Steve gave an embarrassed laugh, and rubbed at his chin. “You’re right. This one is a firecracker.”
I forced another smile, and tried to avoid grinding my teeth together.
“Mom, do you need help in the kitchen?” I asked, begging that for once she would task me with peeling potatoes or snapping the ends of string beans like she used to torture me with when I was a kid.
“No, you stay. Talk with Steve. He’s very handsome, no?” Mom said, grabbing his chin and smiling way too big.
Awkward silence spread between us as I took another sip from my wine glass.
“So, Taylor has told me a lot about you,” Steve said.
“Funny, he hasn’t told me a thing about you.”
I almost felt bad. Almost. It wasn’t his fault that my family liked to blindside me with potential dates. If they put half the energy into something meaningful as they did into trying to find me a husband, they could do a lot of good in the world. Instead, they preferred to torture me. Still, he was here and that made him guilty by association.
“Where’s Daddy?” Mom said from the kitchen doorway, and I took it as my opportunity to escape.
“I’ll go find him,” I volunteered and, before anyone could stop me, I was already halfway out the back door with my glass of wine. Whenever Dad went missing, you would always find him in his “Man Cave” in the backyard, a shed that once upon a time held me and Malaya’s bikes and outside toys. Now, it housed an old leather sofa, a small TV and a mini fridge.
I walked across the lawn, and immediately spotted the faint light streaming out from the shed’s doors. I tapped lightly before stepping inside. “Knew I’d find you out here,” I said, and Dad smiled, scooching over so I could join him.
He tilted the beer bottle he was holding to his mouth. “So, how’s Mr. Magoo in there?”
I nearly spit my wine out, but quickly recovered. “Well,” I said, settling into the couch. “He’s a CPA with a master’s degree. Mom thinks he’s handsome.”
“He’s too old for you.”
“You think? I mean, it could be good. In a few years, I can reap the benefits of his senior discount or his AARP plan.”
“He’s not older than me.”
“Of course, he is. You don’t age.”
Dad laughed. “Tell that to my body.”
“In my mind, you’ll always be in your early thirties, pushing me on the swings and teaching me how to ride my bike.”
“That was a long time ago.” He patted my knee. “Come on. I’m sure your mother is looking for me.”
“Which is exactly why I’m here. I think we can hide out for another ten. What do you say?”
Dad leaned back into the couch and pointed to his fridge. “Hand me another beer, will you?”
“That’s my boy,” I said, reaching over to the fridge. I grabbed a beer and noticed the bottle of wine, uncorked and ready to be poured. I pulled it out and held it up.
“For me?” I asked. He nodded, and a flutter of happiness erupted inside me.
“Figured you’d find a way to escape. You always do.”
“Thanks, Dad.” I kissed his cheek, then poured another generous glass for myself, and held it up. “Cheers.”
We clinked glasses and rested into the sofa. Neither one of us said another word. We drank in silence, but, for the next ten minutes before we returned to the craziness of the house, sitting with Dad was exactly what I needed.
5
Beast
Aubree roped Cash into more wedding shit, and Kade had to pick up his son, DC, from the sitter, so I got stuck taking a ride down to the station to check in with Stanson. Gordita’s Army had completely regrouped after her throat was slit in a beauty salon. Unfortunately for us, that meant our enemies were growing and continuing to team up against us. Stanson had been keeping tabs on the army, and we needed to gather as much intel as we could.
I pulled my bike into the lot, and killed the engine. Dark clouds littered the sky, forming an eerie overcast, and it was only a matter of time before it started to rain. I looked forward to it. There was something about the rain that had a calming effect on me. Maybe because it was the complete opposite of where I grew up in the Texas sun, or maybe it was just because I liked the grayness. Sun was too bright, and brightness made people happy. Happy people bothered me.
The station door opened, and the sound of jingling keys had me glancing in their direction. Ryan, in that hideous tan uniform with her dark hair slicked back into a tight bun, came racing out. Her head was down as she moved, and didn’t even notice me. Didn’t she know to be aware at all times? I could easily grab her and take off before she had a second to react or before a single person would realize she was missing.
To prove a point, I stepped in front of her, but she came to a halt before slamming into my chest. “Beast,” she said.
“Ryan.”
“You’re in my way.”
“You noticed.”
“Yes, now if you’ll excuse me, I have somewhere to be.”
“Where’s that?”
“Not that it’s any of your business, but we got a tip that there’s some activity down at the docks. I’m going to check it out.”
The docks, which only meant Gordita’s Army. There was no way in hell she was going down there herself. Was she out of her goddamned mind?
“I’ll go.”
She all but laughed in my face. “Why don’t you leave it to the professionals?” She pressed a hand to my shoulder in an effort to move me out of the way, but there was no way she’d be able to budge me, and I wasn’t going to make it easy for her either.
“Shouldn’t you have a partner to go with you?”
“He’s out to lunch.”
“Convenient. So wait.”
“Trust me. I’m better off without the rookie.”
“He’s your partner?” Fucking Reed wouldn’t be able to find his way out of a goddamned cardboard box. He was supposed to be the one to have Ryan’s back? That had to have been a fucking joke. There was no way in hell Stanson actually thought that was a good idea.
“Lucky me. I know. Now, get out of my way before I arrest you for harassment.”
A loud rumble of a laugh flew out, but I quickly stopped it. I didn’t laugh, and it felt almost strange. I bent down, so my head was near her ear. That damn scent of apples made my mouth water. “I bet you’d like to cuff me.”
She didn’t even bat an eye, but then her demeanor changed, and she slapped a hand to her chest. “Oh, yes. That’s exactly what I want.” She licked her bottom lip, and then caught it between her teeth before pushing up on tiptoes. This time, she leaned into me. “Cuffed and waiting for me. Vulnerable and all mine.” Her voice was deep and sultry, and I swallowed down the desire to show her what it really meant to be vulnerable.
“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
“Plucked right out of my own personal fantasies.” She flashed a smile, and then shoved past. “Goodbye, Beast.”
I grabbed her arm and spun her back toward me. “You are not going there alone.”
She met my eyes with determination and indifference. “Watch me.”
“Where the fuck is your father anyway?” There was no fucking way he gave her this assignment. Letting her go off to the docks, a breeding ground for the enemy, alone. Unaware of the shit show that could ensue if she didn’t watch her every move.
“Inside.”
“And, he’s letting you go alone?”
“What, do you think just because I’m a girl I can’t handle myself? Fuck you. I’m trained, I’m experienced and I don’t need a goddamned partner.”
“The hell you don’t.”
She ignored me, continuing on to her car. She opened the door of her cruiser, and I didn’t hesitate to jog to the passenger side and let myself in.
Anger mixed with annoyance, as she turned her body toward me. “What the fuck are you doing?”
“Drive.”
“This is police business.”
/> “I don’t give a fuck whose business it is. Either I’m going, or no one is. Make the call.”
She let out an irritated breath, and shoved the key into the ignition. “Don’t make this a damn habit.”
“Bring your partner along next time, and I won’t.”
“Do you honestly think I’d be better off with him?”
“No, but if anyone fires a shot, they’d most likely go for the guy. I’d rather see him killed then you.”
She stopped at the corner at a red light and turned, those big brown eyes narrowing in on me. “Why?”
Good question. I had no fucking clue, but the thought of her with a bullet hole in her soft flesh made my blood crawl. I could psychoanalyze myself until the fucking sun finally made another appearance, but what the fuck was the point? I already knew the answer. Not like I’d ever come out and admit it. I’d rather take a bullet myself.
The light turned green, but she didn’t move. Her gaze was still firmly planted on me. “You’re too pretty to get bloody,” I said, and then made an obscene gesture with my tongue.
“You’re a pig.”
“Pig, beast, all the same. Drive.” I pointed to the light, and she snapped her head up, pressing her foot on the gas.
She continued south toward the docks and, as we got closer, she reached over to the glove box and grabbed a gun. “You packing?” she asked.
I lifted my cut away from my chest, revealing my M9 Beretta.
“Do you have a permit for that?” she asked, and I smirked.
“What do you think?”
“Forget I asked.” She checked her gun, and then placed it back in her holster, before settling her hands back on the wheel. “Do not, for any reason, pull your gun. We’re just here to check things out. If we’re lucky, we can move in and out without them noticing us. So, stay with the car and let me…”
“No.”
“Excuse me?”
“You want to move in and out without them noticing us, then let me go.”
“I don’t know if you noticed, but you’re not exactly inconspicuous.”
“Checking me out, officer?”
She rolled her eyes. “In your dreams, ogre.”
“Ogre? Now that hurts.”
“You say you have experience. Well, so do I.”
“What kind of experience?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know,” I said, with a wink that got me another eye roll. The truth was, I had more training and qualifications in this field than she would ever know. If she wanted a clean entrance and exit strategy, then I was the man for the job.
“Can you, for once, talk without turning everything into a sexual innuendo?”
“What fun is that?”
She eased the car into a hidden spot, and ran her hands over her head like she forgot her hair was tied back. For a second, I wondered what it would look like down, spilling over me as she rode my cock, but then I shook the thought away. I didn’t do relationships, and a cop was the last person I needed for one night of fucking. Besides, she didn’t seem like the one-night stand kind of girl.
“I just want to do my job. So, please, let me do it.”
I nodded, understanding where she was coming from. “And I want to do mine, so that means I’m coming with you, whether you want me to or not.”
She closed her eyes for a second as if debating her other options.
“You can try to handcuff me, but don’t underestimate my speed just because I’m big.”
Her eyes popped open wide, glaring at me in disbelief that I knew exactly what she was thinking. She quickly looked away and shook her head. “Stay out of my way, don’t use your weapon for any reason and, whatever you do, don’t get shot.”
She got out of the car, and I smiled as I followed suit. “Don’t want to see me hurt?” I asked, and she gave me that eye roll again.
“Don’t flatter yourself.”
“I don’t have to when you’re just full of flattery.”
“Are you always like this?” she asked and, for the first time, I realized that when I was with her, the old me came out. I didn’t feel the need to growl my answers, or give one word clipped responses. The anger that had become so much a part of me eased slightly.
“No.”
“Lucky me, I guess.”
I grunted and nodded my head toward a row of boats sitting on trailers.
“I think we should go this way.” She started toward a strip of bushes and I grabbed her wrist, spinning her back to me. I yanked a little too hard, and she wound up plastered against my chest. Her warm hand rested just below my pec, and her breathing picked up for a moment before she pushed off of me. She tilted her head up in a no bullshit manor and her eyes flared with rage. “I thought I said I was in charge.” Her voice rose and I leapt forward, slapping a hand over her soft lips before someone heard her.
The rage that was in her eyes before, turned to an all-out inferno. I spun her around, so her back was against my chest, and I lowered my ear to hers. “And I said I had experience. Look to your left. Three o’clock.” Her ass pressed against my thigh, proving the uniform did nothing for what was beneath it. Her body tightened against mine when she noticed the guy with the assault rifle hanging out on the roof of the warehouse. “You might be in charge, but you also told me not to get shot. I follow directions.”
She ripped my hand from her mouth, and shoved it down, as she turned back to me. “Fine, we’ll go this way then.”
“You’re welcome,” I muttered as she stormed past me, but she didn’t say a word in response. With a shake of my head, I followed her, making sure to scan our surroundings as we went. The last thing we needed was for someone to spot us. Gordita’s Army wouldn’t give two shits that Ryan was a cop. The badge meant nothing to them, and they’d proved that time and time again when they would shoot at patrol cars that dared enter their block.
Cops were fair game to them and, if it meant protecting their own, they wouldn’t think twice about putting a bullet through Ryan’s eyes. Which is exactly the reason why I couldn’t let her come here alone, and the fact that Stanson so easily let his daughter dive into the dirty work pissed me the fuck off. I’m sure he filled her in on the basics, but if she was so quick to head into a mission without bothering to check every point, he didn’t tell her enough. This wasn’t a fucking game. There was no pussy footing around. You were either all in, or you wound up dead. If Stanson wasn’t going to tell her everything, then I had to. She needed to know exactly what she was getting herself involved in, and she needed to know how to protect herself, because I wasn’t going to be her goddamned babysitter.
She drew her gun as she crouched down and made her way to the first boat. She planted her back against it, holding her gun up like she watched one too many cop movies, and then glanced over her shoulder before holding her gun out in front of her and proceeding. I did a scan of the area, and walked over to her without bothering to reach for my gun.
I already knew where every guy was planted. There was no danger on this side of the docks, but if she felt better about going all Charlie’s Angel, then I wasn’t about to stop her.
There was a spot between two boats that gave a perfect view of the docks, but would also provide us enough coverage to keep from being seen. I caught up to her and pressed my chest to her back, and she jumped, spinning around and pointing the barrel of her gun at my head. I held my hands up, took a page from her book, and rolled my eyes.
“Don’t do that!” she whispered, but I could tell she really wanted to rip me a new asshole.
I grabbed her shoulders and spun her back around, pointing my hand over her shoulder to the perfect place where we could watch and go undetected. She looked up and over at me, her big brown eyes catching mine, and she nodded. We both hunched down, and made our way to the spot.
Just as I thought, we could see the entire place from there, including the inlet that led out to the open water. Ryan smacked my chest, and nodded her chin toward the main dock. A
massive cargo ship was at port, and a line of men with guns stood on guard.
“See there,” I whispered, pointing down to two men off to the side. “That’s Matias and Pedro. Matias took over after the matriarch was killed.”
There was a little bit of commotion as a discussion went on with the two men. Voices came over a radio, but we were too far away to hear anything. One of the guys held the radio and nodded before turning to the ship and giving a hand signal. Some sort of ladder was lowered and secured into place. A few moments later, a line of disheveled men in ripped, stained clothes, soaked in what I assumed was sweat, were guided off the ship.
“Shit,” Ryan said under her breath.
I nudged her shoulder and motioned to her to go. We saw everything we needed to see. The longer we stayed here, the more of a chance someone would see us. She nodded in agreement, and I went to stand out of my crouched position, when the barrel of a gun pressed into the back of my neck.
Fuck!
Ryan turned, and her eyes widened for the slightest of seconds, before going back to normal. She went to draw her gun when the barrel moved from my head and pointed at hers. She didn’t let fear show on her face, and I was proud of her. She was a better cop than I gave her credit for.
“What do we have here?” the guy said, in a heavy accent, and when no one responded or made a single noise I guessed he was alone.
“Black Hills PD. Put the gun down,” Ryan demanded, but she clearly didn’t know who we were dealing with here.
I couldn’t see behind me to know how many men were approaching, or how big the guy was behind me. But, from where the barrel pushed into my neck, I could tell I had a few inches on this guy. I closed my eyes and let my ears takeover, listening for the sounds of feet on gravel, and allowing my senses to gage the situation since I couldn’t rely on sight.
The crackling of a radio echoed behind me before a guy’s voice came over. He was speaking Spanish, but I knew enough to know that, if this fuck answered, we’d be dealing with a lot more than just one asshole. I mouthed “one” to Ryan, and she gave a quick nod.
A smile spread across my face as the rage I was learning to control spread through my body. I grabbed the gun and spun around to the guy, pressing it against the bottom of his chin and using his fingers to pull the trigger. Blood splattered across my face, and the guy’s body went limp in my arms. I tossed him aside, and held my hand out to Ryan.
Beast (A Righteous Outlaws Novel #4) (The Righteous Outlaws) Page 4
