I don’t necessarily want him shadowing me because I work better alone, but what Clyde says goes. At least for now.
He nods vigorously. “Yeah. Of course. Whatever you need, Eric.”
I raise my brows with a frown. “First, I need you to chill the fuck out. We aren’t going to fucking Disneyland.”
He nods again, a little less enthusiastically, and looks everywhere but at me. “Yeah. Sure. My bad.”
I roll my eyes with a scoff and start down the sidewalk toward the black Tahoe. Before I reach the back door, Alfredo exits the driver’s seat and rounds the front. He gives me a curt nod as he opens the door, and I slip inside.
I pull my phone from my pocket and unlock it, ready to busy my mind with anything but what I’m about to do. When the cold air from outside still bites at me, I raise my head and see CJ standing there like a lost puppy.
I suck in a deep breath. Maybe Clyde wasn’t so wrong because this kid clearlyisstupid. “Go the fuck around.” I say it as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.
“Right.” He replies with another nod, then disappears behind the SUV.
I pull my door closed, then shoot my eyes to Alfredo’s in the rearview mirror. He shakes his head with a smile. “You used to be the same way, Eric.” He whispers.
“I wasn’t an idiot.” I deadpan.
He shrugs as CJ opens the door opposite of me. “You were pretty close.”
I glance at CJ as he slides inside, then move my eyes back to Alfredo. “Just take us to South End.” I wave.
He puts the vehicle in drive and pulls away from the curb, finally letting his eyes focus on something other than me for the short drive.
I’ve always liked Alfredo. He’s been around longer than me, so he knows how shit works, and I know he isn’t too happy about Clyde’s recent endeavours. He’s a wise man— someone who prides himself on using his brain as his biggest weapon— and that’s precisely the kind of person I would want beside me. Clyde is too foolish to see Alfredo’s worth, though.
The thoughts quickly die inside my mind as we pull up to the front of South End Boy’s Home. In the three years I spent here, I went through some of the most brutal shit I’ve ever had to endure. Rape, beatings, starvation. All the things most places like this promise to be the opposite of, but it seems South End is cursed. Everyone who’s ever run it wants the same thing. Money. And a check comes monthly for every child in their care.
It’s quite tragic, but also not my problem. If I had the choice, I would never step back inside those doors, but alas, here I am doing Clyde’s bidding.
“I’ll be waiting.” Alfredo says, putting the SUV in park.
I nod and open my door, then slide out, not even bothering to wait on CJ. My shoes tap against the broken concrete as I walk to the door. My heartbeat echoes through my ears as I reach it and feel CJ move behind me.
“Don’t fuck this up, understand?” I whisper to CJ as I knock on the door. I’m sure he nods eagerly, ready to please, but I don’t look to see.
When a woman opens it, I’m taken aback. She doesn’t seem like the type to get tangled up with a man like Clyde. She looks… soft. Pure. With wispy hair, radiant blue eyes, and pale skin.
Immediately, my mind starts to wander to a dark place. A place where she’s on her knees with my cock down her throat as I fist her soft hair. I think of all the positions I could put her body in just to destroy her sexually. Her voice, her taste, her touch—I conjure up images and expectations, and that’s a dangerous thing. This woman is too sweet for my wrath, but that makes me want her even more, and all it took was a simple glance.
“Can I help you?” Even her voice doesn’t fit with the image I’ve made in my head about what sheshouldlook and sound like.
“Are you the owner?” I question, trying to silence my thoughts.
She shakes her head. “No. That’s my sister, I just help run things.”
“I see. I’d like to speak to her, please.” I cross my wrists in front of me, widening my stance, and wait.
She tips her head, then looks over my shoulder to CJ. “Sir, I’m sorry, but he seems too old for our care. I can give you information on extended homes and some state assistant programs that may be able to help though.”
I glance at CJ, then back to her. “I appreciate that, but that isn’t why I’m here.”
“Oh.” She pauses. “I’m so sorry. We have so many people come by wanting a safe place to leave their children. I just assumed.” Her cheeks are stained pink, and she actually sounds apologetic.
“Your sister. Get her. Now.” I deadpan. I don’t have time to reassure her I don’t give a fuck what she thought. I’m here for a job, and that’s it.
Her eyes bounce around before she finally looks at me again. I can tell she knows exactly why I’m here. “You can wait in the foyer while I go get her.”
