I gave a happy sigh, letting my eyes slide closed.“Not sure I could leave right now if I wanted to.”
His warm chuckle seduced me even more.I liked hearing him happy so it was easy to stay wrapped in his arms and just…doze.
I shouldn’t stay here.Shouldn’t get too comfortable because in no world did this situation work out for me.Not like I wanted anyway.I needed to get the hell out of here and come clean to Ghost.I hadn’t done anything wrong at this point, but only because of technicalities I knew Bloody Jack wouldn’t care about.
I looked up at Rocky.In sleep, he looked far more relaxed than I’d ever seen him.It was easy to forget all my good intentions.I needed to get dressed and leave.If I accidentally pilfered through his shit in the process of looking for my clothes and found the damning evidence I needed, so much the better.Right?
I could have gone for it.Could have maybe found the patch or something else connecting him with the Copperheads or any other club.But I didn’t.Instead, I closed my eyes and snuggled closer to Rocky, letting myself drift.
Tonight, all I wanted was this.To lay in the arms of a man who looked at me like I was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen, and fucked me like he couldn’t get enough of me.
Chapter Eight
Wren
Abuzzingnoisedraggedmefrom sleep.My phone vibrated against the nightstand, the screen casting blue shadows across the ceiling.I blinked, disoriented, Wren's warm body still curled against mine, her breathing deep and even.The phone buzzed again, insistent.When I managed to focus on the screen, I growled in frustration."Copperhead SAA" flashed across the display.Shit.Talk about bad fucking timing.
I glanced at Wren, her purple hair splayed across my chest, her face peaceful in sleep.One arm was thrown possessively across my stomach, and for a second, I considered ignoring the call.But that wasn't an option.Not with Shank.The Sergeant at Arms didn't call at — I checked the time — three forty-seven in the Goddamned morning for a friendly fucking chat.
Moving with deliberate care, I slid out from under Wren's arm, replacing my body with a pillow that she hugged against herself without waking.The loss of her warmth hit me immediately, but I had bigger problems.The phone buzzed a third time as I grabbed it and padded silently to the bathroom.
I closed the door behind me before turning on the dim night light then the overhead fan.In the soft glow, my reflection in the vanity mirror looked like I’d spent the night fucking a supremely passionate woman.There were scratches on my thick, bare shoulders and what looked suspiciously like a bite mark just beneath my collar bone.Under any other circumstances I’d puff my chest out in pride.Now, all I felt resembled guilt a little too closely for my peace of mind.
"Yeah," I answered, keeping my voice low.
"Fucking finally," Acid's voice rasped through the speaker."You dead or just balls deep?"
I gritted my teeth."What do you need?"
"Meeting's been moved up.Everyone atThe Pittomorrow at noon instead of Friday.We got some...merchandise arriving earlier than expected."The way he said "merchandise" told me everything I needed to know.Another shipment.More girls.My stomach twisted.
"I'll be there," I said, keeping my tone as flat and unemotional as possible.I glanced back toward the door, picturing Wren asleep in my bed, innocent and trusting.The irony wasn't lost on me.
"Other job's still on for Saturday night.Make sure your shit's in order.We need that warehouse secured before the main shipment comes in."
I clenched my jaw.The "job" was securing a secondary location for their trafficking operations.There had been a couple of close timing issues and Acid wanted an alternate drop off.I'd been stalling, feeding bits of intel to Vittorio, trying to build enough of a case to take the whole operation down at once instead of just disrupting it.Sounded like I was out of time.
"Got it.Anything else?"I had to close my eyes and take a deep breath before I lost my temper.My tone came out too sharp and Acid could be a prickly bastard.
"Yeah.Vex has been asking questions about you."
My grip tightened on the phone.Vex was the club's enforcer, a psychopath who enjoyed his work too much.I waited a couple of beats to see where the bastard was headed with this.When he didn’t answer, I growled at the other man.“Well?You gonna enlighten me or make me stand here the rest of the Goddamned night?”
"Where you came from.Who you knew before.The usual shit when someone's climbing ranks as fast as you."Acid paused."I told him you checked out."
“You can tell fuckin’ Vex, if he has a question for me to come ask me his own Goddamned self.I don’t have time for this shit.Course, if you want, I can dump the whole operation back in your capable hands.You and Vex can take over the whole fuckin’ job and I’ll sit home, as you say, balls deep.Makes no fuckin’ difference to me.”I ended the call.
It wasn’t long before my phone buzzed with a message.
Tomorrow @ noon.
“That’s what I thought, you bastard,” I muttered under the hum of the bathroom fan and my own breathing.I looked at myself in the mirror for a long moment, debating whether to call Vittorio about the change in plans.I’d have to go out of town to the designated spot to call, though, and I couldn’t leave Wren.There was no regular cell service in that area so it put me at the advantage from anyone following me.
I splashed cold water on my face, trying to wash away the filth of the conversation.Every day I spent with the Copperheads pushed me further into the darkness.But it was necessary.I knew what they were doing, knew the lives at stake.One more week, two at the very most, and I'd have everything Vittorio needed to dismantle the entire operation.
I shut off the water and reached for the towel.When I looked up, my heart stopped.
Wren stood in the doorway, her naked body half-illuminated by the bathroom light.But it wasn't her nudity that froze me in place.It was the expression on her lovely face.Her eyes were wide, lips parted in shock.She'd heard.How much, I didn't know, but enough.The betrayal written across her features told me everything.The mention of Vex’s name was enough to put the noose around my neck.
