Shadow of Sin (The Martin Family) (8 page)

“What kind of fundraiser?”

“To benefit local artists. It seems Vincent has a thing for art.”

“Where’s it being held?”

“The Botanical Gardens.” Alec sat back and took a swig of his beer. “It’s not ideal. There are plenty of places to hide.”

“Lots of people. Media coverage. It’s the kind of place a dipshit like Matteo wouldn’t want to make a scene. Sounds like neutral territory to me.” It was time he and Vincent had a little chat. Caleb wasn’t a patient man and Vincent had pushed him well past his limit. The petty break-ins over the last year were one thing. Last night was a game changer.

Caleb couldn’t keep the smile from his face. The thought of having Vincent within arm’s reach satisfied the darkest regions of his soul. “Can you get us in?”

“Already done. You, Samantha, Amanda, and Joe are all on the guest list.”

Caleb was impressed. He hadn’t thought ahead enough to think about taking Joe with him for backup. Not that he had any intention of needing it. In his gut, he knew his time with Vincent was coming. The fundraiser would be just the appetizer. Caleb would do the right thing and give him a chance to back the fuck off. One chance.

It was more than the bastard had given them last night.

“How’d you pull that off?”

“Are you kidding?” Alec looked offended. “Besides my mad skills, society folks are frothing at the mouth to have the elusive daughter of media mogul Thomas Quinn show up at one of their events. Her attendance will keep their jaws bending for weeks.”

Caleb frowned. He’d forgotten about Samantha’s dad. She never talked about him and, as far as Caleb knew, didn’t see him either. “Is her dad going to be there?”

Alec shook his head. “That would be a deal breaker. Samantha wouldn’t willingly go anywhere she knew her father would be.”

Again faced with Alec’s knowledge of Samantha’s life, Caleb nodded and drained his beer. It bothered him that he didn’t know why she avoided her dad, and he wasn’t about to ask Alec for the information.

He wanted Samantha to confide in him, he’d realized. He already knew what made her scream, now he wanted to learn what made her tick.

Cursing, he turned away so Alec wouldn’t see the erection filling out his jeans and busied himself at the stove.

Last night had changed everything. His head still reeled from the three-sixty his brain had done when it came to Samantha. He hadn’t stopped to think it through. He’d acted on instinct and now could potentially be sharing the woman with his brother. At least that was the impression Alec wanted him to have, but a part of him couldn’t believe it.

It looked like Caleb and Samantha were in for a heart-to-heart. Which, for them, would probably result in another knock-down-drag-out fight. Because not only was she going to set the record straight about her relationship with Alec, she was going to come clean on what
exactly
she’d done for Carlotta Matteo.

Caleb lifted the lid off a pot and drew in a breath. “You cook this?”

Alec laughed. “Not hardly.”

“Samantha?” He couldn’t keep the surprise from his voice. He’d never pictured Samantha as the kind of woman who knew her way around the kitchen.

“What? You think I can’t do anything but annoy the hell out of you?” The playful lilt of her voice got his attention. “I’ll have you know, I’m skilled in a lot of things. Cooking is just one of them.”

“I’m certain there’s a lot I don’t know about you.”

Caleb was struck at how beautiful she was. Her hair was wet, making it appear darker. Sexier. A slight flush painted her cheeks, her blue eyes bright against her milky complexion. She wore no makeup and he decided he liked her like that. Natural. Nothing artificial to mask her graceful femininity.

Her laughter rang out as she walked around to smack his hands away from the pot he’d been peeking in. Her feet were bare. The jeans that hung low on her hips had seen better days. He could see the skin of both her knees through the holes. Her T-shirt hugged her curves and appeared well worn, faded to the point he couldn’t make out the graphic on the front. He resisted the urge to grab her and find out if it was as soft as it appeared.

She looked more like a college freshman than an attorney—comfortable and sexy as sin.

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me.” She hip-checked him out of the way.

“I can attest to that,” Alec agreed, sparking Caleb’s irritation yet again. Alec and Samantha had an obvious connection, making him feel like a third wheel in his own house.

Samantha absently stirred whatever was in the pot as she looked over her shoulder. “Bye, Alec.”

An unpleasant burning flared in Caleb’s throat as he observed their shared look. There was no mistaking that they were hiding something they didn’t want him to know.

How could he have been so stupid? He should’ve known better than to be ruled by his dick.

“I guess that’s my cue that I’m not invited to dinner.” Alec stood and swept her into a tight embrace, whispering something into her ear that made her laugh.

“You aren’t staying?” Caleb suppressed the urge to wipe the smirk off Alec’s face. He’d never fought over a woman before; he wasn’t going to start now. And certainly not with his baby brother.

Caleb would bow out and leave them to each other, making the deal Samantha presented last night more enticing. After knowing the feel of her body against his, it would be torture to be around her, knowing he couldn’t touch her. Or worse, watching as another man did.

When had she become so important to him?

“Sorry, Cay. I’m exhausted.” Alec’s grin widened. “Woman’s got more stamina than should be legal.”

“Goodbye, Alec.” Samantha pushed at Alec’s back, shoving him toward the door.

“Wait, my laptop!”

“You can get it later.” Samantha kept pushing until Alec relented.

“Fine, but you better save me some food.”

The door opened and closed, leaving Caleb alone with Samantha. He watched as she returned to check something in the oven. Her breasts lifted and her eyes drifted closed, breathing in, savoring the aroma.

“Almost ready,” she declared. “Did you find anything useful at the bar?”

“Did you sleep with Alec?” He hadn’t meant to bark at her, but he wasn’t waiting another second for an answer. He had to know the truth.

“When? Today?”

Her innocent expression was wasted on him. “Ever.”

“Caleb —”

His anger got the better of him. “Jesus, Samantha.” His insides twisted and he wanted to punch something. Instead, he slammed his hands down on the counter, causing her to jump. “Don’t you have any boundaries? Because fucking the same woman as my brother is certainly one of mine.”

Samantha froze, mouth agape. Her expression was enough to tell him that he’d messed up. Big time.

Her eyes blazed, burning him where he stood. She threw the spoon in the sink, the loud clatter ringing in his ears.

“Alec was only trying to get a rise out of you. We played video games all afternoon. Tennis, boxing, golf. I kicked his ass, by the way. If you’d waited half a second before passing judgment on me, I would have explained it. But, thank you for reminding me of how you feel about my character.” She spun on her heel, and headed toward her bedroom. “Dinner is in the oven. I thought it would be a nice gesture after giving you a hard time earlier. It’ll be ready in ten minutes, so be sure to pull it out so it doesn’t burn. It took me a while to make.”

“Samantha.”

She hesitated, but didn’t look back. “I hope you fucking choke on it.”

Chapter 8

Alec was dog-ass tired. He wasn’t kidding when he’d told Caleb that Samantha had worn him out. That woman was a machine when she had anger to burn. And holy shit, were his muscles screaming because of it.

He’d deserved to get his ass kicked. The verbal assault Samantha launched into the second Caleb took off had left his ears burning. Alec knew exactly what he’d been doing with his little innuendos. All part of his master plan to force Caleb to get his head out of his ass. Of course, with Samantha, Alec had played innocent, flashing the dimples she couldn’t resist.

This wasn’t his first rodeo with the pissed-off redhead.

Speaking of redheads, Alec doubted a hot shower would be enough to relieve his aches and pains in time for his date tonight. It was a shame, really. The woman he’d made plans with was a firestorm in the sack. Even better, she had a habit of leaving when they were finished. She didn’t want any more from him than he wanted from her. A drink, a little foreplay to get the blood pumping, sex.

Standard operating procedure for his “love” life.

Alec turned the corner and cursed at the familiar vehicles hogging his driveway. Apparently, Brandon and Joe didn’t care if he had to park his truck on the street. Couldn’t the motherfuckers at least leave him room to get into his own garage? He considered blocking the driveway, but that meant they couldn’t leave so he vetoed the idea right quick.

With any ideas he’d had for the evening shot to hell, Alec shoved the truck into park and grabbed his cell phone. He typed a quick apology and shot off the text to his date. Saturday night and he was canceling the hottest piece of ass he’d had in, well, days. It almost made him feel old.

In truth, he was relieved he wouldn’t have to worry about performing tonight, but that didn’t mean his hand wouldn’t pick up the slack. The release would help him relax and get some much-needed rest. All he had to do was clear out his unexpected company.

Alec threw open the front door. “What’s with the testosterone overload in my living room?” Pizza boxes littered his coffee table, along with a few beer bottles and three sets of booted feet. “Jesus, y’all comfy?”

Joe and Brandon took up his couch, the two of them making the damn thing look no bigger than a loveseat. Jake was sprawled in Alec’s favorite leather chair. All eyes swung to him as he considered the odds of successfully kicking them out.

“I could use another beer.” Brandon raised a brow as if to indicate he was waiting for delivery. Alec really needed to consider changing his locks.

“Me too,” Jake chimed in, his gaze glued to the baseball game they were watching.

Joe shook his head and stood, stretching his back as if he’d been camped out a while. “Sorry for the mess, man. There’s pizza if you’re hungry.” He indicated the stack of boxes. “I’ll get the beer.”

“Don’t take this the wrong way, but what the hell are y’all doing here? Who’s at the bar?”

“Mandy’s running things tonight,” Joe informed him, clapping him on the shoulder as he passed.

“Wait, you’re letting Amanda run the bar? On a Saturday night?” There was no way. “By herself?”

Jake snorted. “I pity any man who gets out of line. She might be small, but that chick packs a wallop. She’ll be fine.”

Right. Alec didn’t buy it. He crossed his arms over his chest, eyeing Joe closely. “Who’d you get to watch out for her?”

Joe grinned. “Cooper. Although he acted a little put out. I believe there was another bar he wanted to hang around in tonight.” He passed fresh bottles around and resumed his seat. He picked up the remote and muted the game. “How’d it go with Sam today?”

Alec parked his ass on the arm of the chair Jake occupied. “Fine. Sam’s tough, but she’s obviously rattled. Although I’m not certain it’s all about last night.”

“Meaning?” Brandon turned sideways to face him.

“She was shot at and then had to spend the night alone with Caleb. You tell me.”

Concern creased Brandon’s brow. “Caleb’s an ass when it comes to Sam, but he wouldn’t hurt her. Or any woman for that matter.”

Alec bark out a laugh. “No, of course not. Quite the opposite in this case, I’d say.”

This time, Brandon didn’t even bother with a question. Just arched a brow and stared.

Joe looked back and forth between them as Jake sat forward with interest.

“And she chewed my ass good for moving her car, Bran. I’d say your backside is fair game next time she sees you.”

Brandon nodded, as if it was a foregone conclusion. “I figured as much.” His eyes narrowed. “You gonna to tell us what happened last night or make us guess?”

Alec took a long draw on his beer. They’d invaded his space and ruined his chance to get laid tonight, so it served them right to have to wait a minute. Or two.

“They had sex,” Alec finally told them.

Beer spewed beside him and he reached over and slapped Jake on the back.

Brandon looked skeptical. “Did Caleb actually tell you this?”

Alec shook his head. “No. And before you ask, Sam didn’t tell me either.”

“Then —”

“I’ve known Sam since high school, Bran. I know what the woman looks like when she’s been sexed up.”

Joe cut in. “Caleb was all kinds of fucked up when I saw him. More … snappish, than usual. Distracted. Not the usual behavior of a man who just got laid.”

Ah, his jabs had been successful then.

If there was one thing Alec knew about Caleb, it was the fact that he was in love with Samantha, whether he’d admitted it or not. Why Caleb had been such a dick to her over the years would make sense if they were in grade school or some shit. That meant something else was going on that Caleb kept to himself. Whatever.

Alec missed his big brother. The one who smiled and laughed and took him fishing. The guy who’d enjoyed life just because it was happening. Caleb hadn’t been the same since their parents died, since he’d almost … yeah. Those were dark times for all of them.

Losing their parents had been bad, but Caleb harbored demons Alec couldn’t even begin to imagine. Caleb wouldn’t talk about it, but Alec knew all the same. It had taken Caleb months to recover from that last mission. Other than the slight limp he sported on occasion when the weather turned bad or he’d worked out too hard, you’d never know he’d been injured. On the outside.

The inside was a different matter entirely.

Among other things, Caleb had developed a warped sense of responsibility to this family. Thinking that, as the oldest, it was his job—his alone—to look out for them. A massive load of bull, as far as Alec was concerned.

Family meant they were a team. They looked out for each other, had each other’s backs. And this deal with Sam, well, Alec had his back. Whether Caleb knew it or not.

The irony was, Alec’s own love life was a revolving door of women. He was probably the last person on earth who should play matchmaker, but Sam was his best friend. And his brother needed to get his shit together.

Damn it, they deserved to be happy.

“Alec?”

Joe’s voice brought him back to the conversation. “Sorry, what?”

“You were about to tell us how you’re so sure Caleb had sex with Sam.” Brandon groaned and turned his face to the ceiling. “Please tell me you don’t have his place wired for video.”

He laughed. “I’m not that twisted.” He thought about it for a second, remembering his argument with Caleb about security cameras. “At least not twisted enough to watch. Y’all will just have to trust me on this one.” He tossed Jake a wink and reached over to grab a piece of pizza.

“Now,” Alec said around his slice, “which one of you yahoo’s wants to tell me what you’re doing here … and how long you’re planning to hang around? Must be pretty important to let Amanda run the bar and to get Rambo here off the compound.”

Brandon’s foot shot out, nailing him square in the shin.

“Ow!”

“Rambo, my ass,” Brandon muttered. “And I asked Joe and Jake to hang around after they met with Cay. Something about this situation isn’t right, and I can’t put my finger on it.”

Alec stared at his pizza, knowing full well what Brandon was talking about. “It tastes fine to me.”

“Will you be serious for once?” Brandon snapped. “I’ve got a bad feeling about this thing with Sam.”

“Ya think?” Alec knew the feeling. For months now, it had hung in the back of his mind, just out of reach. The thought that something was off. But, no matter how hard he looked or how much he thought about it, he couldn’t validate his unease.

“Look, we’re set for the party on Wednesday,” Alec told them. “Joe, you and Amanda will meet them at the Botanical Gardens. Sam’s arrival will cause a stir, since she’s always shied away from any sort of affiliation with her father. I hope it will give us the edge we need to put Matteo on guard. He won’t expect her to approach him publicly.”

Joe shook his head. “Sam’s our ticket in. That’s it. She won’t go anywhere near the guy.”

“What do you hope to learn with the dog and pony show? Seems easier just to kick the fucker’s ass, give him a little taste of his own medicine.” Jake asked.

God, Alec loved that kid.

Joe answered. “A guy like Matteo doesn’t respond to violence. He —”

“I’ll bet he’d respond to a bullet in the head.”

“Jake,” Joe warned, his eyes turning dark. “No one in this family is going to jail over that man. Caleb will have a chat with Matteo, find out where the guy’s head is at. Inform him it would be in his best interest to back off, that any further attempts at Sam will be considered … shall we say … a direct assault against the rest of us.”

Brandon picked up the lead. “See, Jake, it’s not just about money with people like Matteo. He can’t see beyond his own ego, so if we shake him up—make him feel like we have the upper hand—he’ll get sloppy. He’ll give us more than a few casings from a gun he never touched. He’ll give us the proof we need to take him down. The right way.”

“I get all that,” Jake said. “It’s a bitter pill to swallow though. He didn’t give Sam a chance before he had some asshole try to kill her and Caleb.”

“Believe me, it doesn’t sit well with any of us,” Alec told him.

“It still doesn’t make sense,” Brandon mused. “Why now? Yesterday makes the petty break-in attempts look like child’s play.”

No shit. First her office, which resulted in moving her practice to the Martin Tactical and Security building, and then her apartment, which resulted in only the loss of her address book. Then … nothing. For months now, all had been quiet. And while Alec had thought the trouble was over, after last night, he was damn glad he still kept an eye on her. But, he agreed with Brandon.

“That’s what we need to find out. Starting with Wednesday night.”

“And if that doesn’t work?” Jake asked.

“Bullet in the head,” Alec and Brandon said together.

This time, Joe didn’t seem to disagree. “Let’s all hope it doesn’t come to that.”

Alec rubbed his temples, exhaustion settling heavily on his shoulders. As plans were discussed, he participated on auto-pilot, answering questions and providing specifics for the event.

By the time everyone left and he closed and locked the door, Alec could barely keep his eyes open. A hot shower and an orgasm were just what he needed to ensure a solid nights rest. Or maybe he’d skip the shower.

One out of two ain’t bad.

* * *

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

Caleb watched Samantha’s reflection in the window as she came up behind him. Her top, held up by two thin straps, hugged her breasts and ended just above the waistband of her panties. Boy shorts, he thought
they were called. It didn’t matter. Those black whatever-they-were-called were sexy as fuck.

He couldn’t wait to get her out of them.

The instant her hands landed on her hips, his dick went hard. He couldn’t see below her knee from this angle, but he wouldn’t be surprised if she was tapping her foot.

Apparently, sleep hadn’t improved her mood. Yeah, well, that made two of them.

The insults she’d hurled through the door when he’d tried to apologize still rang in his ears. “Nothing wrong with a little run.” He shut the treadmill off and swung himself down.

“At two in the freakin’ morning?”

“Last I checked, this was still my place. I don’t need permission to use my own treadmill.”

Her spine stiffened at his reminder. “Again, I say, at two in the morning? Who does that?”

“Obviously … me.”

“Obviously,” she spat. “But you’re right. This is your place, so I’ll just collect my things and go home to my quiet little apartment. Maybe
there
I can get some goddamned sleep.”

“You aren’t going anywhere.”

“Watch me.”

Caleb was actually amused as she huffed through the kitchen. She was a sight to see when trying to hide her arousal. He recognized her tells now. Her skin flushed a pale pink and her eyes shined, bright as sapphires. He’d bet his left nut she was wet. Her flesh primed and ready for him.

When she picked up her cell phone and dialed, his humor vanished.

“Samantha. Need I remind you of our arrangement?”

She ignored him and spoke into the phone. “I need a cab, please.”

Caleb was on her in a second. He snatched the phone from her and slammed it on the counter, uncaring that it shattered under his palm. Collateral damage was inevitable in war.

“You don’t need a cab, because you aren’t going anywhere. We aren’t having this conversation again, you hear me? When I said you weren’t leaving, I damn well meant it.”

His voice reverberated through the room, causing her to flinch. She took a step back from him. “I’m going to kill you in your sleep.”

“Yeah? Good luck with that.”

“Bastard.” She looked at the broken remnants of her cell. “You owe me a new phone.”

Caleb didn’t give a shit about her phone. He was more concerned about the erection he’d been sporting since she’d walked into the room. Even now he was calculating how strong those tiny straps of her top were. “I’ll buy you whatever phone you want.”

“You got that right.”

He latched onto her wrist as she spun to leave. Again. She was always walking away from him. Clearly, it was time to change tactics. “Samantha, baby, come on.”