Jessa’s frowned. “I live here. In Manhattan. I’m an artist.”

“I live here as well. On the Upper East Side. It is so nice to meet you. I am a business associate of Cole and Burke. How very nice to make your acquaintance. Enjoy your breakfast.” Marco moved off, his bodyguard moving behind him.

“What’s with you two?” Jessa frowned. “He was nice, and you two were terribly rude. Eat something and feed your inner beasts.” She picked up her plate. “I’m getting some smoked salmon.”

The second Jessa strode toward the buffet, her sweet curves swaying, Burke turned to Cole, brows furrowed. “What the fuck just happened?”

“Marco knows Jessa is important.” There was no denying it. Marco Delgado had just seen into his soul, and there was nothing he could do about it. “Which means Ricardo will know soon, too.”

Burke’s whole face tightened. “Fuck.”

Fuck was right. Cole had to hope that Marco wouldn’t remember Jessa. He had to pray that he would write her off as another bimbo who’d fucked a couple of hot guys with too much money to blow. Marco hadn’t been listening in. For all he knew, he’d caught them indulging in a one-night stand. It was okay. It had to be.

Cole watched Jessa, resisting the urge to pull her into his lap and never let go, and prayed he was right.

CHAPTER FIVE

Present Day – Dallas, Texas

Burke put the nondescript sedan in park, well aware of just how tired he was. The neon lights of what had to be the skankiest motel he’d seen in a long time—and he’d seen a few—blinked off and on as though they couldn’t decide to just give up the ghost and die.

“We’re here,” he said, aware that his voice was gravelly, his tone bleak.

Jessa stirred in the backseat. She’d climbed in when they had left the airport, dragging the small suitcase Hannah had brought for her filled with clothes, a toothbrush, and shampoo. Then she’d curled up and cried a few silent tears after leaving Caleb. He’d seen the quiet shake of her shoulders in the rearview mirror—and it had nearly ripped his heart out. But she’d refused all comfort. She’d shut them out.

“I don’t know that we should stop,” Cole said, rubbing a hand across his eyes.

Burke shook his head. “We all need sleep. We have to figure out what we’re doing and where we’re going to stash Jessa while we do it.”

Cole took a long breath, then got out of the car, his acquiescence plain.

Burke turned to look at Jessa. Her face was puffy from crying. God, she was making his heart twist and hurt. He wanted to hold her. It wasn’t going to happen. “We’re going to make sure you’re okay. Cole and I won’t allow anything to happen to you. And Caleb is safe. The James brothers will kill anyone who looks at him sideways.”

She nodded without showing a hint of emotion on her face. It was as though she’d simply turned her feelings off after a river of tears. “I know. I liked them. I believed them.”

He reached for her, catching her hand in his before she could pull away. “Then believe in us, Jessa. We would die before we let anything happen to you.”

She tugged her hand free. “Unless, of course, you need to work. Can’t let a little thing like a girlfriend get between you and a paycheck, can you, Burke?”

“Jessa, we thought you were married,” Cole growled. “It’s not—”

“Important,” she cut in. “Just get this guy so I can have my son back and start rebuilding my home and my career.”

She opened the door and slid out before he could say another word. Burke smacked the steering wheel, wishing it was Marco Delgado’s fucking head. They should have killed the fucker that morning at the Waldorf. He’d been a loose end that they should have taken out.

Fucking hindsight was twenty-twenty. He got out of the car and palmed the key he’d been given just moments before when he’d registered under the name Brian Palmer. Like the sedan, it was suitably bland and nondescript. He’d paid cash. It was one of the reasons he’d chosen this particular lodging. The Hilton would want a credit card on file. Given the fact that Delgado seemed to have been planning this for nearly a year, he would almost certainly be on the lookout for their credit card to ping.

Cole opened the trunk and pulled out their bags. Burke couldn’t help but notice an addition to the duffel bags he and Cole had carried with them from South America. When Dex James had seen them off, he’d handed over a couple of bags he’d packed from the condo Burke and Cole shared. No doubt, the small briefcase-like bag contained Burke’s computer and an untraceable Internet hotspot device that linked to a satellite. He was pretty sure Dex had also packed some heavy-duty guns and plenty of cartridges, along with the hard drives from Burke and Cole’s office.

But the beaten brown bag currently in Cole’s hand had another purpose entirely. Burke just knew that it contained ropes, handcuffs, lube, condoms, and other wonderful things needed to restrain and fuck pretty little submissives.

“You’re kidding?” Burke jibed as he made his way up the stairs.

Cole turned and glared at him over the top of Jessa’s head.

“That’s some awfully positive thinking, brother.” Burke shook his head as he hit the landing and opened the door to room fourteen. He turned on the light—and wished that he hadn’t. It was clean but old and worn. There was a sadness to the room. Neglect.

It wasn’t at all what he’d envisioned when he’d fantasized about reuniting with Jessa.

Cole followed him in, toting his bag of tricks. “Dex is the positive thinker. He brought it. After a whole fucking year, it may be full of cobwebs.”

Dex, true perv that he was, had picked up Cole’s BDSM bag when he’d gone to their place to get the essentials. Clearly, Dex considered the numerous devices with which to sensually torture and pleasure a woman really fucking vital.

As Burke went back outside to watch over Jessa, Cole set the bags aside and immediately searched the room.

“Can I go in?” Jessa asked. “It’s not as cold as it was in Virginia, but it’s still nippy.”

He shrugged out of his coat and had it around her shoulders before she could protest. “Not until Cole says we’re secure. It’s not a big room. It won’t take more than a minute.”

She nodded, her head turning toward the Dallas skyline. It twinkled in the distance like a jewel just out of reach. “It’s pretty. At least you didn’t lie about living here.”

God, they were in such deep shit with Jessa, they’d probably never dig out, much less get to that bag of tricks. “We only lied to protect you from this.”

She laughed, an utterly humorless sound. It seemed that all of her life and happiness had been left behind with her son. “Yeah, you didn’t do a very good job.”

He closed his eyes briefly, the pain that flared almost overwhelming him. They had failed her on every level. “We didn’t mean for any of this to happen.”

She shrugged, continuing to watch the horizon. “It wasn’t so bad once I got my trust fund. My folks wouldn’t give me a loan. They told me I’d made my bed so I should lie in it. Dad offered to pay for an abortion, but only if I came back to the company and behaved the way his daughter should.”

How close had Caleb come to never being born? He’d only met the little guy a few hours before, but he already loved their son, missed him sorely. It would have been smarter for Jessa to end the pregnancy. She would have been able to get on with her life. But Burke was glad she hadn’t.

“I’d like to meet your father someday,” he ground out.

She shook her head. “It wouldn’t matter. He’s never going to change. He truly believes he’s doing the right thing. In his mind, being an artist is one step away from being a mental patient. Don’t ask about that logic. Despite the long, convoluted lecture, I don’t understand, either. I had assumed they would want to know their grandchild regardless, but no. I don’t care anymore. I have the trust my grandmother left me, and my art is starting to pay. Caleb and I are going to be fine. Well, if I’m not dead in the next couple of days.”

Burke couldn’t stop himself. Jessa wasn’t going to like it—but she needed what he could give her.

“Come here.” He put his arms around her and brought her close. She didn’t fight, but she didn’t return the embrace, either. That was all right. She needed comfort; he would provide it. And just being close to her, feeling the heat of her body, calmed him, too. “I’m never going to let that happen. I swear I’ll die first.”

She softened slightly, giving him some small measure of hope.

“The room’s clear.” Cole stood in the doorway, watching them with burning eyes. Burke could see plainly that his brother wasn’t jealous, but envious that he was hugging Jessa. Cole wanted to do the same thing. Burke felt his twin’s frustration and worry. Cole didn’t trust himself to stop at a hug. If Cole touched her, he would try to mount her, seal their bond again. He wanted to dominate her, sink into her, make her remember who her Masters were, and he didn’t feel he had the right.

“Let’s go inside, sweetheart,” Burke murmured.

She jerked away from him and stomped past Cole. “I told you not to call me that.”

“I’ve never been good at taking orders.” Burke followed her in. He watched Jessa’s face as she took in the sad room. Though painfully clean, there was only one very large bed. No wonder they charged by the hour rate.

“Where are you two going to sleep?” Jessa raised a brow as she sat on the bed.

“I’m planning to wait until you’re asleep, then climb in with you,” Burke admitted.

“Uh, no.” Jessa crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m not sleeping with you ever again.”

Several charged retorts ran through Burke’s mind. He swallowed them down. Challenging her when she felt like her back was against the wall wasn’t productive. But god, how he wanted to make her eat those words.

“I won’t try to touch you. But we all need rest.”

“Then you can sleep on the floor. I don’t exactly trust you to be a man of your word since everything you told me a year ago was a lie.”

“Goddamn it, we’ve explained that!” Burke felt his temper slipping. Anxiety, adrenaline, and a burning need to fuck Jessa weren’t good for his mood.

She jumped up and got in his face. “Only because Marco forced you to. Otherwise, you’d still be working, and Caleb and I would still be at the bottom of your priority list. I’d still know that you’d seduced and abandoned me, but at least I’d have my beautiful Victorian home, my son, and some really beautiful memories of the night he was conceived. Now, all I have is some asshole trying to kill me and the two…” she fumbled for a word, “mercenaries who abandoned me saying they’re going to save me. Forgive me if I’m not thrilled with your sudden honesty.”

“Both of you, enough,” Cole growled, his voice deep, low, and dominant. “This argument is pointless and over. I concur with Burke’s plan. You will fall asleep in the bed, then we will crawl in with you and rest. All in favor say aye.”

Burke smiled. “Aye.”

Jessa glared at them in turn, her mouth hanging open. “You can’t vote on this.”

“We just did,” Burke said. “And guess what? We win. Ah, the joys of democracy.”

She rolled her eyes. And there it was. A hint of a smile, albeit reluctant. The faintest trace of the Jessa that Burke had been worried was lost forever. “Fine. Gang up on me. But don’t be surprised if I toss and turn in my sleep and kick. There definitely might be some kicking.”

“There might be some spanking, too,” Cole vowed. “Think on that.”

Burke’s cell rang, cutting off a very interesting turn in the conversation. He pulled it from his pocket and checked the number and frowned at Cole. “It’s Hilary.”

“Who is she and why does she have this number? I thought no one had it.” The chilliness of the question made Burke repress a smile.

“Our assistant. She’s been running the office in our absence. She procures all the phones we keep around the place, and she has the numbers in case of emergency. Dex picked them up when he got the hard drives. It’s fine.” He swiped his hand across the phone, answering it. “This is Burke.”

Cole stood over Jessa. “Are you hungry? I’ll get you something.”

Burke stepped away as Jessa replied, confident his brother would take care of her while he dealt with Hilary. For some reason, Cole and Hilary didn’t communicate well. Then again, Cole didn’t communicate well with a lot of people. Hilary was competent and punctual. She always did exactly as asked. Burke simply made sure he was the one who dealt with her, just as he dealt with most of their clients. They were reassured by Burke’s affable manner. Cole’s snarling…not so much.