

“The girls?” I asked.

“All taken care of. You did good, Billie, you did really good.” She gently squeezed my arm while we walked out of the building and got into her car.

“What happens now?” I winced when she hit a small bump on the road.

“Sorry.” She flinched. “Well, Donnie and Connor will both be put in jail as well as Hans. Lincoln, per your father’s contract, is going to be set free after he is debriefed. You gave us more than we needed, Billie. We have him on tape confessing to having the Aurora Police Department in his pocket, along with the ledger, not to mention the warehouse full of sex slaves and security videos. We have more than we need, all thanks to you. I’m not sure we would have gotten all this information without you. You crippled Connor, and that’s what we needed.”

I had stayed quiet after that. All I wanted to do was get to my man, go back home, and start fresh without all this bullshit. I was finally ready to let go of the chains binding me to this life. I was ready to be free. I snapped back to the present when Christian began to stir from his sleep. Jumping off my chair, I moved to sit by his side.

“Hey, baby,” he said, groggy.

I lost it. Tears fell without warning.

“Hey, hey, hey.” He soothed me gently, wrapping his arms around me. I buried my face in his chest, breathing in his scent and listening to his beating heart. He was alive, safe.

Christian let me cry on him until my eyes were empty of tears. In a sense, it felt like we were both being cleaned of our sins. We’d been given a second chance to live. Not perfectly, because we were human and it was certain we would make mistakes, but a second chance to do this
together
.

It’s easy to fall in love when things are simple.

When the road gets tough and you get through it together—that’s where the greatest love is created.

Epilogue

Billie

Nine months later.

“You think I got enough beer?” I asked Pete while we carried boxes of Coronas to the adorably decorated backyard. Pink balloons were lined up along the fence, welcoming everyone to the party while the white tent shielded guests from the scorching summer. Inside, more pink. It was almost like I’d been dipped in Pepto-Bismol.

“Dude, it’s a baby shower.”

“So, its
Jade’s
baby shower,” I retorted, placing the box next to Christian while he loaded bottles into a cooler full of ice. It was a perfect day for a party. We even had misters installed above the tent so the guest of honor wouldn’t be too miserable in the heat.

“Touché.” Pete laughed, and he stopped when he noticed Jade coming out the sliding doors. He ran to her and helped her waddle down the steps. It was adorable. Christian chuckled when he noticed.

“So, who’s all coming?” Jade yelled.

Jesus, we’d had this conversation twenty times already. I was looking forward to the end of this baby shower. For the past four weeks, Jade would call in the middle of the night or while I was in class, whenever she thought of something else she wanted. I told her I was blaming her if I didn’t graduate on time, and then she would have to pay for my college tuition.

Luckily for her, my wonderful boyfriend was helping me out with that. Christian was paying for my tuition while I worked for free at his new bar, B&C. Yeah, it was a little corny that he’d used our initials, but I thought it was cute. I also thought it was pretty damn sexy when he tattooed a shamrock on his neck, representing me—his lucky charm. Don and Lincoln thought it was ridiculous. Juanita thought it was romantic.

“Everyone.” I spoke in a level voice when she moved closer to me.

“It’s not going to be too uncomfortable for you that Ava will be here, is it?”

“No, not really.” I shrugged. I didn’t go out of my way to visit with Ava. Sure, she was loved up with her man and their new baby girl, but it
was
awkward being in the same room with any woman who’d seen your boyfriend naked, and I’m sure Maxwell, her boyfriend, felt the same way I did.

“The newly engaged couple will be here?” Jade continued.

“Yes, Vanessa and Diesel will be here, straight from Oklahoma.” Christian handed me a beer before planting a kiss on my lips.

“And Mallory?”

“Yes, she’ll be here.”

“Talon?”

I swallowed the beer, annoyed, trying my best not to snap at my adorably eight month pregnant best friend. This would be the twenty-first time we’d had this conversation.

“I’m not sure if Talon is coming,” I said. “I don’t know if he got his shift covered.” Jade nodded, then looked up at me with wide eyes.

“I gotta pee!” she squeaked. Christian and I broke out in a laugh. Suddenly, I was in the arms of my sexy man. He groaned as he squeezed my ass.

“When are you going to let me put a baby inside of you?” he asked, lowering his mouth to mine.

“When you put a ring on my finger,” I replied, kissing him back. “I want to do things the right way.”

“But, babe. Don’t you know? There is no right or wrong with us…just a perfect combination of both.”