by Nina Levine
I blew out a harsh breath. A fucking frustrated-as-fuck breath. “Jesus fucking Christ.”
Hyde nodded. “Yeah. You want me to tell him you’re not here?”
“No, I need to know what the fuck he’s here about today. Has Tatum left?”
He nodded again. “What happened there?”
“She’s ready to get Billy involved. I’ve organised a visit with Nitro tomorrow. He needs to keep her on a fucking leash.”
“Might be easier said than done with her. And Nitro’s not gonna be happy if we threaten her in any way or do something to keep her quiet.”
“I’ve already threatened her. If Nitro keeps her quiet, I won’t need to go through with it.” Without waiting for his input on that, I asked, “Any luck on the rat yet?” He and Zane hadn’t turned up any good leads yet.
“Still nothing, but I’ve got some of the guys out knocking down doors to find this motherfucker. It won’t be long now. Also, nothing new on Brant either. He might be back in Melbourne, but Romano hasn’t made contact with him.”
“He will. Keep Devil and Kick on Brant for when that happens,” I said as I exited the office. “And organise Church for tomorrow morning. I want to see where everyone’s at.”
I made my way outside to where Ryland was waiting for me. He watched me come towards him with the same satisfied expression he’d worn the other day. The one I would wipe from his face when I was finally done with him calling the shots.
“King, are you having trouble sleeping? You look tired.”
Maybe I’ll just fucking deal with him now and be done with it.
“What the fuck do you want now, Ryland? I’m busy and don’t have time for all your visits. Either charge me with something or get the fuck off this property.”
He smirked. “I see my presence agitates you, which is completely warranted with the shit I’m digging up on you. I just dropped by today to let you know the investigation is progressing well.”
I clenched my jaw as the overwhelming desire to smash my fists into his face consumed me. The whole fucking scenario of how I’d remove him from this earth played out in my head in a rush of seconds, but I managed to control my thirst for his blood. “And now you’ve told me that, you can back the fuck up and leave.”
“Nitro sends his regards. Mind you, he doesn’t talk much, that one. No worries, though, Marx does enough talking for the both of them.”
I took a step closer to him at the same time Hyde joined us, warning, “King. Not a good idea, brother.”
He was wrong. It was the best fucking idea I’d had in a long time.
Fuck.
I stepped back. “If that’s all, Ryland, I’ve got shit to do.”
He hit me with another satisfied grin. “I bet you do. I wouldn’t bother trying to cover up all your skeletons though, King. It’s too late for that.”
As we watched him leave, Hyde said, “He’s fucking with us, brother.”
My head throbbed with the beginning of a headache. “Yeah, but I’m not convinced he doesn’t have some shit. We need to call Cole in on this now. We need all the fucking help we can get.”
He nodded. “I agree.”
“You organise that while I check in with Axe to see if he’s been able to find out what Marx has given the feds.”
I found Axe a few minutes later, chatting with Skylar in my room that we’d set up for her. They were laughing over something, and it caused me to slow down for a moment. Axe hadn’t been around much over the last few years while he’d been dealing with some personal shit, and I knew Skylar missed him. He’d always had a calming effect on her. Hell, Axe had a way of quieting any fucked-up situation. He also had his own way of fucking shit up if it was called for, but right now, I knew his presence soothed her fears,
“Did you find me a physio?” she asked when she realised I stood watching them.
“Still working on it.”
“Oh God, there’s not going to be anyone available on such short notice. I just know it.” Her voice wavered with anxiety, something she’d struggled with since Margreet’s death.
“Hey,” Axe said, in the deep lulling rumble of his that usually worked on her, “it’s all going to work out okay, Skye. There are plenty of physios around.”
The anxiety I’d heard in her voice flashed in her eyes as she glanced between Axe and me. “Can you please go and take care of it now, King?” She paused for a moment before adding with an almost begging emphasis, “Please?”
I jerked my chin at Axe. “I need a moment with Axe first and then I’ll get on it.”
Skylar reached for Axe as he stood. “Don’t be long. And can you bring me some of that chocolate when you come back?”
He nodded with a smile before meeting me outside. Closing the door of her room, he asked, “What’s up?”
“Did you get hold of the guy who might know something about what Marx has told the feds?”
“Yeah. Just waiting for him to get back to me. He said to give him a couple of days, so I’m expecting to hear something soon.”
“Let me know as soon as you do.”
“Will do.” He pulled a pack of gum from his pocket and shoved some in his mouth. “What’s the go with the physio? Surely it’s not that hard to book one?”
“Fuck,” I muttered. “None of the ones the hospital physio recommended are available. I haven’t told Skylar that so don’t mention it to her. We’ll have to take our chances on an unknown and hope like fuck they’re good.”
“What about the hospital chick? Skylar hasn’t stopped talking about her. She’d help ease Skylar’s anxiety.”
“She said no.”
“And since when do you ever take a no? Just make it happen.” He nodded at the door to Skylar’s room. “I better grab this chocolate she’s after and get back in to her before she loses her shit. This whole situation is fucking with her head.”
He left me alone with my thoughts, which was a dangerous place to be. This situation was fucking with all of our heads.
I entered Skylar’s room again and found her sitting on the bed crying. She glanced up at me and wiped her tears away. My fucking heart squeezed at the difficulty she was experiencing with everything going on. I had to fix this.
Holding out my hand, I said, “Skye give me your phone.”
Her brows pulled together. “Why?”
I motioned with my fingers for her to just do as I’d asked. “I want Lily’s number.”
The way her shoulders relaxed told me I had to do everything I could to get Lily to say yes. Axe was right that she would help Skylar’s anxiety.
She passed her phone as she swiped more tears from her face. “Thank you,” she said softly. “I know I’m a pain in your ass and that I don’t make any sense with all my worry, but I’m really grateful for everything you’re doing.”
“Fuck, if it wasn’t for the shit I’ve got going on, you wouldn’t have been in that accident, Skye. This is all my fault.”
She sighed and rested her head against the wall. “I don’t blame you, King. And you’ve really gotta stop taking the blame for every bad thing that happens in our lives.”
Before I could respond, Annika joined us. “How’s the patient?” She smiled at Skylar. “The kids are dying to get in here, but I told them you need some time to settle in first. I’ll do my best to keep them away for as long as I can, but I can’t promise anything. They’re going a little stir-crazy being cooped up here.”
A smile tugged at Skylar’s lips. “Oh God, please let them come in. We can go stir-crazy together. And besides, I need some little slaves to do stuff for me.”
Annika laughed. “Perfect. It’ll get them out of my hair. I might even get a nap in this afternoon.” She glanced at me. “What are you taking the blame for now? I heard you guys talking when I came in, but I didn’t hear what it was about.”
“Nothing,” I muttered, not wanting to get into that conversation again.
“It wasn’t nothing,” Skylar said. “I was
telling King he needs to stop taking the blame for the bad stuff that happens to us.”
“Oh,” Annika said, nodding. “She’s right. I mean, you might be the almighty King, but you’re not responsible for everything.”
I ignored them and held up the phone. “I’m going to call Lily.”
As I stepped out of the room, Skylar called out, “We’re going to finish this conversation one day.”
It wasn’t a productive conversation, so I had no desire to finish it, let alone engage in it. Instead, I dialled Lily and waited for her to answer. She didn’t pick up, though. It went to message bank, which I didn’t bother with. I dialled again. Same thing happened. On the third try, she finally answered.
“Shit, sorry, Skye, I was in the middle of dealing with a teenage girl who thinks it’d be a good idea to follow in her mother’s footsteps and give up her virginity at an age where she doesn’t fully comprehend that babies can come from sex. And an asshole ex who still doesn’t understand that he wouldn’t get as much hell from me if he just held up his end of this parenting gig. I’m going to need copious amounts of wine tonight to get through this day. Why do men make our lives so hard some days? I know that if he backed me up on this with her, she’d be more inclined to listen to what I’m saying.”
Her outburst cut through the shit in my head in a way not much did. I didn’t know what the fuck it was, but she somehow managed to jolt me from my thoughts, easing some of the tension in my body as she did so. It was a welcome fucking distraction. One I didn’t have time for, but one I would indulge just to have a few minutes of peace from my thoughts.
“Take something from him that he values. He’ll do whatever the fuck you want after that.”
Silence. And then—“King? God, I thought it was Skylar calling. Just ignore everything I said. I’m rambling. Shit. Wait. What do you mean by take something from him?”
“What does your ex get from you that he values?”
A few moments passed in silence where I figured she was thinking about my question. “He likes to come over to my place a freaking lot, but there’s no way I can take that from him. I’ve tried telling him to stop, but he just keeps coming whenever he wants. Besides that, I don’t know…” Her voice drifted off before suddenly she said, “Oh, I know! He still has access to the couple’s gym membership my sister got for me years ago. I’ll take his name off it.”
I frowned. “You let your ex use a gym membership you pay for?”
“I don’t pay for the membership. It’s her bestie’s gym, so they give it to me for free. Linc is vain as fuck, so it’d kill him if I stopped letting him use it.”
I had zero clue what would possess a woman to let her ex use her like that, but in my experience, people did shit for the strangest fucking reasons, so I wasn’t touching that. “Cut him off. He’ll come crawling back to you begging for it back and willing to do whatever that takes.”
She turned silent again before saying, “You’re a smart man. Thank you.”
I’d been called a lot of things in my life, but smart wasn’t one of them. The compliment felt odd, but fuck, it put a smile on my fucking face. “I’ve dealt with enough assholes to know how to use them to get what I want.”
“Take the compliment, King. Now, what can I do for you? I’m presuming you called for a reason.”
I was unsure how her ex managed to coerce her into shit; she seemed switched on to me. But then I knew better than anyone how love led you down paths you never intended to take. “I need you to take on Skylar’s rehab.”
“I’m sorry, but I really can’t fit her in. My kids are a handful at the moment and work is kicking my butt.”
“There has to be something I can offer you to make you say yes. Name it.”
“You just don’t back down, do you?”
“No. Not when I want something this much. I’m not sure how close you and Skylar got, although with the way you answered my call, I’m guessing you guys got friendly, but she suffers from anxiety. It’s flaring pretty badly due to the accident and what she has to do now. Just the mention of your name eases that anxiety a little.”
She exhaled. “I really wish I could say yes, and I want to, but as much as I try to figure it out in my head, I just don’t see how I can work her into my schedule.”
The headache Ryland caused pounded harder against my skull. “You’re busting my fucking balls here, Lily. Have a think about it. I’ll get back to you soon.”
Without waiting for her reply, I ended the call. I’d give her the rest of the day, and then I’d strongly encourage her to come around to my way of thinking. There was no way she wasn’t taking on this job.
26
Lily
* * *
I closed my eyes, sunk further into the warm bath and took a deep breath before clearing my mind of all thoughts.
I exhaled.
Inhaled.
Exhaled.
Fuck, who was I kidding? Meditation wasn’t going to work tonight. Not after the day I’d had. But the bath was helping, which was a relief. It was only Monday, and I already wanted this week over with. Zara still refused to talk to me and had defied me last night by slipping out of her bedroom window to spend time with her boyfriend. I’d realised she was missing when I’d gone to say goodnight at nine o’clock. Linc had been less than helpful, refusing to end the date he was on to come and help me find her. In the end, it had been my mother who had saved the day. She’d called Zara and talked her into coming home. She’d actually surprised the heck out of me with the patience she exhibited. That patience hadn’t been there when I was a teen. I liked this older version of her, even if she drove me crazy trying to fix what she perceived as my problems.
I checked the time on my phone. Just after ten. Time for bed. The kids were finally all asleep. I’d checked Zara’s room at least five times to make sure she was there. She wasn’t freaking escaping me again. I’d never been the kind of parent who tracked their kids’ phone, but I was seriously considering getting one of those spy apps for her phone.
Ugh, I was turning into someone I didn’t recognise. Suspicious and helicopter-y. But as much as I tried to fight these tendencies, I failed. Zara was my baby, and I had to protect her.
I hopped out of the bath and dried myself off as I got lost in parenting thoughts again. Story of my life. I’d just figured out how to help Holly with one of her problems when a sound outside jolted me to full alert. It sounded like someone knocking on my front door, which made no sense due to the time of night.
God, I hoped it wasn’t an intruder. Although with the mood I was in, I wouldn’t hesitate to take them on.
I debated my options of getting dressed versus wrapping the towel around me before I went to investigate. I figured I’d rather not approach an intruder wearing only a towel that barely covered my ass, and had decided to throw some clothes on instead when the noise sounded again.
Jesus, they were going to wake the kids. I did not need to be dealing with tired, cranky kids if they were woken. I quickly secured the towel around me, doing my best to cover my butt, grabbed my phone, and yanked the bathroom door open. I’d taken two steps when my phone vibrated with a text.
* * *
Unknown number: Lily, let me in. We need to talk.
Me: Who the hell is this? And do you realise it’s after ten?
Unknown number: King.
* * *
What the what?
* * *
Me: Goodness, stop freaking knocking. You’ll wake my kids up. IT’S LATE.
King: I’ll stop knocking when you let me in.
* * *
Men!
I marched out to the front door and checked to confirm it was him. I mean, I knew it would be, but checking was a habit.
It was most definitely him standing out there dressed in the jeans and leather that made me weak at the knees.
Shit.
Opening the door, I stepped outside, pushing past him so I could close the door, and the
n grabbed his arm and pulled him with me to take our conversation away from the house. I then turned to him and, eyes wide, whisper-yelled, “How did you get my address? And why do you feel it necessary to drop by unannounced so damn late? I thought you were an intruder!”
My heart hammered with bewilderment.
King was here.
It was late.
I was wearing a towel.
What the freaking heck did he want?
And oh God, why did he have to affect me so much?
Focus, Lily.
This is not the moment to lose your shit.
The street lamp threw just enough light over us for me to see his eyes skim over my body before meeting mine again. “I have a guy who’s skilled at finding people. Let’s just leave it at that.”
My eyes bulged some more. “Umm, no, King, let’s not just leave it at that. That’s too casual for me. And I feel a little violated, to be honest. What else is your guy skilled at? Should I be expecting—”
Before I knew what was happening, he slid his arm around my waist, lifted me and walked me back to my door and inside my house. Once we were in, he let me go and quietly shut the door behind him. It happened within seconds, completely throwing me off-kilter. Looking down at me with those intense eyes of his, he rumbled, “I needed to know where you lived and he could help me with that. That’s all. Now, do you wanna put some clothes on for this conversation?”
Holding my towel in place, I stared at him, almost at a loss for words. If I’d felt bewildered before, I wasn’t sure what to label how I felt now. Being manhandled by King had shaken all my thoughts and emotions into disarray.
I need a smoke.
Shit, I gave them up.
You can start not smoking again tomorrow.
But clothes first.
Grab the smoke on the way.
Shit.
Pointing at him, I said, “Stay here. I’m going to get dressed. And for the love of God, if you wake my kids, I will hurt you.”
