Daddy's Angel (Montana Daddies 7)

Wherever he was, it was cold. Damp. He could smell diesel.

Was he in some sort of basement? His hands were behind him, secured together. He tried to move his legs. Tied as well. All right. What was his last memory?

Ari. Her family. Listening to their plans. The superintendent. Rob. Then pain. Had that bastard had hit him with something? No. Not Rob. He’d been in front of him. Someone else. Someone else had been hiding behind the door and had hit him on the head. Then they’d somehow dragged him to where? Down to the basement? Made sense.

There wasn’t much street noise. Was he in a boiler room?

He couldn’t hear anyone near him, but they could be silent, waiting. Finally, he heard a door creek open.

“This wasn’t the plan, Jerome,” someone whined. It sounded like Rob. “He can’t be here, what if someone finds him? I’ll lose my job.”

“Shut up, Rob. Who cares about your job? As soon as Arianna is mine, I’ll give you enough money to move to some island and live out your days drinking Mai Tai’s and sunning your white ass. My girl is loaded.”

“You better,” Rob said in his nasally voice. “So what are we going to do

about him? Why did you hit him over the head?”

“You overheard what her sister said to the doorman yesterday, she’s moving to Montana with this prick. If you’d put listening devices in her apartment like I told you to we would have known about this earlier and come up with a better plan. I had to move on the fly.”

“They’ve upped security. I couldn’t get into her apartment without one of them finding out. What makes you think it’s this guy she’s moving away with?”

“Because her sister said it was the big black hunk. That sister always was a slut. Might have to take care of her. And the rest of her family. They never treated her right.”

“What makes you think she’ll want to be with you if she’s planning to go away with him?”

There was the noise of a scuffle and it took all of his control to stay still. He tugged carefully at the ropes around his wrists. There was some give there. Perfect.

“I told you, we have a connection. She kept my secret for all these years. She could have told. Could have gotten me in trouble. But she didn’t. She even shared her cookies with me when my bitch mother wouldn’t give me any.”

Fuck. Who was this guy? How long had he known Ari? And why the fuck was he going on about damn cookies?

“Fine. Fuck. She’s yours. Whatever. Let me go.” Rob sounded winded. Like this mystery guy was holding him by the neck.

“Then that bitch got fired and we were separated. It wasn’t until I heard her message that I knew she needed me. I came to rescue her. But this asshole is in my way.”

He kicked Bain’s boot. He forced himself to stay relaxed. Slumped.

“But what if she hires other bodyguards?” Rob asked. “Then you won’t be able to swoop in as the hero to save her from her stalker.”

So this guy was the stalker and Rob was his partner. Made sense.

“The plan has changed. It wasn’t working, anyway with these bodyguards around. They kept her from me. I couldn’t make a move with all the new security measures.”

“Should we be talking about this in front of him?” Rob whispered.

“He’s unconscious. Besides, even if he is listening in, he’s not going to get a chance to talk.”

“What does that mean? I never agreed to kill anyone,” Rob’s voice squeaked.

“What are you going to do with him? Let him go? Don’t be a wimp, Rob.”

“Don’t call me a wimp, Jerry.”

“Don’t call me Jerry. It’s Jerome. Everyone fucking calls me Jerry. And it’s not my name.”

“Fine. Fine, chill out. So now what? What do we do? How are you going to get to her now?”

“I just need to get her alone. To tell her I understand her secret message to me.” He started to sing off-key,