Chapter Five
Reyes was sitting at the kitchen table flipping through brochures, absently twisting his wedding ring. He and Natasha had been married almost a year, and he wanted to take her someplace for their first anniversary. Preferably someplace where she spent most of the time naked or in a bikini. Definitely naked if he could swing it.
Reyes couldn't believe they had already been married a year. Time had gone so quickly. It had been amazing. Waking up to that woman every day had literally been a dream come true.
Reyes was pretty sure she felt the same, or at least she did a good job of hiding her irritation. To his credit, Reyes had done a pretty good job of learning the danger words. Fine being the worst of the bunch in his opinion, because it was so versatile. It could mean a lot of things, and none of them were good. He'd also learned that nothing almost always meant something, and go ahead, well that didn't really mean he should do it. In fact, it usually meant if you do, the next word out of my mouth will be fine.
Reyes figured there were probably a few more words he needed to figure out. In fact, he was beginning to think wow, wasn't exactly a compliment, except for maybe in bed. Then he was pretty sure it meant something good. Well, he hoped it did. It was all a little confusing.
But hey, they had only been married a year. The way he looked at it, he had another sixty or so years to get it right, unless she wizened up and kicked him to the curb one of these days. He figured, as long as she kept saying wow like that in bed, that probably wasn't going to happen any time soon.
Reyes heard her phone chirp, and a little stab of irritation hit him behind the eyeball. He hated that phone. It seemed like every time that thing made a noise like that, something bad was about to happen. Reyes felt her energy change. Yep, he knew it. He'd survived being shot and hiding in the mountains of Afghanistan for three days just fine. He'd slept like a baby after, but that phone, that thing was giving him PTSD.
"What is it darlin?" Reyes asked as he turned around in the chair so he could see her.
"Nikko's been shot. He needs stitches." Natasha replied.
Reyes rolled his eyes and groaned. Dammit somebody was always getting shot and fucking up their plans. Montero got shot, Tasha got shot, Ranger got shot, Roman got shot, and now Nikko. It was like a damn epidemic of people getting shot. Reyes had a bad feeling his plan to keep Tasha in a bikini for a week had just gone right out the window. He tried to ignore the fact that Nikko fucking up his plans was somehow worse than just about anybody else doing it.
Reyes knew that wasn't really fair. It wasn't that Reyes didn't like Nikko, he did, and to Nikko's credit he'd stayed out of their lives. He'd given them space and time. But somehow, that had been worse. Reyes knew Natasha was worried about him. The less she saw of Nikko, the more worried she became. His not being around somehow made him a bigger presence.
Reyes was studying Natasha. She'd snapped into preparation mode, but he could see the worry on her face. It wasn't like this was the first time Nikko had been shot, and it didn't sound like it was all that bad, but he could tell she was afraid. And, it wasn't because Nikko had been shot. Natasha had a sixth sense to her, and Reyes had a bad feeling.
"Do you ever think maybe we should do something different?" Reyes asked. Maybe they should get out of this whole crazy life. People did things like that. Didn't they?
Natasha eyed him for a minute. "Like what?"
She sounded genuinely baffled that he'd ask such a stupid question. Like she couldn't imagine not being elbow deep in a bunch of crazed mercenaries every day. Reyes had to remind himself that nothing in Natasha's life had ever been normal, so she had a slightly different bar than most. She'd been raised by Nikko, which was damn near like being raised by wolves. Reyes thought it was entirely possible, wolves might have been the better choice.
"I don't know. Maybe live on a ranch in Texas. Maybe raise a kid." Reyes wasn't really sure where the kid part of that equation had come from. Reyes wasn't particularly good with them, and he and Tasha had never discussed them. He just figured that's what normal people said, not that he really wanted to do it. Maybe.
He saw her eyes narrow for a second as she assessed him. "Too hot."
"Ok, well a ranch in Montana then." Reyes wasn't picky. Just some place where people weren't getting shot or blown up would do just fine.
"Too cold." She smiled at him.
"How about avocado ranchers in California then?" He was grinning at her.
"Avocado ranchers?" Her perfect eyebrow quirked up. "I'm pretty sure they don't call it avocado ranchers."
"Sure they do darlin'." Reyes was pretty sure they didn't, but then his experience at ranching stopped at the Texas border, and mainly centered on things with four legs. "We could raise avocados on our little ranch. People do it all the time. We could name the trees and everything."
Reyes reached out and pulled her to him. She straddled his lap.
"You know pretty boy, if that's what makes you happy, we can do that." Reyes realized she was serious and his breath hitched a little. He'd only been joking. Well mostly.
"You'd do that? Walk away from NNS Global." What Reyes really meant was walk away from danger and Nikko. Of course, most of the time those two things were synonymous.
"Yes." She answered without hesitation. Natasha would do anything for Reyes, and if he wanted to go sit on a porch somewhere and watch grass grow, that was fine by her. Just as long as they were together and he was happy. She really needed him to be happy. He was a guy that deserved to be deliriously happy every day.
A beat went by. "With one condition of course." She continued.
"Yeah darlin'"
"We have to have a dog named Tex." Natasha was grinning at him. Reyes like dogs, and he'd been bummed he didn't get to spend as much time with Stephanie's dog Mac. She was pretty sure he would have adopted that dog if he could. Reyes had been number one in that dog's heart until the twins came along, and now she was pretty sure he was a distant third.
"I think we can make that work." Now Reyes really was grinning like an idiot.
She leaned in and kissed him, but when she pulled back Reyes could tell a cloud had descended over her, and it felt a little ominous.
"The kid thing. Is that really something you want?" She asked.
Reyes knew he'd probably gone and stepped in it this time. He really hoped she had missed that part, but he should have known better. He shrugged. "I don't know where that came from. I've never really thought about it much. You?"
"Your Mom sure asks us about it a lot." Natasha's tone was neutral, which looking back on it, was probably the thing that tricked Reyes into his next mistake.
"Well, you know, all moms want to know when they are going to be grandmas."
Reyes felt her stiffen. Oh shit, he thought, that had come out all wrong. Not only did Tasha not have a mom, but it implied that his mom was disappointed, or would be, if they didn't have kids. He knew he needed to fix this and fast.
"You know, I don't care if we have kids or not. I'm perfectly happy with just you and me forever darlin'. Besides you know I'd probably accidentally leave it in the supermarket or something anyway. There's a hundred ways that could go bad."
She looked at him for a minute. Reyes thought there was something about her eyes that looked tortured before she looked down and away from him.
"You know, I don't know if it is even something I can do, or should do." Reyes could feel her pulling away from him, and he kind of wanted to cut out his own tongue.
"You never checked?" Reyes just thought all women knew those things, but then that seemed stupid when he thought about it. It wasn't like he had checked to see if he could. This was shaping up to be another one of those things that Reyes really sucked at. Not that it should have been a huge surprise. Reyes largely sucked at anything that had to do with women, and this was bound to be a subcategory of that.
Natasha shook her head. "No, I mean with Ranger I was way too young to even think about kids, and then with Nikko, it was just never a question. We were on the same page." She shrugged. "I guess I thought we were too. We probably should have talked about it before now." She climbed off of Reyes' lap, and wrapped her arms around her middle.
And just like that, Reyes realized there was a real possibility Tasha would leave him for his own good. He could see it in her eyes. Reyes wasn't really sure when he became a less suitable life partner than Lucifer, but he was pretty sure that is what had just happened.
Mostly because he was stupid. He didn't even really care about having kids, and if they really wanted them, they could always adopt. They had plenty of time to figure that all out. Unless she dumped him. Reyes couldn't believe he hadn't thought about the damage she'd sustained when she had been trafficked. She'd been eight. Natasha had done such an amazing job of putting herself together, he forgot sometimes. He forgot the horrors that had happened to her. He forgot that she carried very real emotional and physical scars.
Hell, they'd never even talked about birth control now that he thought about it. Not once. Not even the first time they'd been together, which he realized was beyond stupid, but wasn't exactly the point at the moment. He knew she didn't take those little pills that came in a wheel. At least not that he'd ever seen. After a couple of years together, you would have thought it would have come up, and it hadn't. That probably should have told him everything he needed to know, if he actually had an IQ higher than an amoeba.
"Darlin'." Reyes reached for her but she moved away. He winced.
Reyes stood up and went over to her and pulled her into a hug. She was stiff against him, but that was OK, because she didn't get to pull away from him. She didn't get to shut him out. He cupped her face and forced her to look at him.
"I love you darlin', and trust me when I tell you that is the only thing that matters to me. I'm always going to love you no matter what. You're all I'm ever gonna need or want. I need you to hear what I'm sayin." Reyes searched her face, but her eyes were as blank as her expression.
"You know you are amazing, and I love you. But you really shouldn't have to settle." Natasha said. She gave him a sad smile and pulled away.
Reyes didn't need to settle for someone that was broken and defective. Reyes could have it all. Sometimes she liked to pretend she was normal, but she wasn't. Reyes, on the other hand, was. His family was great, and he was the only boy. She hadn't really considered all the implications for Reyes when they had gotten married. She'd been selfish. Reyes deserved more.
"I didn't settle. I got you, and that was like winning the jackpot." Reyes felt his gut clench. It was like his biggest fear was playing out in front of him and there wasn't anything he could do about it.
She gave him a fake smile.
Reyes really wanted to kick his own ass. Tasha had done such an amazing job in her recovery sometimes he forgot there were still landmines that he had to watch out for, and tonight he'd stepped right in the middle of a bunch of them. They needed to talk more, but the doorbell rang. That would be Nikko. The perfect partner that never stuck his foot in his mouth and made her feel like shit.
Sometimes he wondered if Tasha had still been with Nikko when they met, would she have even given him a backward glance. Reyes knew it was childish to be jealous of Nikko, but sometimes he couldn't help it. Maybe Nikko gave her something Reyes couldn't. Maybe Nikko understood her in a way that Reyes didn't. Reyes figured if he kept pulling stunts like this one, he would never get the chance to fully understand her. She would pull away from him. Reyes would make this right. He had to.
Reyes walked over and opened the door. Ranger was propping Nikko up. Nikko had blood all over the side of his shirt and didn't look so good. Ranger helped Nikko in followed by another man. He was big. About Reyes' size. Big, dangerous, and carrying a weapon. Oh goody, Reyes thought. Look what the cat dragged in. He figured it was too much to ask that just once it could be an accountant.
"Declan." Natasha growled.
Reyes had never heard that tone out of Natasha before. All the hair on Reyes' neck stood straight up. The way Natasha had said Declan's name, it sounded like she was trying to banish him to hell. He could have sworn the air crackled between them. Natasha was in a fighting stance on the balls of her feet.
"It's alright love. Tonight, he's a friend." Nikko's velvet voice drifted across Reyes. He briefly registered the fact they clearly all knew each other. Declan looked like trouble. And what did a friend for tonight mean? Did that mean he was a mortal enemy on other days. Reyes didn't have too much time to consider the possibilities.
Natasha's eyes never left Declan. "Please help Ranger take Nikko to the guest room." Her voice was completely neutral, and that really freaked Reyes out. The calmer she got, the deadlier she got.
Reyes nodded to her, but he really didn't want to leave her in the living room with this Declan guy. Reyes figured the odds weren't great that both of them would be alive when he got back, and with Natasha that wasn't actually a joke. Reyes did what she asked sending up a silent prayer that this wasn't about to go all kinds of bad. Or maybe all kinds of worse, because tonight was already bad. Nikko was shot and Reyes had made an unforced error he didn't need to make.
Natasha and Declan stood staring at each other. Both lost in their own thoughts and memories for a moment. Declan reached out and cupped her face running his thumb over her bottom lip. He saw her lips part slightly and heard her little gasp.
"Little bird. My beautiful little sparrow." Declan couldn't believe she was standing here in front of him.
It had been years since he had seen her. He'd often wondered what had happened to her. When Nikko had told Manoso to take him to Natasha's he had been surprised. He shouldn't have been, but he was. He knew Natasha was always going to be in Nikko's life, that part hadn't surprised him. No, the part that surprised him was that she was right here in D.C. She had been in his city and he didn't even know it. That had surprised him. Nikko had always done a good job of keeping her out of the shady side of his business, but still he should have known. Maybe Declan's grip on the pulse of the city wasn't as good as he thought. Nikko had been linked to a different woman for a while, and maybe that is what has thrown Declan off.
But it sure looked like Nikko wasn't with Natasha. No, it looked like Natasha was with the big man that had answered the door. Everything about his posture had screamed warrior, and he had subtly aligned himself with Natasha, like he was ready to back her up at a moment's notice. He had been completely attuned to her, and her to him.
Natasha was rooted to the spot staring at Declan McShane. His eyes locked with hers like they were trying to pry into her mind and read her innermost thoughts. Thoughts that had gone to a long ago past. Thoughts that included Declan.
The tiny tattoo of a sparrow that rested just below her hip bone burned liked a brand, like it was glowing and throbbing. It was ludicrous, but she was terrified that Declan would know. Know that he had affected her, he had shaped her life, and she had willingly branded herself with his symbol. Even though at the time, she'd told herself she'd randomly picked that hacker name and gotten that tattoo simply because, even then, she knew that wasn't true. It has been an ode to Declan McShane.
Standing here nearly twenty years later, she was afraid that Declan McShane would know she had been smitten with him, like only a teenage girl can be. Worshiped him from afar. Coveted him like a forbidden treasure, relishing in the tiny tidbits of interest and affection that he doled out.
Natasha had been fifteen. Nikko barely twenty. Nikko had been working for Ciro for several years and, with Ciro's blessing, he was branching out. Nikko had picked her up from school that day. She didn't remember why, she just remembered being in that silly school uniform. White button-up shirt, plaid skirt, white knee socks, and ugly shoes.
They'd been driving when they had been forced off the road by five of Liam McShane's lieutenants and enforcers. McShane's men accused Nikko of stealing a shipment of guns. To this day, Natasha had no idea if that was even true. It hadn't mattered then, and it didn't matter now.
It had been five against two. Now that would have been easy odds, but not when she was fifteen. She and Nikko had tried to fight, but they had pretty quickly been overpowered. The men had worked both her and Nikko over pretty well. Natasha got a split lip, a bloody nose, a black eye, and a cracked rib out of the deal. Nikko had gotten it worse. Natasha was pretty sure that was the first time Nikko had his nose broke, although it wouldn't be the last.
They'd trussed them up and taken them to some filthy warehouse, where they strung Nikko up and beat him some more. Natasha had been terrified they were going to kill him and she begged them to stop. Just to let them go. If Nikko had stolen the guns, he would give them back.
The leader of the pack had been some beefy guy with dirty blond hair cut short in a buzz cut and a beer gut that made him look about six months pregnant. She'd never forget what he was wearing. He had on brown dress slacks and a sleeveless white undershirt with suspenders. The armholes of his undershirt were stained yellow. He'd been vile and looked ridiculous.
He'd come over to her and leaned down in her face and told her if she really wanted them to stop, all she had to do was cooperate. She still remembered his putrid breath hot in her face. He'd reeked so bad of body odor and she'd almost gagged.
Natasha had been trafficked as a child, and had spent four years in hell until Nikko rescued her. She knew firsthand the depravity of men, and she knew exactly what he was saying. While they didn't know it, Natasha wasn't just some innocent school girl. No, her innocence had been ripped from her years earlier. They'd let her buy Nikko's freedom, all she had to do was let them do whatever they wanted to her.
In retrospect, she realized it wouldn't have mattered. They would have done whatever they wanted to her and Nikko anyway. But at the time, she thought she could save Nikko. It wouldn't be the first time she had been raped or even the hundredth, but somehow it had all seemed so much viler and more horrible. She'd gotten out of that life, she thought no one would ever do that to her again. She guessed she'd gone soft. All the armor she had developed was gone. The thought of letting those men touch her had made her sick. Between the horror of it all and the stench, she had almost vomited right there. But it was Nikko. And Natasha would do anything for Nikko. The truth was she still would.
What difference would it really make she told herself? Just five more. She could do it. She had to, because she had to save Nikko.
So, Natasha had agreed. They'd cut her loose and told her to get on with it. She remembered the hot tears on her face and how her hands hand trembled when she reached up to unbutton her shirt. Apparently, she'd taken too long and the big beefy one had ripped her shirt open. She could still feel his sweaty, disgusting hands as they'd roamed her body, roughly grabbing and pinching her flesh. She'd refused to cry out, and prayed she could find that place in her mind where she had gone as a child. That place that had kept her sane. There had been a moment when she wasn't even sure she could go through with it when he'd shoved her to her knees. That moment when she realized once again, she was powerless. Pure rage had bubbled through her. Exactly no one was going to save her. No one was going to stop the horror that was coming, but they did.
At that moment Declan McShane had come into that warehouse, took one look around and gone ballistic. He'd shot the big beefy guy right in front of her, and then proceeded to beat the crap out of the two guys that weren't in with Nikko beating the crap out of him.
She remembered with each blow, he kept saying. "We do not hurt women, and we never hurt children. What the fuck were you thinking." He punctuated almost every word with a vicious blow. He beat both of the guys into bloody lumps. Finally, when they weren't moving anymore, he'd turned to Natasha. He was standing there chest heaving with exertion, eyes blazing with fury, knuckles bruised and bloody. A lock of his hair had fallen across his forehead making him look younger than he was. Almost boyish. She thought he might just be the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen. All that power and savage beauty.
Natasha had been too stunned to do much while he was wailing away on the two men. She was still on her knees. Tears and snot running down her face, mingled with mascara and blood. Hers and the beefy guy's. When Declan had shot him, she'd felt the warm spray of his blood. Her stupid white shirt had little red spots all over it.
He'd stalked over to her and grabbed her by the shoulders hauling her to her feet.
"Jesus, lass, I'm sorry." He'd said in that beautiful lilting Irish brogue.
He'd taken off his jacket and wrapped it around her. Declan had used his thumbs to wipe her face. He didn't seem to care about the blood or the snot.
He'd told her to wait, not like she could have even gone anywhere anyway. She was frozen in place. A minute later Declan came back. The two other men trailed him, presumably to deal with the two guys Declan had beaten unconscious and dispose of the body of the beefy guy. Natasha had vaguely registered at least they weren't beating Nikko anymore.
Natasha had tried to get to Nikko but Declan had caught her. "No lass" he said. "You can't go in there." Natasha had struggled but Declan had held firm. Natasha had been terrified Nikko was already dead. As if reading her thoughts, Declan had told her Nikko was fine. She'd always thought that fine might have a slightly different meaning to Declan since Nikko had been beat to hell, but at least he was alive. She'd stopped fighting Declan at that point.
Declan had guided her out of the warehouse and bundled her into his car. Some sleek, black sports car. A Maserati maybe. She just remembered it sounded powerful and had a new car smell to it.
They'd driven along for a couple of minutes.
"You have to let Nikko go." Natasha had told Declan in her best and most authoritative voice.
"And why would I do that lass?" He'd asked back.
"Because Nikko is going to run this town someday, and you don't want him as an enemy. There is a better way." Natasha had really believed that. She'd always had faith in Nikko. When she was fifteen, Natasha would have told you Nikko could hang the moon.
To his credit, Declan hadn't laughed at what she could only imagine seemed like silly bravado. No, Declan had asked her why. "If Nikko is going to be such a formidable force, why shouldn't I just kill him? Eliminate the threat now."
"Because Nikko is Ciro's favorite." She'd said to him. "And Ciro won't let his death go unanswered. It seems stupid to start a bloody turf war, when there is plenty to go around."
Natasha had been bluffing, her heart had been pounding wildly.
"Aye, you have a point lass. What do you suggest instead?" Declan, the heir apparent to the McShane syndicate, had asked a fifteen-year-old girl her opinion. Natasha had probably fallen in teenage love with Declan right then and there.
They'd pulled up to his house and gone inside. He'd cleaned her up and given her ice for her face. The only time Declan had laughed at her was when he asked her what she wanted to drink and she'd said whiskey.
"No little one, I think maybe we'll save the whiskey for another day." He'd smiled at her and made her hot chocolate instead.
There over hot chocolate, Natasha had outlined a plan to form an alliance between Nikko, the Lucianos and the McShane's.
"How can I be sure Nikko won't double cross me if I agree?"
"Because" she told him in her most matter-of-fact voice "I'll marry you. Then we will have blood ties."
It had been such a ridiculous thing to say, but Declan hadn't batted an eye.
"Aye, but I think we'll have to wait a few years. What's to stop him now?"
"Because I'll do whatever you want. Please just don't hurt him." Natasha had felt her pulse in her throat. Maybe Declan would take the same deal as the beefy man. It was all Natasha really had to offer.
Declan had assessed her for a minute. "Ah little sparrow, does he mean that much to you?"
"Yes, he's everything." She'd whispered back. And that had been true. Nikko was all she had.
"Very well. I'll think about it little sparrow."
"Why do you call me that?"
Declan had shrugged. "Sparrows are a symbol of loyalty to family and love. You are clearly very loyal to Nikko. I just hope whatever he's done, he earned that loyalty."
"He has. Nikko always keeps his word. That is why you can trust that if he makes a deal with you, he will honor it." Natasha locked eyes with him, willing him to understand.
"Aye, I suspect, just like the grand sparrow, the two of you are mated for life." Natasha had scoffed a little at that idea, but she couldn't argue with the loyalty and love part.
"I'm going to need my jacket back now lass."
Natasha had hesitated, her shirt had been ripped to shreds and for some reason it embarrassed her for Declan to see her.
Declan had stripped off his shirt and handed it to her. He'd turned to give her a minute. She'd slipped off his jacket and put the shirt on. It was warm from his body heat and smelled like him. A heady mixture of citrus and spice.
She was rolling up the sleeves when he turned back around. He'd been magnificent, standing there bare chested. He had a Celtic dragon tattoo that started on his shoulder and ran down his arm. She'd wanted to reach out and touch it, but she managed to keep her hands to herself.
He noticed her admiring it. "It symbolizes power, strength, wisdom, and status. It reminds me I am the protector of the family, and the leader of the clan."
"It's beautiful." He'd been smiling at her, with an amused twinkle in his eye. She was pretty sure he knew she hadn't just been talking about the tattoo.
Declan had driven her home, and a couple of hours later Nikko came home. He was a little worse for the wear, but he and Declan had worked with Ciro and Liam to form the first ever alliance between the McShanes and Lucianos. An alliance that would remain rock solid until Franco.
Nikko and Declan had become more allies than enemies, but after that day Declan had kept his distance. He'd largely ignored her, and that had stung. The one time she had awkwardly come on to him, he'd politely but firmly turned her down. The rejection had been brutal to her fragile teenage ego.
After that she'd gravitated to Ranger and left for college. Then the whole Woodward thing had happened, and she'd been sucked into the dark world of the CIA. She hadn't seen Declan in years.
Little did Natasha know at the time, the deal with Nikko and Declan had been cemented over her. Just not the way she had proposed. No, Nikko had told Declan as long as he stayed away from Natasha, Nikko would never double cross him, and as far as Natasha knew, he never had.
Now Declan was standing in her apartment. Her apartment that she shared with her husband.
"I'm not your anything Declan." Natasha whispered and stepped away from him.
Declan studied her for a minute. A wry smile played on his lips. "Ah, not so much a sparrow anymore I see. You have definitely grown into a fine woman. More a falcon with sharp talons, I think."
"You should go."
"Aye, I'll go." Declan leaned in and brushed a soft kiss across her lips.
"I've missed you lass." Declan said and turned and walked out the door.
Natasha watched him go, a mix of emotions swirling through her. She needed to get her emotions under control and go deal with Nikko. Right after she dealt with Ranger for brining Declan McShane into her home.
Declan walked outside and took a deep breath. Natasha here in D.C. That had been unexpected. Natasha had always had the brains and the brass. She'd been smart and fierce, even at fifteen. He'd let Nikko live that night because of her. Not only because what she had said made sense, but because for some reason, he couldn't bear the thought of doing something that would hurt her. Something that would make her sad. Declan could tell, even then, Natasha already knew what the pits of hell looked like. He could see it in her eyes. She was a young woman with an old soul, that had seen too much already in her short life. He never wanted her to have to look at him like he was the reason for her pain. He always thought she would end up at the right hand of Nikko, running the world.
He'd heard she married Manoso, not that he thought that had much of a chance of lasting. He figured that would flame out quickly, and she would be back with Nikko. After that he had lost track of her. He'd never asked Nikko and Nikko had never said. Natasha was a touchy subject between the two of them. Nikko had seen how Declan looked at her. Nikko knew his thoughts. Not that Declan would have touched her when she was underage, but all bets would have been off when she grew up. Three years wasn't that long to wait, and it wasn't like Declan didn't see the way Natasha looked at him. Whether it was just teenage infatuation, he didn't know, but he didn't think so. Natasha was wise beyond her years, and the connection had been real. Despite their age difference, he had been drawn to her. Even at fifteen, she was smart, practical, and fierce. Unlike so many women, she was well suited to his life. After all, she had grown up in it. Even then, Declan had realized that would be a prerequisite to any woman he ended up marrying. Life in the syndicate was different. It was hard.
But Nikko had been adamant that Natasha was off limits. It was the one unbreakable rule. At first Declan had thought Nikko wanted her for himself, but then it became apparent that Nikko just thought Natasha deserved better than Declan. Nikko had been right about that, so Declan had stayed away. He'd thought of her over the years. Wondered if she had grown into the woman he thought she would be, or if she was off in the suburbs in some boring job with a couple of kids. Not that Declan thought that life would ever suit her.
It was pretty clear she'd grown into more than he could have ever imagined. But it looked like she hadn't ended up with Nikko or Manoso. Now that was interesting. Apparently, she'd taken up with the one that all but screamed good guy. He wondered how that would work out. How long before she got bored and came looking for excitement. How long before she came looking for someone that understood her darkness, and didn't run away from it. Someone that could be her match. Something Declan had to offer. Declan reached up and absently rubbed the sparrow tattooed over his heart.