TITLE: Dark Secret
SERIES: Darker Daddy Bodyguards Book 2
AUTHOR : Sue brown
RELEASE DATE: July 28, 2022
BLURB:
He killed his father. Now he expects to die in the cave. Alone. No one knows where he is. No one cares. The only thing keeping him from falling apart is the sound of a heartbeat in the darkness, strong and there for him.
Paolo killed his father, the head of the ruthless Acierno Mafia family, and fled the family home. Now he’s been kidnapped and held hostage, but he doesn’t know who kidnapped him or why. All he knows is he expects to die, alone in a cave.
Tiger’s tired of doing protection detail for Z-list celebrities and stroppy teenage kids of politicians. He’s also exhausted, his dreams full of cold and pain and a faint heartbeat reaching out to him.
Then he’s offered an assignment by Nico Acierno, the Prince of Darkness, to find his missing twin brother. He doesn’t want to take the assignment, but he’d like to sleep again without these dreams.
Will Tiger find Paolo before it’s too late?
Book #2 in Sue Brown’s Darker Daddy Bodyguard series, a Mafia Daddy Romance.
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“He’s still alive,” Nico declared to Tiger. “I can feel it in here.” He clenched his fist over his heart.
Tiger had ridden over to the mansion for their weekly catch up over coffee on the patio. Not that he had anything to tell. It was embarrassing to admit after four frustrating weeks he still had no news. Tiger was ready to give up and declare defeat.
“And yet he’s vanished into thin air,” Leon said, giving his boy and Tiger an apologetic smile when they both glared at him.
Nico slumped back in his chair. “You’re right. I know you’re right.”
When he’d first bolted from the mansion, Nico’s men had traced Paolo to Portland. Paolo hadn’t been as subtle as he’d imagined when he drove away in the compact car. Gianni, who appeared to be one of the senior family members, gave Tiger all the information on how Paolo had escaped, Gianni had followed him to Portland, but lost him in the traffic and couldn’t find him again. It had been obvious Paolo had this planned for a long time, but without access to CCTV cameras they had no chance of tracking him.
Nico sighed as he massaged his temples. “I’m so afraid my brother is dying.”
Tiger glowered at him, but Nico was right. Through the endless, sleepless nights he could still hear the heartbeat Nico was convinced was Paolo’s, but it was growing fainter by the day
“We can hear him. Why can’t we pinpoint his location?”
Nico had asked this question over and over. No one had an answer for him, especially Tiger. Neither of them had slept in weeks, their faces gray and drawn. Both were exhausted and snappy. Even Leon was starting to look haunted as he kept the same hours as his boy.
“I don’t think he’s going to last much longer,” Tiger finally admitted. He had visited every hotel, café, and restaurant, but he’d drawn a blank. No one had seen the sleek figure of Paolo Acierno.
The tabby cat, who’d been snoozing in Leon’s lap, woke up and stretched. He stalked over to Tiger, circled twice, and settled in his lap. Knowing the cat’s propensity to lash out with a swift claw, Tiger gingerly caressed the cat’s head and it started to purr.
“I think he’s trying to tell you something,” Leon said.
Maybe Leon had a point. The cat had studiously ignored Tiger on every previous visit. But he was a reassuring warmth in Tiger’s lap and Tiger really needed the comfort now.
“The coordinates of Paolo’s location would be good,” Tiger said to the cat.
The cat opened one amber eye and glared at him balefully as if to say, “It’s what you’re being paid for.”
“Whatever happens, we’ll pay you the full amount, Mr. Tiger,” Nico said. “You’ve gone above and beyond trying to find Paolo.”
Tiger pressed his lips together. He was going to be paid for failure. For a young man’s death. He’d never be able to touch the money. He’d been the wrong man for the job.
“I know what you’re thinking, Tiger,” Leon barked, “and you’re wrong. No one could have put more work into finding Paolo than you have.”
“But he’s still missing,” Tiger said, placing a hand over his heart as if it were painful.
“We’ll keep searching until the end of the month,” Nico said. “I don’t think he’s going to last beyond then.”
Tiger had a nasty gut feeling he was right. “I’m going back down to Portland today and then I’m gonna expand the search area. I know you think he’s still close, but we’ve got to find him.”
Nico nodded, his eyes gleaming and lips pressed tight. Tiger felt sorry for the poor kid. He was dealing with the family firm and a missing brother, on top of no sleep for months. Tiger knew Leon was doing his best to take care of Nico but being the head of a Mafia family brought extra pressure to their relationship.
Tiger picked up the cat, ignoring its yowl of protest, and handed him back to Leon. “I’ll keep you posted.”
“You’ll find him,” Leon said.
Tiger gave a brief nod. He didn’t have the words to reassure Nico anymore.
He took his truck down to Portland. Not even the prospect of a ride in the fall sunshine on his beloved Hog could make him feel any better. Tiger went into a café in Laurelhurst Park for a caffeine hit, before he tried for probably the final time to find what happened to Paolo in Portland to make him disappear.
A young barista with dirty blond hair and the bluest eyes Tiger had ever seen smiled at him as he approached the counter. “What can I get you?”
“An extra double shot macchiato please,” Tiger said.
He hadn’t seen this barista before, so he showed Paolo’s picture to him, not because he expected anything, but it was worth a try.
The barista gave a brief glance at Tiger’s phone and nodded. “Oh yeah, I know that guy.”
“You do?” Tiger’s voice cracked; he was so surprised by the response. He nearly dropped his phone.
“Oh yeah, he was by the luggage storage lockers. I was clearing tables and I didn’t see what he did, but I think he fell over, because the next thing I saw a guy was helping him outside. He seemed really out of it because he was leaning against the man.”
Excitement built in Tiger’s mind. Finally, he had a solid lead. Something he could work with. If Paolo was woozy and out of it, maybe Paolo had been drugged. It would explain how he suddenly vanished.
“Do you know what happened to him after that?” Tiger questioned.
The barista thought for a long moment, biting down on his bottom lip. “There was a van. I can’t remember much about it except it was a dark color and it had some kind of logo on the outside.” He gave Tiger an apologetic look. “I guess that describes every van in Portland.”
The guy was right, but Tiger sought to comfort him. “This is more than I had five minutes ago. Thank you. This is great.”
“Your friend was in a bad way. The guy was almost carrying him by the time they reached the van. I didn’t realize what was happening or I would have called the cops.”
“It’s not your fault,” Tiger assured him as he paid for his coffee. “We think he’s still alive and now I have a better chance of finding him.”
The barista nodded and Tiger moved out of the way so he could serve the next customer.
As Tiger reached the door, the young man came running after him. “I remembered something else.”
Tiger waited expectantly.
“I don’t know if it’ll help, but the logo on the van. I remember thinking it looked like caves. We’ve got a lot of caves around Portland.”
Sue Brown is a Londoner with a dream to live on a small island. Coffee fuels her addiction for writing romance with hot guys loving each other, and her Adorkadog snores in harmony as she creates.
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