Becoming Carter (The Carter Series) (Volume 2) (6 page)

“I hear what you’re saying, but I’m not feeling it,” Kelvin said. “I’ve been in this situation before, and there’s no way I’m going back to… hello?” Kelvin pulled the phone away from his ear and looked at the screen. “Son of a bitch.”

“What’s the matter?”

Kelvin put his head down and exhaled. His jaw was still clenched. “You should get dressed,” he said. I could hear the frustration in his tone. “My fucking dad is gonna be here any minute.”

Just as I was slipping my white sweater over my head, I heard the ding of the elevator. Luckily, I’d already put my face and my navy blue jeans on and felt ready to be seen by other people. It’d only been ten minutes since Kelvin had gotten off the phone, and the infamous Kelvin Carter Senior was already making his way up the elevator. He was the only other person who had a key to come up to the penthouse without having to get the assistance of the concierge.

I speed walked barefooted down the hallway and passed the elevator so that I wouldn’t be standing there when the door opened. Kelvin was already sitting in the living room on the couch with one leg crossed over the other. To my surprise, he hadn’t changed into anything fancy. He was still rocking his Jordan jersey, and his perfectly white Jordan shoes were on full display. I sat next to him and couldn’t help but notice his scowl.

“Don’t look so mad. He hasn’t even gotten here yet. Maybe it’ll be a good conversation this time,” I said. I wanted to help him ease up, because I didn’t want to see anymore father, son drama. When Kelvin’s facial expression didn’t change, however, I got the feeling that I might not have a choice.

The doors slid open, and I turned around in my seat to watch Senior stroll into the penthouse decked out in a navy blue suit with no tie. His round face was twisted into the same kind of scowl that Kelvin was wearing, and his eyes narrowed as he focused in on Kelvin and me sitting on the couch.

Kelvin stood up and nodded at his father as he approached the living room. “What’s up?”

“Morning,” Senior responded with a barely noticeable nod. “Good morning, Lily.”

I was surprised that he’d acknowledged me. “Oh, good morning, Mr. Carter.” I didn’t know if I was supposed to call him that or not. “How are you?”

Senior walked in and sat down on the single seated couch next to ours. “I’m good,” he said, crossing one leg over the other just as Kelvin had. His black shoes had a hint of navy in the stitching. The Carters sure knew how to match up an outfit.

Kelvin and I sat back down on the couch and I heard Kelvin exhale loudly, already letting his father know that he was annoyed. Senior glared at him for a moment, obviously catching on to his son’s resentment.

“I didn’t come to get on your nerves,” he started, “and I don’t plan on staying long, but there’s some info I thought you both needed to have before starting your day today.”

I leaned back on the couch and took a deep breath, attempting to prepare myself for whatever craziness I was about to experience.

“Alright, first thing. We don’t have any other info on whether or not it was the Baskovs who tried to make the hit on you. We all still assume that it was them, in fact, I’m pretty convinced it was. We haven’t come to a decision yet on how we’ll go about handling this situation with them, but we
will
come to a decision, and something
will
be done about it in due time.”

I started to open my mouth to ask just what he meant by that, but he cut me off.

“Second thing. You both will be under protection until this shit is resolved. That means James will become your best friend, and there’ll be more than just him around, too. Someone will be watching your house at all times, Lily. Just to make sure that nothing happens, even when you’re not there. You probably won’t see them, but there
will
be someone there. And when you leave, you’ll have a tail. I don’t want you looking for any signs that there’s someone watching you, I just want you to rest assured that someone’s there to make sure you’re good. The only time you won’t be being watched is when you’re at work. Ivan is a sick son of a bitch, but he would never endanger children. You’re actually probably safest at work.”

I looked over at Kelvin and his expression had actually softened a little. I knew that this was what he wanted, so he didn’t have any reason to be upset.

“As much as I don’t want to be under constant surveillance and protection, I’m grateful that you’re willing to look after Lilliana. That’s the most important part to me, so thank you,” Kelvin said. He still wasn’t smiling, but I could tell he meant it.

“I’m not doing this as a favor to you, Junior,” Senior snipped. “I’m doing this because you’re the only son I have left. I won’t lose you too. And if protecting her will help with that, then that’s what I’ll do.”

“Well, either way, I appreciate it, Dad.”

“It’s nothing,” Senior answered. “Now, with all this shit going down so recently, we still have to play this safe, okay? Stay inside today. Stay hidden. For all we know, they think that they got you. So if you keep a low profile, it might help cool things off until we can…” Senior looked over at me before continuing. “Until we can decide what to do next.”

“That makes sense,” I replied. I heard Kelvin exhale like he was doing it on purpose to get my attention. When I looked at him, he shot me a weird look that I couldn’t really read.

Senior rose from his seat and took a few steps towards the elevator. “I figured it’d be better to tell you all of this in person. Didn’t mean to just drop in on you. Just follow the rules and everything will be okay. Okay?”

Kelvin didn’t answer, choosing to nod at his father instead. Senior walked over to the elevator and pushed the button. He never said goodbye, but he nodded at Kelvin just as the elevator doors slid closed.

“Well, there you go. That’s what you wanted, right?” I said to Kelvin who was still glowering.

“Sure. Kind of.”

“What do you mean, kind of?”

“I’m glad he’s protecting you. He knows that’s the right thing to do, but I just hate having to stay inside all the damn time. This is a great penthouse and I love it, but I don’t want to be in this bitch twenty-four-seven. We said we were gonna get breakfast, and that’s what we’re gonna do. We’ll drop you off at your house right after, so you can do what you need to do for work tomorrow.”

Kelvin reached into his pocket and pulled out his cellphone. He started texting just as I started talking.

“You really think that’s a good idea, Babe? They just tried to kill us
yesterday
. I don’t know if I’m comfortable with going out just yet.”

Kelvin slipped his phone back into his pocket and looked up at me. “I know, Babe. But, I assure you, you don’t have anything to worry about. James will be there, and we’ll be quick, okay. We’ll go to a spot where I know a lot of cops go, that way we’ll be extra safe.”

About a minute later, the elevator door dinged again and James sauntered into the room in a dark gray suit. His pudgy stomach was pushing the buttons on the jacket out, but he still looked like he could kick some ass.

“This is a bad idea, Kelvin,” he said immediately. “Your dad just left, and he told me not to let you go anywhere. Not even five minutes has passed, and I’ve already got you texting me about taking you to breakfast at Mariana’s. And why would you want to go there anyway? It’s right next to Chicago PD. That place is crawling with cops.”

“I know. That’s the point,” Kelvin replied. “I don’t have to worry about some coward rigging a fucking bomb under the car if it’s sitting in the parking lot next to Chicago PD.”

“And what about all the cops who eat there every day?” James continued.

“What? I’m not under investigation for anything. I’m not worried about them. It’s just me and my girl enjoying breakfast together. After that, we’ll take her home, and I’ll come back here, safe and sound in my comfy little penthouse. Okay?”

“Ugh. Why do you have to make things so complicated?” James said with disdain in his tone.

“Look, I know it’s frustrating for you to have to drive me around, especially when you know I don’t want you to. But we’re both being forced into doing something that we don’t want to do. So, I’m rolling with it. Plus, I need Lilliana to see that if we go out, we’ll be okay. And until she sees it for herself, she won’t believe it. So, let’s just go.”

Kelvin stepped in front of me and pushed the button on the elevator. The doors slid open and James and I glanced at each other without saying anything. Then, James finally relented.

“Fine. But, only because we’re going to Mariana’s. So, eat fast.”

I let out a worried sigh, and jogged into the bedroom to put on my shoes. As I slipped on the lowest heels I could find, Kelvin walked past me and over to the closet. He opened it up and pulled out a pair of black pants, and a red and white argyle sweater to match the shoes he was already wearing. I couldn’t help but think that he was intentionally dressing down. Usually he would be donning an expensive suit with the flashiest shoes anybody’d ever see. The fact that he chose to avoid his usual attire today didn’t help my confidence any.

“Go ahead, Babe. I’ll meet you in the elevator,” he said with a cunning smile after he caught me staring at him getting dressed.

“Okay.”

I stepped out of the room and into the hallway, but before I got to the elevator, I realized that I’d forgotten my watch. So, I made a U-turn and walked back into the room. When I turned the corner, Kelvin was shoving his handgun into the back of his pants. He quickly pulled his sweater down over his waist and looked up at me.

“You ready?” he asked. His nervous expression told me he was hoping that I hadn’t seen him. So, I grabbed my watch off of my nightstand, and flashed a playful smile.

“Sure. I’m ready.”

The ride over to Mariana’s was quick. Too quick, which was why I couldn’t help but to be nervous as hell about the fact that we were already going out in public after an attempt on both of our lives less than twenty-four hours ago. Knowing that Kelvin felt the need to carry his gun around only made things worse, and I was more paranoid than I’d ever been.

James parked the car as close to the restaurant as he could. The parking lot was pretty full, with most of the cars being Chicago PD police cruisers, which gave me
some
comfort. When we walked inside, at least half of the small restaurant’s customers were uniformed cops. None of them seemed to notice that Kelvin Carter Jr. had just walked into the place, and I didn’t know if that was a bad thing or a good thing. I was just happy to be surrounded by people who were paid to protect Chicago’s citizens. Kelvin’s strategy to put me at ease by eating here seemed to be working so far.

The place was poorly lit, with old fashioned wooden tables spread across the main dining area. The hostess escorted us to our table, including James, who’d asked for a seat next to the window so that he could keep an eye on the car. When the tall, skinny redhead strutted over to our table, we all immediately ordered our meals without even giving her a chance to ask if we wanted appetizers or drinks.

Kelvin and I were sitting across from each other, while James sat on his side of the table. I had a clear view of the entrance from my side, and I found myself glancing up at the door every single time I heard it open. If someone’s chair slid across the floor, I found myself jumping at the sound. I felt like I was going to have gray hair by the time our food arrived.

Kelvin noticed my anxiety and reached across the table to place his hand on top of mine. His hand was smooth, but it was also strong and masculine. On more than one occasion, I’d felt just how strong those hands could be, and the memory of the last time I felt it made me feel warm all over as I looked at the man sitting across from me.

“You have to relax, Babe. I can see that you’re all tense,” Kelvin said with a comforting grin.

I gave his hand a flirtatious squeeze. “You’re making me feel more comfortable.”

James dramatically rolled his eyes and looked out the window next to him.

“Oh, whatever, James. Don’t be mad because you’re here without a beautiful woman to love,” Kelvin teased, tapping James on the arm playfully.