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“Perfect. I’ll get things sorted downstairs and be ready to head out in an hour.” He collected their plates and left.
Hawk straightened. “I’ll go grab us some new coats and hats.”
“You don’t want to finish your coffee?”
He met her gaze. “I want to get this done, the sooner the better.” He grabbed the gun from the nightstand and tucked it in the waistband of his jeans at the small of his back and then pulled his sweater down over it.
Remy sat and sipped her tea and he’d thought he’d seen a hurt look flit across her features but it was gone too fast for him to be sure. He hadn’t meant to hurt her if that was the case but being near her was killing his concentration.
“I’ll be back shortly.”
He pulled on his jacket and headed out, closing the door behind him. What he hadn’t said was he wanted this over because she was a serious distraction. He wasn’t much for relationships, but he’d sure as hell would like to have sex with her again, and he couldn’t do that as long as he was trying to keep her safe. So, for now, it was hands off, but that was easier said than done so keeping her at a distance from him was the easiest way to guarantee he didn’t grab on to her and make her yell his name like she’d done last night. Just the thought of that made his cock jump. This favor for Lacy had turned into a nightmare in more ways than one.
CHAPTERFOURTEEN
If she wasn’t so worried about getting killed, Remy would have put on her jacket and gone back to her shop on her own. Jesus, what a friggin’ thought that was. How had her life gone off the rails so damn quickly?
She flexed her head from one side to the other, trying to release the painful tension. The mess her grandfather left her in wasn’t the only source of her discomfort. Hawk announcing that he didn’t want to waste one minute drinking coffee with her had pierced her like the thorn of a cactus. He wanted this sorted. Well, no shit. She did, too, but taking a moment to drink coffee wasn’t going to change things.
She took a sip of tea and tried to calm herself. The sex had been great but she didn’t want a relationship. So why did the pang in her chest at that thought make her need to grind her teeth? She was being stupid.Grow up. She could think about relationships later when she knew she was going to live longer than forty-eight hours. Even entertaining the thought of a relationship with the man was plain old stupid. Hawk had just made it very clear that he was not interested in anything long term.
She set her mug down and closed her eyes for a minute. Her current situation was responsible for turning her into a ninny. Stress and uncertainty were creating havoc with her emotions. Hawk was the only strong, true thing in her life at the moment. Maybe that’s why she wanted to cling to him. He was her anchor, and she was currently being caught up in a major storm. It made sense that she was falling for him. She was desperate.
But it really was time to grow up and get her head on straight. She was approaching her mid-thirties. She’d never needed anyone to take care of her. She’d stood on her own two feet for ages.Time to stop being so wishy-washy. She opened her eyes as she picked up her phone and glanced at the screen. Gus sent a text late last night to let her know he’d made it to San Diego safely.Thank God. She didn’t have it in her to deal with any more loss.
She pulled up the notes feature on her phone and started making a list of names of people from the neighborhood that her grandfather spoke to on a regular basis.
They should start with Abdul at the bodega three blocks down from the bookshop. He and her grandfather played chess together on Saturday afternoons when Emily was working at the shop.
Then it would be Madam Zalinski. Thinking of the woman brought a smile to her face just as the door opened.
She tensed, then relaxed as she spied Connor.
His face was ice-cold as he bit out, “You have to move.”
“What? What’s goin’ on?”
“A group of Asian gang members just came in downstairs. They could be here because I put out the word I’m interested in finding that token, but I don’t want to take any chances.”
Remy pulled on her shoes. “Did you tell Hawk?”
“Yes. He’s gonna meet ya at the back door. Leave your coat. He’s got a new one for ya.” She grabbed her phone and tucked it in her back pocket. She took her gloves from her old jacket pocket and then rounded the bed.
Connor stepped back into the hallway. “Okay, come with me.” He shot her a glance. “You’re gonna be fine. Your man is excellent at taking care of people. He saved my bacon twice.” Then he winked. “Although I won’t admit that to him. Can’t have his ego getting too big, can we?”
She nodded and tried not to freak the hell out. How the fuck had the gang members found them? Or was it Connor they were there to see?
They went down a different staircase at the other end of the hallway. The stairs terminated at a large metal door with three massive deadbolts on it.
“Do you have a lot of trouble here?” she asked in a quiet voice.
Connor grinned. “No, and there’s a good reason.” He pointed at the locks. “No need to make it easy.”
She tried to return his smile but just couldn’t manage it. Her hands started to shake so she jammed them into her jeans’ pockets, finding comfort in having her handkerchief there, like a security blanket. Cold seeped through the door, and suddenly her sweater didn’t seem nearly as warm as it had upstairs.
“Okay,” Connor said, looking up from his phone. “Hawk is outside.” He put his phone in his pocket, pulled a gun from his waistband, and started undoing the locks. The clunks and clinks were loud in the silence, unnerving Remy further.
She knew she shouldn’t be shocked by the gun, but she was. Connor and Hawk had discussed weapons earlier, and she seen Hawk stash a gun at the small of his back. But the idea of needing firearms to protect was surreal. When had her life devolved into hanging out with gun-toting men?
