“Those men all process the stress and trauma of what they do differently.” She shrugs. “It’s not that unheard of if a man doesn’t want to complicate his life with a wife and possibly kids.”
Again, Jinx said he wanted to be with me—he just didn’t see how it could last. Not the words of a man who actively chooses to be alone.
Something’s not right, and there’s no way I’m letting this go—lettinghimgo—until he explains it to me.
First, I want to find out who that damn woman is. Because yeah, maybe I am a little jealous.
THIRTY-THREE
JINX
“I have to say,it’s such a breath of fresh air to be able to talk about this with you without feeling as though you try to hit on me.”
I glance from my phone to the woman seated across from me, and frown. Is she for real? Sure, she’s damn good-looking, but does she rate herself that highly that she thinks every man who sits down for coffee with her wants in her suit pants?
“Sounds like a relief, for sure.” I return focus to the message I tap out to Kyra.
Can I call you in fifteen or are you still busy?
Throughout everything Ms. Larson has said, all I can think about is what the hell Kyra could have done that would have meant she had to leave without waking me up or saying goodbye.
Isn’t that what I wanted, though? To avoid the difficult shit? Why does it sting so bad, then?
“Are you gay?”
I snap my head up. “The fuck?”
Rowan lifts her slender hands. “Sorry. I’m just trying to figure you out.”
“Because I don’t want to hit on you?”
She blinks.She’s fucking serious.
“Is it really that bad with men for you, or have you just managed to get everywhere in life so far by opening your legs?”
Her lips roll, and she stares down at the table, jaw hard. “Do you want to know why I became a lawyer?”
“Sure.”
“Because at my first job as an intern at a consulting firm, a colleague assaulted me after I turned him down several times. So yes, it really is that bad.”
I lean back in my chair and study her, gauging the truth of it. The vacancy in her gaze tells me what I need to know. “I apologize.”
“It’s fine.” She gathers her satchel and sets it on her lap. “I’ll put in a bail petition tomorrow and let you know the result. But at this stage, I can’t see them putting Crow before a judge until after Christmas. They’ll use the holiday shutdown to their advantage.”
“Wouldn’t expect much different.”
She draws a deep breath before asking, “Did he do it?”
I hold her gaze. “Does it matter? We hired you to make the charges as small as possible.”
“If you want me to work to my best potential, then yes, it does matter. I need absolute trust between myself and your club for this to work.”
“Let me know how much we have to pay to have him home for the holidays.”
She sighs out her nose and then rises from the chair. “Think about it. I’m not the enemy here; they are.” Her heels click as she makes her way up the narrow passage to the central part of the cafe, the bell over the door ringing shortly after.
I rest both elbows on the table and bury my fingers in my hair, staring down at the stained surface. Chaos fucked up. Heheld the gun to the side of Pits’s head and pulled the goddamn trigger, which means it’ll be a challenge for Rowan to argue it was self-defense. We protect our president at all costs, but damn, this shit isn’t fair to Crow. He’s one of our most loyal members, always doing as he’s asked without causing trouble.
