I blink a few times until the blurry world comes into focus. Holy hell, I can’t remember the last time I crashed so hard. “How long was I out for?” I ask one of my most trusted Capos. “And where am I?”
“Only a few hours,” Mario answers. “We’re still at the warehouse by the docks. You were waiting for your contact in Denver to call back.”
My phone rings again, and I curse under my breath. “Right. Thanks,” I grunt as I wipe the remnants of sleep from my eyes. Jesus. I feel like I just woke up from a coma, not a nap.
The last twenty-four hours come back to me in flashes, from getting the call from Reaper to staking out the auction house overnight. That led us to one of the Salvatore-controlled ports, where there was some suspicious activity.
Apparently, the auction house here in Chicago is looking to expand into darker waters across multiple major cities in the US. Instead of contracts, consent, and split royalties for every woman auctioned, they want to straight-up traffic women en masse. Sick fucks.
Reaper, the president of Wicked Riders MC, lives outside of Denver and caught wind of some shady shit going down. He called, and things snowballed rather quickly. He’s calling again right now, hopefully with better news this time.
“Talk to me,” I answer, not bothering with pleasantries. Reaper understands. He might even be more impatient and short-tempered than I am, which is why we’ve remained friends all these years. Not that we’d admit that or talk about it ever, but it’s true all the same. Reaper is my oldest friend.
“They’re already here,” he starts. His voice is gruff and filled with barely contained rage. “I don’t know who their contact is, but whoever is in charge must already have a network of criminals here in Colorado.”
“Fuck.”
He grunts in agreement. “We don’t know where they set up shop, but I have my men on it.”
“As soon as you have any leads, let me know. I’ll send soldiers your way. You have the full backing of the Salvatores.”
“Thanks. I–” Reaper sighs in frustration, cutting himself off. “Are you fucking kidding me? She’s still here?” he says under his breath.
“Everything okay?”
“Yes. No. I don’t know. There’s this woman…”
“Oh?” We’ve never talked about relationships before, but maybe Reaper and I have more in common than I thought.
“Not like that,” he says a little too quickly to be believed. “She just keeps showing up at the repair shop. Every damn morning for almost a week now. Says she wants a job.”
“And you’re not hiring right now?” I guess.
“It’s not just that. Lynx is…” he pauses, trying to find the right words. “Distracting.”
“Ah, now I see.”
“No, it’s really not like that. I didn’t mean… whatever. Can we just get back to the subject at hand? There’s no point in discussing my love life.”
“So you have a love life, then?” I don’t know why I’m pressing him. I suppose it gives me a twisted sense of joy to poke fun at my old friend.
“Like you’re one to talk. Would you like to discuss any of your relationships?”
“I don’t have any…” Well, that’s not true. Is it? Jaylin… Fuck. I left her panting on the couch at home before disappearing overnight. I promised her I’d be right back.
“What’s that? Are you sure there’s nothing to talk about?”
“Fuck you,” I grumble, making Reaper chuckle. “Call back when you have less of an attitude and more information.”
This only makes him laugh harder. “Sure. By then, maybe you’ll have an update on whoever you’renotin a relationship with.”
I hang up and rub my eyes hard enough to see stars. I fucked up. Jaylin was already feeling insecure after the hot and cold treatment I gave her the first night. What is she going to think of me now that I’ve abandoned her after her first intense sexual experience?
Jumping to my feet, I take a second for the room to stop spinning before addressing Mario. “I need to go home,” I tell him. “You and the other men should get some rest. When I know more, I’ll call.” I dismiss him with a nod, then hastily make my way to my car parked out back.
I can’t get home fast enough. What am I going to say to Jaylin? How can I even begin to make this up to her? We neverexchanged phone numbers, which I realize now is a terrible oversight. She should be able to reach me at all times, and vice versa.
Ten minutes and twenty broken traffic laws later, I pull into the compound and park outside of my mansion. What if she already left? Surely, one of the guards would have let me know. Still, panic lances through my chest at the thought of Jaylin slipping through my fingers.
