Bo stuck his chin out and raised a brow. Fuck. Bo’s line-in-the-sand look. No standing against him now.
Lucky heaved out a sigh. “I’m on desk duty.”
Bo gasped, jaw dropping. “Desk duty? Why?”
“Lots of reasons, according to O’Donoghue. Poor performance for one, due to me signing off on the Chastain Pharmaceuticals audit when DEA came in a few hours later and pulled their registration. Which got the state Board of Pharmacy involved and closed their doors.”
“Fuck. But not you. Us.”
“What?”
“Us. You, me, and Loretta all agreed and signed off on the report.” Bo took a bite of his oatmeal without making the face Lucky would have.
“As senior agent, I’m responsible. I’m not pulling you two under the bus with me.”
“What’s the other reasons?”
“He says the powers that be are rethinking Walter hiring me.”
Bo’s spoon clattered to the table. “What the fuck? You’re the best damned agent they have. You’ve proven yourself time and time again. Where does he get off questioning what Walter did? Remember Agent Salters, the guy we met in Virginia? He said your success paved the way for him to redeem himself.” Bo’s scowl could curdle milk. “Has O’Donoghue forgotten that I came into the bureau through Walter Smith’s Second Chance Program? The nerve of the man!”
“There’s another reason.” All the time Lucky spent worried about someone finding out about him and Bo wasn’t wasted effort after all.
“What reason?”
Lucky took a deep breath. Not saying the words didn’t make them less truthful. “O’Donoghue’s questioning our relationship. Said we’re violating policy.”
Wildfire flashed up Bo’s face, shading his skin red. “Sonofabitch! Lucky, we’ve fought that battle. Walter told you we were fine, since you joined the bureau officially after we were already… involved.”
“You know as good as I do O’Donoghue doesn’t need a reason. If he wants me gone, he can do what he wants to.”
“I watch people, and one thing I learned about management is this: a new boss who comes in and starts changing things without first studying what works and what doesn’t is a complete idiot, and also aiming to discredit his predecessor. A man confident in his abilities would never do that.”
Bo had his back. Hopefully he wouldn’t regret it. He knocked back a swig of orange juice like a shot of whiskey. “He’s threatening your job.”
“He even brought up me giving my dad some liver.”
Bo slammed his glass to the table. “That motherfucker.”
“Yeah. If I so much as sneeze he swears it’s a sign of burnout. He cleared out Walter’s office and moved himself in. He’s cleaning house and getting rid of anyone who might try to stop him.”
“What about me and Loretta?”
Crap. Loretta Johnson. “I think he believes if he sends me packing the rest of you will fall into line.”
“He’s wrong,” Bo snapped. “We do our own thinking, and we don’t like him any more than you do.”
“I’m not so sure about that.” The next part of Lucky’s confession hurt the most. “I believe Johnson is on team O’Donoghue.”
Bo let out a strangled gasp. “No! She’d never do that. The woman has nothing but respect for you.”
If only. “I wish I felt the same.” Lucky had never realized how much he’d come to depend on her presence until her betrayal left a big empty hole in his life.
“What has she done to make you distrust her?” Bo kept his voice calm, like he wasn’t asking a question aimed right at Lucky’s insides.
“I’ve already told you she tells O’Donoghue everything I say. She’s also dating Phillip.”
“And helping us out with the boys. Do you really think she’d backstab you? She’s your friend.”
