Reed (Allen Securities) (7 page)

She slowly made her way out of the bed and into the bathroom. A few minor bruises had sprung up overnight on her cheek and eyebrow. She touched them gingerly and assessed the damage. Not as bad as it could have been. When she had seen that car coming at her side, she was sure she wouldn’t make it out. Reed had wrapped her so tightly in his arms that the impact wasn’t near as bad as it should have been.

The smell of coffee made its way under the door and beckoned to her. She took off the borrowed t-shirt and slipped the one Reed had thrown on the bed. She wasn’t keen on wearing her bra for a second day but until she met up with Meg, she was at the mercy of whatever Reed might have.

Grimacing, she took off her panties and decided going commando was better than the alternative. She slipped on the smaller sweatpants and cinched up the string as far as it would go.

Olivia looked at herself in the mirror. No, she wouldn’t be winning any beauty contests, but it was decent.

She made her way slowly to the kitchen, taking in all the things she hadn’t had a chance to view last night. On the whole, the place was very minimal except for all the photos covering the wall. The man might seem very closed off in so many ways, but if his photo collection was any indication, he loved his family very much.

Olivia smiled at all the happy photos. A twinge of jealously tugged at her heart. The one thing she had always longed for was a large loving family. Her mother had been a disappointment and her father an absentee. Neither side had much to do with them and had never made a point of reaching out to her. She knew the school had tried more than once, but no one stepped in to help. As far as she was concerned, there was her brother, and that would just have to do.

When she reached the kitchen, Mrs. Allen was busy at work getting the food placed on the table. Reed was pulling out dishes from the cabinet.

“Can I help with anything?” Olivia said from the door.

“Oh dear,” the older woman came at her and wrapped her in a warm hug. “You poor thing. How are you feeling?”

“I’m just fine, Mrs. Allen.” Olivia awkwardly hugged the woman.

“Marilyn,” she interjected. “Now you come right over here and sit down. I always make Reed way too much since I know he won’t slow down to cook.”

Marilyn shot her son a dirty look, and Olivia had to take a drink of her coffee to keep from laughing. He snorted when she dared to look at him over the top of her cup. Despite the solemn expression, his eyes twinkled with amusement.

“Maybe I don’t cook, so you’ll bring over dinner,” he said with a smirk.

Marilyn stopped and stared at Reed. Olivia wondered what thoughts produced the bewildered expression on her face.

“I was just teasing, Mom,” Reed said. The uncomfortable silence lingered for a bit longer before Marilyn spoke.

“It’s just been such a long time since I’ve seen you happy,” she said quietly.

As she looked between the two of them, Olivia could see the wheels turning.

“Don’t,” Reed said tightly.

The shrill tones of a cell cut through the silence in the room. Reed pulled the phone out of his pocket, and he eyed the two women before walking into the living room.

“Don’t let him get to you, dear,” Marilyn said as she placed the steaming lasagna on the table. “He’s had a tough time recently and can’t seem to forgive himself.”

“What happened?” Olivia leaned toward Marilyn. She knew she really had no business knowing what happened. It wasn’t like the two of them were lovers, but she just couldn’t help herself. Something about Reed was drawing her in, and she had to know if he was a man she could trust.

Marilyn turned to her with sad eyes. Whatever had happened still haunted this family in so many ways. She opened her mouth to speak but blanched.

Olivia could feel the hairs on the back of her neck prickled, and she knew what had made the older woman pale. Slowly, she turned to stare into the blazing eyes of Reed.

His lips formed a hard line on his face and jaw ticked. The anger that radiated off of him was raw and menacing.

“We need to go to the office,” he gritted out to her, his eyes never leaving her own.

A flush crept through her. It was clear he had heard her intrusive question. Not that it was really out of line, but she was sure that she had crossed this boundary of what is acceptable.

Marilyn jumped up from the table and busied herself with the food.

“Meg is bringing your bag to the office,” he said, his anger still hanging in the air.

She breathed a sigh at being able to put on her own clothes but nearly choked when she realized she would have to make the trip minus her panties. It was bad enough having to go around his house like this but out in public?

Olivia shook her head. Wasn’t much to be done about it.

She jumped when her shoes landed on the floor, and Reed fell into the chair beside her. He leaned his big frame down and lifted up her sore foot. He examined the tender flesh. It wasn’t near as painful as yesterday, but the swelling was still there, and her skin had turned a purple-green color that was less than flattering.

When she looked up from her foot, she found him staring at her with concern.

“Can you wear them?” he said, nodding at the shoes.

Something twitched deep inside her at his gentle words.

She nodded and watched in shock as stooped the gather her shoes. He slowly slid the shoe on and tested the fit. It was snug, but she thought it would work. After all, she had been able to do quite a bit in them yesterday, and her ankle had been in much worse shape.

As if catching his bizarre behavior, Reed lowered her foot to the floor and quickly slid on the other one. Without another word, he stood from the table and grabbed his keys.

She worked herself into a standing position. When she turned, Marilyn was standing in front of her with a cloth bag.

“It was so lovely meeting you, dear,” she said and squeezed Olivia’s arm. “Here’s dinner and some plates. Who knows how long it will be,” she said as she turned to glare at her son. “He’s never very good about this.”

“Thank you, Marilyn. It’s very kind of you.” Olivia smiled warmly. Despite how hot and cold her son might be, Marilyn was nothing but warmth and sunshine.

“You can return the favor by brining my son to dinner on Sunday.” Her eyes twinkled as she spoke, and Olivia knew she was planning on a little matchmaking while she had the chance.

“I don’t really know if I’ll be here,” Olivia started.

“Fine, Mom. We’ll see you Sunday,” Reed cut in.

Olivia’s head snapped up to stare at him. He stood impatiently, glancing at his cell.

She turned back to Marilyn to turn down the invitation but having gotten the reply she was looking for, the older woman quickly made her way to the door.

“You two be careful, and I’ll see you Sunday.” And like that, she was out the door.

Anger seeped into her veins as she turned to Reed.

“Dinner?” she spat out.

“She wasn’t going to let it drop, and we have places to go,” he said nonchalantly and walked to the garage door.

Olivia seethed at his arrogance. As it was, she was forced into the crappy situation. It wasn’t that she wasn’t looking forward to seeing the other side of his life or seeing Marilyn. She was sick and tired of letting someone else call the shots. It had taken years for her to fully gain her independence, and she’d be damned if she was going to hand it over.

“You coming or what?” he shouted from the garage.

Irritated, she stomped her way to the Jeep and slammed the door.

Olivia sat in silence, thinking of all the ways she could hurt Ben when his sorry ass finally showed up. Getting creative wasn’t proving to be a problem.

Chapter Seven

Reed walked with ease through the large warehouse he referred to as the office. It was really not much of an office but more a training facility with several big conference areas. However, it did contain one office, and he supposed that was good enough.

Back when he first started, he would work from home, but he found it easier to keep work and home separate. Especially with what happened last time he decided to mix the two.

He glanced back at Olivia. She stared wide-eyed at the large training room they were passing through. It must have seemed so strange to see the large variety of equipment they used, but he expected his staff to not just be fit but ready for anything. They had the typical stuff you’d find at most gyms, but their training went far beyond typical. Rappel ropes lined one wall, and a sparing mat took up one corner.

She visibly jumped at the pops of the guns in the distance.

“It’s from the firing range,” he said gruffly. “We’re safe.”

She smiled weakly at him.

Reed turned back around and led her up the stairs to his office overlooking the training room. It had once been the office for the warehouse supervisor when it was a manufacturing center. He wasn’t so fond of the location, but it made the most sense for an office. There were two large conference rooms down the hall, and he really didn’t want to convert the space.

As he opened the door to let her in, Reed turned to see many of the men watching with open curiosity and interest. Anger strummed through him as he stared back at him. He knew what they were thinking. Hell he’d thought it a time or two himself. He’d have to be blind not to be interested in Olivia, but this was strictly business, and he wasn’t about to let one of these schmucks fuck it up.

He glared at the men and slammed the door behind him. Once inside, he pulled the blinds on the large windows looking out and smiled smugly when several men hurried to look busy. He turned to watch her stroll around the room.

It wasn’t particularly small. File cabinets lined on wall next to his rather large desk. A few chairs in front of the desk and a sofa on the other wall allowed for more than enough seating. It suited his needs, and he liked the space.

Olivia quietly placed the lasagna on his desk. When she spotted her bag on the couch, she smiled brightly. The shock of her smile sparked something deep in him, and he felt other areas rise with anticipation. Reed swiped a hand across is neck and tried to control his overactive body. He watched in silence as she leaned over to examine her bag. As she leaned over, her plump backside came into perfect view. He closed his eyes and tried to picture anything else but what he’d like to be doing. His mouth ran dry at the thought.

Reed shook his head and cleared his throat. Whatever it was about this woman, he needed to get it under control. There was no way he could deal with the mess her brother had created if he was too busy thinking about where he'd like to stick his dick.

“I’ve got a meeting to attend,” he said. Irritation crept in as he thought about her tempting ways. “Make yourself at home, and I’ll be back soon.”

Without another word he walked out the door into the cool air of the hallway. He stared back at the door, wondering what she might be thinking. She might not be in league with her brother, but this woman was far from naïve. Frustration bloomed in him. Best he could hope was that things progressed quickly, and the documents would make their way to him. Otherwise they might be up shit creek with the client.

Reed scrubbed his face hard with his hand.

“What a clusterfuck,” he mumbled.

“No shit.”

Cage strolled down the hall and stood in front of him.

“I was just coming to get you.” Cage flashed him and easy smile. “Everyone is set in the main room.”

With a curt nod, Reed led the way to the conference room.

“Any word from Viktor?”

Cage shook his head. “No word from the Russians yet, but it’s only a matter of time.”

“I’ll say,” Reed grumbled and rubbed his tender rib. “You can bet the Kelly clan will be dropping in as well.”

He groaned inwardly at the thought. Last thing he wanted was to deal with the Russians and the Irish, but there was nothing to be done about it. Despite not wanting to be in the middle of this mess, Reed had found himself firmly planted there.

“I’ll have Liam keep an ear out,” Cage said.

“He’s not going to like that.” Reed rounded the corner and stopped just outside the room.

“No, he won’t, but he knows his family connection to the Kellys means something.”

“Yeah, it means trouble.” Reed eyed the red-headed man through the window.

“You just don’t like that Meg’s hot on him.” Cage chuckled.

Reed narrowed his eyes. No, he didn’t like that. But how was he supposed to feel? Letting his baby sister fall for a man connected to people like that? He knew what getting mixed up with organized crime got you, and he wouldn’t take pleasure in seeing her zipped in a bag.

“Let me know if we hear from Finn. He’s been groomed to take over as the head and one to watch out for,” Reed said with a scowl. “He’s smart and making some different moves.”

“Liam said Finn is pulling out of the gun business. He doesn’t like all the channels they have to go through, and the Feds are pressing in. He’s even looking at some legit ventures. I’ve heard he’s been sniffing around a few buildings for something.”

“Buildings?” Reed couldn’t mask the surprise in his voice. He hadn’t heard this news and wondered if Finn could even pull it off. “Keep me posted.”

“Are we going to start this shit or what?” The angry face of Ryder popped through the door.

No matter how many times Reed had looked at his brother, his eyes were drawn to the jagged scar running along his face. The scar he had caused. Bile caught in his throat as he tried to control his emotions.

Ryder glared at him. His anger suffocated the air around them.

Stunned by his sudden appearance, Reed nodded. The door slammed with a loud band as Ryder went back to his spot.

“Do you think he’s ever going to forgive you?” Cage said quietly from behind him.

Reed turned to him and shook his head. “No,” he said wistfully. “And I’m not so sure he should.”

After locking away his emotions about the past, Reed walked into the room. It was going to be a long and boring meeting.

***