"Maybe." He gritted his teeth. "But the
look in your eyes when you realized what
I'd done, that I'd lost all that money? When
you realized how I'd betrayed you?" He
touched his chest. "I'll never forget it,
Cass. I'll never forget the disappointment."
"It was three years ago, Ronnie. I've let
it go."
"Why?" He demanded. "How could you
just let that go? How can you let
everything I've done to you go?"
"Because you're my brother and I love
you," I answered honestly. "I love you,
Ronnie. Even when you're screwing up
left and right, I still love you."
He let out a long, shaky sigh. Tears
rode the curve of his swollen cheek. "I
need help, Cass."
"I know." I blinked and tears dripped
onto my face. "But that's the first step,
right? Admitting you need help?"
He exhaled roughly. "Something like
that."
I squeezed his good hand. "We'll do it
together, Ronnie. We'll figure this out and
make it work."
He inhaled a steadying breath. I plucked
some tissues from the box on the rolling
cart in the corner and dabbed at his wet
cheeks and then mine. "So—who was the
girl who called me?"
He avoided my gaze. "She's just a
friend."
"A friend, huh?"
"Yeah."
I sensed he didn’t want to give details
so I let it go. I pulled my phone from my
purse and texted Hagen. He sent back a
simple
K
in reply.
I heard a nurse speaking to a police
officer in the open corridor between the
two rows of exam rooms. Apparently, this
cop wasn't here for Ronnie. "Have the
police been in to speak with you?"
"Yeah."
"And?"
"And I'm not stupid," he said quickly. "I
didn't say anything to them. A broken arm,
some busted ribs and a messed up face are
hell of a lot easier to recover from than
the bullet I'd catch for snitching."
"Ronnie…"
"No, Cass! I'm serious. I'm not saying
shit."
"Okay. All right. It's your choice. I'll
stand by it." I didn't like it but I
understood why he wanted to keep quiet.
It sickened me but it probably was safer
for him to keep his mouth shut.
He picked at the sheets for a few
seconds. "It wasn't Hagen's crew."
I wondered how hard it was for him to
say that. "I know."
He glanced at me. "How?"
"He told me it wasn't his men and I
believe him. Besides, he canceled your
entire debt yesterday. You don't owe him
anything anymore."
"But I thought you said—"
"I know," I interrupted. "I thought so too
but he wasn't serious, apparently. He just
wanted me to go out with him. He thought
that using you as leverage was his best
bet. I guess he was right."
Ronnie looked uncomfortable. "I guess I
should thank you."
"Don't. It wasn't like that. In some
weird, twisted way, I should probably
thank you. I wouldn't have met him if you
hadn't gotten in so deep"
"You really like this guy?"
I hesitated before telling Ronnie the
truth. "Yes. I really like him. I think,
maybe, he might be long-term."
"Oh." Ronnie seemed uncertain how to
process my information.
"Yeah." I couldn't believe the awkward
turn this conversation had taken.
"So the date last night?"
I gave him
the look
. "Do you really
want all the details?"
"God, no!" He looked aghast at the very
thought. "I just—I mean—hell! Does
he&you know…like…he treats you right?"
"Yes. He's good to me, Ronnie. We had
dinner. We went to an art gallery. We had
some ice cream." I bit my lower lip and
decided to be totally honest with him. "We
went back to his place."
He held up his hand. "Yeah, you can
stop. I
really
don't want to hear anything
else."
I decided to stop tormenting him. More
serious now, I added, "He's taking care of
your debts, Ronnie. It's done. All of it.
Today."
He stared at me in disbelief. "I don't
know what to say."
"Thank you is probably a good start."
"To you or him? Let's not bullshit one
another. You're the reason he's helping
me, Cass."
I couldn't even begin to deny that. "I
know, Ronnie."
"Why is he doing this for you?"
The answer came swiftly. "Because he
wants me to be happy."
"And are you?"
I didn't even hesitate. "Yes."
"This morning," he countered. "What
about tomorrow and next week and next
month? Do you really think this guy, this
loan shark, can make you happy, Cass? Do
you think he can be the man you need?"
He asked all the questions I'd been
asking myself. "I don't know," I admitted,
"but there's no way to figure any of that out
if I don't a take a chance. He's making
changes in his life. Positive changes," I
added.
"Is he worth the risk?"
I couldn't help myself. "You're the
gambler. You tell me. What are my odds
of happiness with Hagen?"
He hissed dramatically and rubbed his
chest, feigning an injury. "Ouch, Cass."
"You walked right into that one,
Ronnie."
"Fair enough." A few seconds later, he
added, "You want to open a book on your
relationship? I'd give you to ten-to-one
odds on six months. We could make it a
small bet—"
I glared at him. "Ronnie!"
His swollen, busted lips curved in the
tiniest, mischievous grin. "I'm joking,
Cass. I'm done with betting."
"I hope that's true, Ronnie. I really do."
"It is. You'll see. I won't let you down
this time."
I'd heard that before but wasn't about to
remind him how many times he'd failed.
We sat in silence while we waited for the
hospital to find an open room upstairs for
his stay. Curious about his odds, I asked,
"Ten-to-one against us making it to six
months?"
He gave a small shake of his head.
"For."
CHAPTER FIVE
When I exited the hospital some time
later, the first pale rays of sunlight painted
the sky a soft shade of orange. I crossed
the parking lot and found Hagen leaning
against the hood of his car while he
sipped a cup of coffee.
"How is he?" Hagen reached for my
hand as I drew near and pulled me into his
embrace.
"He'll be okay." I placed my cheek to
his chest and inhaled his comforting scent.
"They really beat the crap out of him."
"He owed them a lot of money and he
was
counting
cards
in
their
establishment," Hagen replied matter-of-
factly. "Every house has their own rules. I
hate to be crass but he's just damn lucky
they didn't take a pair of bolt cutters to his
fingers."
My gut rolled at the very idea of such a
barbaric thing. As if sensing my
discomfort, Hagen rubbed my back.
"Sorry, Cassie. I shouldn't have said that."
"From now one, let's make it a rule that
you spare me all that gross stuff."
He chuckled and kissed my forehead.
"Deal."
"Thanks."
"I made those calls. His slate is clean
now. This is his one chance, Cassie."
I looped my arms around Hagen and
hugged him. "Thank you."
His lips brushed the top of my head.
"Let's get you home."
Feeling worn out, I nodded and let him
walk me to the passenger door. As I slid
into the seat, I noticed the two black SUVs
parked nearby. The two men in the closest
SUV I recognized as men who worked for
Hagen. The two in the other I didn't.
"Hagen?"
He fastened his seat belt and turned the
ignition. "Yeah, sweetheart?"
"Should I be worried?"
He followed my gaze to the SUV in
question. "No, it's fine. You've got a good
eye, though. I like that."
"Who are they?"
"Debt collectors." He eased out of the
parking space. "I had a little chat with
them and their boss. Your brother's
account is settled."
"Then why are they waiting in the
parking lot?" I watched Hagen's goons
follow us but the other SUV remained
parked in its slot.
"You think your brother is the only past
due bill in town?"
"So what? They're just going to wait for
some poor sap to come walking out of that
hospital to ambush him? Shouldn't we call
the police or something?"
Hagen shot me a look of utter disbelief.
"You want to call the cops on a couple of
knee breakers working for the Albanians?
Are you out of your damn mind?"
"No but isn't it the right thing to do?"
"The right thing to do and the safest
thing to do aren't always the same thing,
Cassie."
"Hagen—"
"Look, Cassie, those two? They don't
need to use violence to get what's owed to
their boss. Neither do my men, for that
matter. There are plenty of others ways to
convince someone to pay."
"But you're reputation on the street—"
"I know my reputation, Cassie." He
glanced over at me as we idled at a red
light. "I know it because I created it."
Feeling completely thrown for a loop, I
asked, "What do you mean?"
"It's not all true, Cassie. It doesn't have
to be. Yes, I've done some incredibly
violent things. As a kid, I was ten kinds of
screwed up and always looking for a fight.
Later, in my early days loaning money, I
had to be a hard ass to collect what was
owed to me. It only takes a handful of
incidents to build the right reputation.
People start to talk and repeat and
embellish those stories. It's all myth and
shadows, Cassie."
I stared at him as the light turned green
and he pressed the accelerator. "So you're
not…"
"I'm no saint, honey. I'm certainly no
monster either. But that bleeding heart of
yours is going to get you into big trouble
someday."
"You mean like it did yesterday, in your
office?"
He frowned. "So now I'm trouble?"
I grinned and teasingly said, "With a
capital T.'"
He smiled at me. "The same could be
said for you. One look into those bright
green eyes of yours and I was a goner.
Now I'm down fifty grand."
"
Fifty grand
!" I shouted the obscene
number in absolute shock. My heart raced
and my stomach pitched violently. "Hagen,
please tell me you're exaggerating."
"I'm exaggerating." He parroted the
words in a flat tone.
"You're lying." Mouth agape, I tried to
wrap my head around the figure he'd
quoted. It sickened me. "How?"
"Interest, late fees…" He waved his
hand. "It all adds up, Cassie."
"Hagen, I had no idea Ronnie was in
that kind of trouble. I never meant to put
you in this position."
He reached over and took my hand. "I
offered knowing full well your brother
was in deep shit. I said it earlier and I still
mean it. This was my gift to you."
"Fifty thousand is a
gift
?"
He reached over and brushed his
scarred knuckles across my cheek.
"You're worth it."
"You're crazy." I took his hand and
kissed it. "You really are."
"Crazy about you," he said with a laugh.
I snorted with amusement. "You've
known me a day. Let's see if you're still so
crazy about me in a week."
He chuckled. "What's wrong? Did
Ronnie give us long-shot odds?"
"Actually, he gave us damn good odds.
Ten-to-one, we make it six months."
"From a better gambler, I'd take that as
a sign of confidence."
"Hey!" I thumped his arm. "Be nice.
That's my brother you're talking about."
"Yeah, your brother, the worst gambler
in the history of Houston," Hagen replied
as he merged onto the interstate. "Bookies
everywhere will be weeping that he's
packing it in for good. I know how much
interest I made off him over the last few
years. When he paid, he was good for
business."