Page 3 of The Devil's Playground

I nod.

“Romeo.” Link turns the car back on, scoffing under his breath as the engine turns. “Of course it has to be fucking Romeo.”

I’m the smart ass, but I like to put the emphasis on smart. I know when it’s open season to crack a joke—and when to keep my fucking mouth shut. In this case, when I get that Link’s mood has more to do with Romeo’s name than his relationship with the syndicate, I keep the comments to myself.

Pulling away from the curb, he asks, “Your car nearby? Or do I need to give you a ride back to the Playground?”

Because unless he has work for me, that’s usually where I spend my nights. Either at the tables or working my way through the female patrons with a hard-on for a lucky gambler, if I wasn’t already the underboss, I’d expect the Devil’s Playground to be my domain instead of his.

“I parked about two streets away. I wasn’t sure if I would find you here, but if I did, I didn’t want to cause a scene.”

“Good,” he grunts under his breath, taking the first turn off of Ava’s street.

As he pulls up behind my ride, a click-ing sound echoes throughout the car. It takes a second for me to understand that he was engaging the locks, trapping me inside. Sure, I could disengage them, but he made his point.

Link’s hands stay on the steering wheel, a relaxed pose. He’s not pulling out his Sig Sauer, another sign that he’s not pissed, though that can change if he doesn’t like the way our conversation goes.

I don’t take any offense to that. This is Devil, after all. There’s a reason he believes in that penance of his, and after everything he did to create the Sinners Syndicate, if he decided to shoot me now, the only thing he’d regret is losing his right-hand man—and the mess I’d make to the upholstery in his car.

“How long did you know?” Link asks me.

Just in case I’m wrong… “About?”

“Ava.”

Figured. He mentioned her, but only because I tipped my hand by showing up here tonight.

“A while,” I tell him. It’s a safe answer. “I mean, I knew she existed. I knew you were still keeping her under your protection. But if you’re asking about me knowing I could find you here tonight? That was a guess.”

“A good one,” Link says. “I come by here at least once a week to keep an eye on her. It’s not Sinners business, so I kept it to myself. Looking back, I probably should’ve told you. Or,” he adds, “kept my phone on.”

His business phone, I think. He has no problem turning that one off or ignoring it when it suits him. But that other one…

I don’t ask. After tonight, I don’t think I need to.

I do shrug, though. “Don’t worry about it, Link. I mean, maybe I don’t get why—” I pause, not sure I want to finish that sentence right now. Last thing I need is to set Devil off when it’s obvious just how defensive he can get over the topic of Ava Monroe.

He narrows his dark eyes. I didn’t finish my sentence—but he does it for me.

“Let me guess… you don’t understand why I’m mooning over a woman who spent the last two years banging another guy. Something like that?”

Bingo. “What? Nah. It’s not like that.”

“You’re such a fucking liar,” Link says, though there isn’t any heat in it. To prove it, he jabs the automatic lock button again so that I can get out of the car.

I hesitate. Something about that haunted look on his face… I’ve known Lincoln Crewes since I was eighteen, he was twenty-three, and we were both trying to avoid getting snagged by some of the more questionable gangs. With his rep—and my willingness to do anything to get a leg up—he created the Sinners Syndicate, and I was right there with him.

That was nine years ago. I probably know him better than most… and, shit, how well do I really know him?

“Link?”

He shifts in his seat, looking right at me. “Just thinking about what I said and what you didn’t. ‘Cause, fuck me, I am a sap. A killer and a cold-hearted bastard, but when it comes to her? I get more pleasure watching her live her life without me than all the half-dressed whores dancing down at the Playground you’re so fond of.”

I give him a half-smile. “To be fair, you shouldn’t knock it until you try it.”

Link’s scowl tells me he doesn’t appreciate my comment.

My hand inches over to the door handle right as his voice drops as he speaks again.

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