Page 33 of Chasing Kit

“Is it possible?” I didn’t approach him, but my fingers curled into fists at my sides. My fingernails dug deeply into my palms. The bite of pain grounded me, reminding me I was here, right here, right now. And so was Kit, and I could keep him safe, even though he was currently glaring at me in betrayal.

“I . . . .” Sky stared down at the floor and pressed his lips together tightly.

“Is it?” I demanded more harshly.

Finally, he nodded. “It could be. Yes. I’ve never met her, but Arrigo said she was conniving. She’d started asking him questions. He told me to stay far away from her. She might’ve figured something out.”

“Fuck.” I pressed my fingers into my temple, hoping to massage all the anger away. Unfortunately, there was no chance of that happening. I turned back to Sky. “Do you understand what you’ve done? Do you? You’ve made Kit a target for one of the most dangerous families, notorious for assassinations. Do you want him to die?”

“No.” His earlier confidence vanished, replaced by the fear of a man in his early twenties. His shoulders slumped as he looked at Kit. “I’m sorry. I was trying to help.”

Kit bit his bottom lip. “I needed to know about Dad.”

“He could’ve found a better way.” I waved my hand angrily at Sky. “The shit wanted to play games. Now you’re in danger. Fuck.” I scrubbed my palms over my face. “We need to confirm if it’s Francesca. If it is, then we also need a plan to get her to back off. I should call Derek.”

“No!” Sky held up his hands. “Let me talk to Rigo. He’ll know how to handle his wife. He’s dealt with her for years. He understands how she operates.”

He pulled out his phone and furiously tapped the screen. While he busied himself contacting a man who used him as a side piece, I gripped Kit’s elbow and pulled him aside. Kit was tense, his eyes filled with a betrayal that echoed deep within my soul.

“What happened between us . . . . If you need to forget it, I get it.” My voice was rougher than I’d intended. “I’m sorry, Kit. But your dad . . . . Everything he did was to protect you. You have to believe that.”

“Why are you defending him?” he asked again, his head cocked in annoyed curiosity. He didn’t pull away, which I counted as a win.

“He saved me,” I said. The silence stretched, and Kit’s waiting eyes demanded more. “When I left the navy, I was broken. No family, no prospects. Just nightmares for company.” I hesitated. “Derek found me. He gave me a purpose, a reason to be here. If not for him, I would’ve . . . . Your dad’s a criminal with blood on his hands. So am I. We do what we have to do to protect the people we love. That’s what he was doing for you.”

Kit’s nostrils flared, but he said nothing as Sky finished on the phone.

“Arrigo is going to investigate. He promised to let me know if Francesca is up to anything.”

I doubted that, but I kept my thoughts to myself. Kit was already pissed at me, and I didn’t need to worsen his mood by insinuating his younger brother was too innocent for his own good. Sky was playing a violent game without knowing the rules or having the grit to keep up. He was stuck in a fantasy that could turn into a nightmare at any moment.

I couldn’t understand why Derek would let this stand. Sky had said his father knew, but it didn’t track. Derek letting his son be some mobster’s side piece? He was protective to a fault. There had to be something I was missing, some angle Derek was playing that I couldn’t see yet.

“You should go to a hotel. Arrigo owns the Diamond Quartet, just a few blocks from here. He’ll set you up with a room and his best security,” Sky offered.

My instincts screamed no. Walking into Scalia’s territory felt like walking into a barred enclosure. But we were exposed here, and fatigue was a real threat. In a hotel, we’d have four walls and a defensible position. It was a calculated risk—the devil we knew versus the one waiting in the shadows. I needed to get Kit somewhere secure and away from his brother.

I gave a sharp nod.

Sky glared. He clearly didn’t like me, but we both had Kit in common, and neither of us wanted to upset him.

10

KIT

I slammed my hand against the wall of the shower, my skin prickling under the pressure of hot water pounding down on me.

I was naive.

For years, I’d believed my life was perfect. I had a supportive father who cheered me on, a great brother exploring the country, and a crush on a hot-as-hell bodyguard with demons I could heal. Except, none of it was real. Everything I’d known was a lie, including Skyler. My younger brother had deceived me. Instead of calling to tell me the truth, he’d sent an anonymous text, sending me running in a panic I regretted.

He was no better than Dad. He was having an affair with an Italian mobster in St. Loren, and the mobster’s wife was possibly trying to kill me because of my connection to Sky. The whole situation was a mess. Usually, I brushed off trouble and stayed focused on the positives and persevered, but not now. Not when my entire world had been tipped on its head.

And War was defending my dad because, according to him, Dad saved him. I wanted to be furious at War for his feelings, but I couldn’t. Not when I had no idea what he’d been through. He was older than me, had been to a war zone, and probably lost friends and comrades.

What did I know? I lived outside Vert Island and went to college, forever babied by a dad who was apparently a smaller version of a mob boss—a fact I’d been oblivious to.

Damn it.