Fever (Breathless #2)(45)

“You know people?” Jace said incredulously. “What the hell, man? What kind of people do you know who would handle a situation like this? And yeah, whatever it takes. I want the debt to go away. Not because I give a f**k about her ass**le brother but because I want Bethany safe and I want her removed from any possible situation that threatens her.”

Ash shrugged. “Never know when you might need these kinds of people. They owe me a favor anyway. I gave them good stock tips. And I comped their stay in one of our hotels.”

“I’m not even going to ask . . .”

“Better that way,” Ash said cheerfully. “Not people you’d invite to Thanksgiving dinner anyway.”

“I’m getting that,” Jace muttered.

Ash’s expression became more serious. “How much money are we talking here?”

“Five thousand.”

“That’s all?”

Jace sighed. “It’s a fortune to Bethany. As she said, it may as well be a million. She was going to f**king peddle to raise the cash.”

It still scared the hell out of him to think what could have happened if Kate hadn’t called him the day Bethany wandered into the shelter. Or what would have happened if Bethany hadn’t gone back. That she could even now be on the streets and vulnerable to God knew what . . .

“Fuck,” Ash bit out. “Jesus Christ. Peddling?”

“Yeah, that pretty much sums up my reaction.”

“She needs a f**king leash,” Ash muttered.

“Figuratively, she’s going to have one,” Jace said calmly. “She’s not going anywhere without the men I hired to protect her and when she’s not with them, she’ll be with me. Hopefully once you arrange for her debt to be paid that threat goes away. But I still have to address the issue of Jack.”

“Well, and it doesn’t appear that she’s sold on the idea of you two as a couple yet,” Ash said dryly.

“She will be.”

Ash lifted an eyebrow. “You sound confident.”

“I won’t entertain the alternative.”

“And that is?”

“Her not being a part of my life.”

There was a pregnant pause and Ash shifted uncomfortably. “Look man, I’m way overstepping my boundaries here.”

“As if that’s stopped you before,” Jace said dryly.

Ash chuckled. “True. Not a fan of boundaries, particularly where my family is concerned.”

Again that word. Family. And yeah, Ash, Gabe and Mia were his family. He’d said that Mia was the only family he had and that wasn’t true. Gabe and Ash . . . They’d been there. Always been there. Stepping in when his parents had died. Steady, unwavering loyalty the likes of which Jace had never imagined.

Maybe he’d taken it for granted over the years. It had been a huge mistake. Other people didn’t have this. Unconditional support. He was lucky.

“How is this going to work?” Ash asked. “You and Bethany. I know you, man. You and I, we’re alike. Hell, so is Gabe. Cut from the same cloth. We like control. Dominance. Not the pretend kind. We can play it light, but that’s all it is. Playing. At the end of the day, you and I both know that any serious relationship is going to be about ultimate control.”

Jace nodded. He didn’t even attempt to deny it.

“So how is this going to play out with Bethany? Is she ready for that from you? Is she prepared? Does she even have a f**king clue how it’s going to be? Because with another woman, she gets freaked out, she doesn’t go far. Back to her apartment. You know where to pick up. You call her or go see her. Work it out. That isn’t the case with Bethany. She freaks, she runs, you may never see her again.”

“Fuck, don’t you think I know that?”

It came out more explosively than he intended but it was a testament to the uncertainty he felt when it came to this woman. How f**king helpless he was and how Ash had managed to voice his biggest fear.

If he didn’t play this just right. If he came on too hard. If he did anything to scare Bethany, she could bolt. Back into the night. Back onto the streets, where those ass**les—and a million others—waited. Where he couldn’t protect her. Couldn’t take care of her. Where he’d be absolutely f**king helpless to save her from the dangers of being alone and vulnerable.

“So what are you going to do?” Ash asked quietly. “How you going to play this?”

“I don’t know,” Jace said in resignation. “Fuck if I know. I know what I want. I just have to hope like hell that I play it right. And I have to hope it’s what she wants and can accept from me.”

Chapter seventeen

Bethany submerged in the huge sunken tub and blew gently at the suds foaming close to her mouth. She felt positively decadent. Like someone from a movie. She’d piled her hair on top of her head in a messy arrangement that she thought looked rather sexy. Pinned-up tendrils floating down. Suds climbing from the water and candles lit around the perimeter. It was perfectly cliché, but she didn’t care. It gave her a whimsical delight and she’d learned a long time ago to enjoy simple pleasures, however they came.

The hot water surrounded her, comforting and making her loose and limber. Jace’s sister obviously had a love for candles. Girly candles that smelled wonderful. And they were pretty. Fancy candles that were likely expensive. Not the cheap kind you got at a dollar store.