But Ramsey still didn’t hand it over.
Like he was waiting for the other shoe to drop still.
It wasn’t like Nate had forgotten about the gun and the knife and the man wielding them, but they’d been less pressing, until suddenly the asshole made a gesture.
Then Nate’s heart was in his throat as the bodyguard strode over to Jordan, gun coming out.
A flicker of distress rippled over Ramsey’s face.
Nate had a feeling he knew how deep it went, for Ramsey to show it at all, for it to make it past his mask of calm indifference.
The gun was leveled at Jordan’s head, pressed into the spot right above his ear, and Nate wondered how fast he could move. If he could move fast enough, push his muscles quick enough and far enough, to reach Jordan and knock the gun away.
The asshole prowled closer to Jordan. Leaned in, met his terrified eyes. Nate felt the same terror echoed in his own organs. Felt them liquifying with it.
“You fucked with my business tonight.”
Jordan swallowed hard. Nodded, the barest movement.
“People don’t do that and get away with it,” he continued.
Sterling had put Nate in charge of watching out for him, and he’d selfishly let Jordan do whatever tonight.
He hadn’t watched out for him at all, and something horrifying could happen as a result.
“You’re not gonna get away with it,” the asshole said, putting his hand over the bodyguard’s, digging the metal ring of the barrel harder into Jordan’s scalp.
Ramsey laughed.
The asshole straightened.
Met his eyes.
Nate had been afraid before, but it was nothing like the fear cascading through him now as Ramsey faced the guy with a gun fearlessly.Laughing.
“You’re not going to kill an NFL player, with an NHL and another NFL player watching. You’re just trying to fucking scare him. And guess what? He’s shitting himself in his pants, so congratulations, you succeeded.”
The asshole smirked. “Yeah?”
“Yeah,” Ramsey said. “So take our shit and just let us go, man. He’s terrified. He’s going to have nightmares about this for the rest of his fucking life.”
Jordan nodded fervently.
He probably would, but if they got him out of this, intact, Nate had a feeling that he’d take the trade-off. At the very least he wouldn’t ever be this stupid again.
The asshole paused for one more moment. A moment that felt like it dragged out forever, but probably actually lasted only a second.
Then he gave a nod.
The bodyguard dropped the gun and strode over to the door, opened it. Ramsey dropped everything into the asshole’s palms, Nate grabbed Jordan’s arm, yanking him up and they were out of there.
Jordan seemed out of it as they dragged him through the club and into the cab. He was mumbling under his breath.
Nate couldn’t quite make it out until they were all piled into the back seat of the car. He was half-expecting Ramsey to take the front seat, but he only slid in the other side.
“Where to?” the driver asked, eyes wide.
Nate wondered if Ramsey was going to demand he sign an NDA for this whole evening, but then he hadn’t been in that small, closed-off room with them. He was only witnessing the aftermath.
