Chapter Three
Hotel
Saturday
Four P.M
H onestly, he didn’t give a shit what her name was, or what her story happened to be. Before, he would have cared, and he would have tried to save her. Well, that was the old him. As of late, Dimitri was just angry, bitter, and empty.
Screw the world.
That was his new motto.
The more he thought about Marissa Pierce, the more he wanted to hurt someone.
Himself.
Her.
Anyone who crossed his path.
She’d cozied up to him, used his body to get off, and then she’d walked away.
It had been brutal.
On top of that, she’d stabbed him in the fucking arm. Still, he’d given her a shot.
Why?
After watching everyone pair up and find happiness, he was the odd man out.
It sucked.
Yes, he had sworn he wouldn’t take the hooker route anymore, but he was so damn lonely.
His heart hurt, and he wanted to feel.
At this point, he’d do anything.
So, he was back to hookers and call girls.
After making the call, he got his customary room at the hotel. He made sure he had condoms, and time.
That was all he needed.
When she arrived, he’d have someone to take his mind off of everything.
That was what he wanted.
Dimitri needed to forget.
As he sat on the side of the bed, he stared at his phone. A part of him wanted him to reach out to her, and a part of him wanted to tell her off. He knew how to contact her, but he had to let it go. Finding her contact number, he stared down at it.
She was free.
She was burying her sister, and starting her life over. Now that Marissa’s mission was over, he had to let her go.
Dimitri hit the delete button.
Now he was starting over too.
Alone.
He couldn’t forgive her for leaving.
She came back, stabbed him, slept with him, and then left. It didn’t even bother her that he had feelings. He felt so used.
Granted, it was all understandable. His brother had killed her sister. He’d tortured and destroyed her.
What had he expected?
A happily ever after?
Really?
Had the Crofts brainwashed him that much?
At the knock on the door, he knew it was time.
Going over, he pulled the door open, and he saw who Stephanie had sent him.
Honestly, she wasn’t his type.
She looked too young.
Well, he was feeling that bad about himself that she’d do. Why not sink all the way to the bottom of the barrel?
“You called for me?” she asked, staring up at him.
“Yes, I did. Get naked. Let’s get this over with.”
Dimitri walked away and began stripping as he went. He threw the money down on the bed stand and dropped his pants.
“I like men who move fast.”
“I like women who don’t talk. Shut up, blow me, we’ll fuck, and then get out.”
She stared at him.
“Um, okay.”
Dimitri sat on the bed and she dropped to her knees. When she stroked him, he laid back and stared at the ceiling. As the escort blew him, he felt…empty.
It wasn’t working.
The harder she tried, the more she failed.
He couldn’t get off.
It wasn’t the same.
“You’re tense,” she said.
Yeah, he was a lot of different things, and now he was going to be a bastard.
“This isn’t working.”
“What’s wrong? Don’t you find me sexy?” she asked, climbing up his body to straddle his hips.
He found nothing sexy anymore.
He was officially broken.
“Fuck me. You’ll feel better,” she said, pulling off her tight shirt to reveal her breasts.
Dimitri stared at them.
Finally, he gave up and touched them. She felt fake, just like the interlude.
Rolling fast, he pinned her beneath him.
“That’s right, baby. Fuck me.”
That was about what she was going to get, and Dimitri knew he wasn’t going to be gentle.
He couldn’t be. That part of his compassion was empty. He had no love for anything anymore.
So, as the girl who could barely be eighteen was pinned beneath him, he broke his own cardinal rule.
He took her.
As he was above her, pounding himself into her body, a million things went through his mind.
Hate.
Rage.
It was all there.
He was rough.
He was brutal.
He had no mercy.
When she whimpered in pain, and she actually begged him to stop battering, he did.
To flip her over and take her ass.
He drove himself into her, glad he couldn’t see her face. He didn’t want to think about who he was fucking.
Raping.
He just needed to go deeper into the loathing.
She struggled against him, and he finally got to the edge. As she begged, he didn’t care that she wasn’t enjoying it. She was nothing more than another whore from the streets of Vegas.
She wouldn’t be saved, and neither would he.
As he got to the edge, he began calling her every name in the book, only it wasn’t this woman.
It was the one who left.
As he got ready to come, he yanked her head to the side and bit her.
She began crying.
Only then did he cum, exploding into her in wave after wave of anguish.
His pain.
Her pain.
It was all on his shoulders. He bore it all, and the weight was staggering.
He’d also fucked her bare. It had been suicide, and he knew it.
He rolled onto his back, leaving her body. She was battered and bruised, and for the first time in his life, he became his father. The man he’d raged about had finally won.
Dimitri had hit rock bottom. He thought he’d already done that with Marissa, but he’d been wrong.
He was there now.
“Get out,” he said, pointing at the money.
The hooker pulled down her skirt, she grabbed the cash, and she headed out the door.
He felt horrible for how he treated her. Only, he couldn’t save himself. How was he supposed to save her?
Dimitri sat there, inches from the phone, and he couldn’t do it anymore.
Picking it up, he dialed her number from memory.
When she answered, he said one thing.
“I need you. Please.”
“I’ll be right there.”
He hung up.
And Dimitri waited.
For someone to care.
* * * G r e y s o n C r o f t * * *
Terrace Glen
Steele found Dante hanging out with his father, and he was grateful it was just the two men. He really wasn’t up to seeing Dante’s mother. He just wanted to keep the peace before their wedding.
Heading across the game room, he gave his fiancé a hug and stayed against his body.
“Hey, babe,” Steele said.
Dante smiled at him as he nuzzled his cheek with his own. “You’re looking all chipper, honey. I’m going to say you didn’t see my mother.”
He laughed.
It was clear everyone knew he was avoiding the woman, and the way Dante’s father joined in, even he got it.
“No, I didn’t see her. I’m happy because I was shopping with Emma and Chris.”
“Oh, did you buy anything?” Dante asked, trying to peek into the bag.
“Uh, honeymoon.”
He got it.
The word sent shivers down his spine. He couldn’t wait to get to that point, and it sounded like Emma did her thing.
Dante was going to kiss her next. He owed her one.
“Not even a clue?” Dante asked, keeping his arm around his fiancé.
“Let’s just say that I think you’ll like some of the things I found.”
Dante could only imagine, and he likely would. In fact, he didn’t need anything for the honeymoon but the man he loved.
So, to express that, he kissed him.
Steele stayed in his embrace, and lived in only that moment. The kiss was slow, soft, and filled with love. He could taste bourbon and cigars on Dante, and it offered him this warm sense of calm.
It was peaceful.
It was HOME.
When Dante finally set him free, they were eye to eye, and nose to nose. “I can’t believe I’m finally going to marry my best friend and soulmate tomorrow. This is my dream come true, Steele.”
His heart skipped.
Christopher Croft came around and patted both men on the shoulders. While he wasn’t upset that his son was gay, he did know what Dante had done, and the two men needed to be alone. Dante had to learn that being in a marriage wasn’t always easy, scripted, or fun. Sometimes, you had to face the rocky part down and deal with it.
Speaking of which…
“I’m going to check on Reggie. Hide.”
They laughed.
When he was gone, the mood got somber, and fast. Steele could feel it. Something was stressing Dante out. The man was normally easy going, calm, and relaxed.
Somehow, he didn’t think this had anything to do with Reggie being there.
Now he was worried.
“What’s wrong?” Steele asked. “You’re keeping something from me. I can see it in your eyes.”
And he could.
There was a storm brewing there. The Croft men were an open book when you stared into that silver storm.
“Do you want to back out of the wedding?” he asked, trying not to be sick.
Yeah, this was bad.
Dante knew he had to tell him, and soon. They were running out of time, and if his fiancé was already assuming that, they definitely had a problem.
“No, babe. I don’t want to call off the wedding. I need to talk to you,” he said, leading him to a couch in the mancave. He sat down, and Steele joined him.
“Then what’s wrong?” Steele asked, trying to keep from weeping.
“I did something, and I hope you don’t hate me for it.”
That scared Steele.
A million possibilities went through his mind, but the one that stuck out the most was that he’d had an affair.
Why wouldn’t he?
Steele was damaged goods, and he wouldn’t blame him. They’d had zero intimacy for months because he was afraid.
In his mind, he began making promises. If Dante didn’t leave him, and if he didn’t cheat on him, he’d make this right. Fear or not, he’d begin fixing his shit.
The man had been so patient the last few months, and he’d been hiding in his abduction and the PTSD.
Steele stared at him.
Dante was nervous.
“What could you possibly do to make me hate you?” he asked. Then he asked him the one thing that he knew would destroy what they had. “Did you cheat on me?”
Dante was appalled by his question, and that everyone thought that was even a possibility.
“NO!”
Steele didn’t get what could be the issue. “Then what, babe?”
Here went everything.
“Remember Vonda Herron?” he asked. “She was the woman who had the affair with your father.”
Oh, he remembered.
“Yes. I remember her.”
“Right before you were taken, I found something out, and I didn’t tell you.”
Steele was feeling sick.
He leaned back on the couch and braced himself for it. Anything that had to do with his mother or father was going to suck.
That was just from every single one of his past experiences.
“What?” he asked, blinking at his fiancé with his one good eye. He wanted to pace, get sick, and run—and he didn’t know why.
“Steele, honey, your father had another child with Vonda. You have a sibling.”
He didn’t know what to say.
This was like a sucker punch to the solar plexus.
“And you’ve known this long and decided today to tell me because I’m not nervous enough that tomorrow we get married?”
Dante felt like an asshole.
“I wanted to tell you, but you’ve been struggling. I didn’t know…”
He stopped.
“Just say it.”
“I didn’t want you to leave me. I was afraid you’d freak out and dump me again. When you were saved from that hole in the ground, you couldn’t deal and left. I assumed you’d do it again, and I can’t handle losing you again.”
Steele understood why he was afraid. He had done that to him, but now, he couldn’t believe this.
He had a sibling?
“Is it a male or female?” he asked.
“You have a brother. His name is Bentley Herron.”
Wow.
Just…wow.
“Where is he?” he asked.
“He’s in Vegas. In fact, I contacted him, and he’s coming here tonight to meet you. It was sort of my wedding gift to you, but then I got worried that you’d be upset. I didn’t want to freak you out in front of the family by dropping this into your lap. I just thought you deserved to have someone here, other than a Croft. You deserved to have blood by your side.”
Steele’s eye filled with tears.
“Oh, babe, I’m sorry,” whispered Dante. “Don’t hate me. I’m sorry. I can call him and tell him not to come. I’ll do whatever you want me to do.”
Steele looked up at him. “Hate you? Why would I do that?”
“He’s part of your father and your past. I didn’t know if you’d be happy, or…?”
He kissed him.
It was heated, filled with love, and wilder than he’d been in a long time.
Dante didn’t know what the hell to do, but hold on. As his fiancé drove the kiss, his whole body began waking up.
It was amazing.
Dante came to life, and the long dormant need began ebbing to the surface, filling him with heat.
Hands began wandering, there was heavy breathing, and finally, Dante moaned.
Steele set him free.
“How could I be anything but madly in love with you for what you did? You found me family.”
Then he thought about it.
Family.
His family had sucked.
Would his brother suck too?
“Does he want to meet me? Really meet me?” he asked.
Dante couldn’t speak. He could barely think after that kiss. He simply nodded.
Steele grinned. “I have a brother.”
“Yes, you do.”
“Tell me about him,” Steele practically begged. “What’s he like? How old is he? Do we look alike? Is he nice? What does he do?”
Dante had to stop him so he could begin to answer all of those questions.
“He seems great. I only met him once, so it was a first impression. It was at a café. He’s a college student in his last year. He’s studying medicine.”
Steele smiled. “He’s smart, like me?”
Dante nodded. “He has your eyes, and you both look similar. He’s got dark brown hair, like his mother, while you have the black hair from your father.”
Steele was intrigued.
“He’s coming tonight?” he asked.
“Yes, to meet you, and I invited him to the wedding tomorrow. I figured you’d want someone to be there for you too.”
He hugged him. “I love you, Dante.”
He took his face between his palms and stared into his eyes. “Steele, I love you so damn much. I’d do anything for you. I just want you to be happy.”
“I am. I’m marrying my best friend, I have the love of my new family, and I found out I have a brother. There’s nothing that can destroy my happiness.”
And that’s when he spoke too soon.
Dante heard his mother bitching on her way down to the mancave.
He grabbed his fiancé and pulled him toward the closet. Once there, he shoved him inside and joined him.
There, he placed his hand over his mouth.
“Where is Dante?” Reggie asked. “I wanted to talk to him about this wedding.”
Christopher Croft didn’t know. “I left him down here. Maybe he’s with his fiancé.”
“I’m never getting grand babies. I can’t believe this. Both sons have dropped the ball.”
“There’s more to life than grandchildren,” he offered. “You may have to come to the realization, Reggie, that your kids may not want children. They have to make their own choices.”
“Our one son is gay, and the other is in the mob. We went wrong somewhere.”
Dante wanted to head out and tell her off.
Instead, Steele wouldn’t let him go. In his ear, he whispered. “Don’t do it. We can get through this. She’ll make Emma miserable.”
That was the only reason he stopped.
His fiancé was right. Reggie would aim this at her, and they all knew she was pregnant.
Emma didn’t need the stress.
“It’s early. Why don’t we go swimming before dinner?” Christopher offered, trying to calm her down. He could see the trouble coming. While he loved his wife, she was accustomed to being the boss.
Here.
She wasn’t.
It drove her insane that her boys didn’t need her mothering anymore. He both hated her reaction and sympathized.
He was stuck in the middle.
“Fine. I’m in a bad mood,” she said, as she let her husband lead her out of there.
In the closet, the two men didn’t move.
“I kinda like it in here,” Steele said, nuzzling Dante’s cheek.
“Do you?” he asked, wrapping his arms around his partner. “Want to make out a little while? She won’t find us in here.”
That sounded perfect.
Plus, for the first time, in a while, Steele was actually interested in the act of fooling around.
“Emma and I found some fun things,” he said, bringing up the sex store, again, to his fiancé.
“Like?” he asked, praying.
He whispered in his ear, as he rubbed against him.
Holy shit!
Dante knew one thing. First, he was going to kiss his brother for getting Emma to talk to Steele, and then he was going to enjoy being married.
He was going to get his sex on.
Once again.
* * * G r e y s o n C r o f t * * *
Twenty Minutes
Later
Downtown Vegas
When she got the call, she was worried about him. As soon as she hung up, Emma made Greyson drive her to the hotel so she could handle it.
It wasn’t like Dimitri to call and need to see her, especially since his brother was still out there and gunning for them. Viktor Marchenko was a bad man, and they were all wearing the crosshairs on this one.
That meant one thing.
Something bad was going on.
So, as she headed to the hotel room number that he’d given her, Greyson went elsewhere. He wasn’t the one who’d been called, and Emma really believed that Dimitri needed her care.
So, he would head upstairs to the penthouse suite that they owned until she needed him.
She was likely going to have her hands full.
Greyson wasn’t surprised. He’d seen the change in his friend. He’d stopped being consistent with security, and he’d been a lot more irritable since Marissa Pierce broke his heart.
This was definitely coming.
He wasn’t shocked he’d reached for Emma. She was mothering all three Gideons with all she had. They seemed to need it more than anyone else at Terrace Glen.
He could live with that.
For his family, he’d share his wife’s heart.
Greyson kissed her on the lips. “I love you. If you need backup, call me. If I don’t hear from you, I’ll come down to check on you both.”
“I’ll be okay. I have to help him. Someone has to do it, Grey,” she offered.
He knew who that person was going to be.
Croft headed toward the elevator, leaving his wife to do what she did best. It was in her hands.
As Emma knocked on the hotel room door, she heard him call to her.
“It’s open.”
She entered and needed to gauge how bad he was. “That’s what got you stabbed last time,” she offered. “Maybe you should switch it up a bit and lock the door.”
There was no response.
Yeah, this wasn’t good. Dimitri always joked around with her, and he was good natured.
Now, nope.
Once inside the posh hotel room, she found him, and like she suspected, he wasn’t in good shape.
Dimitri was sitting on the edge of the rumpled bed, his head in his hands, and the energy around him was bad.
The room smelled like cheap perfume and sex.
Jesus.
What the hell had happened?
She immediately went to sit beside him, and his wall came down. Dimitri didn’t lean on anyone, but as of late, Emma was his one person he trusted.
She’d gotten Kat and Curtis married and was mothering her.
Natasha loved the woman, swearing she was a miracle worker when it came to love.
And now Dimitri needed her.
“Emma, I did something,” he whispered, afraid to look up at her. He was never ashamed before about hiring women to satisfy his needs.
Now he was.
What had he done?
“It’s okay, Dimitri. Just tell me what happened,” she said, even though she pretty much could tell without him saying a word. His shirt was open, his hair was a mess, and he looked haunted.
Then there was the rumpled bed.
“I…”
He couldn’t do it. His brain couldn’t wrap itself around what he’d just done. Not only had he paid another hooker, but he’d been abusive during the sex.
“I am him.”
Emma put her arms around him. Dimitri was always so strong, and he was a killer, but beneath it all, she knew the truth.
He was a boy who had to grow up way too fast.
And he’d missed the most important things in life.
Love.
Tenderness.
Kindness.
“It’s okay, Maximillian. You aren’t him. You aren’t your father.”
At the use of his real name, it all crumbled around him. The pain was too much. He needed someone to pull him back up. Never in his life had he been so freaked out by his actions, and that was saying a lot.
He’d killed for a living.
Now this one act of sex was threatening to undo him. He was at rock bottom, and he didn’t know how to even begin.
“I hired another a hooker. I’m so angry. It’s eating me alive. Then I hurt her.”
Okay, that didn’t sound good. There was no blood in the room, and there wasn’t the telltale scent of death, so she was assuming hurt didn’t mean kill.
Thank God.
“What do you mean hurt?” she asked.
“I raped her.”
Emma couldn’t believe that.
She knew this man, and that didn’t seem possible. There was no way he’d do it. She’d trust him with her child’s life, and she knew he wasn’t that kind of man.
“Are you sure?”
“I paid for her, I took her, and I didn’t care if she hurt. I’ve become him. I am just like my bastard father.”
She knew she had to get this under control, and fast.
“Did she tell you no, Dimitri?”
He shook his head.
“Did you leave marks on her?” she asked.
“I bit her.”
Okay, this wasn’t as bad as she’d thought. It sounded like rough sex. That wasn’t the problem. He was trapped, and she needed to reach him beneath all his self-loathing.
“Did she walk out alone?”
“Yes.”
It was time to get to the root of the issue.
“Marissa?”
Her name was the only thing she had to say.
He nodded. “Yes.”
“Are you doing this to punish yourself, Dimitri? Is she really the one?” Emma asked.
He wasn’t sure. “I don’t know.”
“Can I just point out the obvious?” she asked.
He nodded again.
“Everyone I’ve ever met and talked to has said one thing when they fell in love. They said they knew. You don’t. Maybe, you’re putting all your hopes on one person, and she isn’t deserving of it.”
“How can she love me? My brother killed her sister. I couldn’t love her if it were reversed.”
“Then it was never love, Dimitri. That’s the point. If she loved you, really loved you, and you her, then this would be something you both fought together.”
He listened.
“You might have felt like she COULD be the one, but she may not have been.”
He wasn’t sure if that gave him hope or made it worse.
“Emma,” he whispered.
She held him. On that rumpled bed, smelling like another woman and sex, she took care of his heart and soul. Her hands gently caressed his back, offering him peace. The whole time, she could feel the vicious, healed scars from his father as a small child.
He was a mess.
Physically, mentally, and emotionally.
“I let her in.”
“And?”
“I regret it.”
There.
He’d said it. Truth be told, he’d gotten attached to the idea of Marissa.
They’d slept together, and they’d started something.
Then she’d walked away, and his ego was damaged by it. He was supposed to be impermeable to all kinds of pain like this, and here he was, broken.
“You may have to let her go in here,” she said, touching his head.
He was aware. Dimitri was pretty sure she wasn’t coming back. She took her sister’s body, and they headed out. Dimitri checked.
She’d landed in Raleigh, and that was it. Could he find her?
Yes.
Would he?
No.
Dimitri just needed someone to help him. Emma came, and he’d lean on her, like he had before.
“Thank you.”
Emma leaned back, and they both laid on the bed.
Then it hit him.
“I had a hooker here. You shouldn’t…”
She stopped him with a kiss to his lips. “Shhhhh. Just let me hold you. You’ll feel better.”
He did.
Emma had that magic touch. She made everyone feel safe. She also held everyone’s secrets.
Like a mother.
God!
He loved her so much for that.
“Greyson is lucky,” he said. “I’d kill to have what he has. I hope he never forgets it.”
She laughed. “I tell him how lucky he is every day. He should be reminded.”
Dimitri smiled.
“I tell you what. When he tosses me over for some younger babe, I’m all yours.”
He grinned and his heart felt a little better. “Deal.”
Emma let him rest his head on her shoulder.
“Am I like him?” he asked out of the blue.
“No.”
“You’ve never met him, so how do you know?” he asked, thinking about the monster who had sired him.
“Because as a cop, I’ve seen many people like him. You aren’t a bad person. You’re just hurting. You didn’t sleep with a hooker tonight with the need to hurt her, you did it to feel. There’s a difference.”
He listened.
“Look at the man who hurt Sam.”
He didn’t say anything.
“You took care of it. That was violence done out of love and protection. Did your father ever try to protect you and Katerina?” she asked.
“No.”
“Would you let your friends rape her?”
He wanted to be sick.
“Never. I’d die first.”
“Does that sound like him?” she asked.
It didn’t.
“You’re good at this mother thing. Your child will be lucky to have a mom like you, Emma.”
She held him tighter.
When you loved someone, and they struggled, that’s exactly what you did.
Dimitri was a good man buried beneath a shitload of self-hate. That was his only problem.
“You will be okay, Dimitri. With time, you’ll be fine. I promise.”
“I can’t handle much more.”
She could tell. She only hoped that fate cut him a break. She’d get him through it the best she could.
“Why does love hurt?”
Emma brushed the hair off his face. “It hurts to remind you how precious it is. When you find it, and you’ve been hurt before, you never forget to cherish it.”
“I’ve hurt a lot.”
“You have us, Dimitri. I know you look at all of us, and think you’re alone, but you’re not. You have me, and Greyson, and everyone else. We have you.”
He relaxed.
The tension released from his body.
He needed this.
“Why did you get rough?” she asked.
Emma knew he’d have to face his demons.
“I was angry, so I called Stephanie and hired an escort. She came, and I couldn’t get off. Her mouth was all over my dick, and I couldn’t do it.”
Dimitri knew he should be embarrassed to be saying any of this to a woman, but Emma was different. When he talked to her, Dimitri felt safe.
“I got angrier.”
Emma let him talk.
“Then I took her. I was rough. I’m not that man, Emma. I saw him. I saw that bastard, and it scared me.”
She kissed him on the forehead. “You are entitled to feel, and I’m betting you didn’t hurt her as much as you think you did.”
He hoped she was right, but still, he was an asshole.
“I was rough with a woman. That’s not me. She barely looked eighteen.”
And here it was.
Dimitri, a man who saved young girls had used one and felt horrible. Now Emma got it.
“Does Stephanie employ girls, who are underage?” she asked.
“Not to my knowledge.”
“Then she was likely eighteen.”
God!
He hoped so.
If not, then he’d…
Dimitri couldn’t even think it.
She hugged him to her body, and he didn’t hesitate to take that offered affection. He pressed his body against hers in hope that some of her peace would seep into him.
Dimitri needed her to chase the darkness.
“You are a good man, Dimitri, and you’re entitled to hurt. Rough sex isn’t abusing her.”
He let that sink in. Then, he really dropped the bomb.
“I didn’t use a condom.”
Oh, that worried her.
“Honey.”
“I know. I have a death wish. I am feeling so lost right now. It was stupid.”
And just what his father had done.
He’d spread his seed all over that small town in Russia, and look what it had gotten them.
He had a homicidal brother, trying to kill him.
“Can I ask for something?” she inquired.
After all she did for them, he’d die for her. Asking for something was nothing to him.
“Anything, Emma.”
“Stop with the hookers. You’re looking for something that’s only going to make it worse. You have to see value in you so you can heal.”
He listened.
“You save them because you feel bad about what you’re doing. I can always tell when you come back from a hooker hunt. You’re darker, angry, and broken over it.”
She was right.
He loathed that weakness.
“Sometimes, I just need this,” he said, as she held him. He could live without sex. It was important, but he’d learned things mattered more. Dimitri simply craved that connection to someone. His life had been lonely.
Yes, he’d raised his sisters.
Yes, he had a family.
He still had no one to just hold him when he was struggling.
This was what he longed to have in his life, and he couldn’t figure out how to get it. Buying sex hadn’t helped.
So what was left?
Emma made him look into her eyes. “Then you come find me, and you can have all the affection and hugs you want. I’ll always hold you when you are hurt, Dimitri.”
“And when the nightmares come?” he asked, keeping his voice low.
“You can always wake me up. I’ll sit with you. I’ll crawl into bed and keep you safe.”
He closed his eyes.
“Lucky bastard. Do you have a cousin? Aunt? Old grandmother?” he teased.
She laughed. “Yes, he is, and no, I don’t. I’m the last Starling standing.”
He spoke to her in Russian.
Emma handed her love back.
“Thank you for coming.”
“Do you feel better?” she asked. “Do you feel like you can get through this?”
“I need a few more minutes.”
She gave it to him.
Emma laid there with him for the next ten minutes. Neither spoke, but she could feel his body language change.
He wasn’t tense.
The anger was dissipating.
Finally, he spoke, breaking the silence.
“You should call Greyson to come get you. You have Steele and Dante’s dinner in an hour.”
“Are you coming?”
“I don’t think so,” he said.
“Then I’m staying with you. They’ll understand. I’ll send Greyson. You’ll be doing me a favor. I can avoid Reggie.”
“I can shoot her.”
She snorted. “Oh, how I wish I could take you up on that offer. I might just leave my caveman for someone who could silence that monster for me.”
He laughed and didn’t buy it for a second. Emma Croft was madly in love with her husband. She’d die first.
Still, it was sweet of her.
“Would you really give up tonight for me?” he asked, his voice carrying that Russian accent he tried often to hide.
“In a heartbeat. Greyson would too.”
He needed that.
Dimitri needed to know people would have him, and he didn’t have to be the strong one. It was a lesson he was continually learning.
He grabbed his phone and sent Greyson a text. “He’s going to arrive. I should let you go. It’s bad enough I have you in a bed where I just had a prostitute, but I’m holding his wife.”
She didn’t care, and she knew her husband. Their lives had depended on this man, and he’d never let them down. Dimitri had saved them all a few times.
Giving him this…
It was a small concession.
So, Emma held on.
“He won’t be angry. I know him. He’s worried about you, Dimitri. We love you.”
He loved them too.
At the knock on his door, Emma called for her husband. “Grey, it’s open.”
Her husband entered.
On the bed, he found Emma holding Dimitri. He wasn’t shocked. He knew the man was suffering.
Walking in, he took a seat beside Dimitri’s legs. His hand went to his friend’s hand.
The Russian was watching him with guarded eyes. He expected there to be some comment.
Greyson gave him one.
“I love you, Dimitri. You are our family. You’ve saved us, and now you need to let us save you.”
That staggered him.
It wasn’t what he was expecting.
Emma was special, but now he was seeing the truth. With this man, his friend, his brother, and his partner, he could let him see what he was fighting.
Dimitri let his guard down so much that they saw the pain. His eyes filled with tears and that hopelessness shone through.
“Please save me. I’m lost.”
That was all he had to hear. Greyson did something that the man had never expected. He climbed onto the bed, taking a position behind Dimitri, and he wrapped his arms around both of them.
“I have you, brother. I have you.”
Dimitri, for the first time in his life felt something.
He felt safe.
He did what he said.
In that hotel room, after fucking a hooker, he found what he’d been looking for all his life.
He found someone to do the protecting.
For him.
He found people who loved him, and who would never let him down.
And it bought him some time.
Until he could find real love.
* * * G r e y s o n C r o f t * * *
Across Vegas
Bentley Herron was really nervous. As he got himself ready for the rehearsal dinner, he was worried that his brother wasn’t going to be open to meeting him.
His brother’s fiancé had been pretty clear.
Steele didn’t know he was coming.
Was this the kind of surprise you wanted on your wedding night eve? Would he welcome him with open arms, or was this going to damage any chances he had to connect to his half-brother?
He was worried.
Still, Bentley had always wanted a brother more than anything. He knew the story of his past, and how he’d been the product of his mother’s love of a married man.
He knew his father had been murdered—left to rot in the ground, but he wanted to find the man who’d helped find him.
He wanted a relationship with his blood.
It mattered to him.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Vonda Herron asked, as she watched him picking out a tie. “The Bentley’s don’t really like me. Camille would rather see me run over by a lawnmower than to see any happiness.”
“Did Steele ever say he didn’t like you?” he asked, being the logical one. His mother ran on emotions. Ben had learned that wasn’t always an option.
Sometimes, you had to think things through, and for this, he had.
“No, but Camille, your father’s wife…”
“I want nothing from her or them. I only want to meet my brother. I want to see him. I need to see him. When it’s all said and done, Mom, this isn’t about her or you. It’s about us.”
She got it.
Vonda never had any more kids. Bentley had been named for his father’s family out of love and respect, and memory. When her true love in life had died, she’d given up that hope there could be another. She’d loved Bentley’s father with all of her heart.
“I hope they don’t hurt you.”
He didn’t care. Bentley wanted to meet his brother. He was getting married, and he wanted to tell him he supported him.
Hopefully, the man wouldn’t hate him for the sins of their parents.
Bentley didn’t make his mother have the affair with a married man. He’d had to come to grips with that on many occasions. What he wanted was a relationship with his brother, and nothing more.
This wasn’t about Bentley money.
This wasn’t about Croft money.
This was about two men who were screwed over the day they were born, and he wanted to fight to make it right. He wanted his brother in his life.
“Are you okay with him being…you know?” his mother asked, not saying the word.
“Gay?” Bentley offered. “Is that what you’re saying?” he asked.
“Well, yes, it’s pretty high profile.”
He was more than okay with it. He would love his brother whether he was straight, gay, bi, or trans. This was his brother. That had NOTHING to do with who he slept with in bed.
This was about blood.
“I don’t mean to upset you,” Vonda said, seeing the look on his face.
“I’m not upset, Mom.”
And he wasn’t.
His generation wasn’t as offended or bothered by it, and he could tell his mother was worried that maybe it was contagious.
“Are you worried that there’s some gay genes hidden in my DNA?” he asked, fixing his tie.
“A little.”
“Mom, I’m not gay, so you can stop worrying that I picked up the homosexual gene from the Bentley family pool. I like women.”
She relaxed.
It made him laugh.
“I just want my brother to know I love him. I want to get to know him, and I want…”
“What?”
“I want a relationship with him where we can talk on the phone, or get a beer. I want to be there for him when he needs me, and I want him to be there for me one day when I get married.”
She understood that.
And she respected her son.
“Well, I hope you have fun at the Croft party. Just don’t get shot, killed, or anything else. He’s the mob, Bentley. Your brother is marrying the mob boss’s brother. That’s dangerous.”
He didn’t care.
He was blood.
“I’ll be fine. I’m going to be a doctor, like my brother. I’m going to look into eyes that match mine, and I’m going to see someone I’m connected to for the rest of my life. I have someone who will be my sibling.”
She gave him a kiss.
“How do I look?” he asked, turning around.
She straightened his tie and tucked it into his suit. “When I see you, you look like your father when he was younger. I’ve seen pictures. You’re handsome, and you look like your brother too.”
That made him smile.
“I won’t be home late.”
“I’ll stay up. I can’t wait to hear all about it,” she said. “It’s an adventure, and even though I was the mistress, I want to hear all about them.”
She was right about the adventure part.
He couldn’t wait.
“It is going to be something,” Bentley said, giving her a hug.
He’d been brother-less for too damn long.
And that was about to change.
* * * G r e y s o n C r o f t * * *
Terrace Glen
Almost Seven
Rehearsal
They were all in the garden, waiting for everything to begin.
Dante and Steele were standing at the makeshift altar, which had been set up beneath the one tent, and they both looked a little nervous. It appeared to be pre-wedding jitters.
In the chairs, the rest of the family was sitting down as they watched the rehearsal for the big event. This wasn’t the first wedding for the family, and it wouldn’t be the last.
Dimitri was beside his two sisters and Sam, and they were each flanked by the men who loved them.
Katerina was rubbing her hand over her belly, trying to soothe the baby as her wounded husband sat beside her, his arm in a sling.
Curtis was looking better, and for that they were grateful. Bed rest, a fulltime nurse, and the best medical treatment had helped him along.
Was he back to perfect?
No, but he’d only been shot less than a week ago. It was going to take time.
Natasha was holding her boyfriend’s hand as she kept leaning into Chris to whisper in his ear. He was grinning and whispering back.
It was a beautiful thing to watch.
They’d found each other, and it was perfection. Chris Ford had his girl, and the girl had a man who would protect and keep her safe.
It was going to be a bright future.
If Kat, Nat, and Dimitri’s brother didn’t get to them first.
Dimitri, who was earlier a mess, was now calm because he had the most amazing family in the world. Yes, he and his sisters went through hell, but here was their prize for being strong.
They had love.
It was a beautiful thing.
He also had a child who was relying on him. Sam’s adoption had been rushed through with a little help from Greyson, and he was now part of the Gideon family—and the Croft family too.
The boy no one wanted had found a safe, stable place to call home.
But he wasn’t happy.
Sam was bitching, but not about being adopted, but because Emma had told him he had to wear a tux the next day.
Everyone knew he didn’t really mind, but he liked to bust her ass. It was sweet. He was adjusting and finding his place in their world.
Their families were happy.
And growing.
Paris Archer was sitting in a normal chair, after he’d strolled down the aisle with his wife. He was still trying to stand for longer periods of time, but it wasn’t easy. He knew if he fell, his family would catch him.
After all, they’d done so much. Tessa’s first invitro fertilization with Greyson’s ‘borrowed’ sperm was in two days. They’d be heading back to NY, the big man himself in tow, to give his donation.
Emma too.
She was onboard and supporting them.
It was insane that, someday, they were going to have a child—thanks to the family that had taken them in. With the legal paperwork all handled, they were on the fast-track to getting pregnant.
Maybe they’d have more than one child.
Only fate knew.
Yes, it was a little weird that the baby would be Tessa and Greyson’s, but Paris knew that blood only went so far. Family was chosen, and that mattered. He could raise a child that wasn’t his and love it just as much.
For his wife.
For him.
For that child.
Beside him sat Tessa, and for the first time in a while, she was smiling.
It was beautiful.
She saw the light at the end of the tunnel, with his kind offer to allow them to freeze some sperm, they didn’t have to rush and panic.
There was time.
It was also special that if they had multiple children, all of them would be biologically related, and because they were technically Greyson’s, they’d be well taken care of in their futures.
That had been part of the agreement.
While they weren’t his, they were.
Greyson Croft wanted to ensure they had every opportunity his child would have. It had been Emma’s idea, and it proved she was on board.
As Dante and Steele stood at the altar, flanking them were the two ‘best’ men. One was Greyson, and he stood there for his brother.
Beside Steele was not a man, but Emma. She was smiling and already sniffling up a storm.
They were going to witness the wedding and stand up for the two men.
As the minister walked them through it, there was a lot of laughter. Then again, with this group, there always was.
Dante was trying to make Steele laugh, and it was working. Now he could joke around, simply because if he didn’t, he’d weep.
It had been a long road for them.
For the longest time, he believed it was never going to happen. He’d nearly lost Steele to death twice, and that was something he’d never forget.
Each moment was precious.
Their small, intimate affair was full of family. Sitting behind the Archers were Greyson and Dante’s parents. They’d quietly came in and watched them practice.
Christopher Croft was smiling.
His wife was not.
Reggie was bawling, and no one believed it was because she loved a wedding and was happy for the couple.
The woman was hell on wheels, and they all knew it. She wasn’t happy with anything that the family did.
Greyson being the mob.
Dante being gay—only she didn’t have the balls to say it.
Emma’s closeness with so many men and how she was in control of the family.
For Reggie, it was a nonstop battle. It was her way or the highway, and that didn’t work for any of them.
Greyson loved his family.
And he loved his wife.
There was no way he would let his mother usurp this wedding, or his wife. There were rules, and she would have to comply.
Or…
It would get ugly.
Speaking of his wife, he was blowing her kisses and wiggling his eyebrows at her.
It made her smile, and that made his heart skip.
They had love.
Their hope was Dante and Steele would have it too.
What really excited him was that they also had their wedding coming up in a couple months. Yes, Emma would be pregnant when they walked down the aisle, but he didn’t care.
She was going to marry him all over again.
It was going to be beautiful.
“When do I get to swap spit with my husband?” Dante asked. “That’s the part I want to practice. I want to get it right.”
The minister laughed.
As did the whole family.
“It’s right after you exchange rings.”
Dante pulled his off his right hand and gave it to the minister. Steele did the same.
“Come to daddy,” he said, lecherously.
“He is his brother’s brother,” Emma stated. “I’ve heard that before.”
Greyson laughed as his brother kissed Steele. He even dipped him much like he did with Emma. The Croft men had swagger when it came to their significant others.
Still, Greyson teased his brother. “He stole my moves. That’s not even right.”
The minister broke the two up. “Save it for tomorrow when you have to impress the crowd.”
Dante would do that.
“Or take it down a notch. We get the point. You’re getting married,” Reggie said.
Everyone looked over at her and there was that hush that was followed by some verbal altercation. They were all waiting for it on baited breath. No one doubted it would be coming.
“Mother,” Greyson warned, silencing her.
She pursed her lips and said nothing more, but they all knew she wanted to do it.
They also knew it was only a matter of time. Reggie was a ticking time bomb, waiting to go off on her gay son.
As the housekeeper exited the house, she had someone with her.
“Ma’am, there’s someone here to see Mr. Steele and Mr. Dante,” she said. “He said he was expected.”
Steele’s heart thumped. “Thank you, Magda,” he said, walking toward the man.
Dante had been right.
They looked alike, and he could see the same worry in his brother’s eyes. He was expecting the worst.
Well, Steele wasn’t going to be like the people who gave birth to him. He wouldn’t reject someone who had his blood. He’d embrace it.
The Croft family had taught him that.
The housekeeper headed back in, and left Bentley standing there as the two men approached.
He held out his hand. “I’m Bentley Herron, but my friends call me Ben. I can see the family resemblance,” he said, checking his brother out.
Steele’s one eye filled with tears. “You’re really my brother.”
He nodded. “I am.”
Steele ignored the hand and hugged the man. The two of them embraced, and there wasn’t a dry eye in the place.
Emma was crying, and all the women were wiping at their eyes too.
This was so beautiful, more so, since they knew what Steele had battled through to get to this point. He’d nearly lost, and this was poignant.
It was also the best gift Dante could have given him. The man was definitely a Croft to his core.
“I’ve always wanted someone to call my own,” he said to his brother.
Ben held on. “I’ve always wondered if I’d meet you. I knew about you for my whole life. I wanted to find you, but your mother saw me once and told me you never wanted to meet me. I stayed away.”
Steele stared into his face.
“I didn’t know. I had no idea you even existed.”
“You know now, babe,” Dante said. “That’s what matters. You can start now.”
He hugged his brother again. “I already love you. I’m glad I have you. I watch my fiancé with his brother, and I always wanted that kind of connection. I want that with you, Ben. I hope you want to be part of my life.”
Ben held onto the man. “You can have that. You can have whatever you want from me. I’m here for you.”
Steele tried to hold it together, but it was so damn hard. This was the most miraculous thing to him—well, next to falling in love with Dante.
Emma knew she needed to do one thing to make this perfect. Heading toward the two men, she waited until they were done.
Steele glanced over at her.
“Forgive me, but I have to do this,” she said, squeezing his hand.
“Ben, I’m Emma. Steele is so very important to me, but this doesn’t feel right.”
They all watched her.
“What are you doing, Emma?” Steele asked.
She was doing what was right.
“Tomorrow, I’m not going to stand up there for him. I can’t.”
Steele stared at her. “Emma! Why?” he asked.
She pulled a rose off one of the vines and tucked it into Ben’s lapel. “Because, tomorrow, your brother will be your best man. I’ve had the last few years. He deserves tomorrow, and so do you.”
Steele wept, as he hugged her. “I love you so much. God! You’ve saved me so many times, and now I have this forever.”
She hugged him back. “I know, sweetheart. I know. Now, introduce your brother to our family. It’s time for dinner, and we would like to invite him to be part of us too.”
He grabbed Ben’s hand and couldn’t wait. “I want you to meet the people I love most in the world. I want them to meet my brother.”
Ben smiled. “I would really love that.”
And he would.
This was a new day for him.
A new beginning.
For years, he was alone. Now he had a brother to call his own.
“This is Greyson Croft.”
“I’ve seen him on the news,” Ben said, holding out his hand. “It’s a pleasure, sir.”
Greyson hugged him instead. “Welcome to our family. Don’t believe everything you’ve seen on TV about us.”
“I won’t, sir. I already doubt some of it.”
Still, Greyson could tell the man was wary. Honestly, he didn’t blame him.
“This is Doctor Paris Archer and his wife, Tessa,” he said, introducing them.
Paris shook his hand.
“I’m a doctor, too, or I will be as soon as this rotation is over. What do you practice?” he asked.
“I’m a criminal psychologist. I help with profiling and some cases for the local hospitals.”
“I’m going to be a pediatrician. I love kids.”
Tessa hugged him. “Welcome to our family. There’s going to be lots of business coming your way,” she teased.
And it was true.
Katerina, Emma, and hopefully, herself would need to have someone they could trust.
“Awesome. I will make house calls.”
And that was even better.
Steele led him toward Reggie and Christopher Croft. “These are Dante and Greyson’s parents.”
He left it at that.
Christopher shook his hand and smiled. “Welcome, son. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Reggie, in her normal bitchiness, simply shook his hand.
That said it all.
Dante gave her the dirtiest look he could possibly give her, and it was backed up with Greyson pointing at her. The sons in her life were NOT amused.
There was her warning.
Steele led his brother over toward the Gideon’s.
“This is Dimitri. He’s our family, but he’s also in charge of our security.”
They shook hands.
“Welcome, Mr. Herron.”
“Ben, please.”
Dimitri made a mental note to do a search on him later—just to be safe. It appeared he was feeling a little better.
“This is Katerina Croft. She’s Dimitri’s sister, and she’s married to, Curtis, Greyson and Emma’s son.”
He tried to keep track.
“We like to keep it all in the family,” Curtis teased. Then he realized how that sounded.
His eyes got huge.
“Wait! I didn’t mean it like that. I’m on pain meds. Ignore me,” he said, pointing at his sling.
Ben laughed. “Can do.”
Katerina hugged the new member of their family. “Welcome, Ben.”
Ben smiled as he mentally tried to build the family tree in his head. “So, that makes Curtis, your fiancé’s nephew?” he asked, trying to keep it straight.
Yeah, it wasn’t easy.
Steele laughed. “It’s a long story. I’ll tell you later after dinner.”
Ben was good with that.
“This is Natasha, and she’s Dimitri’s other sister.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” he said, holding out his hand.
She hugged him like her sister had. “It’s our pleasure, Ben. This is my boyfriend, Christopher Ford,” she said, enjoying saying the words.
She loved saying boyfriend.
He loved saying girlfriend.
They were both stupid in love.
Chris shook his hand. “I’m Emma’s brother, and her bodyguard.”
He was trying to keep track. “So, you’re related to her, he’s related to them, and… yeah, you do like to keep it in the family. Maybe it’s not the meds.”
“He’s not related by blood,” Reggie stated. “They worked together. It’s this farcical relationship.”
Again, there was silence.
Emma glanced over, and she wasn’t having it. No one was being excluded from their circle because they lacked the same blood.
That’s not how they rolled.
“He’s my brother, Reggie. Chris is mine, and if you don’t mind, we’ll keep it like that.”
It shut her up.
For now.
Greyson agreed. “Chris isn’t related by blood, Ben, but he’s the one my wife has chosen to call brother, like I feel about Dimitri. We are all family.”
Ben was cool with that. He was just so glad to have an actual sibling, it didn’t matter to him.
“And you are?” he asked Sam.
“I’m Sam Gideon. He’s my dad,” he said, pointing at Dimitri. “The babes are my sisters, so don’t be getting any ideas or I’ll break your kneecaps.”
“It’s dislocate,” Dimitri stated.
Then Emma pointed at him.
“What? He needs to know!”
She snorted and gave up.
Kat and Nat both found it sweet how Sam was already trying to protect them. So, they gave the kid a kiss.
“You heard him,” Dimitri said, winking at the man. “He’s lethal with the ladies.”
Ben raised his hands and played along. “I will mind my manners.”
Steele dropped his arm over his brother’s shoulder. “Why don’t we have dinner?” he asked. “I want to hear everything about you, Ben,” he said.
The man smiled and wrapped his arm around his brother’s waist.
“I want to hear about you too,” he said, as they headed inside.
Emma headed straight for Dante. As soon as she reached him, she gave him a big kiss right on the mouth.
“You did something good.”
He wiggled his eyebrows. “I’m getting lots of lip action today,” he teased. “The ladies and the men love me.”
Greyson laughed.
“Are you fantasizing about Dimitri again? Didn’t we talk about that?” he asked, throwing his brother under the bus.
That had Dimitri’s attention. “Pardon?”
Dante laughed. “Asshole.”
“Pain in my ass,” his brother said back.
Emma cut them off or it would never end. Brothers liked to pile it on, and with this many ‘brothers’ in the family, it could be a melee.
“You gave him a huge gift,” she said. “You are going to be an amazing husband,” she said. “Your brother taught you right.”
She followed the family in to get the chef to start serving. It looked like tonight was going to be perfect.
Just like she’d planned.
Greyson patted his brother on the back. “I’m proud of you, Dante.”
The man mimicked his fiancé’s actions and dropped his arm around Greyson’s waist. “I learned from the best.”
And he absolutely had.
Thank God for that.