Dante's Angel (20 page)

“When I first
met you, I could tell you were in a class all your own. It was pretty fucking
intimidating, considering I’m just a good ol’ boy from a small town in Texas. But
you make me feel like I’m your match in every way, even though you’re smarter
and a hell of a lot more talented than me. You’ve never let anything stop you,
and you face your fears head on. You’re the most amazing woman I know, and I
can’t wait to make you my wife.”

“I love you.
So much. You make my heart sing.” Tears drenched her eyes as she leaned in to
kiss him. She moved restlessly against him as she felt his hard, hot erection
throbbing between them. Her blood heated, and her heart was pounding by the
time the kiss ended. “Do you have to get back to the bar?”

“Hell, no. My
dad is running things just fine without me. I think we’re going to have to give
him a night or two each week to be in charge again. I didn’t realize how much
he missed it.”

“More time off
for us,” Zoe murmured as she moved in for another kiss.

“I’m not going
to complain about time off. Here. Let’s get these clothes off you. Have I
mentioned I love that you don’t wear underwear at home?”

“You usually
don’t wear any, so I thought I’d give it a try. I think I kind of like it.” She
let him roll her onto her back as he began to pull her clothes off. “You ruined
my pants.”

“I’ll get you
new ones.”

“I was going
to get all dolled up in some lingerie for you when you got home tonight, but
then I saw you running here, and well, I forgot.”

“Yeah? Wanna
put it on now?”

She smiled
when he had her naked on the bed. “What would be the point?”

“True, I do
love you naked better than anything.”

Their gazes
locked and she stroked her hand down his bare chest, her fingertips trailing
over the tattoo on his torso. “I’m so lucky to have you in my life, Dante.
Sometime when I look at you, I can’t believe you’re really mine.”

“Angel, I’m
the lucky one,” he said as he lowered his body onto hers.

They made love
again, slow and sweet, and when the waves of release washed over them, Zoe’s
heart stuttered as he whispered her name like a benediction. The light had
faded, and stars glittered over the ink black sky as they basked in the
afterglow of their lovemaking, unwilling to break the connection as they kept
their arms around one another.

“How long do
you think we’ll have to wait?” she asked softly.

“I don’t know,
baby. But whenever that bastard shows up, we’ll be ready. Don’t think about it.
We’ll have to deal with it soon enough. Just rest now.”

And because
she felt safe and secure in his arms, she did as he suggested and closed her
eyes.

They’d have to
deal with reality again soon enough.

But for this
moment in time, all Zoe wanted was to hold on to the happiness she found with
the man she loved, and dream of their future together.

Chapter Thirteen

“You’ve got to
be fucking kidding me…”

The following
day, Zoe and Dante showed up early to open the bar only to find Malcolm Fox and
Ellie Tate lying together on the couch in the office. Thankfully, they had a
blanket over them, because their clothes were littering the floor.

“In the
office? Seriously?”

“Shh.” Zoe slapped
Dante lightly on the arm. “Quiet or you’ll wake them.”

Malcolm Fox’s
eyes opened. “I’m already awake. You two weren’t exactly stealthy when you came
in. Now, get out before you wake Ellie and embarrass her.”

“I’m up and
too old to get embarrassed about getting caught snuggling with a man on the
couch,” Ellie said as turned her head toward Zoe and Dante and smiled. Despite
what she said, she still raised the blanket a little to make sure she was
completely covered.

“Your man,”
Malcolm corrected with a growl. “Not just a man…your man.”

“Oh, lord. He
sounds like you. Now I know where you got your caveman tendencies,” Zoe said,
making Ellie laugh as both men grumbled. “Let’s give them some privacy.”

“The day is
just starting, and I already have a headache.”

Zoe pulled Dante
from the room, and they headed back into the main bar. He was frowning, and it
made her laugh to see him so out of sorts. “What exactly has you so bothered?
You’re the one who encouraged him to ask Ellie out.”

“Yeah, but I
didn’t tell him to have sex with her in our office. I didn’t need to see that.”

“That room gets
a lot of action. I remember you dragging me back there last week.”

“That was
different.”

“Oh, really?
How?”

“Just…because.”
Dante’s lips tightened when she just laughed at him again. He stiffened as the
front door opened, and she noticed his hand moving to the back of his jeans
where his gun was nestled against his back. He relaxed as GT walked in, then he
groaned. “Oh, sweet Jesus.”

“What?” GT
asked as she moved behind the bar. “How come he’s looking at me all weird?”

“Because we
just found your mother with Malcolm in the office, on the couch…naked.”

A slow smile
spread across GT’s face. “Yeah? Go Mom.”

“I can’t talk
to you two.” He stomped away and started taking the chairs off the tabletops.

“Don’t mind
him. He’s just being a little prude right now.”

“I heard
that,” Dante called out. “And may I remind you that you were the one who was
freaking out yesterday when Jessup—”

“Just stop right
there,” Zoe told him. She scowled when he grinned at her. At GT’s questioning
look, Zoe said, “Jessup heard us last night when we were…against my front
door.”

GT’s eyebrow
raised. “Were you in your apartment or in the hallway?”

“In the
apartment!”

“I had to
ask,” GT said with a laugh. “Since I can’t remember the last time I had sex, I
have to live vicariously through you. I always loved a good wall banger.”

“I don’t want
to hear this!” Dante shouted from the other side of the room.

“Then stop
listening!” both women yelled back at the same time. They looked at one another
and burst into laughter. Dante’s cell phone rang and he answered it, then
unlocked the garden patio entrance and walked outside, yelling, “Stay inside,
Zoe!”

Zoe rolled her
eyes, making GT chuckle.

“God, it’s fun
to get him riled up.” GT unzipped her jacket and as she bent down to store it
and her purse in the large lock box below the counter, Zoe noticed that she was
wearing a skirt.

“What in the
world are you wearing? You hate skirts.”

“Don’t mess
with me. All my looser shirts are in the laundry I forgot to do yesterday. I
only had this tank top and you’d be able to see my gun beneath it if I wore it
with jeans.”

“So…how does
that translate to you wearing girl clothes?”

GT’s scowl
deepened as she stood up, she jerked her skirt up a few inches and Zoe saw a
small black band around her thigh holding a small pistol in place.

“Sexy. You
know, you don’t have to carry in here. All the guys have weapons and—”

“Hon, you
don’t really think I’m going to leave our safety to the guys, do you? You and I
are behind the bar. If that asshole that’s after you comes in, it will take
them a few minutes to get through the crowd of people even if they are close
by.”

Zoe knew she
was right. It was the same reason why Dante insisted that Zoe carry her weapon
with her at all times. The reminder made her sad, but she pushed her feelings
aside and nodded to her friend. “Thank you for doing this.”

“No thanks
needed.”

They were
interrupted as Malcolm and Ellie walked out of the hallway, into the main bar. Ellie
beamed a smile. “Hello, baby.”

“Hi, Mama.” GT
grinned at Ellie and Malcolm. “I heard you two had a good time last night.”

The women
laughed as Malcolm’s cheeks turned bright red. He mumbled something, then made
a beeline for the open door leading to the patio where Dante’s voice was
drifting in. Pausing in the doorway, he turned back. “Ellie, you come get me
before you leave. I’ll be walking you home…okay?”

“Yes,
Malcolm.” Ellie sighed after he disappeared from view. “That man is just too
cute.”

“It’s nice to
see you looking so happy, Mama.”

“I really am
happy,” Ellie said. She sat down on a stool and smile at Zoe. “Now that you and
I are settled, we just need to find Georgette a good man to put some color in her
cheeks.”

GT groaned. “Good
God, stop right there.”

Zoe had always
thought it was odd that GT wasn’t with someone since there were plenty of men
interested. She was a gorgeous woman, but maybe being a single mother made her
more careful choosing a man. “I’m sure when the right guy comes along, GT will
know it.”

Changing the
subject, GT asked, “Mama, can you pick Sarah up from school today?”

“I’m off
today, so I’d be happy to pick the little munchkin up. What time will you be
home?”

“I think I might
stay on for close,” GT said after casting a quick glance at Zoe.

“You’re the
day manager now, GT. You don’t have to stay for the evening shift.”

“I like the
extra tips.”

Understanding,
Ellie said, “Don’t worry, Zoe. My girl knows how to handle herself, and she can
help you take down that little bastard who’s after you if he’s stupid enough to
show up here.”

Zoe had just
opened a bottle of water and choked when she heard Ellie Tate swear. Ellie was one
of the sweetest, most gentle women in town, and Zoe had never heard her say an
unkind word about anyone before. “What…?”

“I told her,”
GT admitted.

“But I already
heard you had trouble looking your way,” Ellie added. “I do work in a salon,
remember? We hear about everything going on in town, even the stuff that people
might not want others to know about. Bless their hearts, but the men are just
plain silly if they think they are keeping it a secret when everyone’s been
running around like they’re gearing up for a war.”

Zoe closed her
eyes and groaned. This was horrible. If everyone knew, this could mess up their
plans. She looked over as GT reached out and touched her arm.

“Don’t worry.
The men still think they have everything covered all by their little selves.”

Ellie stood up
and yawned. “I think I’m going to head home now. I need a little nap before
Sarah gets out of school since I didn’t get much sleep last night.”

“Braggart.”

Ellie laughed,
and the cheerful sound made both GT and Zoe smile. “It’s been a while since I
had anything to brag about. I’ll go collect my man and let him walk me home.”
She winked. “Maybe I can convince him to take that nap with me.”

She strolled
over to the door leading outside to the patio, and GT sighed. “It just chokes
me up to see her looking so happy. So, what do you think about the women knowing
about your…situation? Like they wouldn’t notice their men hanging around the
bar every night, not to mention every cop in town?”

Zoe blew out a
breath. “No, I can’t say that I’m surprised they know. I’m sure I’m going to
catch hell for it later, but I did agree to let Dante, Sheriff Wyatt and the
others handle it, and the men were pretty adamant about not involving the
women.”

“Men can be so
fucking stupid when they think they need to protect people.”

“We told you,”
Zoe said with a smile.

“I would have
kicked your ass if you hadn’t.”

That made Zoe
laugh. “Right. Let’s get to work. Hopefully, this will all be over soon and we
won’t have to worry about it much longer.”

* * * *

They didn’t
have to wait long.

Around nine
that night, most of the dinner guests had left The Fox Hole, clearing up the
tables for the people who were just looking for drinks and entertainment.
Business was good, but nothing like it had been during spring break when they’d
had a packed house every night.

Dante sat at one
of the tables with Hammer, Jessup, Dare and Hunter. He wasn’t sure why, but he
couldn’t seem to settle. They had been sitting at a table for the last hour
nursing beers that none of them had really touched.

“This waiting
is driving me batshit crazy,” Dante said.

Hunter leaned
back in his chair in a casual pose that hid the fact that he was tense and
ready for action. “It’ll happen soon enough.”

Dante scrubbed
a hand through his thick, black hair in agitation. “Yeah. Now that Zoe’s father
knows where she is, it’s just a matter of time before those fuckers come after
her.”

Jessup nodded.
“We’ll protect her, Dante.”

Dante sighed. “And
who else in town will be put in danger because of this? Hell, just thinking
about Zoe hurt...I can’t fucking stand it.”

“Of course you
can’t,” Dare agreed. “All of us want to protect our women.”

“Storm wants
us to take Paul Wei alive,” Hammer reminded them after a brief pause. “He
thinks we’ll have a better chance taking down his parents if he’s alive.”

“He’ll have to
learn to live with disappointment,” was Dante’s reply.

Dante was a
man who valued life, but some people just didn’t deserve to keep breathing.
Paul Wei was one of them. He needed to pay for what he’d done to Zoe. And the
sad reality was that Paul was too wealthy, too well-connected for the justice
system to ever hold him.

So was the
rest of the family.

Shen and Meili
Wei were playing it up in the media. Dante had seen the news reports. They
played the sorrowful parents to a misguided son, but they continued to express
their innocence. Hell, they’d even gone as far as try to hint that Zoe had
attacked their son, instigating the events that had occurred back in New York.
And with Zoe missing, they weren’t contradicted.

 
“I’m a doctor, and my job is to try and save
people, but even I know that Zoe will never be safe if Paul Wei is kept alive,”
Dare said.

“We’ve all
read the reports. The parents have managed to shift the blame onto their son to
avoid the feds from getting too close, but they’re guilty, too.” Jessup’s voice
was cold as ice.

“When I
reached out to my contact, he confirmed it,” Dare agreed. “The parents have
done enough to block anyone from getting warrants to dig deeper, but they’re
dirty as hell. The feds don’t have enough evidence to go after them, not with them
blaming the son and saying he acted alone. They’re also doing a hell of a job
deflecting.”

Hammer snorted
in disgust. “Yeah, I’ve seen the news articles. They’ve been hosting a ton of
charity events at their estate. It’s sick.”

“You won’t
have to worry. Nikita will take them down,” Dare said softly. He wasn’t cut out
for a life of intrigue as a covert agent, but that didn’t mean he didn’t see
the need for it. Too many times red tape got in the way of real justice. And
when criminals used political connections and greased palms to cover up vital
information, it was even more important for those agents working in the shadows
to bring those crimes into the light.

Dare’s contact
had confirmed that it was just a matter of time before the entire family was taken
down and Wei Auctions was exposed for the front it was. But there were also
some things he hadn’t told his friends. What he’d learned from his former
colleague had been enough to give him nightmares, but Zoe and Dante had enough
on their minds already. They didn’t need to know all of the horrible things the
Wei family were involved in under the surface.

It was enough to
know that it was being taken care of, and the men at the table had vowed to
keep Nikita’s secret, even from Storm and the local police…just in case.