Total pages in book: 158
Estimated words: 145729 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 729(@200wpm)___ 583(@250wpm)___ 486(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 145729 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 729(@200wpm)___ 583(@250wpm)___ 486(@300wpm)
Evan stood in front of the painting. “He recognized this work as being hers. Sonia’s. Didn’t he?”
Joshua nodded. “No question about it. He was more interested in the painting than he was the pipeline, so much so that he didn’t force me to make more concessions for him. He knows Sonia. They had to be the ones who tried to kill her. If I confront her about it, she’ll want to know how I know Nikita.”
“She’s hiding a pretty big secret. You think she was married to Sasha Bogomolov?”
“That’s the only answer, as much as I’d like another one. All the pieces fit.” Joshua pressed his fingers to his throbbing temple. He was getting a massive headache. “I’ll call Drake and update him. Do we have eyes on them?”
Evan nodded.
“Warn Kai the Russians are on the move. They may stop in town. I don’t want them to run into Sonia accidentally. Have Kai get her out of there if possible. Tell him he needs to drop it that he was at the lumberyard, and he overheard me giving a huge order of roofing material to Jerry over the phone. Tell him to say he hadn’t thought we needed a new roof. Sonia will go ballistic and head straight to Jerry to tell him to cancel the order.”
Evan nodded and took out his cell, texting with one hand. Joshua paced across the floor like a caged leopard. If Sonia were with him, she’d be safe. She’d just refused. She hadn’t once spent the night at his house, preferring her own. She wouldn’t go out in public with him. Essentially, she called all the shots in their relationship. He might be the dominant in bed, but that seemed the only place. Because he had been giving her space, she was in danger.
He cursed himself again, nails digging into his palms. Flecks of blood proved the leopard’s claws were very much in evidence. The pain helped clear his mind. He had to trust Kai into maneuvering Sonia out of harm’s way. Tonight, he’d have to talk to her, even if it meant she would have to be told the truth about who and what he was – what he’d become.
If she’d been involved with the Russian mob – and they’d tried to kill her – he couldn’t imagine her reaction when she learned he’d taken over Rafe Cordeau’s territory. Joshua Tregre was the new crime lord. He looked like the friendly neighbor. He acted the friendly neighbor. He ruled his territory with an iron fist and made deals with murderous Russians.
He’d managed to fool everyone. The rumors of his taking over for Cordeau had mostly died down. He’d worked hard to gain the trust of the locals. His men had been given strict instructions never to push anyone around. Most of his crew were men he’d worked with in Borneo, but a few were leftovers from Rafe’s crew. Those were the ones he watched the most. He wanted his reputation around his town spotless. He wanted his reputation with others in his world ruthless. It was the only way to keep everyone safe.
“Is Bastien Foret going to be a problem, Evan?” he asked.
“It’s a possibility. Good men can be a pain in the ass. Smart men even more so. Foret is both.” Evan tapped his fingers on his phone. “Let’s see what these bastards do. You got the best of him in the deal. He didn’t expect that and he didn’t like it, but he wanted an ‘in’ with us bad enough to take what he could get. I liked that you pointed out he wasn’t the only game in town, but you’d come to him out of respect. I wanted to laugh at his expression.”
“He knew it was bullshit but he couldn’t call me on it, not without losing the deal. Mostly he was upset over the painting and what it meant.”
“He lost that deal,” Evan said. “You look like a kid. You came out of nowhere and took hold of Rafe’s territory and made everyone aware right out of the gate that you weren’t playing games. Even with that, there wasn’t a trail of dead bodies. He has to respect that. Few could have pulled that off.”
“I had a little help from my friends.” Joshua couldn’t stop the restless pacing. His phone sounded off, letting him know he had a text. Glancing down, he grinned. “Kai must have made his move.” He held up the phone for Evan to see. You didn’t. Two words. “Man, I love that woman.” The grin faded when he realized what he’d said. He couldn’t afford to love her. Not yet. Not when he hadn’t told her the truth.
“Gray just reported in. The Russians are headed out of town. They didn’t stop; in fact, they’re going to get a speeding ticket if they don’t slow down. Nikita’s been on the phone the entire time and he doesn’t look happy.”