Jozef nodded.
Havel was the more likely of the two to underestimate a woman. Jozef had spent more than a year either with Shaun or studying her. He knew better than to underestimate the power and determination a woman could hold.
As Havel thought about it, he began to nod. “Yeah, okay, I see the advantages, but this particular woman?”
She’s qualified.
“She’ll get us all killed,” Havel countered.
Jozef grinned.Maybe, but the battle will be fun. Find her, recruit her. Let me worry about the rest.
Chapter Twelve
Shaun took Jozef’s hand as he helped her from the SUV. She gazed up the side of Jozef’s building, squinting at the top floor, where she’d lived only a few weeks earlier.
Havel, Cooper, Terek and Nikolay surrounded them.
Jozef touched her back, urging her inside. He didn’t like it when she lingered on the street. Both of them had become somewhat infamous since the funeral. They’d been gossiped about in the society pages, speculated about and spied on. Out of the corner of her eye, Shaun spotted two men with cameras coming toward them.
Jozef had assured her the interest would die down soon. Mobsters didn’t like the limelight. Or at least, not Jozef. He fully intended to lead a boring life until the attention faded away. He’d told her they were targets of the local paparazzi because Jozef had inherited his uncle’s massive fortune and was engaged to the doctor who was kidnapped out of Ukraine.
Somehow Jozef had kept the attack out of the newspapers. They could only speculate on the death of Krystoff Koba, though the rumour was that Jozef had killed him for his fortune. Jozef ignored the gossip, though Shaun wondered if it bothered him. It wasn’t far from the truth, but Jozef’s reason for killing his uncle was complicated.
They walked into the club together. It was 10:00 AM and empty.
“It looks so different in the light of day,” Shaun murmured.
Much of the destruction had been cleaned up, though there were work crews rebuilding the sections that had been shot up or destroyed. Sawdust filtered through the air, giving the club a pleasant scent. It felt strange standing exactly where a storm of men and bullets had come through.
Shaun shuddered at the memory and continued walking.
Jozef planned on working with Guard Dog Securities for the day. He was amalgamating several of his uncle’s holdings into his business. A complicated process that would take months of work.
When they reached the security floor, Jozef turned to Shaun, trapping her in the corner of the elevator. He lifted her chin and stared down at her, his gorgeous blue eyes speaking to her.
She kissed him. “I know,” she whispered for him alone. “Stay with my mother, don’t leave the building and listen to Cooper.”
He nodded, his eyes softening.
“I’ll be good, I promise.”
He wrapped an arm around her back and held her close, pressing a lingering kiss to her lips and stealing her breath. Her chest filled with warmth and she slid her arms around his neck, anchoring herself against him.
They ignored the men standing in the elevator with them, stopping the metal doors from sliding shut and pretending they weren’t there.
Finally, Jozef set Shaun away from him and stepped out of the elevator. He pointed at Cooper and signed,defend her with your life.
Always,Cooper signed back.
Jozef strode away and the doors closed.
Shaun sighed happily.
“So, do you have a wedding date yet?” Cooper asked as the elevator dinged on the fourth floor.
“Not really,” Shaun admitted.
“What’s the hesitation. You’re obviously in love with the guy.”
