Broken Justice (Justice Brothers) (25 page)

It took all of Lacey’s strength to keep things light and easy with the man at her side. She hadn’t missed the telltale bulge in his jeans and had done everything in her power to keep from staring at his groin like a hungry predator.
Did he know how desirable he was?
Probably not. Men seemed to think that desire was a one-way street inhabited only by them. He’d no doubt be shocked by how naughty her thoughts were where he was concerned. At one point she even put her hand on the kitchen table to test how strong it was while her imagination went crazy with erotic fantasies of laying back on said table, naked and begging for his possession.

Good grief.
Two days ago she’d been a complete innocent but after a couple of hot kisses and one night of total surrender she was practically overcome with arousal whenever he appeared. Pressing her thighs together in the tight jeans, she tried to quell the slow burn starting between her legs.
Mental note to self - get more undies.
She was going to destroy the few pairs she had with the way his dark, good looks made her panties damp after each encounter. Even an innocent conversation turned her into a wet mess.

She was relieved that he didn’t seem as driven to push her away this morning. If anything, there was a pulse of protectiveness that he wasn’t trying all that hard to hide. Maybe the walls around his heart were breaking down. She could only hope that was the case. They were good together, in more ways than one. She’d even gotten an unexpected grin when teasing him about the smile thing.

In the daylight the magnificence of the Spanish influence on the main portion of the villa was nothing short of breathtaking. Driving into a large, open courtyard, Cameron pulled the truck to a slow stop near a stone walkway that led to the home’s massive front door. The subtle scent of desert sage and the flowering yucca trees filled the air. From her seat in the front of the truck, Lacey tried to take it all in. Nothing about the place had been what she expected at all.

Sensing his eyes upon her, she turned toward his gaze, smiling softly. “It’s so beautiful, Cameron. Thank you again and again for bringing me here.”

He didn’t say anything; he just sat still and watched her. When he exited the truck and came around to her side so he could help her jump down, she put her hands upon his shoulders when he offered his assistance. As her feet hit the pavement she moved her hands from those impossibly broad shoulders to the back of his neck and leaned in for a swift kiss.

When she stepped back to look him straight in the eye and said “Showtime!” he looked shocked. And pleased.
Showtime, indeed.

They’d barely stepped through the wide, heavy front door when he heard a shouted greeting in lightly accented English. “Welcome home, M
eee
ster Cameron!”

“Hola, Carmen,” he replied, his voice heavy with tenderness. "¿Cómo estás?"

Alex’s trusted housekeeper glided down a set of massive wooden stairs from a long, second floor balcony that looked down into the huge foyer. She was one of those ageless women who could have been anyone’s favorite grandmother, with a long dark braid mixed with grey that wrapped around her head and a wide mouth set with a hearty smile.

“You’ve been missed you scoundrel!” She laughed as Cam drew her into a warm bear hug.

“Ah, scoundrel, huh? Your English has gotten too good, Senora! Next you’ll be telling me how good-looking I am,” he teased.

“Big chance!” she snorted while beaming her obvious fondness at him.

“Uh, it’s ‘fat chance’, and one can hope.”

“Oh. Did you hear about Liang? M
eee
ster Alex, he was………p
eee
ssed? Is that right?”

“Pissed covers it quite nicely, I think, and yes, I heard. The bat cave looks like someone was more than pissed if you ask me.”

Carmen laughed. “Bat cave! Good one, amigo! I must use that word with Javi. My grandson, he loves the superheroes, that boy.”

For a brief moment, Cam recalled another young boy who was into all things Batman. A shadow gathered in his mind that he just barely managed to dismiss, but the reminder was there nonetheless.
Great.
Without warning he felt a trickle of sweat roll down his back.

“Hola, Miss Lacey. M
eee
ster Alex told me you are staying in Casita de Corazon. My name is Carmen. Whatever you need to make your stay comfortable, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

Cam watched the two women greet each other. Carmen, of course, was welcoming and direct while Lacey offered a shy greeting that made the older woman grab her in a firm hug.

“Welcome, welcome! It’s good to have another woman around this old house now that Betty has been away. These men,” she gestured with her head in a conspiratorial fashion, “they need us to keep them in line!”

When Ponytail laughed, he knew a bond of friendship had been formed between the two.

“Alright, alright. Enough of that! The only person needing to be kept in line is you, old woman. Why, you’re lucky we don’t hire some fancy New York butler instead of putting up with your antics.” Without realizing at first what he was doing, Cam finished the teasing with a simple smile.

Carmen looked back and forth between he and Lacey, and a devilish grin spread across her face. Apparently she also noted the unusual appearance of a smile on his face.
What the hell was happening to him?
The sparkle in Lacey’s eyes told him she approved. He rather liked that blue sparkle. It lit up her face in the most charming way. Maybe he could try smiling some more if that was the reaction he was going to get.

“Off with you two, now. M
eee
ster Grumpy is prowling out in the back. Good luck. He’s already made Benito’s life a living hell this morning over something silly. Whatever you do, don’t ask about that ridiculous fish pond they’re planning. Apparently, fish don’t like living in a desert. Nice meeting you, Lacey. We’ll see each other again at lunch.” She nodded in their direction and strode away.

“Fish pond?”

“Yeah. Don’t ask. Sometimes Alex gets these ideas. It’s hard to explain. Takes his mind off ……other things.” He didn’t elaborate that the other things generally referred to the flare-ups of pain and mobility problems brought on by his old injuries.

Taking Lacey by the hand, another new experience he rather enjoyed, Cam pulled her along in search of Alex. They found him, prowling, just as Carmen had suggested. Cam saw the slight limp and tried not to let concern show on his face. Alex would have none of that and wouldn’t appreciate any mention of his physical infirmities.

He was on the rear patio, pacing back and forth beneath one of the two wide cabanas that flanked the enormous pool. As always, his big black Labrador Zeus was by his feet. He felt Lacey’s brief hesitation as she took in what he knew looked like a luxury resort. The pool area had been completely renovated several years ago to Alex’s precise specifications. Water therapy had been key to his rehabilitation and he continued to swim regularly as a way to keep the discomfort in check.

“G’morning Alex,” Cam barked as he dragged Lacey into the lion’s den.

Alex’s head snapped up at their approach and even behind the dark sunglasses he was wearing, Cam knew his friend was sizing up the woman at his side. Instead of dropping her hand, he held firm, sending a clear signal he hoped Alex heard. Squeezing her fingers for encouragement, he pulled her in front of him for an introduction.

“Lacey, allow me to introduce Alexander Valleja-Marquez. Don’t let the scowl scare you off. He just does that for effect.” Spearing Alex with a
fuck you
glare, he finished. “Alex,” the warning in his voice was unmistakable. “This is Lacey Morrow. Be nice bro. She’s not used to figuring out which hat you’re wearing.” He provided an explanation when Lacey glance at him turned to confusion.

“Some days he’s the Major. Other days, the Don of a Spanish Villa. Most days he’s just an asshole with a shitty attitude.”

When Lacey pressed her lips together as she bit back a smile, he felt some of the tension ease from her body. He had to hand it to her, she recovered quickly and, knowing she was undergoing an intense inspection, offered up a fabulous smile while stepping forward, out of Cam’s protective reach, to extend her hand in greeting to Alex.

“Good morning, Major. You have a beautiful home. Thank you for allowing me to stay in your guest house.” Short, sweet, and to the point. Smart girl.

Alex pushed the sunglasses up his head as he reached for her hand. Cam watched their exchange in gritty silence. If Alex so much as stepped a toe out of line he was going to let him have it.

“Ah. Lacey. What a pleasure to meet you! Welcome to the Villa. We could use a bit more female influence around here. I hope a bunch of crotchety old bachelors don’t ruin your stay.”

When Alex folded her delicate hand in his big one and held on, Cam almost jumped on him to separate them. Just like his reaction with Frank, a searing jolt of white-hot jealousy made his jaw clench. The smirk on Alex’s face let him know his reaction hadn’t gone unnoticed.

“Please, sit under the awning before the sun devours your pale skin.” Cam’s jaw clenched at his friend’s words, as well as his hands and gut. Devour, my ass.
What game was Alex playing?
He knew the suggestive power of the phrase he chose. Motherfucker was trying to get a rise out of him.

Before he could take back control of the situation, Alex stepped in and smoothly guided Lacey to a comfortable chaise placed at the rear of the cabana. Dude was in for a serious ass-kicking if he kept this up.

“Cam tells me you’ve signed on to clean up the mess we’ve made in the office now that Betty has taken a leave. Brave of you, I must say. Especially if all you’ve had to go on before now was the character and behavior of the dark one over there.”

Hearing him referred to as the dark one made Cam’s hackles rise. Lacey’s snort of amusement didn’t help.
Mothergoddammfucker
. He was definitely going to kill Alex when he got the chance. He thought Drae would be the fly in the ointment, not stuffy old Alex.

“Thanks for the warning. May I call you Alex?” she asked.

He nodded before pointing at the puckered skin on her arm. “What happened here?” he inquired.

Lacey glanced down at her arm and just stared for a moment as if the healing wound was something she’d never noticed before. “Oh, that.” She shrugged. “Had a bit of a run in with….well, with a couple of America’s troubled youth. They were what you would call, earnest.”

Smiling shyly at Cam she pulled her arm away from Alex’s inquisitive gaze. “Cameron saved the day, didn’t he tell you? Showed up in the nick of time and then did a fine job of stitching my little boo-boo.”

Alex fixed him with a look that could strip the paint off an old car.
Shit.
He was going to have some explaining to do, when the time came.

“Well, my dear, I for one am glad he intervened. Someone as sweet as you shouldn’t be subjected to such harsh treatment. It’s good to hear that my partners have the good sense to jump in when necessary, although it may have been more appropriate for Cam to have been the one who ended up sliced and diced.”

Apparently, his choice of words struck her as funny and she giggled at the sentiment. “Seriously? Those two morons didn’t stand a chance. The way he laid out the biggest guy with one punch was pretty impressive.” Her look of beaming approval struck him between the eyes and once again, Alex didn’t miss a thing.

“Hmmm. I see. Well, you’ll have to tell me more later. I’d love to hear all about our hero and his rescue of such a fair maiden. For now though, you’ll have to excuse me. I have a video call that requires preparation. I’m sorry to cut this short but you’re in capable hands with Cam.”

It was the Valleja-Marquez Don in all his noble glory that reached out and snatched Lacey’s hand for a chivalrous kiss on her knuckles. Cam stood by with a heavy glower directed entirely at Alex. What. A.
Dick.
The belligerent sneer sent his way from his old friend let him know that they’d be having a serious talk. Soon.

When Alex walked away, Cam threw himself down on the chaise next to the Ponytail. She searched his face with a question in her lovely eyes.