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Her hand ran over the thick stubble on his face as she matched the intensity of his lips working over hers. The fresh scent of soap was clear on his skin indicating he had already taken a shower while she had been catching up on beauty rest. Last night’s activities had left her requiring a little extra time to recover. The soreness was already setting in reminding her of each deliciously intense moment they had shared.
When they both came back for air, she sank back into bed with a satisfied smile and a sparkle in her eyes. “You still haven’t told me what you were doing.”
“Checking my stock in case I need to do some shopping.” He got off the bed and retrieved a tee and jeans from his dresser drawer. Layne was mildly disappointed as he pulled the shirt down over his upper body, covering up many of the tattoos she enjoyed memorizing line by line. His jeans and boots were quick to follow as he expanded on his initial response. “I’m going to have to take care of a few things later on tonight.”
She frowned. “What do you mean take care of a few things?” Layne had grown adept at reading people, and Joey was no exception.
“Don’t worry about it.” He pulled his jacket off the hook on the back of the closet door.
Immediately, she tossed the sheets off herself and got out of bed. “Try again.” She pulled on some clothes that she tracked down off the floor. Arguing with him while she was naked was about as effective as baking a cake in the bathtub.
He slid his arms into his jacket, still avoiding her question. “I have to go run a few errands, that’s it.”
She walked right up to him, her finger firmly poked him in the chest. “No, you’re not telling me something.”
He placed his hands on her arms, kissing her on her forehead to placate her. “I can’t sit back anymore and risk that Franzetti is going to slither through the cracks like the snake he is. You and I both know that this entire shitshow needs to come to an end.”
“And you were just going to leave me out of the loop, is that it?” She didn’t even bother hiding the irritation behind her words.
“That’s always been the plan, Layne. Your dad doesn’t want you involved, and I don’t want you involved. End of story.”
He was being so calm about this, and it was only making Layne more irritable. “So, a bunch of alpha-minded men are trying to tell me what I can or can’t do?”
He sighed seeing this go down an unproductive path. “You know that’s not the case. Look, I know you can stand on your own two feet - I have never doubted that. Shit, I’ve been on the receiving end of your right hook. This has to be different though. I can’t risk you being a distraction or liability and I sure as hell won’t put you through the pain and suffering if things go poorly.”
“You mean, if you fail and Franzetti sends you six feet under?” Her heart ached even imagining the dark hole of emotions she would go through if that were to happen.
If he was worried about that possibility, he didn’t show it. “It’s always a risk in what I do.”
Her hands held onto his forearms, feeling the muscles flex underneath his skin. “I’m a big girl, why don’t you just let me worry about my own sensibilities, hm?”
He moved his hands up to cup her face as he locked his sight on her nearly staring straight into her soul. “No.” Then, he released her and grabbed his keys off the top of his dresser. “But, if you want to come with me to get coffee and a bagel I won’t stop you.”
He didn’t want to let her out of his sight, but now the tables were turning and she wasn’t going to let him out of hers. So, breakfast and caffeine it was.
It wasn’t a difficult choice though, as there was just something about a freshly made bagel piled with an over-easy egg, grease-soaked bacon, and cheese that could lift Layne’s mood. Joey took her to a mom-and-pop bagel shop for that delicious breakfast and a strong cup of coffee. But, she never let his words leave the back of her mind.
Knowing damn well he had some dark intentions looming on the horizon, she had intentionally glued herself to his side all day long.
His arm was wrapped around her there on her sofa while she snuggled up against his side with the television on watching the New York Rangers get their asses handed to them by the Philadelphia Flyers. Things were looking ugly being down 3-0 before the end of the first period.
Joey’s phone buzzed, and he took one glance at the message before lifting his arm off of her. “I have to go make a phone call.” He got up off the couch and began to dial a number on his phone as he left the room.
Layne sat there a few minutes before she straightened up in her seat, straining to hear his voice but she heard nothing at all, not even the pacing of his footsteps.
“Joey?” She got up off the couch and looked into the hallway finding it empty. Layne walked to her front door, looking out the window only to see his car no longer parked in his typical spot in front of her house.
“Shit!” She ran back into the living room, rushing to jam her feet into the shoes she had left in front of the couch. Layne was hellbent on not being left behind just because everyone thought she needed an excessive level of protection.
When she went to her purse she dug around for the keys to her now only remaining vehicle, each second she didn’t find them in the small bag, the more she panicked. Quickly, she realized that he had taken her damn car keys. “For fucks sake!” She hustled into the kitchen to grab her spare set.
Layne grabbed a few more necessities, unsure of what was going to await them and she wanted to be prepared. Once she sat in the driver’s seat of her silver Beamer, she ran down the mental list of possibilities of where he was going.
“Think, Layne, think.” She had zero care about the aesthetics of holding a conversation with herself outloud as she began narrowing down the most likely locations he would be at. Mentally preparing a preliminary list of spots, she pulled out of her garage speeding down the street.
She attempted several calls to him without any answer. Layne analyzed everything they had ever discussed about the way he ran his operations, Franzetti’s patterns, and any minor detail about his vague commentary on how he was going to make his move when the time came. Joey had been careful with the details he shared with her, but not careful enough that she didn’t have some guesses on his next moves.
The only question was if she was going to track him down before he took away her chance to serve up her sweet revenge.
