“No, I’ll be there in under an hour.Be there.”
“I have to go, Ricky.”She stood, ready to follow Lex, who’d grabbed her second suitcase.
He swore.“I swear if you try to use the crap Dad said to push us away, I’m going to find you and… and…” He sighed.“We need to talk, Jillian.”
Jillian smiled.“We’ll talk.I didn’t want to tell you this, but Petrosian’s men were here.I drove up and they were waiting for me.If it weren’t for Lex and his bodyguard, they would have grabbed me.”
Silence followed.
“Come home, Jilly,” Ricky whispered, fear in his voice.“Forget what father said.It doesn’t change a thing.You are family.”
“Yes, Jilly.Come home,” Cian cut in.“We can sort this out together as a family.”
They’d just used their father’s nickname for her.Tears escaped and rolled down her cheek.She swiped at it.“If you mean that, give Petrosian the money I left.”
She disconnected and put the phone down.She gave Lex a weak smile and wiped her cheeks, but the tears kept flowing.Lex looked like he wanted to punch someone.He closed the gap between them and, without saying a word, sat and pulled her down on his lap.
The tears Jillian had fought hard not to shed flowed unchecked.This time, she didn’t feel ashamed of breaking down.She clung to Lex until she was drained.
“Sorry, I made your shirt wet,” she said, talking into his neck.“I don’t usually have the waterworks over people or things, but this situation with my family—”
“Shh.”Lex lifted her chin and gently stroked her cheek with his thumb.“There’s no need to apologize.You’ve held everything in for days, and it was time to let go.As for the situation with your family, things will work out in the end.”
“You don’t know my father.”
“Actually, I’m beginning to understand him.”He kissed her.“I don’t think we’ll go to Sloan’s this evening.I’ll stop by and sign off on a project we’re doing together and just come back home.We’ll have dinner and rest.Would you like that?”
Home.The word was beginning to have a new meaning and face.Lex and his kindness.Lex and his brand of loving.Lex and his ability to make her the center of his world.Jillian reached up, touched his face, and smiled.
“Yes.”
~*~
Sloan’s beach house hugged the edge of the cliff.There were no roads to the house or a place to park.The only access was by boat, seaplane, or helicopter.A set of stairs led to the beach below.Two yachts were moored side by side on the docks.Rod must have hitched a ride with Cade because his boat was missing.A helipad with markings for landing several helicopters sat perfectly on a level above the beach and below the house.
Lex landed his helicopter and started up the second set of steps leading to the front of the house.He’d hated leaving Jillian behind, but she had enough crap to deal with right now without adding a party.His friends weren’t going anywhere.Unfortunately, neither was her family.
What kind of a father rejected his own daughter out of fear that bad guys might go after her?Lex had reached that conclusion after listening to the Armenian bastards sneer and make snide remarks to Jillian.If she weren’t so emotionally involved, she too would have reached that conclusion.Jillian’s father hadn’t kicked her out because of their relationship or how she’d gotten the money as he’d erroneously concluded earlier.Her father knew what the Armenians were capable of.Pushing her away was his way of protecting her.Her untimely arrival must have thrown him for a loop.Still, telling her she wasn’t his daughter was a shitty way of treating someone you loved in the name of protecting them.
Lex came from a family with many women.He’d learned at an early age that they were a lot stronger than men gave them credit for.His cousins had given him hell whenever he’d tried to treat them like they were helpless.His sister’s situation had been different because she had an illness that needed to be managed.Still, he’d learned that it was better to include her in decisions that affected her.Jillian’s father was obviously old-school, like his uncles who believed that women should be protected by keeping them ignorant of the dangers surrounding them.
The house was too quiet for someone having a party.Sloan usually had people frolicking in the pool, the grill going or some catering company providing food, and music blaring somewhere in the background.Most of the female guests modeled for his company.
Lex slid the door open, looked around, and frowned.The room was empty.He followed sounds of laughter and cheering downstairs to the media room.They were probably watching football.
Since the door was open, the men didn’t see him enter the room.Six of them leaned forward in their seats, watching what appeared to be a circus with rapt attention.He’d watched his share of circus performers, but his favorite had always been the daredevils—bikers and trapeze artists.
A group of six bikers were inside the Globe of Steel.At first, they looped up and down.Timing was crucial for this sort of stunt.One wrong move could lead to fatal injuries.One of the bikers angled his bike until he was perpendicular to the base.
“She’s good,” Cade said.
“Yes, she is,” Lucien said.He had a laptop open on his lap.He peered at the screen.“She and her brothers started riding inside the Globe of Death when she was a pre-teen.Look at this.”He tapped a key, and the pictures on the screen changed.
It started with the riders leaving the globe.They circled the arena, stopped facing the audience, and removed their helmets.
The master of ceremonies yelled, “Ladies and gentlemen.The Fearless Finnegans.”
They bowed, but Lex’s eyes were drawn to one of them.The woman.Not a woman.A girl.Jillian.She must have been in her teens, but he recognized her.
