“I don’t know, Vaughn.” Ghost doubted me. “You’re walking into a lion’s den. We can keep him locked up here.”
A muffled thud and a curse had me turning. A moment later, Haz appeared out of the hallway, scowling as he clutched the waistband of a pair of black sweatpants up to his chest. “Can you drive me over to my place? I need some clothes.”
“I prefer you in mine,” I told him, trying to ignore the way my heart fluttered at just the sight of him. Ever since he likened his heart to a kite, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Feeling it.
“Your pants are death traps,” he accused, hiking them up. His entire lower body and torso were swallowed in fabric with only his bare toes visible beneath the too-long hem. It was endearing, adorable, and made me even more devoted to protecting him.
“So don’t wear any,” I surmised.
“Pretty sure I’d get fired if I showed up to work pantless.”
I now understood why people said work was a four-letter word. You know, besides the fact that itisa four-letter word. “Work?”
Haz made a frustrated sound. “We’ve had this conversation before. I have four jobs.”
“Four,” Ghost reiterated.
“Three now.” I reminded him coolly.
Haz rolled his eyes. “You can’t just quit a job for me.”
“Walk into the Blue Orchid just one time and see what happens,” I contested.
Hazard turned pleading eyes to Ghost.
Ghost made a sound. “I agree with him. You can’t be working at a brothel.”
“It’s not a brothel,” Hazard argued.
“So Clive Rigaldi didn’t offer you a job in the back rooms as a whore?” I questioned, my eyebrow daring him to lie.
Haz’s cheeks flamed. “I told him no.”
“Don’t push me, Haz,” I said quietly. “I will burn the place down with everyone inside, light a cigarette with the flames, and stand there to watch it burn.”
“I miss cigarettes,” Ghost said wistfully, reaching into his jacket pocket to pull out yet another bag of nuts.
“Is that what that’s about?” I asked, hitching my chin at them.
He tossed a few into his mouth and started chomping. “Gotta keep my hands busy.”
“Should have kept the cigs. A lot less annoying,” I muttered.
“They’re bad for me,” Ghost murmured, something in his voice I couldn’t quite place. But then he smiled and held up the bag. “Nuts have healthy fats, though. Good for the ticker.”
“You’re not allowed to randomly kill people,” Haz said, bringing my attention back to him. “And burning that place is definitely not allowed.”
I smiled.
Haz’s eyes widened. “Fine,” he whined. “I quit that job. But I still have a shift at Neon Reef later. And I’m not quitting or calling out.”
My lips parted.
Haz made a sound and stabbed his finger in my direction. The pants he’d been holding up dropped to the floor. I almost erupted at the sight Ghost was about to see until I realized the T-shirt he had on went to his thighs.
With a disgruntled nose wrinkle, Haz kicked them away and stomped forward, jabbing his finger into my chest. “And don’t even think about threatening the fish. I draw the line there,buddy. I know where the guns are, and thanks to you, I know how to use them.”
Ghost cackled.
