For the Fight (Romantic Suspense) (Beyond Blood, #2) (10 page)

“It's beautiful,” I hushed, my own voice strange to me.

“Yes,” he said softly. “It is.” Jacob didn't tear his attention from me the entire time. Was he even talking about the necklace?

The clerk said something. I don't know what, but it shattered the moment. Jacob pulled away, handing the emerald necklace back. “Could we get matching earrings, please? We'll be taking this set.”

The transaction was a blur. I saw the money exchanged, watched Jacob add the box to the dress bag. Then he was moving, taking my wrist to encourage me from the store. He held me like that all the way until we reached the evening air. In the parking lot, I found my resolve and tugged away. I think he frowned, but that was all.

What do I do about this?
How did I even explain what 'this' was? Jacob was digging into my mind, my heart, and forcing a space for himself. I'd barely had room for Kite in there, and he had broken through my defenses like a grenade.

Jacob had taken his time, worming bit by bit. Now, his spikes were flexed and I feared ripping him out would kill me. This was going to end in someone—maybe all of us—getting hurt. Which was funny, when I mulled it over. I was sure these two hitmen had sordid plans for me when my revenge was completed—ideally, not before then.

I should have been scared of them murdering me.

I was more terrified of exposing my emotions.

“Jacob,” I said, the instant we were shut inside the car.

He set the bags behind him, glancing at me in mid movement. “Yes?”

“We need to... talk.” Speaking was hard, I struggled to stay a step ahead of my buzzing mind. “I think there's been some misunderstanding between us.”

His attention narrowed in. He didn't blink or react. “Oh? In what way?”

“This—whatever you're doing, or trying to do with me... it's a mistake.”

Fuck, that smirk he wore had my blood raging. “I don't make mistakes.”

The edges of my eyes hurt from straining. Jacob touched his keys, the doors locking like a thunderclap. “Jacob, you and I—if you're trying to make something of this, it can't happen.”

He barely shifted, but it was as if he'd closed the distance. His hands rested in his lap. I imagined his nails on my neck, where he'd closed the necklace earlier. The memory was vivid. “I'm wondering why you think that.”

“Because I'm... because I don't want you and Kite to fight.”

Jacob chuckled, and I felt like an ass. Had I made a mistake? If I'd misread his intentions, I'd just made myself sound egotistical as hell. If Jacob was just being flirty but had no intentions, then... “Marina,” he said seriously. “It's best if I make this clear. Nothing you could do would make Kite and me fight. Nothing.”

I'd been digging my nails into my knees. I relaxed them, felt the sensation throbbing. “I don't understand. You
do
know what I'm talking about?” I didn't want to be blunt, but if I had to say it right out, I—

“You and him had sex.” It was so factual, so blasé. Jacob shrugged, smoothing his tie as he spoke. “I know. And it's fine.”

“It's fine?” I asked lamely.

Those long fingers paused, hanging on the rim of his sleeve. “I should say, I would have preferred to have had a chance at you first, but it doesn't matter.” In the shadows, his eyes were still unfairly bright. “There are no dibs here. Not between us.”

My tongue was weighing me down. It would have been easier to talk without it. I would have made more sense. “I—you—but that's—”
He's telling me that they don't care. Neither of them minds if the other has his way with me.
My whole face was red, my hands aching to do something. To hit, to scratch, to show him—both of them—that I was worth fighting over. I wasn't a fucking taxi for everyone to ride.

Before I could say a word, he spoke first. “I missed you, Marina.” Lifting his eyes, Jacob had switched from intensity to raw emotion. I didn't know what to do with this, he had me stumbling to keep up. “The days I was gone, I thought of you constantly. When I slept, when I woke, you ran circles through my mind.”

I needed to say... something. My throat felt too small for the size of my feelings. “You missed me,” I whispered, “But you just told me you're willing to give me away to Kite.”

Those dark brows lowered. I didn't see his hands move, but I felt them like fresh embers on my cheeks. He had me, he fucking had me. “Marina.” His voice was shredded. It sent thorns into my lungs, made my breathing ragged with holes. “It's not giving you
away!
I'm telling you, I want you bad enough that I'm willing to fight for you. To be able to reach you—even this much—is worth any struggle, any consequences.”

He was going to kiss me. I knew if I let him, this would be over. I'd forget everything and never say my piece. He wanted to fight for me? He wanted to be with me even if it meant Kite got the same permission?

“Tell me why,” I croaked. My mouth was barren. “Why would you do this, share me with your friend? How can you be so sure it won't tear you two apart?”
And me,
was my unsaid final thought.

Nothing shimmered in his gaze but liquid fury and desire. Jacob was letting down the calculating walls, and I was terrified to see what lay behind them. “I'll tell you this much, Marina. You should know, it's your right to understand—and it's for the best. If we're all going to make this work, it's...” Trailing off, he refocused on me; gripped my cheeks harder. “Kite and I have an oath. A bond that goes deeper than our blood. Because of it, to keep us from ever harming each other, we have a strict rule.”

My brain, already a coiled mess, struggled to absorb this.

“The rule,” he went on, “Is that we must share everything.” His smile wasn't sad, but it was thoughtful. “That includes you, Marina Fidel. If either of us wants you, if we both crave you, then this is our only option.”

When had I last blinked? “So... if I want anything to do with Kite, or you, I'm in some cryptic agreement to let you both have access to me?”

“It's both of us.” His thumb trailed over, brushing my lips. “Or neither of us.”

The desire to laugh warred with my bitter struggle not to cry. Was this a cruel joke? I didn't want
either
of them! I didn't—shouldn't... Fuck. Fuck this insanity. I had enough to worry about, I didn't need to mix in the desires of two dangerous, awfully tempting men.

Running would have been logical. Screaming and kicking? Understandable. Anything that let me express the turmoil growing in me should have been my instinct.

Leaning forward, I pressed my lips on Jacob's and shivered. It was a soft kiss, a whisper among all the shrieks in my skull. Before he could take it beyond that—and I could tell he wanted to—I put my hands on his wrists and leaned away. “I need time to think.”

There were creatures in his stare. They were hungry, eager to eat me up. It was a credit to him that he let me go, a reluctant motion where he lingered on my chin. Those hands were aching for more of me, I saw how he choked the steering wheel. “I understand. This is a lot to throw at you.”

That time, I did laugh. It was a frail noise. “Yeah. Just a bit.”

Glancing at me, he started the car. The rumbling was funny, I was sympathetic to the foreboding need to tear across the street.

“I'll drop you at Kite's,” he said. “We'll need to leave by seven. Be ready.”

Ready. What a ridiculous word.

I'd thought I was ready for anything. For everything.

Now... I knew how many more curve balls life still had to chuck at me.

Kite

––––––––

L
ars Diani.

That was the name of our target.

It had been a wise move by Jacob to suggest we not tell Marina his name. Not yet. If she had that, she'd be out from under our thumb. We needed her nearby, and we were lacking in bargaining chips.

This one was still in our pocket.

Sitting on my couch, I toyed with my laptop. On it, I was scrolling through images of maps. Jacob had spent a day after finding Hecko—he'd given me the run down of everything in our brief meeting at the bar—to look for what he could on Lars. He'd found a mugshot from when the man had been arrested a while back. That was what he'd handed Marina, wanting to confirm he
was
our man.

Of course, he'd given her the zoomed, cropped version of the image. If she had seen the rest of it, she'd have seen his name. It was just too soon for that.

Sipping my whiskey, I flicked to the next picture. Jacob had been able to find out very little on Lars. Some convictions, and the information Hecko had dropped about him pulling the hit on his former associate Frank, but... we still had no leads.

The maps were possible locations the man could be at. Jacob had put it together based on his arrests, his history with Frank, and the things Hecko had said.

We had so much to do to find him.

The event tonight had nothing to do with the Lars. That had also been Jacob's idea, a spontaneous one I was less thrilled about until he explained it. He'd known about the charity ball because he was the type to donate to those ridiculous, show boating car wrecks.

I couldn't be too judgmental. He was one of the few who gave money anonymously. He didn't do it for the accolades or attention. Though, this time... the celebration would serve our personal purpose. It wasn't as if Jacob would get nothing out of it.

My door shook, the knob turning. Sitting up, I closed the laptop and beamed at Marina. Her cheeks were glowing from the cold. “Welcome back! How was shopping?”

She took one look at me, then bit her lip and stared at the floor. That... was very much not like her. “It was fine. Jacob said to be ready, we're leaving at seven. Can I use the shower?”

“Sure.” Furrowing my brow, I watched her leave the room. Why hadn't she been able to look me in the eye? Sliding deeper into the cushions, I tapped my knee, kicked my foot, changed positions... and finally just stood up.

I needed to talk to Jacob.

Pushing through my front door, I took the elevator one floor up. Marching to his apartment, I rapped my knuckles above the brass knob. Counting the seconds, I tested it; locked.

Marina wasn't the only one with a key. Sliding mine out, I opened the door and leaned inside. “Jacob? You in here?”

“The bathroom,” he shouted. I sensed an edge to his voice. But, when I found him standing in front of the mirror, face covered in shaving cream, he just smiled. “Why does everyone think it's okay to come inside if I don't answer?”

He was shirtless, dress pants held up by a brand new looking belt. I didn't know if he'd bought it today or forever ago. He owned too many outfits, in my opinion. “Hey,” I said, leaning on the entry way. “Let me get to the point. Marina was... acting weird.”

“I'm sure she was.” He scraped a razor down his cheek, no longer watching me. “She knows about our agreement.”

Shutting my eyes, I tapped the back of my skull on the wood. “Fuck. You told her.”

Thick foam slapped into the sink. “Of course I told her. She was going to find out eventually. The conversation came up... naturally.”

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I sighed. “I realize she needed to know eventually, Jacob. I guess I just didn't think you'd be the one to drop it on her. What else did you tell her?”

This time, he watched me in the reflection and frowned. “She asked how I could be so sure we wouldn't fight over her. I gave her a surface explanation of our oath.”

“She knows we're Blood Brothers?” I laughed sourly.

“No. Not exactly.” Bending down, he splashed water on his cheeks. “Marina knows we have a bond, and a rule. She doesn't understand the root of it or what it means.” Wiping himself with a hand-towel, he faced me. “I gave her enough information so she wouldn't doubt what I was saying.”

That made me breathe easier. I didn't want anyone else knowing the source of our oath. Our history was for just us. I planned to keep it that way. “How did she... you know. Take the message?”

Grinning, Jacob dropped the cloth in a hamper. “You saw her. She's confused by it.” He slid past me, bare feet quiet as a void.

“Then what do we do?” Stepping aside, I followed him into his bedroom. “Is she going to accept our deal?” There was tension in my voice. I couldn't have hid it from him, so I didn't bother to try.

Jacob held up a dress shirt, the rich blue fabric stark against his light skin. Slowly, he ran his fingers down the front. “Relax. She's going to go along with it.”

“How can you know that?”

Narrowing his eyes, Jacob pushed his arms through the sleeves. He only looked at me when he had the collar knotted up near his throat. “Tonight, we're going on a hunt. Marina is going to be plied by music, dance, and alcohol.” Jacob tucked the shirt into his belt. “Do you really think that, after everything we've both managed to coax her into, that with both of us pushing every one of her lovely buttons...” He smirked to himself, clicking the clasp on his wrist shut. “That she'll be able to resist
one
of us, never mind both?”

A hunt. Jacob was comparing us to predators. That made Marina the prey. Okay. I
did
like that comparison. “When you put it that way, I guess she's screwed,” I chuckled.

Jacob shrugged into his ears. “Let's be honest.” Grabbing his tie, he looped it and showed me his back. “She never really had a chance.” In more ways than one, he was right.

“Should we talk about the plan?” I asked. “How are we supposed to act tonight?”

“Just pretend you're really looking for Lars,” he said, sitting on his bed. “There's no way he'll be there. But don't let her suspect that we know.”

Nodding, I stuck my hands in my jeans. “She'll expect me to bring a gun.”

He looked up from under his arched brows. “Then bring it.”

“What if there's a metal detector there?”

“Then go back and stash it in the car. We'll tell her it's too dangerous, confirm it's just reconnaissance tonight. She'll believe us.” Hesitating, he stopped tying his shoes to watch me closely. “If she asks what we're planning, we say we're just there to gather intel on him. That we want his name. Then just distract her from the mission—which you can begin by going and cleaning up. You need to change.”