“Yes, the grocery store that recently went bankrupt.”
“Right, well when I made my way over to the Las Balas shop, they had it boarded up. There wasn’t one of them in sight, and so I broke into the place looking for more clues, and I brought a few of them with me,” I said, handing him the bag for him to look inside.
“Drugs, tools, and car parts?”
“Those look like the kind of parts that would belong to a vehicle similar to the one the police think Chalupa stole?” I asked, and he nodded.
“It seems we might have a few answers waiting for us, but we’re going to have to head down to that abandoned grocery store near the railroad tracks if we want to find out for sure. I want to ask you to come with me to check it out, but I know that your date is going to be arriving soon, so I’m going to head this one on my own,” I said. He looked at me, guilty for leaving me to walk into Las Balas territory on my own, but I was truly happy for him, and I didn’t want to ruin his chance at a fresh start.
“I could call Mona and reschedule. This is important, Moves. I’m afraid to let you walk in there with no protection, or anyone to watch your back,” he said, about to pull out his cell phone to call her, but I stopped him.
“You remember why they call me Moves, right? You know that I’ve supplied each and every one of us with the top of the line artillery that we would need to protect ourselves. I know how to shoot a gun, and I’m not going to get too close if I know the place is swarming with them, I promise,” I said, and he nodded.
“If you’re sure,” he said, not looking entirely convinced.
“Trust me, Hawk. I’m sure,” I said, getting ready to leave when we both spotted Mona and Lacey stroll into the Blue Dog. I knew that this was a big moment for Hawk, but part of me still wished that he would’ve been joining me on this little adventure seeing as it was quite possibly going to get a little messy.
I couldn’t help but be distracted by the beautiful Lacey, glancing over at me like she was afraid to say a few words, and I knew why that was. She didn’t know if I would want to talk to her, and even after we’d had our last civil conversation, it wasn’t enough to convince her that I wanted to be in her company anymore.
I wasn’t sure whether it was the fact that I saw Hawk walk off with Mona looking the happiest he'd looked in a very long time, or the fact that I was running solely on adrenaline due to everything that was going on, but I walked over to her with the intention of only saying hello.
The moment I brushed past her, I could feel the sexual tension in the air. It hit me like a truck how much I wanted her, how much I wanted to drag her into the back and kiss every inch of her, to feel her skin brush against mine while I gave her the ride of her life. I'd desired her from the first time I laid eyes on her, and every time since, and this time I just couldn’t help but want to be there with her.
I knew that I had other places to be, that I should’ve been scoping out Las Balas’ new stomping ground, but Lacey was just too hard for me to ignore anymore, and I needed to see if this was truly going to go anywhere.
My curiosity got the better of me, and I just couldn’t stay away from that beautiful smile of hers. It drew me back in every time I tried to get myself to leave. I knew that it would only cause me trouble if I stuck around, but I had no other choice. It was much too tempting to just walk out of there and pretend like I didn’t see her, like I didn’t want her right then.
I didn’t understand what drew me to her, what made me want to sleep with her so badly, but I wasn't going to give up this time. I wasn’t going to allow the fact that she was the prosecuting attorney for the DA scare me away from seeing if we had any real chemistry. I had to know for sure, otherwise it was just going to eat me up inside.
I just can’t stay away from you, can I?
Twenty-Two
Lacey
I didn’t expect to feel this way when I saw him again. I knew that the chemistry between us existed, but I didn’t think that I would be having trouble catching my breath around him. He looked like he was in a rush, but now he doesn’t seem like he wants to leave, and I have to wonder, is that because of me?
Glancing toward the back of the Blue Dog, I could see that Hawk and Mona were enjoying their evening, laughing, smiling, and having a great time. It was much more surreal to see their connection in person, to understand why she’d been so nervous around Hawk, because I was starting to feel the same way about Moves.
He brought two beers over to the small table in the back that I’d been sitting at, trying to stay out of sight so I didn’t make the two lovebirds uncomfortable.
“I didn’t expect to see you here,” he said, and I shrugged, nodding my head over in the direction of Hawk and Mona, watching him quickly put the pieces together.
“Ah, so you’re here to make sure that Hawk doesn’t try any funny business,” he said, and I motioned for him to join me.
“Oh, they’ve already made it to funny business, but I’m sure he probably filled you in on that one already,” I said, and he chuckled, handing me the cold beer. I sipped it lightly, my heart beating loudly in my chest every time I looked at him. I was secretly really glad to see him, because I knew how truly boring my evening was going to be if he didn’t show up. I had a million questions running through my mind to ask him, but the last thing I wanted to do was scare him off again.
I was sure that he was still trying to process the fact that I was a lawyer, one that was working in the very place that would be prosecuting a friend of his, but I knew that it was the wrong time to be questioning him about those things.
Now that I was able to get a good look at him, I noticed how tired he looked, how the bags under his eyes remained prevalent, though it didn’t take away from how incredibly attractive and strong he was.
He removed his leather jacket, and I got a good look at those strong arms of his in the tight black T-shirt he was wearing. I immediately felt myself get hot, my cheeks began to flush, and I turned straight to the beer to cool me down and take my mind off of it.
You are here to look after Mona and make sure that she’s okay. Though she looks just fine, and to be quite honest, I’ve never felt a rush quite like this before.
I gazed into Moves’ eyes, wondering what must be going through his mind right then.
“You’re quite the supportive friend coming all the way out here just to watch over Mona,” he said, sipping on his beer.
