PrologueEverleigh - 3 Years AgoIt was hot.So hot I almost couldn't breathe.I have no idea what day it is, where I am or who took me. All I do know is this room they have me squeezed in is stifling and disgusting. There's no telling how many other poor girls have been locked in this room. It isn't even big enough for a bed. Harry had it better living under a staircase than what I have in this box. At least I got to have a bed.I could see dried blood and other things that I don't even want to think about, on the walls and floor. I'm not entirely sure what happened to make our operation go sideways but all I can do is pray that they find me before my captors decide to kill me.I know Bryan is looking for me. He wouldn't just let me go without a fight. We mean too much to each other. We don't care that it is against department regulations, we still decided to have a physical relationship. I love him and he loves me.Hopefully I'm not too broken by the end of this order. I don't kn

EVERLEIGHThe app I used to help me sleep at night was cut off way before I wanted to wake up. Using a white noise app was the only way I could get a full night's sleep without the nightmares returning.Samson laid with his head on my stomach, his ears perked up and his long bushy tail wagging. I rescued him as much as he has rescued me. I was part of the K-9 unit and after I got hurt he was supposed to go to another handler. He became aggressive and uncontrollable with his new handler and therefore that made him a liability. The head of my unit knew I wasn't coming back, not after I lost Bryan. So they let us both retire peacefully.I swung my legs over the side of the bed testing the balance on my right leg. It still gives me problems sometimes, especially first thing in the morning and definitely when it rains. And unfortunately, it has been raining here for almost a week straight and it is unseasonably cold in the mornings and blazing hot in the noon.Mother nature needs to get he

EVERLEIGHWe were almost done carrying all of the floral arrangements into the building's cargo elevator. Gran took the first elevator full up and I was waiting for her to come back down so I could load the rest. The elevator was located at the back of the parking garage and was used by employees of the restaurants and businesses in the building.There were several workers coming up from behind me. They were all dressed in uniforms like a catering service. I smiled at the one closest to me and pulled out my phone to scroll my social media while we waited for the elevator to come back down. The engagement party was on the eighteenth floor so it would take time for it to come back down. I was so lost in my phone that I almost didn’t hear part of their conversation. It’s not my fault that I’m nosy by nature.“....minutes to get in and get out. Call Vinny and tell him to meet us out front. This elevator is taking too long.”I made sure to keep staring at my phone. It’s a good thing I k

RONANOne minute I was just shooting the shit with the guys, going over security plans for my little sister's engagement party, and the next thing I saw, there was a girl on the floor of my private conference room kicking the shit out of some guy.It was obvious that he was the reason for the blood on her face and the panicked look in her eyes.My guys being my guys, jumped into action pulling the guy off of her. Brennan and Sean threw him in the opposite corner, giving Oisin and Tadgh the chance to fuck him up as well. We may be criminals, but the line is drawn at hurting women and children.Even from my seat at the head of the table I can see this girl is a beauty. I’m instantly hit with the need to care and protect this girl at all costs.I don’t know why but before I can put much thought into my actions, I’m kneeling on the floor in front of her. I take back everything I said about her being a beauty. Those words aren’t enough to describe this little redhead at my feet.She’s fu

EVERLEIGHThe ride to the hospital was uncomfortable to say the least. I was ushered back down to the private section of the parking garage and into a black SUV with dark tinted windows. The one he called Connor was in the front driving while I was stuck in the backseat with the devil of the city.How could someone so evil be so devastatingly handsome. And big.Jesus, was this man huge. He has to be at least six and a half feet tall.He sat staring at me with his head cooked to the side like he was memorizing every detail. Taking up most of the space in the back, making it hard to breathe.It wasn't hot per say, but his intense gaze was giving the butterflies in my stomach butterflies of their own."So Everleigh, how long have you been working with your grandmother?" He asked me. Is he serious right now? Like he hasn’t investigated all of the vendors that have anything to do with this engagement party.“Listen, cut the bullshit, I’m only allowing you to drop me off at the hospital.

EVERLElGHWhen we finally got back to my apartment, it was almost time for Gran to go to her bowling club. Tuesday night was bingo and Friday nights were set aside for bowling. Sometimes I would go with her because she's just that cool.But not tonight.No. Tonight I would be Iocked in my apartment with the most dangerous man in the city.What made this man dangerous was not that he was a cold blooded killer. Oh no, it was that I was drawn to him like a moth to a flame. It scared the hell out of me. And it excited me all at the same time.Why did that excite me?Was it because he was dangerous, or was it because he was drop dead gorgeous.I very much think it's the latter.This man could do irreparable damage to my mind, body and soul.Ronan sat and talked to Gran for a few minutes, just to fill her in on what the doctor said. The ease with which they talked to each other suggested they have known one another for longer than I thought.My suspicions were confirmed when something Gran

EVERLEIGH Ronan left me in the bathroom at my insistence, to go order our food. I told him I was more than happy to cook but he said not to over exert myself so soon after an accident. The tub was filling up and I was on my hands and knees looking under the sink cabinet for the bag of bubble salts. Somehow it had gotten shoved all the way to the back and it was going to be a stretch getting it. Whoever built this bathroom decided on extra deep cabinets and my short arms sometimes struggled to reach the back. My fingertips brushed the top of the bag right at the same time my back decided it had had enough and locked up. It’s not the first time it has happened and it probably won’t be the last either. But it usually requires some form of assistance and I’m not sure I want to ask for his help just yet. While I am dressed in my silk robe, I am completely naked underneath. If I were to ask for his help now he would no doubt get a perfect look at all of what it is I have to offer an

RONANI’ve been sitting outside of the bathroom door for so long I’ve lost track of the time. Before I came in to rescue her yet again, I called Rhyon and asked if he would come over and cook for her. Since we all live in the same penthouse he does all of the cooking anyway. Says he doesn’t trust anyone else, when in truth, he's just like every other stuck up, hot shot chef.But unlike most chefs in the industry, he has a natural gift when it comes to cooking. He’s the only one of the four of us brothers that can cook. Rogan and I can get by okay but Rannon can’t boil water to save his life. I should have thought sitting on the hardwood floor through a little bit better before I actually did it. Honestly I didn’t think that I would be sitting here for this long. I figured she would be done by now.“Everything okay in there, love?” I had to stop myself from turning and looking in the door. I heard her sigh and drop what I was assuming was her hand back into the water.“I’m not your lo

RONAN"Oh. My. God. What is that smell?"It took me a solid forty-five minutes to convince Everleigh to lay down on her bed so I could give her a body massage and rub this pain relief shit on her."Just relax, it smells like death, but I promise when you wake up in the morning you won't even know you got tossed around like a rag doll."She groaned and grumbled about the smell for a few more minutes before she finally relaxed. It's a good thing I opened the windows and balcony door, this shit could peel the paint off of walls if a room wasn't well ventilated.She was wearing an oversized t-shirt and a pair of well worn boxer briefs. At least that's what they looked like to me. I may be well versed in female anatomy but female fashion is a whole nother ball game.I start at her shoulders, gently massaging the mixture into her skin. She keeps her face buried in a pillow to try to hide the foul odor. If I could, I would do the same. Lucky for me though, I’ve used this stuff enough that

EVERLEIGHThe warmth of the sunshine on my face woke me from the best night's sleep I've had in years. Hell, the best sleep of my entire life to date!I slowly opened my eyes, hoping the bright light wouldn't give me an instant migraine. When I was confident that the light wouldn’t gouge my eyes out, I attempted a stretch. I fully expected to feel some discomfort at the very least, but there was none. At all… Even my hip was pain free. Whatever was in that vile smelling concoction worked some kind of magic.I rolled to the side, slightly disappointed that there wasn't a gorgeous God with chocolate brown hair and beautiful blue eyes to greet me this morning.I give my body one final stretch before I throw the covers back and attempt to get out of bed.I could smell breakfast cooking downstairs and the low murmur of voices. Gran must be entertaining Ronan. That gives me the opportunity to shower off the faint odor of that nasty shit he rubbed on my body last night. Thoughts of last n