Ryan Renewed: New York Ruthless: Book 5

As soon as we got back to the apartment, I got my laptop and started to do some searching on the tattoos I’d seen on those Russian guys’ necks. The bodyguard who stayed behind sent some pictures of them to my phone. Chester made us a fresh pot of decaf coffee and has been sitting opposite me the entire time, but I’m too distracted to even speak to him, so distracted that I don’t hear my husbands returning until all four of them are in the kitchen with us.

It’s Liam who runs to me first, pulling me from my stool at the kitchen island and into his arms. He squeezes me so tightly, I struggle to breathe.

“Jesus fucking Christ,” he sighs.

“Liam,” I say as I wriggle in his arms.

He takes a small step back from me. “Are you okay, baby?” he asks as he runs his hands over my arms and my stomach.

“I’m fine.”

Then he drops to his knees and presses a soft kiss on my growing bump. “We’re going to get you all checked out anyway.”

I run my hands through his hair and smile. “They didn’t even touch me, Liam. There’s nothing to check.”

He presses his cheek against my stomach and wraps his arms around the back of my thighs as he whispers something I can’t quite hear to my rounded belly.

Mikey is beside me next, wrapping his arms around my top half and squeezing me tightly. “Thank fuck you’re okay, Red! I’m going to kill that little fucker with my bare hands when we get hold of him,” he snarls.

Then Conor is at my other side. He cups my chin in his hand and turns my head so I can look into his eyes. He narrows his as he glares at me. “You’re going to give me a fucking heart attack, Angel.”

“I’m sorry,” I whisper.

Liam stands up and steps back and Mikey lets me go too, allowing their older brother to hug me instead. I press my head against Conor’s chest as he holds onto me and that’s when I start to cry. Thinking of what might have happened. Thinking of the pain it would cause them if something had happened to me or our babies. I cling to him as tears roll down my cheeks.

“It’s okay. We got you,” he whispers as he runs his hands over my hair.

“How the fuck did that little prick get away?” Shane asks Chester.

“Max was going to shoot him but Jessie asked him not to,” Chester answers matter-of-factly but I hear the slight tremor in his voice. Shane is going to be pissed at him too, now.

“For fuck’s sake,” he says with a heavy sigh.

“You said to always follow Jessie’s orders, boss,” Chester adds as he clears his throat.

“I know,” Shane snarls.

I lift my head from Conor’s chest and wipe my tear-stained cheeks. Shane really said that? I don’t know why that makes me smile but it does.

“Is there anything else right now?” Shane asks.

“Clean up crew are done. My men didn’t recognize either of the Russians but they had the same tattoo on their necks, but Jessie is working on that.” He looks to me and gives me a faint smile.

“Good. Then you can go,” Shane barks.

“Thank you for today, Chester,” Conor says, and Liam and Mikey voice their agreement.

“My pleasure,” he says before he starts to walk out of the room.

I watch as Shane follows him, stopping him just before he reaches the doorway. I don’t know what he says but Chester is smiling by the time he leaves the room so I assume Shane was expressing his gratitude too.

When he walks back toward us, Conor steps back from me until Shane is standing directly in front of me. My legs tremble in nervous anticipation. I feel like I might throw up again. He’s going to shout at me and I’m feeling so emotional and hormonal I might just burst into tears again. But he doesn’t shout. He pulls me into his huge arms and kisses the top of my head.

“If anything ever happened to you,” he mumbles into my hair.

“I’m sorry,” I whimper.

He pulls back and frowns at me. “What for?”

“Aren’t you mad?” I whisper.

“I’m pissed as hell, sweetheart, but not at you.” He pulls me back to him again and I melt into his arms. “Dr. Stein is on her way here to check you over, just in case.”

“But I’m fine…”

“Jessie!” he snaps and I stop talking.

“Okay,” I breathe as I snuggle deeper against his chest.

“Good girl,” he whispers in my ear and despite the circumstances, wet heat pools in my center. When he eventually lets me go, my cheeks are flushed pink and he gives me a knowing smile before he guides me back to the kitchen island and we all take a seat.

“So do we have any idea what the fuck is going on?” Conor asks, rubbing a hand over his jaw in frustration.

They all look to me for answers, but I can’t give many – at least not yet.

“I assume you have a reason for keeping Hayden alive?” Shane adds.

“He can give us answers. We could have got some from the Russians, but…”

“Hard to talk when you have no throat,” Mikey says with a flash of his eyebrows. “Chester sent us those photographs too. Those SEALS are good fucking shots.”

“It’s kind of what they’re trained to do, dumbass,” Liam adds good-naturedly and Mikey fakes a scowl at him.

“If we could have spoken to one of them though,” I say with a sigh. “We may have to rethink your shoot to kill policy.”

“No!” all four of them reply before I’ve even finished speaking.

“But we could have got some vital information.”

Conor slides an arm around my waist. “We can get information any time from anywhere, but we can never get you back, Angel.”

“Fair point,” I admit even though it would be so much easier if we could speak to one of those dead guys and find out who they’re working for. Especially as the photographs of their tattoos aren’t the clearest given that their throats had been torn open by a bullet. Because the fact that someone wants to kidnap and hurt me is pretty terrifying. I mean, you’d think I’d be used to it by now, right? But it’s not only me I have to worry about any longer. I look down and rub a hand over my belly absentmindedly.

Shane places his large hand over mine and gives it a gentle squeeze. “So, Hayden. What happened?”

“We were having our ice cream and he seemed kind of quiet and nervous. He kept checking his watch all the time…”

“So you think he told them where you were headed before you even left the apartment?” Mikey asks.

“I think so. He used the bathroom before we left. Maybe he told them then?”

“Hmm.” Shane rubs a hand over the stubble on his jaw. “We weren’t sure if you were followed, but Chester and his men didn’t spot anything to suggest that either. Then what happened?”

I take a deep breath. “Then these two huge Russian guys came into the parlor and started telling the other customers to leave. That’s when Hayden started crying. He said he didn’t know this was going to happen. He didn’t know they were going to hurt me.”

“Anything else?” Conor asks.

“And that they threatened to kill him?”

“But he didn’t say who they were?” Liam asks.

“No. He didn’t get much chance to speak because they walked straight over to us and then everything happened kind of quick.”

“What did the Russians say?” Shane asks as he stares at me. This is his process. Firing questions and trying to put all of the pieces together in his head.

“They called me Miss Ivanov and one of them had a hypodermic needle, like he was going to inject me and knock me out, maybe?”

“Anything else?” Shane asks.

I screw my eyes closed, trying to picture the scene from earlier today. I replay the conversation in my head. “I told them my name was Mrs. Ryan,” I say and Conor gives my thigh a squeeze, making me turn to him and smile. “But that was it. Then one of your men shot them. They didn’t know Hayden was involved and when they were focused on me, he made a run for it. One of the guards was going to shoot him, but I asked him not to. I want to know who threatened him and why. I’ll be able to track him down.”

“How quickly can you do that?” Shane asks and I wince.

“What?” he asks with a frown.

“I mean, he’s just a kid. It will be easy enough…”

“But?” Conor says.

“I kind of taught him how to stay off-grid.”

“Jessie!” Liam snaps.

“Well, I didn’t know he was going to pull something like this, did I?” I protest, but Liam narrows his eyes at me. Of all of the brothers, he probably trusted Hayden the least. He would have predicted this if I’d have listened. I love the fact that he doesn’t say this out loud but instead glares at me so intensely that I squirm in my seat.

“Fuck!” Shane hisses.

“It won’t take long for him to make a mistake though. I promise. I mean this whole world is all new to him. And in the meantime, I think these tattoos are the key to finding out who those Russian guys worked for. It’s just a pity that the photographs aren’t great. You think I could get another look at their bodies?”

The brothers all share a look that makes me feel like I’m missing something here.

“That’s not an option, Red,” Mikey answers for them. “They’re already ash.”

I roll my eyes. “Your efficiency at disposing of dead bodies is kinda scary, you know that?”

“You fucking love it,” Conor chuckles as he plants a soft kiss on my cheek.

I can’t help but smile at him. “There is one man who could help me ID these men,” I suggest.

“No Bratva,” Liam and Conor say at the same time.

“But we can trust Vlad,” I insist.

“This could be something to do with Vlad,” Shane says.

“No. Vlad has no reason to want me dead.”

“You’re the legitimate heir to the Ivanov empire that he now reigns over, Red,” Mikey reminds me.

“Still… He could have killed me a long time ago. Why now? It doesn’t make sense. At least let me call him. Please?”

Conor and Liam and Mikey shake their heads but Shane speaks. “If you think it could help find out who these guys were working for, then call him.”

I lean over and kiss his cheek softly. “Thank you.”

“Something about this feels way off,” Mikey says loudly with a look of something bordering on disgust on his face.

“Well that’s because someone just tried to kidnap me, Mikey. Of course it feels off.”

He shakes his head and waves a hand in the direction of me and Shane. “Not that, Red. This! You two being on the same page and us being on another one.” He shivers dramatically as though something has crawled up his spine. “I don’t like it.”

“Me neither,” Liam frowns.

“Well, there’s a first time for everything,” Shane says with a grin as he slides an arm around my waist and kisses my bare shoulder.

Conor shakes his head and chuckles softly and I smile as I realize how lucky I am to be so loved and protected by these incredible men. For some reason someone wants me and I have no idea who or why.