Sinclair (Bad Boys of WildeSide Book 2) Read online

  “Turn around,” I ordered the shooter. A strange feeling was working its way over me. It couldn’t be. There was no way. “Now. You don’t want to test me.”

  The figure turned, and my heart caught in my throat as the headlights reflected off her pale features. Darcy.

  She held her gun up, pointing it towards me. I saw Mace tense out of the corner of my eye. There was movement by the car, and I knew Theo would be getting into position, so he had a better shot.

  “Don’t shoot,” I ordered in a harsh voice. I tried to soften my tone as I spoke to her. “Darcy, it’s okay. It’s me. Sinclair.”

  She didn’t say anything. But her gun remained aimed my way. Okay then. It probably didn’t help that we all had our guns out and pointed at her.

  “She’s got a gun aimed at you, boss,” Mace said.

  “Yes, I can see that,” I said impatiently. “Darcy, I’m putting my gun away, okay? We all are.”

  “Boss,” Theo said warningly.

  “Just do it,” I snapped as I slowly placed my gun into its holster. I held my arms out to the sides. “See?”

  There was a long, tense moment. Then she pointed her gun at the ground. I breathed easier. What the hell was going on?

  She turned to look at Mace. “Is he dead?”

  “Unconscious but still breathing last I saw,” he replied. “I’ll secure him.”

  “Then I need to go finish the job.”

  “Darcy.” I was shocked. She raised her gaze to mine, and the hard look on her face surprised me. Where was the happy, sweet girl I’d known? She’d just shot someone. And now she looked disappointed because he wasn’t dead.

  “You didn’t mean to do it.” It had to have been an accident.

  “Yes, I did. I meant to kill him, and I’m going back to finish the job.”

  I followed her as she dashed to the left, between two cars.

  “Boss, we’ve got to get out of here,” Theo said urgently. “Someone could have called the cops.”

  I knew he was right. But I wasn’t leaving without Darcy.

  “Fuck! Fuck!” She let out a deep yell, so full of pain and fury that I paused, staring at her in disbelief. “He’s gone.”

  Mace stared down at the pool of blood. “He must have woken up and snuck off. Bleeding like a stuck pig.”

  “Track him,” I ordered, then grabbed Darcy’s arm.

  She turned, swinging her gun towards me. I stilled at the look on her face. There was a mix of fear and deep-seated anger in there. Something else, too. I stared down at her for a moment as she breathed heavily. What the hell had happened to her?

  I took a step back, holding my arms out in an attempt to look harmless. I wanted to move slowly. It was obvious she was spooked. But we just didn’t have time. “Darcy, we need to get out of here. Before someone sees us.”

  She glanced around.

  “I promise we’ll find him. But we have to go. The last thing we need is witnesses.” If necessary, I would pick her up and shove her in my car. But she surprised me by nodding.

  “Give me your gun.”

  She shook her head. “I’ll keep it.” She put the safety on then slid it into a holster under her jacket. I stared down at her stomach with a frown. There was no sign of a bump.

  “Let’s go,” she said.

  Darcy

  I stared around the hotel room. Once a place like this wouldn’t have fazed me at all; I’d stayed in expensive hotels all my life. But I’d been living in my car for the last six weeks or so. I hadn’t cared. I’d only had one thing on my mind. Revenge. Although right now, the large, plush bed I’d spotted in one of the bedrooms in the suite was calling my name.

  How long had it been since I’d slept? I couldn’t remember. I wished I could just lay my head down and sleep, forget the last few months for a short time. But now wasn’t the time. The bastard was still alive.

  My hands still shook. Adrenaline? Rage? Both? I wasn’t sure. I’d been so close, and I’d missed. Well, I’d hit him. The pool of blood he’d left behind was a testament to that. Hopefully, he bled out in a slow and painful death.

  I ran my hand over my face. I’d been in a kind of daze when Sinclair had hustled me into his car. These last few weeks all I’d thought about was killing Nick. I’d dreamt about it. Plotted it. Thought about it day and night. But now that I’d nearly killed him, I felt kind of numb.

  Sinclair’s driver had sped off, traveling for about twenty minutes until he’d stopped at an expensive hotel. Sinclair had disappeared then returned and escorted me up to this suite through the back entrance.

  I should leave. I shouldn’t really be here with Sinclair. I didn’t want to pull him into my mess. Although if anybody was used to dealing with this sort of shit, then it had to be him, right?

  The door to the suite opened, and Sinclair walked in before I could force myself to move. His face was impassive as he watched me. “I thought I told you to get out of those clothes.”

  “Aren’t you going to wine and dine me first? I thought your mother taught you better than that.”

  I nearly winced after mentioning his mother. I tried not to think about Elise. That time in my life had been almost too sweet, too perfect. It hadn’t been real, of course. It hadn’t been my life. Never would be.

  “Did you find him?” I asked. It was all I cared about. I didn’t give a shit what Sinclair thought of me. It wasn’t like we meant anything to each other.

  “No. We’ll find him, though.”

  “Good. I need to finish what I started.”

  He stared at me, and I thought he’d argue. But he just shook his head. “I’ve taken care of our alibi. If anyone asks, we checked in at four and had room service delivered. It’ll be here soon. Along with some clothes for you. Go, take those clothes off and take a shower. I don’t want anything to link you to that parking lot.”

  To Nick.

  I just stared at him. How could he act so calm? So uncaring? Didn’t it bother him that I’d just shot a man? Maybe it didn’t. Maybe he’d shot so many men it didn’t faze him.

  “Move, Darcy. Now. I can’t protect you unless you do what I say.”

  I sat forward; fatigue was beating down on me. I needed to sleep soon, or I was going to crash. “Who says I need your protection?”

  He strode forward, the look on his face so fierce my heart skipped a beat. I threw myself back in the chair, surprised by my fear. I didn’t think it was possible for me to feel fear again. And to be afraid of Sinclair was a total shock.

  He paused, giving me an assessing look. His face calm, his eyes wild. “Listen to me. I’m going to protect you, whether you like it or not. You just shot a man, Darcy. I don’t know all the details. But right now, you’re going to get into that bathroom and take a shower. I’m going to get rid of your clothes. We’ll eat. We’ll talk, and then you’re going to get some sleep.”

  “Aren’t you even going to ask me?” I found myself whispering. Didn’t he care? Suddenly the hazy veil that had been covering my emotions ripped apart. Feeling flooded me, and I had to work hard to hold back the tears. Damn it. Damn it. I’d worked so hard to freeze everything. To bury all the emotions deep.

  Five minutes with Sinclair and all of that just tore apart.

  And at that moment I hated him. Truly hated him. Because I didn’t want to feel. Never again.

  He pulled back and turned away, his body tense. Harsh breathing filled the room, and I was surprised to realize it was coming from him. He was always so unflappable. So cool and calm.

  When he turned back to me, the raw emotion on his face tore into me, ripping my insides to shreds. There was no coming back from this. No finding the composure I’d forced on myself. My emotions had been like a calm lake, no movement, no ripples. But once a stone fell into that lake, the ripples kept growing and growing until they were huge waves crashing inside me. Drowning me.

  I let out a harsh sob. “Don’t you want to know what happened to my baby?”

  Sinclai
r

  I didn’t. God help me, I didn’t want to know. Even though I’d tried to convince myself otherwise, I knew the truth.

  “The baby died. Do you want to know how? Do you want to know the whole sordid, horrible story? The reason why I want to kill Nick? Don’t you want to know what happened to me after you pushed him back into my life?”

  I thought I’d been doing the right thing. Had the loss of her baby been partially my fault? How could I live with myself if my actions had brought this about?

  She gave a harsh laugh that was filled with unshed tears. God, what had happened to her? Where was the Darcy I’d once known? She barely even looked like the same woman. Her skin was sallow; it had a sickly, white-grey tinge. Her hair was matted and greasy, as though she hadn’t bothered to wash it in weeks, let alone brush it. Her clothes were dark and dirty. Her lips were chapped, her eyes sunken.

  I didn’t want to think about the last time she’d eaten properly or slept. Anger was on a low simmer inside me, but it wouldn’t take much to make it boil. I wasn’t a man who lost his temper easily. In my job, I needed a clear head. To make decisions that were based on rationality not feeling. My father had taught me this job from the inside out. But he hadn’t taught me what to do when the woman I loved was in pain. The woman who’d never been mine. The woman I’d let go; who I’d failed. What to do with her anger and fear.

  She stood and swayed, letting out a low moan of distress. I leaped to her, catching her against my chest. She struggled, but her movements were sluggish, slow. It was obvious she was at the end of her endurance. Protectiveness swelled inside me. I’d pushed my feelings aside for her once and look at where we’d ended up.

  No more. Never again. She was mine, and I didn’t care what she’d done. She would stay mine.

  “Damn you,” she whispered. “Damn you.”

  “Believe me; I’m damning myself enough for the both of us.”

  Darcy

  I woke slowly, uncertain where I was. The room was cool and dark, the bed beneath me soft and silken. I sat and looked around.

  “Easy, don’t move too fast.”

  That voice. I’d dreamed about that voice night after night. Fantasized about it. I’d dreamt of him coming for me. My knight in shining armor. Huh, what a naïve fool I’d been.

  Sinclair drew the curtain from the window, and sunlight streamed in. I winced. “What time is it?”

  “About one in the afternoon,” he replied.

  I rubbed my temples; a headache pounded away. Suddenly, he produced two white pills and a glass of water. He held them out to me. I stared from the pills up into his face.

  “What are these?”

  His eyes widened slightly, as though he’d never expected me to question him. “They’re painkillers. Just over-the-counter stuff.”

  I took them, swallowing them down quickly. “What happened? I can’t remember much after we arrived here.”

  I remembered everything before with perfect clarity.

  “We were talking then you stood up and got dizzy, so I put you to bed.”

  I did? My mind struggled to keep up with his words. I glanced down at myself. I was wearing a large T-shirt that smelled like him.

  “Who the hell undressed me?”

  He winced slightly. “I did.”

  I folded my arms over my chest, feeling totally vulnerable. I liked it better when I didn’t feel at all. Damn him, why couldn’t he have left me in that place?

  “Don’t worry, all I did was change you out of those clothes then put you to bed. I’m not a monster.”

  Actually, I hadn’t been worried about him doing anything untoward. That wasn’t who he was. Despite what had happened I still trusted Sinclair. At least to some extent. I wouldn’t make the same mistakes I’d made in the past. No longer would I rely on someone else to look after me. I would take care of me.

  “I did notice you’ve lost weight. A lot of weight.”

  I shrugged. Who cared? Not me. I didn’t care if he now thought I was unattractive. Or maybe I was more attractive to him than I’d been before. Maybe he liked skinny, bony women who ate like birds. I hadn’t lost weight by choice. My appetite had disappeared weeks ago. Stress, fury, and grief would do that.

  Though, I wasn’t certain he’d ever found me attractive. Maybe I’d just been a nuisance to him.

  “I had some pastries bought up. They’re in the next room. There are some clothes in the drawers. Do you want a shower?”

  “I guess.”

  “Do you feel dizzy at all? Shall I carry you in?”

  “No,” I replied sharply. “I’m fine. I don’t like to be touched.” Not anymore.

  His eyebrows scrunched together in a frown, but he didn’t move towards me.

  “Good. Take a shower. We can talk while you eat.”

  “Don’t want to talk.” Maybe I sounded childish. I didn’t much care. I might have slept like the dead, but I felt almost worse now. My head was heavy and felt like it was filled with cotton. Nausea bubbled in my stomach.

  “Tough. I’m expecting the police to track you down at any moment. We need to make certain we say the same thing.”

  “Maybe we should just tell them the truth.” I was so tired. That numbness I’d surrounded myself in was drifting back, and I welcomed it with open arms. Much easier than feeling.

  “Listen to me.” He moved over and clasped hold of my chin. A zing of heat flooded my body, pushing back the numbness. With a frown, I grabbed hold of his wrist, pulling his hand away. He let go immediately, but his face remained intent as he glared down at me. “You are not telling anyone the truth, understand me? No one is going to know what happened except you, me, Mace, and Theo. Not even Cassie or Wilde.”

  Why would I tell Cassie? No need to drag her down into my shit.

  “Can you trust this Mace and Theo not to blab?”

  “Yes.”

  “Guess that’s the plus side of being the boss, huh? People are too scared of cement shoes to talk.” I swallowed, my throat dry as his face grew stony cold. That might have been a step too far.

  “You know nothing of what I do.”

  “And that’s the way it’s got to stay?”

  “Yes, that’s the way it’s always going to be.”

  “Because you’re afraid I’ll blab.” It was ridiculous, but I actually felt upset he didn’t trust me. Why did I care what he thought?

  “Because I’m protecting you. I’ll always protect you.”

  “Right, because you care so much about me? So much you just left me. I was a problem you needed to get rid of. You found Nick, not because you thought it was right that he knew about the baby, but because you wanted to assuage your guilt. You couldn’t leave me on my own, but you didn’t want me around. Well, newsflash, I would have been better off on my own. At least then I’d still have my baby. She’d still be alive!” I held back my sobs through sheer force of will as his face grew pale.

  Lines appeared around the corners of his mouth. His lips parted then closed. “It was a girl?” he asked in a strangled voice.

  “Yes. They let me hold her. She was beautiful.” I blinked rapidly. I would not cry. I had cried rivers when I lost her until I realized crying was useless. It didn’t help. It didn’t change things.

  “What happened?” he asked.

  There was a knock on the outer door, and I jolted. Sinclair stiffened, turning. “Wait here.”

  I moved once he turned his back, racing over to the drawers and pulling out the clothes I found there. Bras, panties, T-shirts, and two soft sweaters. I pulled things on at random and grabbed some jeans from the closet. Everything fit perfectly. I should have known they would; Sinclair was a perfectionist.

  I heard low voices talking as I entered the living area of the suite. Sinclair turned to frown at me, and I resisted the urge to back away. I didn’t owe him my obedience. I didn’t owe anyone anything. Thoughts of Cassie filled me, making me feel guilty. I hadn’t been a good friend to her; I’d shut myself
off from her because I didn’t want her to know how badly everything had turned out for me. Didn’t want to bring her down with me.

  I looked past Sinclair to find one of his men standing there. The one who’d stayed behind to track Nick.

  “It’s all good, boss. No one called in a report to the cops. The music in the club must have been too loud for anyone to hear anything, and none of the buildings close by are occupied at night.”

  “Good.” Sinclair glanced back at me. “We’ll head back in two hours. Contact Rico and have him get the plane ready. If no one saw anything, and there’s no evidence, then it shouldn’t come back to us.”

  “I’m not going anywhere,” I told them. “Not until I find Nick.”

  “Mace will stay here to search for him,” Sinclair told me. “You’re coming home.”

  “I have no home.” I stared at him.

  “Anywhere you think I should look?” Mace asked, filling the awkward silence.

  “He’s estranged from his family. Any friends he had, he’s pretty much pissed off. You should all go home. Don’t worry, if the police come knocking on my door, I won’t mention you guys at all.”

  Not that I had a door to knock on.

  Mace left, and Sinclair walked over to me. “Sit. Eat. We have a bit of time before we leave.”

  “I’m not hungry, and I’m not leaving.”

  He just waited. I sighed. “Fuck, you’re good at this game.” I sat and reached for a pastry. They did look good. Maybe a bite or two.

  “Language.”

  I gave a harsh laugh. “Honey, I think my language is the least of our fucking worries.”

  He sat across from me. “If the police do come, you stick as much to the truth as possible. We know each other through mutual friends. We came here to Chicago together on my private plane—the manifest is being changed.”

  I didn’t ask him how he was achieving that. The pastry was so good I was having trouble not scarfing it down. I hadn’t even realized I was hungry.

  “Why’d we come here? What about my car?”

  “Your car? Where is it? Is it by the strip club?”

  I snorted. “No. And it’s registered to Nick anyway. He left without it, so I kept it. It’s parked a few blocks away.”