WYLDER Read online

  “Sorry, bug, you know how it is.”

  “I certainly do, Dad. Trust me, I get it, which is why I wasn’t that put out when I had to hear from a machine that you were gone.”

  “Danny, as much as I’d love to banter with you now, I am not in a great mood. What the hell is going on? Jon called me yesterday when I got back to base and told me some wild story about my little girl being engaged before I even meet this asshole,” he growls.

  If this was a real engagement and I was actually getting married, I’d laugh my ass off and throw Wylder at Daddy and pray he is strong enough to deal with my dad’s brand of affection.

  As it is, I can’t let them actually talk alone, because my dad is not always all that nice and Wylder has a hair-trigger temper. They’d both go after each other, guns blazing.

  Peeking up at Wylder through my lashes, I note that he hasn’t moved a facial muscle and is staring at me, his face blank and eerily hard. Wolf has to cover his mouth to hide a laugh though, and that makes me feel a little better as I sigh and shake my head as if he can see me.

  “When would you have liked to meet him, Dad? I only met Wylder a few months ago, and I didn’t want to jinx things. Besides, I really liked him, and I didn’t want you scaring him away before I could hook him,” I joke, scowling when the insufferable man finally grins and gives me a hot look.

  Bastard.

  “This doesn’t sound right to me! Christ, Dan, you take days to decide on paint colors and a week to nail down the couch you wanted for your living room. Remember when you got your woman business? I had to wait three months for you to decide on a brand. I was buying out tampons like it was my fucking flow.”

  I blush scarlet at that and grit my teeth when Wylder silently laughs so hard Wolf has to grab hold of him before his knees buckle.

  “Dad!”

  “You know it’s true, Dan. You know it is. So, why are you telling me now that you’re engaged to some guy you hardly even know?” he demands. “This isn’t you. Even with that Flynn chump, it took you almost a year to decide you liked him and even longer to—”

  “I get it!” I yell, stiffening when Wolf and Wylder both move forward in interest.

  No way will I let Daddy spill the beans about how I made poor Flynn wait so long for nookie. I was young, and I didn’t just want to throw it away, okay? Geez.

  “Danny—”

  “Dad, I love Wylder, okay? I think it was like love at first sight or something, and trust me, it had to have been strong, because the man is just like you, as gross as that sounds, and he makes me so mad sometimes I want to melt down a toothbrush and gut him like a boss,” I mutter, smiling when Wylder narrows his eyes at me.

  Take that, loser.

  Daddy is silent for no less than a minute, and I know I have him with that crock of crap when he sighs and mutters a curse.

  “Fine, but don’t think I ain’t running a check on this fucker. One wrong move and I’ll take him out.”

  “Geez, Dad, he’s standing right here,” I mutter, sticking my tongue out at Wylder when he clenches his fists and gives me a glare.

  What? Like he thought I was going to do all the talking and suffer Daddy’s anger by myself? Not after this afternoon’s attitude.

  “Wylder? You there, boy?” Daddy barks so loud I see Wylder stand at attention.

  I snicker, can’t help myself, and bite my lip when he runs a hand through his hair and pulls at it.

  “Yes sir, Mr. Bright. It’s nice to finally meet you, sir.”

  “Don’t brownnose me, boy. I don’t like it. Cut the sir shit and shoot straight with me. Do you love my daughter?”

  Oooooh, oh, Daddy, I love you, I mentally crow, smiling brightly at him, almost tauntingly, because I know this is one he has to answer in the positive, and even if it’s a lie, it’s likely the first and only time he’ll ever say those words.

  “Yes sir,” he finally grits out, giving me a glare when I high-five Wolf, who is loving this.

  “Good. You better, because if so much as a hair on my kid’s head is moved in an untoward manner, I will hunt you down like a POW and treat you with less kindness. You got me, boy?”

  “Crystal,” Wylder growls, fists clenched because I’m laughing so hard I fall to the floor with tears streaming from my eyes.

  It’s all an act though, and I pat myself on the back for it because, in reality, the tears are real. It hurts, like I didn’t believe it would, to hear him say yes when I know it’s not true.

  The fact is that Wylder doesn’t feel anything but lust and this weird responsibility for me. He’d kill me in a heartbeat if he had to, and so, yeah, I don’t relish the words as I thought I would, because it drives home all the harder just how untrue they are.

  “Good. I’m running a check on your ass.”

  “Understood, Major.”

  My gut cramps at that, and once I’ve wiped away the tears that they think are mirth, I sit up and stare wide-eyed at them both, Wolf’s grimace making me tense all the more.

  “Danny! Tell your old man you love him and then call me tomorrow.”

  “Love you, Daddy.”

  “Love you too, bug.”

  The minute I hear the connection sever I feel alone again. Looking up at Wylder who is not happy, I can only shrug and pretend a casualness I don’t feel.

  “You better hope those crooked friends of yours are good at what they do, mobster, or you’re a sitting duck.”

  “You’d better hope so too, sweet thing, or you may be an orphan,” he taunts, getting a scowl from me and a look of pity from Wolf.

  “Is that supposed to turn me on, Wylder, because it’s falling real short of the mark,” I growl back.

  Honestly, does he think I believe half the crap he throws at me? We all know that if he wanted to hurt my family, he’d have done it by now. And just like that, the light bulb that’s been flickering in my head goes bright and illuminates everything for me.

  I’m shocked speechless as he frowns at me and starts muttering under his breath while I feel like the freaking Titanic just missed the iceberg and sailed on into New York without a scratch.

  I don’t know how I know this or if it’s even true, but I just realized that Wylder gave me a huge clue days ago and I was so preoccupied I didn’t hear what I needed to.

  Justice. He told me he wants justice and that he won’t let anyone, not even me, mess with his endgame, and suddenly it is all so clear to me. He’s going after whoever killed his sister. The lowlife scum who took away the light in his family and turned his world upside down.

  At least that is what I think as I stare at him and feel like I have answers for the first time. I could be wrong. It’s not unheard of that I believe in aliens only to have a video I swore was real debunked as a firefly and a weird camera angle that made it seem a lot bigger than it was.

  But, for now, that is what I am going with because it makes looking at Wylder easier somehow and I want to believe that, for whatever reason, the whys and hows of his criminal career, they’re noble.

  I need to believe that he’s not just a heartless thug out to make a dime no matter who gets hurt.

  “Why are you staring at me?” he barks when I don’t say a word, just keep looking at him through new eyes.

  I blush and mumble something nasty before rising and sailing to the door.

  “Daniella!”

  “What? God, Wylder, can I go pee without you sending the SS along or standing in the bathroom, you control freak?” I hiss, needing to get the hell out of there before I do something horrible like throw myself at him and kiss his face amidst words of wonder.

  “Fine. Fuck. Go, but you’d better not be melting another one of my toothbrushes!”

  Wolf snickers at the yell, and I can’t stop a smirk and a quirked brow. He found my shank, laughed himself hoarse, and then told me everything that was wrong with it and how I didn’t do it right.

  Stupid, because I took his words to heart and followed his instructions step
by step. I now own a very sharp shank that I carry in my sneaker, thanks to my solitude in the gazebo and the boredom that I couldn’t shake. So, take that, Mr. Smarty Pants, I think with a sniff.

  I do go pee, I’m not a liar after all, and then spend the rest of the evening pretending Wylder doesn’t exist over a dinner where Wolf does nothing but talk to me and rile Wylder.

  All in all, it’s a good day. Now I just have to figure out how I’m gonna find out what I need to. I am no detective, and the Drew tactics for sleuthing are not in my blood, but short of tying Wylder to the bed and getting myself murdered when he gets free, I have no clue how to get answers.

  That night is the first time that he doesn’t come to me after I’ve showered and spread myself out on the bed just the way he likes. I lay awake, waiting for two hours, my eyes pinned to the door, before I finally accept that I am wasting my time.

  I don’t know why it hurts when he doesn’t come. I should be relieved that I am getting a reprieve and time to think about things. Instead, I spend hours standing at the window, staring out into the darkness with nothing but my doubts and fears to keep me company.

  Eventually, I am just too tired to keep standing, waiting, I acknowledge, and crawl into bed feeling rejected and pissed off at the world and more so myself.

  He’s probably had his fill of me, I think sourly as my eyes drift shut and I let sleep claim me. That should scare me because if I have no use, I am not needed.

  But somehow I don’t believe that I have anything to fear, probably wishful thinking, but it’s what I believe, and right now, I’m living it a moment at a time.

  Chapter Ten

  Danny

  I’m up with the birds, despite the short hours I slept, and skipping down the stairs to beat the housekeeper to breakfast when I hear voices, loud voices, and freeze halfway up.

  I’m just about to turn and dart back upstairs when I hear Wolf’s snarls and realize that he’s in Wylder’s office. Being sneaky is not cool, and I probably do not want to hear whatever it is they’re arguing about, but I can’t stop my feet as I creep down the stairs and sneak closer to the door, pushing my ear into the wood.

  “Bullshit! You can’t be thinking about this, man. It’s just wrong,” Wolf yells, the tone of his voice telling me that he is more than angry. He’s enraged and not at all happy with whatever Wylder has laid on him.

  “You think I don’t know that? You think this is easy for me, man? I’m not a monster, Wolf. I do feel shit, and yes, as opposed to what people think of me, I do not take human life lightly.”

  “Then, you should find another way, Bear. Jesus, when we started this, I was all the way in with you, and you know it.”

  His voice has calmed some, making it harder to hear, but I don’t miss the soft plea in his voice, and for some reason, the fact that Wolf, the silent, sometimes incorrigible gossip, sometimes frightening man, is pleading with his brother makes my nerves freeze.

  I should leave and pretend I didn’t hear anything. Hell, I haven’t really heard anything, have I? I should go before I do hear something, because my instincts tell me that I shouldn’t hear any of this, that I don’t want to.

  I don’t move and press closer to hear Wylder’s reply, my stomach twisting in knots when I hear a bang and the flutter of paper. Must have thrown something, I think.

  “There is no other way! For God’s sake, Wolf, do you think I wouldn’t have said something if I knew what to do? I don’t have another plan for this. It’s now or never, and if I don’t, if we don’t go ahead, then we lose Ariston and we’ll never have a chance at him again. We’ve worked at this for eight years, Wolf. Eight fucking years of scraping Mom and Dad off the floor and giving them a reason to keep going. We made a promise.”

  “They wouldn’t want you to keep it this way!”

  “It’s the only way!”

  I’ve never heard Wylder uncontrolled. Even when the man is furious, he keeps a level tone, something that creeps me the heck out because any man with that much self-control is dangerous. Daddy always warned me to steer clear of the ones who don’t lose their temper.

  “You know it is, Wolf.”

  A long pause ensues, and I can just picture the big blond behemoth scrubbing at his head like he does when he isn’t impressed with something. I don’t know him all that well, but from what little contact we’ve had, Wolf seems to be okay. Scary but okay.

  “Jesus, man, this just isn’t right.”

  “I know, but if there’s another way, then tell me, because I sure don’t have the stomach for this either,” he says.

  I’m burning to know what they’re discussing and curse the long shower I took before coming down. Whatever it is, is bad, bad enough that even Wylder isn’t happy about doing it.

  “I’m sorry, Bear.”

  “Yeah, me too.”

  Footsteps have me scrambling for the stairs, and I twirl as if just stepping down when the door opens and they walk out, stopping at the sight of me.

  Something in his eyes has me stilling, but I force myself not to look guilty and sweep past him, quivering at the look in his eyes.

  “Morning.”

  “Hey, uh, hey, Danny,” Wolf mumbles at my back as they follow me into the kitchen.

  That guilty look makes my insides curdle, and I know, I just know, that whatever is so bad that they’re fighting about it, it’s going to affect me. Badly.

  I don’t want to believe that he’d ever hurt me. I don’t believe it, but I can’t stop myself from trembling when I start breakfast and finally look up to meet his eyes.

  The blankness there is no surprise, and for once, I wish he’d look at me with something more than that. Just once I wish I could see softness.

  Breakfast is quiet and awkward, with Wolf dashing out as soon as he’s shoveled his food in, leaving me alone with Wylder, who is brooding and watching me silently.

  “What you said yesterday about not wanting to hurt my family.”

  He doesn’t continue, and I am forced to meet his gaze again, breathing through my fear and the uncertainty I feel.

  “It’s true.”

  “It’s the nicest thing anyone has ever said or done for me,” he says quietly, so softly I have to strain to hear it.

  But I do. I hear him, and the way he says it is so…unlike him that I bite into my lips to stop them quivering. It’s terrible to think, but I want him to be the old Wylder right now, the gruff, nasty, taunting man who talks dirty and laughs when I blush.

  That Wylder, I am sure of. This one, with the soft tone and strange look in his eyes, is scaring me. It’s ironic, but this niceness, or whatever it is, it’s terrifying.

  “I’m sorry, then, Wylder, because it shouldn’t be that way. It is true though, and if that angers you—No! Don’t deny it, because I was here yesterday when you stormed out and stayed away from me all night. I get it, okay, no lovey-dovey soft stuff. You warned me, and I overstepped the boundaries of this…this thing between us. It won’t happen again,” I mumble, praying that this mood is just about him not liking the closeness or whatever he was feeling yesterday.

  It’s not though. God, I just know it’s not, and it’s making me battle against tears when he shakes his head and leans over to take my hand, stroking it in a way that isn’t sexual at all.

  God, no. No, give me back the pig who makes graphic comments about my vagina and ass, I plead.

  “I…I was shocked. I never once thought that anyone would give a damn about me or my family. You’re a stranger to them all, and yet you’re willing to lie and stay here, a prisoner, because you feel responsible for them. Not many people would react that way, Danny. No one I know besides my family would care about other people above their own survival and freedom.”

  Oh, I get that. This self-sacrificing attitude was a long time in coming, and trust me, if he’d expected it of me just a day after he took me, I’d have said screw this shit and ran, uncaring of what would happen, so great was my need to get out and get home
where I could be safe.

  It’s funny what some perspective and crazy, stupid love will do to a woman’s rational mind.

  “Not everyone is cold and heartless, Wylder. I don’t know your mom and dad or your other brothers, and I didn’t know your sister either, but that doesn’t mean that they’re nothing to me. Maybe I shouldn’t care. Hell, I probably shouldn’t, and I can only say that I may be a little crazy already, but I can’t stand the thought of anyone getting hurt. My mom used to tell me that love isn’t optional, that choosing not to love others is a choice we make. I may not know your family, but that doesn’t make them any less than me, and what kind of person would I be if my life meant more to me than any of theirs?” I ask, choking back tears when he closes his eyes and looks away.

  “I used to think that way, you know. My parents raised us to be good people. Wolf and I were not that much older than Lyon, Lynx, Hawk, and Sparrow, but we were the big brothers, and we taught them all the same thing, never do harm. It was the one rule in our house that was unbreakable.”

  Somehow, I can’t imagine Wolf or Wylder being soft little boys who turned into good men, but when he looks at me and I see him, really see, it’s suddenly all I can see.

  Don’t cry, Danny, I plead, blinking and taking a silent breath.

  “That all changed?”

  “Yeah,” he laughs humorlessly, fiddling with his cup as his eyes get this faraway look that seems sad and angry all at once. “Yeah. I went to the Army, and I thought, this is it. I can serve my country and then study on their dime and just live, ya know? But I should have known life wasn’t going to just be a breeze. I’d grown up too fucking easy for it to last, and I learned that the hard way.”

  “No.”

  “Yes. I was an idealistic little shit with no idea what the real world is like. War is tough, and I won’t ever say that it isn’t an eye-opener, but off the battlefield is where the true horror is. Every day people kill each other. They kill over greed or jealousy or just because they can, and it’s ugly. At least out in the war zones you understand why it’s so ugly. People have their beliefs, and we fight to uphold them. Out on the streets is so much uglier,” he murmurs, shaking his head and turning to me with so much weariness I want to cradle his head to me and smooth it away.