“Cassie, you’ve ignored me the entire trip home.” Things have gone from humorous to frustrating. The woman is completely ignoring me despite being seated right next to me.
One of the perks of flying private is not having nosy nellies butting into your conversations. The flight attendant even gave us a wide berth, no doubt noting the palpable tension between Cassie and I. But still, the maddening woman didn’t spare me a single word.
Having landed ten minutes ago, we’re now in my G-Wagon on our way to Cassie’s and it’s my mission to get her to talk to me before then.
“Why are you acting this way?” I attempt reaching out to her one more time, thinking maybe if I make her see she’s acting like a child she will see the error of her ways.
Apparently not, all it does is earn me a glare. Hell, that’s more than I’ve gotten thus far so maybe I’m onto something.
“You’re acting like a child. I have no idea what I’ve done to earn this cold shoulder.”
Ding. Ding. Ding. I’ve hit the jackpot. Cassie’s face turns a pretty impressive shade of red before she opens her mouth and unleashes her hellfire.
“You haven’t done anything wrong. I’m simply giving you the space you require.”
My brows squeeze together. “What? What are you going on about? Is this because I haven’t been by to walk Bruce? Does my little angel miss me?”
I bite the edge of my lip, knowing I’m poking the dragon at this point.
“No. Of course not. I don’t need you to walk Bruce with me. I’m more than capable of handling myself.”
“I think we proved that theory wrong with my little demonstration, didn’t we?” Visions of me fingering Cassie up against her door have my cock hardening almost instantly. A low guttural sound escapes me, the need to have her again consuming me completely.
“That was a mistake, and the only reason you were able to pin me was because I let you.” My little angel has her claws out, ready to play.
“How about we have a repeat. See if you can prove me wrong.” I can’t help it, the corner of my mouth lifts in a mischievous smirk.
“We’re here. Thank you for the ride, both the flight and the ride home. I can see myself in.” The little spitfire hops out of the car before I can stop her.
Quickly following her lead, I get out of the car, grabbing hold of her bag and refusing to let her carry the duffel up to her loft by herself. “This thing weighs a ton, what’d you pack? Your entire wardrobe?”
“Ha ha. Very funny. I didn’t know how long I’d be staying or what we’d be doing. Besides, nobody asked you to carry my bag.” Cassie picks up speed, apparently trying to get our little quality time over with as soon as possible.
“Where’s Bruce? Will I get to see him tonight?” I know I’m stalling the inevitable, but if playing twenty-one questions will buy me some extra time with Cassie then so be it.
“He’s with my mom, and no, you will not get to see him tonight or any other night.”
We’re almost to her door but I can’t take one step further with her being so damn pissed at me. I grab hold of her arm and bring her into my chest. “Stop. I don’t know why you’re so mad at me but I’m sorry. I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings, it wasn’t my—” the door to her apartment pulls my attention, making me stop mid-sentence.
There are visible marks around the wood trim by the doorknob—clear signs that someone’s been tampering with the lock. Quickly moving Cassie behind me, I go into full protective mode. “I need you to go back to the car and call Titus, tell him we need a crew over at your place, ASAP.”
I hand her my phone, unlocking the contacts, but she isn’t having any of it.
“No. Why don’t you go to the car and call them?” She places her hands on her tiny waist as if to say she isn’t going anywhere.
Oh my little angel, how you try me.
Picking her up by the waist, I throw her over my shoulder and carry her to my SUV, ignoring her small fists to my lower back. Once she’s safely inside with my phone, I lock it from the outside.
I point to the phone, “Call Titus. Now.”
She might be pissed as fuck, but this is for her own safety and I won’t play nice just to appease her when there’s a real possibility some psycho is still in her apartment, waiting to hurt her.
I step away from my car, knowing that’s the safest place for her to be. The windows are bulletproof and I’m the only one who can unlock it. Short of a bazooka, nothing can touch her.
Back at her door, it is blatantly obvious someone either tried or was successful in breaking in. There’s only one way to find out.
I withdraw my weapon from its holster, keeping it low to the ground I kick the door open, wanting the element of surprise in case someone is still here.
The smell of shit hits me like a bat to the head. It’s everywhere. Smeared all over the walls, dragged across the floor, and rubbed all over Cassie’s furniture.
Someone wanted to make a statement.
“Holy shit!” Titus chuckles while pulling the collar of his T-shirt over his nose. “No pun intended.”
“Now isn’t the time for jokes, asshat. Can’t you see someone is trying to fuck with my girl? And how’d you get here so fast?”
“I was at a bar down the street when your little firecracker called.” He bares his teeth, sucking in a sharp breath. “About that, I passed her on the way in and she does not look pleased.”
I raise a hand, spanning it across the open living area à la Vanna White. “She refused to cooperate. Please tell me you’d do something differently given the circumstances?” I cock a brow, knowing full well Titus is as alpha male as it gets. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was into that BDSM shit, making his women bend to his beck and call.
He lets out a low laugh, almost a snicker. “No, I wouldn’t, but my women are very different than the little wild one you’re now calling your girl. Does Bella know?”
Shit. I hadn’t realized I’d let that slip.
“No. And I’d appreciate it if we kept it that way.” Scanning the room, I see a photograph pinned under a particularly fresh pile of shit.
Upon closer inspection, I see that it’s a picture of Cassie. Well, Cassie with her eyes scratched out.
“Wow, that’s twisted.”
“You can say that again. I need you to call a team in, have them check for prints or any other information they’re able to gather.”
“Got it, brother. I’ll also call our cleaning crew. A lot of this stuff needs to be tossed. Hope Cassie doesn’t mind rebuilding her pad from scratch.”
“Oh she’s not coming back here, ever.”
Titus brings a hand to his mouth, holding back a snicker while shaking his head. “Another one bites the dust.”
“What? She’d be safer at my place.” Both of my brows drop, unsure of what the big deal is.
“Right. Because she couldn’t go stay at William’s. That place is locked up tighter than Fort Knox.”
“William isn’t here, he’s in California. And besides, he’s already got his hands full with Harper and Bella. Not to mention his sister is also staying there.”
Titus’ expression shifts ever so slightly at the mention of Ashley, William’s sister. To the untrained eye, it would seem that Titus is unaffected, but to me, it’s glaringly obvious. “So, Ashely?”
“Drop it, brother.” Titus takes on a no-nonsense tone. For someone who’s been all jokes tonight, his change in demeanor is extremely enlightening.
Knowing not to push when he’s like this, I acquiesce and drop it… for the most part. “No problem. I’m here if you want to talk, though.”
“Got it, Dr. Phil. Why don’t you take your lady back to your pad. I’ve got everything handled here. Should we find anything, you’ll be the first I call.” Titus brings a hand to my shoulder, patting it a couple of times before he walks toward the far end of the loft, clearly exceeding his brotherly bonding for the night.
“Sounds good.” I walk out, leaving him behind to deal with his own demons. It’s time for me to deal with my own—a little hellion named Cassie.
Stepping into the G-Wagon, I notice she’s just as fired up as when I left her. “I’m surprised the windows aren’t fogged up with all the smoke coming out of your ears, little angel.”
I chuckle as Cassie flings the cell phone at my face.
“So, can I go in now?” Her pouty lips are glistening, begging me to bite them. I love it when she’s all fired up like this.
“No—”
Before I can finish my sentence, Cassie’s hands fly to the door handle. Unfortunately for her, she isn’t quick enough and I’ve managed to hit the lock feature before she can open it.
“Listen, little angel. I swear there’s a good reason.”
“You have five seconds to explain before I start screaming bloody murder.”
“Shit.”
“Shit?” Cassie’s face scrunches together and I swear I’ve never seen a more adorable sight.
“Yes. It’s smeared all over your apartment. The floors, walls, furniture, and even the ceiling in some parts.”
Her face morphs from angry to scared. It stirs something in me, a need to keep her safe, making sure she never fears anything ever again.
“Don’t worry, baby. You’re coming home with me. We’ll figure out who did this, and more importantly, we’ll make them pay.”
My words have their intended effect, she softens, melting back into the seat.
Thank god she isn’t fighting me on this one. I really don’t feel like having the firm’s attorney battle a kidnapping charge, and that’s exactly what I’d have to resort to had she not agreed.
But to keep her safe, it’d totally be worth it.
“Who would do that?” she whispers into the night.
“A dead man, that’s who.” I grab hold of her small hand, giving it a firm squeeze. “I’ll keep you safe, Cass. I promise. All you have to do is let me.”
She finally gifts me with a small smile, bringing light into this dark night. “Okay. I promise I’ll try.”
“Good. Let’s take you home.”
And if I were being completely honest with myself, I’d know that this is the moment I truly fucked myself over. Bringing Cassie home would make her that very thing.
My home.
