I walked out to the back porch. I felt embarrassed and rejected a little by Cheryl, and his father didn’t exactly endorse us either. Dusk was on the menu, as well, as the sky gave us a feast of deep oranges and pale pinks mixed with royal blue in the sky. The chill made me wrap my arms around myself. A minute or two later, Colt came out. I just needed to have the cool air injected into my lungs.
A large warm arm reached around my shoulders. “Babe. I’m sorry. It just came out. I don’t know why.”
I turned. “Colt, I said we should be careful. I mean, we don’t know what this is. You told your mother? I mean, what do I look like right now? A social worker who seduces my clients? I could get fired. I keep telling you that! You’re not listening.”
His pale blue eyes gazed high into the mountain tops that sat in the distance behind the property. Crickets were sounding off. This was their time. Frogs were making themselves known, as well. I listened to the sounds of nature to calm myself down.
“Might have been a Freudian slip, but I meant every word I said. My mother will get over it. It’s my life. Bella loves you. I love you, Amber. That’s the bottom line. I don’t give a damn about anything other than that at the end of the day. My mom isn’t going to rat you out. She would never do that.” His blue eyes came back from their journey over the mountain tops and reached into my soul.
“I didn’t know you felt that way.”
“Now you know. You don’t have to say it back. Prison has done something to me.” He kissed my cheek, and his lips were cool from the night air. “Come on in. Time to fill your belly.”
I saw the hint of sadness in his eyes, but he covered it well.
Seventeen
Colt
When the day of redemption comes, you pray. You drop to your knees and pray for everything good in this world. Today was the day. The operation started at the crack of dawn before the sun broke over the back of the California mountains. I stood with my cup of Joe on the porch as a pocket of orange filled the sky, and the dewdrops hit the tips of the sweet-smelling blades of grass.
I practically gulped my coffee down, then I called Mikakov.
“Morning.”
“Morning, champ.” Mikakov’s thick Russian accent made a wry smile lift over my face.
“Confirming.”
“Okay. Here’s how we run. You’re out of this. Know this—they are coming for blood. These bitches think Hector is going to be there. Me, Vlad, Moracov, and Pedro are going to go in. We are going to settle the price on the young man’s head, on the proviso that you take him under your wing. He’s yours now. Understand? But we got you covered.”
“I understand. Thank you.”
“No. Colt, thank you. We know the price you paid. You put your life on the line. We respect that.”
I watched as a bird flew to the closest tree and called out. “See you tonight.”
“Colt, keep Hector away from the scene, just in case. Sit high on the hill if you are going to be there.”
“Done, and no problem taking the kid under my wing. It’s what I planned to do all along.”
“Good.”
“Bye.”
So it was done. Hector joined me outside.
“Hey, Colt. I wanted to ask you something.” He had a cup of coffee in his hand and stood on the porch beside me.
“Shoot.”
“Do you think I could work with you? I could use a job. I want to stay out of trouble.” Hector posed his question without reservations.
“We all find ourselves in positions in life we shouldn’t be in. I know that for certain. Give me some time to work on things.”
“Okay. For now, let’s see this thing through. I’m going in tonight,” he said. “I want to be there.”
“The Russians don’t want you there. They’re trying to save your ass. It’s a bad idea.”
