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“I don’t mean the affluent areas. The town’s grown over the years, but some things stay the same.”
“I’m not rich. The house is all I have. Jay’s home is the hills.”
Jesus, the gated community where the new rich are, complete with guards in gold carts. The American wet dream. Or was. But it suits this place because those people own businesses, work in town, and send their kids here to school.
I see why Nadia’s ass of a brother doesn’t leave his kid there alone and instead with her. I see more clearly than her why he dumps the kid instead of taking him, and it’s not about education or stability. He just doesn’t give a fuck.
“Anything stopping Jay from staying there and having his friends there too?”
“The guards and the entire community. They’d know in a second.”
“Rent-a-cops who don’t have guns are useless.”
“They gossip and big-note themselves. Once, Regina, Seth’s wife, forgot her pass and ID and went in to get it. They refused. They knew her, and they waved as she left. But my brother had to come home from work and get her back in. Good thing he was in town.” She presses her lips together and slides her fingers down along the outside of my jacket. “So, Jay’s not there.”
“Cold?” I’m about to take off my jacket for her when she flinches, snatching her hand away. I sigh. “C’mon, I’ll get you home.”
* * *
The ride is heaven and hell. Heaven, because Nadia’s close and has her arms wrapped around me, head against me, and it wipes out the years. Hell, because this is, if I’m going to remain any kind of decent man, all there can be.
So, I’m both glad and disappointed when we get to her place.
“I can take it from here.”
I get off the bike after she does. “Fuck that. Someone was wanting you to meet them.”
“That was ages ago. I hardly think they’re still here.”
She’s really not of my world. If someone wanted to get to her badly enough, they’re not giving up. So, I glance about—a curtain in the house to the right twitches.
Straightening, I hand her the helmet. “Wait here.”
Before she can say a word, I stride off to check the perimeter and down the side of the house. I’m not carrying my gun, walking into a bar like RoadSide, even without the change in ownership, with anything more than a knife is like a red flag.
And if I can almost always pick when someone’s packing, sure as hell, it goes the other way.
Besides, I’m more than capable of taking care of myself.
In the narrow area between the fence and the house I find a man’s print in the dirt and the butt of an old cigarette.
It could be something, it could just be from her nephew. Nadia said near, which could mean around the corner on the street, but that’s a little different. It’s residential for a few blocks on either side, so standing out in the open is harder to do in a nice area. Someone’s going to call the cops.
I also don’t want to take off and leave her.
Returning to her side I motion to her door. “I’ll see you in.”
“It’s not a fucking date, Diego,” she mutters.
I smile. “Yeah, but I’m an old-fashioned guy.”
“No, you’re not.”
God save me from this woman. “I want to make sure there’s no one nasty lurking inside, okay? Now, get on up there and unlock the fuckin’ door.” I lean in close. “Your neighbors are already highly entertained.”
“Busybodies.” She huffs. “Come on, protector man, take a look.”
She leads me up the steps and to the front door.
