Seduced by the Loan Shark (8 page)

"Maybe." He gritted his teeth. "But the

look in your eyes when you realized what

I'd done, that I'd lost all that money? When

you realized how I'd betrayed you?" He

touched his chest. "I'll never forget it,

Cass. I'll never forget the disappointment."

"It was three years ago, Ronnie. I've let

it go."

"Why?" He demanded. "How could you

just let that go? How can you let

everything I've done to you go?"

"Because you're my brother and I love

you," I answered honestly. "I love you,

Ronnie. Even when you're screwing up

left and right, I still love you."

He let out a long, shaky sigh. Tears

rode the curve of his swollen cheek. "I

need help, Cass."

"I know." I blinked and tears dripped

onto my face. "But that's the first step,

right? Admitting you need help?"

He exhaled roughly. "Something like

that."

I squeezed his good hand. "We'll do it

together, Ronnie. We'll figure this out and

make it work."

He inhaled a steadying breath. I plucked

some tissues from the box on the rolling

cart in the corner and dabbed at his wet

cheeks and then mine. "So—who was the

girl who called me?"

He avoided my gaze. "She's just a

friend."

"A friend, huh?"

"Yeah."

I sensed he didn’t want to give details

so I let it go. I pulled my phone from my

purse and texted Hagen. He sent back a

simple
K
in reply.

I heard a nurse speaking to a police

officer in the open corridor between the

two rows of exam rooms. Apparently, this

cop wasn't here for Ronnie. "Have the

police been in to speak with you?"

"Yeah."

"And?"

"And I'm not stupid," he said quickly. "I

didn't say anything to them. A broken arm,

some busted ribs and a messed up face are

hell of a lot easier to recover from than

the bullet I'd catch for snitching."

"Ronnie…"

"No, Cass! I'm serious. I'm not saying

shit."

"Okay. All right. It's your choice. I'll

stand by it." I didn't like it but I

understood why he wanted to keep quiet.

It sickened me but it probably was safer

for him to keep his mouth shut.

He picked at the sheets for a few

seconds. "It wasn't Hagen's crew."

I wondered how hard it was for him to

say that. "I know."

He glanced at me. "How?"

"He told me it wasn't his men and I

believe him. Besides, he canceled your

entire debt yesterday. You don't owe him

anything anymore."

"But I thought you said—"

"I know," I interrupted. "I thought so too

but he wasn't serious, apparently. He just

wanted me to go out with him. He thought

that using you as leverage was his best

bet. I guess he was right."

Ronnie looked uncomfortable. "I guess I

should thank you."

"Don't. It wasn't like that. In some

weird, twisted way, I should probably

thank you. I wouldn't have met him if you

hadn't gotten in so deep"

"You really like this guy?"

I hesitated before telling Ronnie the

truth. "Yes. I really like him. I think,

maybe, he might be long-term."

"Oh." Ronnie seemed uncertain how to

process my information.

"Yeah." I couldn't believe the awkward

turn this conversation had taken.

"So the date last night?"

I gave him
the look
. "Do you really

want all the details?"

"God, no!" He looked aghast at the very

thought. "I just—I mean—hell! Does

he&you know…like…he treats you right?"

"Yes. He's good to me, Ronnie. We had

dinner. We went to an art gallery. We had

some ice cream." I bit my lower lip and

decided to be totally honest with him. "We

went back to his place."

He held up his hand. "Yeah, you can

stop. I
really
don't want to hear anything

else."

I decided to stop tormenting him. More

serious now, I added, "He's taking care of

your debts, Ronnie. It's done. All of it.

Today."

He stared at me in disbelief. "I don't

know what to say."

"Thank you is probably a good start."

"To you or him? Let's not bullshit one

another. You're the reason he's helping

me, Cass."

I couldn't even begin to deny that. "I

know, Ronnie."

"Why is he doing this for you?"

The answer came swiftly. "Because he

wants me to be happy."

"And are you?"

I didn't even hesitate. "Yes."

"This morning," he countered. "What

about tomorrow and next week and next

month? Do you really think this guy, this

loan shark, can make you happy, Cass? Do

you think he can be the man you need?"

He asked all the questions I'd been

asking myself. "I don't know," I admitted,

"but there's no way to figure any of that out

if I don't a take a chance. He's making

changes in his life. Positive changes," I

added.

"Is he worth the risk?"

I couldn't help myself. "You're the

gambler. You tell me. What are my odds

of happiness with Hagen?"

He hissed dramatically and rubbed his

chest, feigning an injury. "Ouch, Cass."

"You walked right into that one,

Ronnie."

"Fair enough." A few seconds later, he

added, "You want to open a book on your

relationship? I'd give you to ten-to-one

odds on six months. We could make it a

small bet—"

I glared at him. "Ronnie!"

His swollen, busted lips curved in the

tiniest, mischievous grin. "I'm joking,

Cass. I'm done with betting."

"I hope that's true, Ronnie. I really do."

"It is. You'll see. I won't let you down

this time."

I'd heard that before but wasn't about to

remind him how many times he'd failed.

We sat in silence while we waited for the

hospital to find an open room upstairs for

his stay. Curious about his odds, I asked,

"Ten-to-one against us making it to six

months?"

He gave a small shake of his head.

"For."

CHAPTER FIVE

When I exited the hospital some time

later, the first pale rays of sunlight painted

the sky a soft shade of orange. I crossed

the parking lot and found Hagen leaning

against the hood of his car while he

sipped a cup of coffee.

"How is he?" Hagen reached for my

hand as I drew near and pulled me into his

embrace.

"He'll be okay." I placed my cheek to

his chest and inhaled his comforting scent.

"They really beat the crap out of him."

"He owed them a lot of money and he

was

counting

cards

in

their

establishment," Hagen replied matter-of-

factly. "Every house has their own rules. I

hate to be crass but he's just damn lucky

they didn't take a pair of bolt cutters to his

fingers."

My gut rolled at the very idea of such a

barbaric thing. As if sensing my

discomfort, Hagen rubbed my back.

"Sorry, Cassie. I shouldn't have said that."

"From now one, let's make it a rule that

you spare me all that gross stuff."

He chuckled and kissed my forehead.

"Deal."

"Thanks."

"I made those calls. His slate is clean

now. This is his one chance, Cassie."

I looped my arms around Hagen and

hugged him. "Thank you."

His lips brushed the top of my head.

"Let's get you home."

Feeling worn out, I nodded and let him

walk me to the passenger door. As I slid

into the seat, I noticed the two black SUVs

parked nearby. The two men in the closest

SUV I recognized as men who worked for

Hagen. The two in the other I didn't.

"Hagen?"

He fastened his seat belt and turned the

ignition. "Yeah, sweetheart?"

"Should I be worried?"

He followed my gaze to the SUV in

question. "No, it's fine. You've got a good

eye, though. I like that."

"Who are they?"

"Debt collectors." He eased out of the

parking space. "I had a little chat with

them and their boss. Your brother's

account is settled."

"Then why are they waiting in the

parking lot?" I watched Hagen's goons

follow us but the other SUV remained

parked in its slot.

"You think your brother is the only past

due bill in town?"

"So what? They're just going to wait for

some poor sap to come walking out of that

hospital to ambush him? Shouldn't we call

the police or something?"

Hagen shot me a look of utter disbelief.

"You want to call the cops on a couple of

knee breakers working for the Albanians?

Are you out of your damn mind?"

"No but isn't it the right thing to do?"

"The right thing to do and the safest

thing to do aren't always the same thing,

Cassie."

"Hagen—"

"Look, Cassie, those two? They don't

need to use violence to get what's owed to

their boss. Neither do my men, for that

matter. There are plenty of others ways to

convince someone to pay."

"But you're reputation on the street—"

"I know my reputation, Cassie." He

glanced over at me as we idled at a red

light. "I know it because I created it."

Feeling completely thrown for a loop, I

asked, "What do you mean?"

"It's not all true, Cassie. It doesn't have

to be. Yes, I've done some incredibly

violent things. As a kid, I was ten kinds of

screwed up and always looking for a fight.

Later, in my early days loaning money, I

had to be a hard ass to collect what was

owed to me. It only takes a handful of

incidents to build the right reputation.

People start to talk and repeat and

embellish those stories. It's all myth and

shadows, Cassie."

I stared at him as the light turned green

and he pressed the accelerator. "So you're

not…"

"I'm no saint, honey. I'm certainly no

monster either. But that bleeding heart of

yours is going to get you into big trouble

someday."

"You mean like it did yesterday, in your

office?"

He frowned. "So now I'm trouble?"

I grinned and teasingly said, "With a

capital T.'"

He smiled at me. "The same could be

said for you. One look into those bright

green eyes of yours and I was a goner.

Now I'm down fifty grand."

"
Fifty grand
!" I shouted the obscene

number in absolute shock. My heart raced

and my stomach pitched violently. "Hagen,

please tell me you're exaggerating."

"I'm exaggerating." He parroted the

words in a flat tone.

"You're lying." Mouth agape, I tried to

wrap my head around the figure he'd

quoted. It sickened me. "How?"

"Interest, late fees…" He waved his

hand. "It all adds up, Cassie."

"Hagen, I had no idea Ronnie was in

that kind of trouble. I never meant to put

you in this position."

He reached over and took my hand. "I

offered knowing full well your brother

was in deep shit. I said it earlier and I still

mean it. This was my gift to you."

"Fifty thousand is a
gift
?"

He reached over and brushed his

scarred knuckles across my cheek.

"You're worth it."

"You're crazy." I took his hand and

kissed it. "You really are."

"Crazy about you," he said with a laugh.

I snorted with amusement. "You've

known me a day. Let's see if you're still so

crazy about me in a week."

He chuckled. "What's wrong? Did

Ronnie give us long-shot odds?"

"Actually, he gave us damn good odds.

Ten-to-one, we make it six months."

"From a better gambler, I'd take that as

a sign of confidence."

"Hey!" I thumped his arm. "Be nice.

That's my brother you're talking about."

"Yeah, your brother, the worst gambler

in the history of Houston," Hagen replied

as he merged onto the interstate. "Bookies

everywhere will be weeping that he's

packing it in for good. I know how much

interest I made off him over the last few

years. When he paid, he was good for

business."