Paid Justice (Croft Family Mob Series Book 3) Read online

  He put his drink down and stared at the man.

  Was he questioning his abilities? That was all he had left, and if that were the case, he was useless.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked, trying not to be offended. “I’m not slipping. I’m good at my job.”

  Greyson moved around the desk. “You can’t kill forever and not have it affect you. You can’t pretend it doesn’t.”

  He got it.

  He wasn’t insulting him, but trying to protect him. Well, Dimitri didn’t need his protection.

  That was his thing.

  “I’m fine.”

  “Yeah, okay. Well, you’re a stronger man than I am. I’m not fine. I don’t want to kill another person, but I know this has to be handled. Thomas Christ set up a hit. He killed Gage Starling, and he is a cop killer.”

  “Yeah, and I’m a cop killer. I’ll take Christ out.”

  “No. We do nothing for now. We do nothing until I’m sure it has to be handled.”

  “You yourself said…”

  He was aware what he said.

  “No, Dimitri.”

  “Your morals are frustrating.”

  “Yeah, I’m a pain in the ass like that when I don’t want someone I care about to get hurt.”

  Dimitri tossed back the bourbon.

  That was the difference between them. One man had the luxury to care.

  The other…not so much.

  “I’ll handle it.”

  “I mean it. You don’t do anything. I told you this in confidence. Don’t you dare go after the man. For all I know, it’s a trap. What if this is a way to catch us? I need to think this out, and decide what to do about Emma.”

  “No one figured out Mace. I think I can kill a person without leaving a sign over them that points at us.”

  He was aware.

  “And look at the shit that buried us under. I don’t want another cop going down, and us wearing the shit from the blowback. We have too much to lose.”

  He was getting frustrated.

  Dimitri didn’t like being told what to do.

  It pissed him off.

  Well, he was already irritable, but this added to it, and it made him want to rebel in the worst possible way.

  He wanted to kill someone.

  For Emma.

  For him.

  “If you’re done talking to me, I’m going to head out. I have things to do.”

  Greyson knew what he was going to do. Dimitri was going to hire a hooker and have sex. It was his normal Saturday night ritual.

  “Okay.”

  “That tone, Greyson. It says otherwise,” he stated, the Russian seeping back into his voice. When Dimitri was pissed, he couldn’t hold it back.

  It scared people.

  It didn’t scare Greyson.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Greyson said, pouring himself more bourbon.

  “Bullshit. Just say it!”

  He turned. “Hey, don’t read into it. I’m not your mother. I’m not here to police your dick. If you want to dance all over that rabbit hole, that’s on you when you fall down it and can’t get out.”

  “Why does it bother you?” he asked. “Why does it bother your wife?”

  Did he really not get it?

  “Because I think you matter more than you do, and for the life of me, I can’t get you to see that. Emma feels the same way. We see the value in you.”

  “Yeah, I protect you both.”

  Greyson slammed down his glass.

  “Is that all you think?”

  Dimitri stubbed out his cigar. This was escalating, and he didn’t want to be angry, but they were right.

  It ate away at him.

  But it was all he had. They didn’t get that because they had what he’d never achieve.

  No one could love a cold, dead-inside man who lost his soul so long ago that he couldn’t recall the last time he enjoyed feeling.

  They knew love.

  He only knew pain.

  Dimitri planned to just walk away, but when he opened his mouth…

  Yeah, it got worse.

  “We don’t all have pretty little lives where we find the woman of our dreams across a field.”

  Greyson stared at him.

  “Some of us have to find that comfort in ways that aren’t so pretty. Don’t judge me and my dick because you have no clue what lives in me. You see this man, not the truly hideous one no one can bare to look at.”

  Greyson sighed.

  It was time to back off.

  “I’m not judging you.”

  “Worse, don’t pity me. I don’t want that from you, and I don’t want it from your fucking perfect life in your ivory castle. When I go down, Greyson, I know that there will not be that love to have my back.”

  He turned to walk away.

  “Dimitri.”

  The man stopped at the door.

  “What? More pity?” he asked, his voice bitter with so much anger and resentment. Only, it wasn’t for Greyson.

  It was for him.

  You lived and died by your choices, and he’d chosen this path.

  Croft wanted to shake some sense into him, but this was Dimitri.

  “I’m sorry. Just be safe, okay? Christ and his asshole dirty cops would love to catch us off guard. I’m sorry I’m edgy. This has me rattled. I don’t know what to do. I’m torn.”

  He turned, staring into the man’s silver eyes.

  “I told you. I’ll handle it.”

  Greyson knew he was in no position to be handling this, or where he put his dick.

  Someone was a runaway train.

  “Please.”

  Dimitri was tired of arguing. He wanted to escape it.

  “Fine. See you tomorrow.”

  He slammed the door, and he headed out. Out in the garage, Dimitri picked a car that could outrace the media, and the cops, if need be.

  He was so damn angry, that he just wanted to drive for days until he couldn’t drive anymore.

  He wanted to escape that pain.

  But it chased him.

  Dialing the madam he used frequently, he headed out and put in his order.

  “I need someone new. I need an adventure.”

  He wanted to be wild.

  Rough.

  Angry.

  “Mr. Ivanov, I thought you might be taking this week off. Normally, you call before now.”

  “Yes, I’m running behind with business. I really am in the mood for some company. Can you find me someone?” he asked, letting all the Russian out.

  He was tired of pretending he was something he wasn’t. Tonight, when the girl came, he’d be himself.

  He’d be that bastard.

  “I happen to have someone new,” she offered. “Tonight is her first night.”

  He wasn’t sure that was a good idea. He needed someone with experience. This wasn’t going to be about her learning. He needed someone to ride his dick and make him forget.

  Still…

  It was this or likely no one.

  “Send her.”

  Dimitri hated living this lie, but he’d pretend he was someone else just to feel. He was empty. Tonight, Mr. Ivanov would get off. Dimitri Gideon would lie in wait in the shadows like the sick predator he was.

  It was for the best.

  “Are you sure?” she asked, sensing his hesitation. “I can come if you need me.”

  That was the last thing he needed. He’d slept with Stephanie before, when she was just starting out. He didn’t take the same ride twice.

  It was always a bad idea.

  His soul.

  His heart.

  The well of strength.

  It was running out. He was faltering.

  “The new girl will be fine,” he answered, hoping he was right.

  “Okay, Mr. Ivanov. If you change your mind, for the special fee, I can come.”

  He was aware.

  While he’d enjoyed her, Dimitri needed this ano
nymity. She would know him if she saw him, and that was the last thing he wanted.

  “Thank you, Stephanie. As always, you never let me down,” he offered.

  “Have fun, Mr. Ivanov.”

  He hoped he would.

  What he needed was a distraction. Tomorrow, he’d head into ‘Aquarius’, and he’d find them a case.

  They needed to work.

  He needed to work.

  “Send her to the hotel. My normal room. I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”

  “I’ll have her there in thirty. Our standard rate?”

  “Da. That is good,” he offered in broken English.

  He hung up.

  As he cleared the gate, he watched the house in the rearview mirror. He could see Greyson watching from his office window.

  It pissed him off.

  Lately, everything did.

  Dimitri hit the gas and took off. In two hours, he’d be okay. He’d let off some steam, find that release, and be able to go another day.

  He tried not to think about how he was having to hire women more often, or how he wasn’t getting that rush that he once got.

  He knew why.

  Dimitri had caught something.

  Morals.

  And frankly, they sucked.

  * * * G r e y s o n C r o f t * * *

  He felt horrible watching him leave.

  Dimitri was on a one-way course with death, and Greyson could see it.

  Only, what was he supposed to do?

  He couldn’t baby the man.

  He wasn’t his father.

  Greyson had to let him figure it out on his own. There came a time when you couldn’t control all the players in the game. Greyson had a million other issues to deal with, starting with his wife.

  What the hell was he going to do?

  As he shut everything off in his office, he knew where he needed to be.

  Heading to their room, he checked on Sam, and he was asleep. Continuing down the hall, he reached their bedroom.

  His queen was in bed.

  Naked.

  At first, Greyson thought about letting her sleep, but as he stripped down and slid beneath the covers, it became too alluring to ignore it.

  His kitten was right there.

  He’d been drinking.

  She smelled amazing.

  The next thing he knew, he was molesting his wife, and he didn’t care if she was asleep.

  He needed her.

  “Emma,” he whispered, as his mouth moved down her neck, to her breasts, and her belly button.

  She shifted, going into his body.

  Emma’s eyes fluttered open, and she could smell the cigar and bourbon on him.

  He’d been up working.

  “Greyson,” she whispered, “are you okay?”

  “I need a break from thinking,” he said, rolling to his back. He knew his wife, and she was exactly what he needed.

  “I’ll make you forget,” she murmured as she continued to leave a trail of light butterfly kisses that offered him reassurance.

  Croft let her do her thing, and it was exactly what the doctor ordered.

  He was rock hard, and she was leaving kisses all the way down his chest.

  “Emma,” he whispered as he stared in awe that the beautiful woman in their bed was his and his alone. This was reason enough to kill anyone.

  His wife was above him, and her form was illuminated by the moonlight coming through their window.

  She looked like a goddess.

  “I love you,” he whispered.

  “I love you, too, and I have you, Grey,” she crooned, as she continued her gentle exploration with her mouth.

  He was tense, and not in a sexual way.

  He was stressed.

  That made Emma want to soothe him even more.

  Allowing her lips to travel lower, across his navel and past his muscle-corded hips, she used the tip of her tongue to torment him.

  He moaned.

  As she added in her hands, he couldn’t help but find peace. His wife knew him, and Greyson was eternally grateful for that.

  She got it.

  He needed this.

  With her fingers, she traced hearts across his thighs to remind him of what they had.

  “Yes, honey, God! Yes,” he said, as she came ever so close to his erection.

  Emma took her time, blowing across his dick as she watched it tighten and bob. It was begging for her attention. With her fingers, she stroked and soothed—offering the never-ending promise of her love.

  Leaving a trail of kisses, she slid up his frame, resting him in just the right spot as she stared down into his eyes. “I love you, my husband. I’ll make it all right,” she promised, sliding him home in one stroke.

  “Emma,” he whispered, his body bowing beneath her at the hot, wet slide into the heat. “You’re my everything,” he vowed.

  His fingers found her hips, as her hands rested on his chest. He knew it was coming.

  She watched him fill with emotion as she began her slow ride. With each stroke up his erection, his breathing matched. At that moment, there was perfect syncopation as she rocked them both to ecstasy.

  This was perfection.

  He was the reason she existed.

  This man was her all, and the way he was watching her was enough to put her over the edge.

  Emma focused on him.

  His breath hitched as she rode him.

  Greyson couldn’t look away. She was rumpled from sleep, all that red hair—a halo around her.

  Croft had never seen a more beautiful woman. She was his siren, and this was their song.

  “Never leave me,” he whispered. “I’d die without you my queen.”

  It made her heart hitch.

  “I’ll never leave you, Greyson,” she whispered, placing her hand over his heart. “We are one,” she vowed, as his hand covered hers.

  “Forever.”

  She kept rocking, and he kept pulling her hips down with one hand. There was that feeling of complete happiness as they came together.

  Emma was close.

  As she tightened around him, he moaned her name, and refused to fight it. When she fell, he would follow.

  He’d chase the only woman he loved.

  There was no Greyson without Emma. They were meant to be one.

  Emma shook, and then there was that gasp of pleasure before she shattered and collapsed.

  Greyson could feel her tumble and went for the ride, just allowing himself that fall into perfection and bliss with his woman.

  They laid together, bodies pressed as one, and their breathing slowed.

  When she could focus past the sleep and pleasure, she needed to know.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked.

  He wouldn’t lie.

  He couldn’t.

  “Dimitri.”

  She sighed. “He left again, didn’t he?” she asked.

  He didn’t have to speak.

  She already knew.

  The man was on a mission of self-loathing, and they were going to lose him if they couldn’t reach him.

  “What do we do?” she asked.

  He didn’t know, but now, his ninety-nine problems were up to one hundred, and it wasn’t looking good.

  For anyone.

  * * * G r e y s o n C r o f t * * *

  Thirty

  Minutes

  Later

  She was nervous.

  The madam told her he was her best customer, and to treat him well. She wanted to, but she was so afraid.

  She’d heard the other girls talking, and Mr. Ivanov was likely one of the men who had ‘bought’ her sister. He seemed to get preferential treatment from the madam, and that had to mean something, right?

  She couldn’t be sure, but it didn’t matter. She’d get him to talk. Once he did, she was willing to slit his throat.

  If he touched her sister, he was dead.

  That’s it.

  Hope was lost, and it was de
sperate times. She couldn’t let him have any more women like her sister.

  He was a predator like the rest of them, and these women were nothing but prey.

  It ended here.

  Pulling the blade out of her bag, she headed to the luxurious hotel room door. As she took a deep breath, she prayed he’d give her the answers that she needed.

  Someone had to know.

  Someone had to see her.

  A person didn’t just disappear into thin air.

  Right?

  Knocking on the door, she was ready. She was getting answers, or the man wasn’t leaving alive.

  She was done.

  It was time to find her sister.

  When he heard the knock, he was just about to take off his suit.

  “Mr. Ivanov?” she called through the door. “Stephanie sent me.”

  It was his girl.

  There was that little tingle of awareness, almost as if he recognized her voice, but he chose to ignore it.

  Did he know her?

  How could that be?

  He specifically asked for a new girl.

  Stephanie had never let him down before. She was good at catering to his needs.

  After all, he’d used her for years.

  “Come in! The door is open. I’m in here getting ready for our little date.”

  He pulled off his tie, and he began slipping out of his suit jacket. He was thinking about getting off, getting home, and then handling the Thomas Christ situation.

  Honestly, he was thinking about Emma. He was worried about her heart when she heard all about this.

  Despite wanting to stop thinking, she was on his mind.

  Then, he heard the girl coming up behind him.

  It was time to get off, and then he’d deal with the rest. He needed these few minutes to find himself.

  “I’ll be ready in a minute. You can undress and get on the bed. There’s money for you on the…”

  He caught a glint of something from the corner of his eye in the mirror across the room, and it saved his life.

  He turned just in time. The blade would have gone through his back and into his heart had he not turned. Instead, it pierced his shoulder, cutting into his flesh.

  Dimitri spun, catching the woman off guard. In the process, he was surprised, too, and by more than the knife sticking out of his flesh.