His father’s massive frame filled the doorway, silently demanding Tony’s attention. Ricardo Ramirez’s muscular build and grim demeanor were already intimidating enough, but the fact that he was dressed in full military gear made him seem even more dangerous. Of course, his cold black eyes and the scar that ran down his cheek didn’t hurt either.
“Anything yet?” Ricardo asked impatiently as he cocked an eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest.
“No, not yet,” Tony replied smoothly, “but she’s only been here one day. We rescued her from a deranged serial killer; it’s not unexpected that it will take time to find out what she knows. I’m making progress, but I’m not convinced she knows where Santiago’s headed next.”
Tony sat at a simple desk in the spare office of the Ramirez main house, the domain of the infamous Ramirez brothers – his father, Ricardo, and his uncle, Antonio. He had been offered one of the other, more luxuriously appointed rooms for his work but he had declined. His needs were simple and he didn’t like clutter. Before his father had arrived, Tony had been going over his notes from the day’s debriefing session with Caden. The time with her had yielded more insight into Santiago’s obsession with her, but no leads on his whereabouts. He was betting Santiago had disappeared into the jungles of Colombia; it was the most obvious option he would choose. Of course, it was also the most difficult locale for them to contend with if they wanted to track him down.
The only thing keeping Tony from feeling confident that Caden had indeed told him everything she knew, was Caden herself. Santiago had really done a number on her, messed with her head. Tony practically growled at the thought of how protective she was of the bastard, even after everything he’d put her through: kidnapping her and holding her against her will, slipping her drugs, and leaving her an emotional wreck. As far as Tony was concerned, Santiago Sanchez was nothing more than a serial killer dressed in cartel clothing. And, yeah, he needed to die.
“How sweet,” his father drawled. “What are you going to do? Woo her with champagne and flowers? Your sweet disposition and good intentions are going to get her killed. Let me make myself clear. You wanted to come home and join the fold, earn your place in the cartel, yes?”
“You know I do. I’ve told you that.”
“Then do your job. Put your military training to work. Find out what she knows about his plans, then deprogram this woman thoroughly so she abandons her irrational concern for that Sinaloan animal. She will be considered a liability otherwise. Achieve your objectives or I will relieve you and let Antonio Wayne finish what you’ve started. He’ll find out what she knows, but she’ll likely be dead when he’s done.”
In an unprecedented move, Tony stood and took a step toward him, fists clenched at his sides as his father’s threats rang in his ears.
“That got your attention. Good.” Ricardo’s eyes narrowed as he regarded his son speculatively. “This woman matters to you. Interesting. Well,” he said decisively, “for now, I think your interest in her welfare works to the cartel’s advantage. But you’re running out of time, hijo. Cartel first, always. Do what needs doing.”
With that, he turned and headed out the door, leaving Tony reeling from the implications of his threats.
Caden hadn’t accepted it yet, but she was Tony’s now. Nobody threatened her on his watch, not even his own father – even if he happened to be the Colombian cartel boss. Nobody touched the woman except Tony.
He had met Caden on his first night back home from his second tour of duty in the Middle East. She worked as a stripper at The Club, which was run by a business associate of his father’s. Tony had been fresh off the plane and had stopped off for a drink on the way home, feeling the need for some quiet before returning to his family. After a hellish tour of duty that had left him questioning his humanity, Louisville, Kentucky was a shock to his system. He had settled in at a corner table, nursing his beer and enjoying his own brand of solitude in the crowded room.
The lights dimmed as the attention of the room shifted over to the main stage. Anticipation and sex sizzled on the air as the spotlight swept over to the far side of the stage. To the delight of the crowd, the beam of light captured a long, shapely leg extending coquettishly from behind the red velvet curtain. Tony smirked at the besotted reaction of the men on the front row. As the woman attached to said leg stepped out onto the stage, he lifted his beer, only to jolt to a stop and lower the glass to the table with a thud, oblivious to the beer that sloshed over onto his hand.
The blonde bombshell sauntered seductively across the stage…and he was done. Game over. Those fuckers on the front row needed to back off because that shit was his. He had found The One.
Santiago had occupied her time during her breaks that night, and the sight of her at the guy’s table had pissed him off to the point where he felt it best to hold off before staking his claim. But Tony didn’t let that stop him from pursuing her; he simply chose a less conventional approach. He did a little discreet digging and learned that when she wasn’t bringing grown men to their knees and relieving them of their hard-earned cash, Caden managed The Club’s website and social media. He could work with that; clearly, stealth was the way to go.
He contacted her via The Club’s website with some stupid question about customer dress code. Over time, they struck up a flirty online friendship of sorts through a series of emails and, eventually, texts. For two people who had never met in person, they became pretty close.
And then Santiago took things too far. She had only learned his identity the night before, after they rescued her from one of Santiago’s warehouses. She was still in shock, taking it all in. But Tony knew from the moment he saw her that there would be no other woman for him. However, recent events had forced him to step things up and it was time to do what he should have done months ago: stake his claim.
Santiago had gone underground and the cartel’s interest in his whereabouts had thrown a wrench into Tony’s plans. His father was convinced Caden not only had information on Santiago’s location, but that he would be coming back for her.
Caden was the Colombian cartel’s ticket to finding Santiago, or so his father thought. To Tony, she was just Caden Campbell—a flesh and blood woman, not a means to an end. But try telling Ricardo Ramirez that. If she was going to stand a chance of coming out of this ordeal alive, it was up to him to persuade her to cooperate. And he could be most persuasive, in ways far more pleasurable than what the cartel had planned.
But karma was a bitch. Tony’s whole life, he did everything he could to avoid joining the cartel – the family business. But after his second tour of duty in the Middle East, he had come home a changed man and told his father he was ready. He wanted in.
As a sniper, he had seen things and done things overseas that fucked with his head. He had never been a big believer in karma, but he sure as hell was now. When he thought of the darkness and personal demons he’d brought home with him from the desert, he wasn’t surprised to end up with a fight on his hands now.
To claim his one shot at happiness with the only woman he had ever wanted, he might have to face off against everything and everyone he held dear. More and more, it looked like it was going to be inevitable…