Royal Flush

by Ella Goode

  “I love you too.” Even though I’m sitting in a police station, I smile at his words because not a single person on this earth has ever uttered them to me before. They give me strength. While I wish the circumstances were different, they are still nice to hear. I press the button to end the call and hand the phone back to the female officer. She gives me a soft smile before getting up and leaving me alone in the room.

  I close my eyes, leaning my head back and wondering what is going to happen next. I know Carter will handle it but what will that entail? I can still see the smug looks on the cops’ faces when they picked me up. Yay for them. They got me. A girl who was trying to run from a shitty situation. From a man who deserved more than me taking his wallet. If anyone should be in custody it should be him. I know these types of people. All they see is the poor girl who doesn’t belong in their community. They don’t bother to look any further than the surface. I’ve dealt with people judging me my entire life because of my mother’s ways so this is no different.

  I see the tall cop approaching me and brace myself for whatever it is that he’s going to say. “I hope you like your new accommodations. Don’t worry, I’m sure your cell will be an upgrade from the trailer you came from.”

  I keep my mouth closed as he grabs my arm and begins to lift me off the bench. I get up and begin walking with him. His grip is tight on my arm but I don’t do anything that would give him ammunition to use against me. I have to fight not to cry out in pain as his fingers dig into my arm knowing it’s going to leave a mark. I also know he’s going to regret it. I’m not alone anymore. He can push me around in this moment but he is going to pay for that hand he just put on me. I know it.

  “Detective Murray. Detective Grant. In my office now.” A loud voice fills the room. When I look up I see an older man. He commands attention so I’m guessing he’s their superior. Detective Grant loosens his hold on me after guiding me back to the bench that I had previously been seated on. I inwardly smile, knowing that Carter is already working his magic. I barely get myself seated back on the bench when Carter’s deep voice booms through the police station.

  I don’t fight the smug smile that pulls at my lips. Sometimes loving the asshole is better than Prince Charming. In truth, though, my Carter is both. He lives up to both names when it comes to me. Everyone else in this station is about to meet the Carter that others steer clear of. Except me. I welcome all sides of him with open arms. He’s hooked me. Damn him. The deep rumble of his angry voice turns me on while I’m cuffed in a police station. I'm sure he’ll take care of that later too.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Carter

  A white-haired guy with a Santa beard is standing on the police station steps when we pull up. I run past him but he grabs my arm.

  “Carter Franklin?”

  “Sorry man.” I shake his surprisingly firm grip. “Don’t have the time.” Some of these old men love to talk about the good ol’ days when they played ball. I usually entertain them because fuck if that’s not going to be me someday. Today, though, I’ve got to get to Mallory.

  “I’m Kevin Bailey. Your father called me and asked me to meet you here to discuss an unlawful arrest.”

  I back up immediately. He doesn’t look like any of the sharks my dad employs. Those guys are all slicked-back hair and dark blue suits with prep school striped ties. They look like they were churned out of a lawyer factory. This man is one red suit away from being mistaken for Jolly St. Nick.

  He smiles, his cheeks turning into red balls. “Come inside and I’ll assist you. Why don’t you tell me the details?”

  Being a good quarterback is all about making split second decisions. I consider his offer for a half second and then start talking. “I found Mallory in the back of my car a week and a half ago. She’d run away from her home because her mom’s boyfriend was making moves on her. She had no money of her own so she took this guy’s wallet. I think it had a few hundred in it. A couple days ago, I had a party at my house. The cops came looking for her and I said she was my cousin.”

  “And they questioned no one else?”

  “We all backed him up,” Fast offers.

  Santa looks over my shoulder at my teammate. “Well, a very steady group of friends,” he observes. “That says something about you.”

  “Nothing good,” Fast interjects. “We all hate him because he’s an asshole.”

  I flip Fast off.

  “Better to be feared than loved, so says Machiavelli,” Santa says cheerfully, not at all deterred by my teammate’s sarcasm. Santa must have some smart-mouthed elves.

  “I don’t want to interrupt this budding bro fest between the two of you,” I say, “But Mallory’s cuffed and in a jail cell so we need to get in there now and get her out. Do you have a plan?”

  “I do, but I’m curious about yours. You do have one, don’t you?” Santa peers up at me.

  “Yeah. It involves talking about how the chief of police spent a holiday at my house snorting coke off of a model’s ass.” I have a lot of dirt on that man. My dad has even worse shit on Mayor Al, which is why the town official doesn’t do anything without my dad’s approval.

  “Ah, well, let’s hold your powder on that one and try my way first, shall we?” Santa suggests.

  “I want her out today,” I tell him.

  “Of course. No other outcome is acceptable.”

  Those are encouraging words so I follow him into the station. There’s a small lobby and a woman sitting behind a glass barrier. To my left is a door. I try it but it’s locked. Meanwhile, Santa greets the dispatcher by her first name.

  “Debbie, you’re looking pretty as a picture. How is your newest grandbaby?” he says, tossing his briefcase up on the counter. As she answers, he begins to unbuckle the battered tote and draw out some paper.

  “She’s a doll, Mr. Bailey, an honest to God doll! I have pictures here.”

  “I want to see them. Here, you take a look at these while I take a look at your precious baby girl.” The two make an exchange.

  While Santa looks over the photographs and Deb starts paging through a legal document, I crack my knuckles. This is taking too long.

  “You said you’d give him a chance,” Fast whispers in my ear.

  “It’s been at least a minute since we walked in here,” I growl. I want her out now.

  “Mr. Bailey, are you suing the station?”

  “I don’t wait, Deb. I sincerely don’t want to but the men here have taken an innocent into custody and we can’t condone that kind of behavior, can we?”

  “But Mr. Bailey, the sheriff from Hottenberg sent the arrest papers over.”

  “I didn’t realize the Hottenberg sheriff was in charge of our town,” Santa says.

  “Of course he isn’t, but—“

  “Best bring the girl out here so we can see that she’s all right. I don’t want to tack on any claims about physical abuse.”

  “Oh, Mr. Bailey, we would never allow any of that.”

  Santa responds with a disappointed look that causes Deb to lower her eyes in shame. Fuck, what goes on here?

  I clear my throat to let Santa know that his chance is about up. He acknowledges me by raising his hand.

  “Deb, I don’t want to press you but I have young Carter here and you can only hold back an angry bull for so long.”

  Deb gives me an uncertain look. I bare my teeth at her.

  “Well, I don’t know…”

  I take a step forward. She jumps to her feet. “I’ll be right back.” She scoots her chair back and disappears out a back door. My fight instinct kicks in and I launch myself toward the glass barrier. My shoulder makes impact but the bulletproof glass holds. I look around for a weapon but the only thing I can see is a row of plastic chairs bolted to the ground.

  “It’s all right, Carter. Deb is fetching your girl,” Santa tells me, taking a seat in one of the dumpy chairs.

  “How do you know? She’s not even a police officer.”

&
nbsp; “She’s got keys.” He’s so fucking placid and unconcerned. That should alleviate my anxiety but it doesn’t.

  I turn to Fast. “You got a jack in your car?”

  “Yes but why?”

  “Because I’m breaking this wall down and I need some tool.” I stomp toward the exit. As I’m reaching for the handle, a buzz sounds from behind me and a small voice calls out, “Carter?”

  I spin around to see Mallory flying across the lobby and into my arms.

  Chapter Thirty

  Mallory

  Carter catches me easily as I hold him tight, burying my face in his neck. “I’m sorry,” I say against his warm skin.

  His scent immediately calms me. He’s my home. The only real one that I’ve ever known. He’s done so much for me in the short time that we’ve known each other. I can’t imagine where I would be if it wasn’t for him leaving his car doors unlocked. I shiver at that thought because I know I’d still be in that jail cell with no hope of getting out. I don’t think I’m ever going to leave his side again. This time my poking Carter went a little too far but that isn’t going to stop me from continuing to try to ruffle his feathers in the future. I better get used to him being around because he's never going to let me out of his sight after this little fiasco.

  “Did you just say sorry?” Carter says, almost sounding pissed about it. I lean back to look at him. He's got his hand on my ass holding me in place with my legs wrapped around him. I kiss him. I can’t help myself. I’m so grateful to have him in my corner. He can be grumpy about whatever it is he’s over here frowning about but he’ll have to wait until after I’m done kissing him. Whatever it is will have to be put on the back burner until I get my fill of my man. I deepen our kiss, silencing him for as long as I can. I knew deep down inside that he would come to get me, but seeing is believing. I now know without a doubt that this man is always going to be here for me. Even if I steal his car.

  He pulls back from the kiss. “Fucking hell. We’re in public,” he reminds me. I feel his hard cock dig into my stomach. Not only are we in public, we are in the middle of the police station. A shiver runs through me when I think about the officers that took me in. Worry starts to overwhelm me at the thought of seeing them again. Carter shifts his hold on me as one of his fingers comes to lift my chin, causing me to look into his eyes.

  “Why are you saying sorry? Those fuckers mess with that fight in you?” he challenges me.

  “Fine, I’m not sorry that I stole your car.”

  “That’s my girl.” He kisses me this time. It’s too fast and he puts me on my feet before I want him to. The only thing I can think of is getting out of here. I want to be alone with Carter so that we can make out at home where no one is watching. Home. The simple word settles something deep inside of me. Carter leans down and kisses my neck, causing a different kind of shiver through me.

  “Give me a second,” he says, stepping back from me. I reach out and grab his arm, worried that he’s going to do something stupid. He must see the worry on my face.

  “Just need to have a word with Santa over there.” I glance over to the guy who kind of does look like Santa Claus. My hold on Carter tightens. “You win.” He sighs, pulling me into his side as he walks toward the older man. Everyone is still watching us. It’s then that I see Aly and Owen are here too. I had forgotten that she was with me when the detectives pulled me over. A pang of guilt hits me as I realize that she must have been scared too. I’m sure Owen was a nervous wreck too when he found out. I’ll have to apologize to both of them.

  “That fucker’s wallet that’s missing that they keep accusing my girl of taking,” Carter says loud enough for everyone to hear. “He better hope I don’t get my hands on it.” Carter has had his hands on it before. Then I shoved it to the back of the closet. I don’t know if he knows where it is or not. He likely does. “’Cause if I do find it, I’m going to personally return that shit. If I were him I’d forget about it unless he wants that to fucking happen.” The threat rings clear in his words. No one says a word. I don’t know what kind of pull Carter and his family have around here but it must be pretty significant. He just made a threat and no one is doing shit about it. Not only that, he looked about ready to rip this building apart before I came flying out of those doors and no one looked as though they were going to stop him. I once again have an appreciation for Carter’s asshole side. It definitely has its benefits.

  “No one is looking for any wallet.” I glance over to see the same older man that called Detective Murray and Grant into his office a few minutes before Carter got here. I’m not sure what happened to them but I haven’t seen them since.

  “Chief.” Carter’s voice holds a hard edge to it. He’s not saying the man’s name in greeting. He’s looking for an answer.

  “It was a mistake. We all know how much you love your car. We thought someone stole it.” He clears his throat. “We apologize and the two detectives will be handled.”

  “There’s a lot of shit that seems to need some handling around here. It would be best if I’m not the one that has to do it.” With that final warning, Carter leads me out of the police station. The fresh air hits my face and I thank my lucky stars that Carter is in my life.

  “Deuce!” Aly yells out.

  Carter turns her way. “Jesus. Everyone better not start calling me that.” I fight a laugh.

  “She was a smooth ride.” She dangles the keys to Carter’s car in her hand before she tosses them our way. Carter easily catches them. I laugh at Aly’s excitement over driving Carter’s car.

  “Thanks.” He actually gives them a smile. “Both of you. I mean that. Thanks for keeping an eye on my girl.”

  Owen pulls Aly into his side in understanding. “That’s what friends are for. Even ones who pretend to be assholes but really aren't.” He shrugs.

  Carter shakes his head because it’s kind of true. Carter can be an asshole but there are always good intentions behind it. I shout my goodbyes and promise Aly that we’ll catch up soon. Carter leads me toward his car, opening the passenger door for me to get in before hopping into the driver’s side. He adjusts his seat and starts the car.

  “I should have known you were going to take off with my car.” He pulls out of the parking lot.

  “I don’t even know why I did it,” I admit. Before Carter I always followed the rules and tried to stay under the radar. I only stole that wallet for survival. I look over at him. “I don’t even have a real driver's license.” I look over at Carter, expecting him to explode with anger. Instead he throws his head back and laughs. It’s so unexpected that I follow suit. He looks so handsome when he’s not frowning. Watching him enjoy himself begins to turn me on. I love when he’s so relaxed and I seem to be the only one who gets that out of him. I reach over the console and run my hand up his thigh. His laughter stops immediately. I slide my hand to grab him. His breathing picks up as I stroke him over his pants.

  “Carter.” I continue stroking him the best I can. “Drive faster.”

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Carter

  “You ready?” I straighten the lapels of the burgundy Burberry coat Mallory has draped around her shoulders. It’s still chilly out and I can’t have my girl catching a cold. I should have handled this weeks ago. I’ve been wanting to but Mallory kept telling me to let it go. That was until she woke up last night with a nightmare screaming that the cops had gotten her. That’s when I knew I had to handle it. She herself isn’t letting it go and I am finally going to put this shit to bed for everyone today.

  “Born that way, babe,” she says, but underneath her light tone I hear a sense of anxiety. She knows we have to do this too. It’d be nice if she stayed here in our carriage house but when I told her that I was going to make a visit to her mom and the deadbeat boyfriend, she insisted on coming along. She tries to downplay her feelings for her mother but I know she has them. If anyone knows that shit it’s me. We both might have selfish mothers but on some level we can�
�t help but love them no matter how hard we try not to.

  “Good. I’m nervous, though. I hope you plan on holding my hand the whole time.” I tuck her fingers into my pocket and lead her out the door.

  “I know you’re lying to make me feel better,” she grumbles. Of course I am. I’d do anything for my girl to make her happy.

  I throw a look over my shoulder. “Is it working?”

  “Marginally. I’m more concerned about what trouble you’re going to get in. Mayor Al doesn’t have a lot of control in Hottenberg.”

  If anyone would ask me how Mallory has changed my life, I’d have to say it’s that I’ve become less selfish. Before I would’ve gone in hot, which means I could’ve made a mistake or ten. I’m not alone anymore so I can’t be reckless like I was before. Mallory’s my number one now so every action I take impacts her. “I’m not leaving you alone, babe. Nothing is more important than me being with you.”

  “Not even revenge?”

  I unlock my Maserati and settle her inside before answering. “I don’t think there needs to be a choice.” I give her nose a bop with my finger before going around to my side. “I’ve never gotten in any serious trouble before this so I don’t see why I should get into serious trouble now.”

  “So you’re not going to get physical with Ricky? Because when you first found the wallet, you ripped my shirt and said you were going to kill him,” she reminds me as I gun the Maserati down the drive.

  “I ripped your shirt so that you wouldn’t leave and I think my exact words were ‘I’m going to bury this guy,’ which can mean a lot of different things.”

  “I hope that those different things don’t include illegal activities.”

  “I’m not taking a hit out on him if that’s what you’re asking.”

  She sighs and settles back against the seat. “There is a lot of gray area between not taking a hit out on him and all the unspoken things you want to do to him.”