“You know my greatest joy in life is spending money that isn’t mine.” I allowed myself to smile at him because he was obviously being a fucker and trying to stir up Jayce. It seemed to be working because when I sneaked a peek, King was on the receiving end of a furious, narrowed-eyed look. That was a little bit of payback, I supposed, for Jayce making me feel so weird-good by doing things like opening my doors.
“You do love to take my money.” King was a handsome man, and my breath caught a little at some remembered good times. He stepped closer and brought our bodies flush together.
“Were you the high roller?” Jayce asked. “From the story?”
King barked out a laugh. “No, I wasn’t.” His demeanor changed and he let me go with a gentle pat to the side of my face that dislodged my glasses. Sighing, I pushed them up. “You’d probably have more luck going into the casino with River than I would, since everyone knows me in this fucking burg. Derek will work with me in a pinch, but he doesn’t like me.”
Sapphira finished her beer and settled the bottle carefully on the bar. “If that disgusting bastard is selling girls—”
“—and boys,” Jayce cut in. “This started because we were searching for a lost boy.”
She nodded. “If he’s doing that, I don’t care anymore. My girls and I will take care of it, but we need to know for sure. It won’t be pretty.”
King snorted, sauntered over, and then wound his arms around Dallas. If Jayce had any doubt that King had only been messing around by getting close to me, he only had to look at the way King practically sealed himself to his man, dragging him close so he had his arms locked securely around his middle. A fucking tornado probably couldn’t have pried them apart, and Dallas did a good job at keeping his mouth shut and letting King lead the show.
“You up for that?” I asked Jayce. “Casino trip?”
He shrugged. “Come this far. Why not?”
“We’ll send you in with a decent load of cash. Maybe we can get you a couple of security boys who aren’t bikers.” He glanced at Sapphira.
“Woman’s goddamned work is never done,” she huffed, but she winked at him. “I’ll ask Natalia if we can borrow some of her men from the Courtesan.”
Jayce sighed. “They’re not just going to have them in a cage with a for sale sign stuck over their heads.”
King shrugged. “You don’t know Uhlig. If they’re there? You’ll know. He won’t be shy in his business. That fucker treats the casino like his own kingdom.”
Dallas sighed and turned in King’s arms to stare up at him.
“What?” he asked.
“You’re the most amazing man,” Dallas said, and I had to appreciate the quiet sarcasm for the work of art it was. “We don’t know anyone else like that.”
“I certainly am,” King said. He pressed a smacking kiss to Dallas’s cheek.
“Yeah, Derek gets that Vert Island crowd, and there ain’t no people who are evil like fuckin’ rich people.” Sapphira strolled over to King. She said something to him and leaned up to brush a kiss to his cheek and then laughed and gave Dallas one too. “Let me know how it turns out.” She pulled her phone from her pocket like she was checking the time and rushed away faster than I would have thought possible.
“King?” Jayce said, and I stilled.Oh no.
“Don’t,” I said, but he wasn’t looking at me, and King wore a happy little smirk I hadn’t seen in a long time. Usually he was too trashed to get involved in the goings-on around the clubhouse.
“Don’t touch River that way again.”
King’s eyebrows flew up. “Gotta say,” he said in a low drawl, and I knew Jayce wouldn’t like what was coming. Dallas fluttered his eyelids, nearly rolling his eyes, and I thought he probably agreed with me. “You boys would look fuckin’ hot together. What do you think about letting Dallas and me—”
“No,” Dallas said. “Stop picking on River’s boyfriend.”
King snickered and dropped a kiss to the side of Dallas’s head.
“Get in the boardroom while I see what it will take to rustle up the cash we need,” King said.
“Me?” Jayce asked. His shoulders drooped. “Why on earth me?”
“Because I fucking said so.” I knew that tone, too. I grabbed Jayce’s hand and urged him back along the hallway.
“What’s all this, then?” he asked me, irritated as I’d ever heard him.
“No id—”
