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“Of course, but it was ruled an accident. Why do you ask?”
“I have my reasons. I want the name of the officer who handled the call.”
“Sure,” he half whispered, although there was a huge frog in his throat about ready to choke him. Unless I did it first. I didn’t like bullshit artists and liars and the slick man sitting in front of me was both.
“Did you bring the cash like I asked?”
He seemed perturbed I’d interrupted him but yanked out an envelope. “You have full access to Mr. Masters’… Galen’s accounts. I’m not certain why you insisted on fifteen grand in cash.”
“Because that’s all I’m going to need. The rest I ain’t touching.”
“But you will have a business to run.”
“That’s my brother’s business, not mine.”
Matt narrowed his eyes, his mouth opening wide. “But he trusted you to take care of his employees.”
I took a long pull on the beer as I walked closer. “I ain’t shutting the place down, Mr. Jones. I’m just not the kind of man to profit from my brother’s death, no matter what he told you. I do have honor.” As least in this regard I’d follow my brother’s wishes. To a point. I had no intention of turning into some stuffed suit pretending to be something I wasn’t.
He seemed confused then nodded. “We can place the funds in a trust if that’s what you’d prefer.”
“Sounds good to me. If my brother trusted you, then I guess I’ll need to. For now.” I grabbed the envelope, shoving it into my back pocket. I’d count it later.
He allowed his gaze to fall slowly down my chest, concentrating on the ink on my right arm. I guess he wasn’t used to seeing men with tattoos. What the hell was Las Vegas like? I didn’t really want to find out.
“Yes, well, I know this is a lot to take in, so I’ll leave all the paperwork.”
When he started to get up, I slammed my hand on the table with more force than I’d intended. “Tell me the rest.”
He swallowed hard, his face turning white. “I’m sorry. Yes. I’m certain you want to get everything in order right away.”
As he pulled out yet another set of paperwork, I gritted my teeth. Maybe I could sell the place, find something smaller. With real trees. A place where a family could be raised. I almost laughed at the ridiculous thought. Who was I kidding? I wasn’t a relationship kind of guy, and kids? They’d likely grow up mass murderers.
* * *
Harlow
The moment I drove into the small neighborhood, I almost hightailed it out of town. I’d been so quick to accept the job after a single Zoom interview, thrilled I’d be living far away from Virginia, that I’d asked maybe three questions. Then I’d surfed the internet, finding what I’d thought would be a small but nice house in a quiet little suburb. This place was… horrifying. I imagined gang wars at night or worse.
I checked my notes for the fifth time, finally able to find the address. When I pulled in front, a lump forming in my throat, I reminded myself that this was just a rental, not permanent. With the salary I’d been offered, in six months tops I’d be able to afford a bigger and much nicer place. Or so I hoped. I knew the expenses would be tough at first, but I was a strong girl.
As I glanced into the rearview mirror, the terrified look in my eyes reminded me that I had no money, no friends, and no sense of rationality left. It was obvious I’d left it back in Richmond. As I pulled into the driveway, I couldn’t help but notice that the number of weeds growing through the cracks almost made the dull concrete look as if sod had been placed over the top. At least the thought gave me a laugh.
For some crazy reason, my thoughts drifted to Savage. I’d tried not to think about him since I’d stood just outside the garage where my car was being worked on, watching him walk away, but it had been difficult. The promises I’d made to myself about tuning him out didn’t matter. He’d managed to grab a portion of me and had given me the most stimulation I’d experienced in my life. How could I forget him when every time I had shifted back and forth across the seat, the discomfort had brought the spanking back into the forefront of my mind? He’d been thorough too, my upper thighs stinging like a son of a bitch.
Damn the man for acting as he if owned me.
Just thinking about him brought a wave of desire that the air conditioning couldn’t cool down. The fact he’d fucked me in the ass had seemed like a dark fantasy come true. I was more pathetic than I thought. Exhaling, I allowed my crazy thoughts to become positively filthy. His scent lingered, staining my skin. A part of me didn’t want to take a shower because I’d lose a portion of what we’d shared. I knew my thoughts were ridiculous, but I’d felt free of the chains that had remained even after selling my furniture, giving away clothes and books, music and dishes to Goodwill.
Then he’d dropped into my life, powerful and dominant. Sighing, I pressed my fingers across my lips, trying to remember the last words he’d said to me before heading toward his Harley.
“Take care of yourself, sunshine, and remember what I taught you.”
At least he’d been a gentleman after all, waiting until the mechanics were almost finished with fixing my car before leaving. He’d insisted that the money was a gift, a push to help me find a better life. I’d figured out that wherever he was going was far removed from the life he’d led before. I’d also seen sadness in his eyes, the same weight that I’d felt for more than just the past few days.
I should have paid attention to the signs the day I’d seen the asshole in the copy room with Sassy. I knew then they weren’t discussing an upcoming proposal. Why, oh why had I believed I’d get the promotion?
“Stop it. You left that life behind.”
