Page 13 of Deuce

I headed to the living room.Deuce sat on the sofa with his legs splayed out in front of him.A teapot and two mugs sat on a tray on the coffee table, with a plate of cheese and crackers beside it.

The man appeared to have a domestic streak, which clashed wildly with my mental image of him as a dangerous biker.He stood when he heard me enter the room.

He lifted one brow.“You hear from your friend yet?”

I nodded.“Yeah.She’s not coming.She’s out for the night.”

He lifted one brow.“I thought she was your BFF.As in cover your butt, be there when you need her kind of friend.”

I shrugged.“I didn’t exactly tell her what happened.I just asked her to come watch an old movie with me.”

He gave me a quizzical look but let the subject drop.“I’ll stay the night then.You shouldn’t be alone.”

I frowned, not sure what to say.

He held up one hand.“I’ll behave.I promise.I can sleep on the couch.”

Although being alone normally didn’t bother me, having someone stay sounded like a great idea tonight.Since I didn’t want to drag my dad into this mess, Deuce was the next best choice.He’d already demonstrated his ability to make the bad guys turn tail and run.

“I’ll get you a pillow and some blankets.”

“I can get them.You sure you’re okay with leaving the cops out of this?”

Probably picked up from my dad, but I had a distrust of authority figures in general and that included law enforcement.“What if they’re in on it?Cops can be bought, right?”

He gave me a quizzical look.“You sound like you’ve had some dealings with them that didn’t turn out so well.”

I shook my head.“No.Not really.Just hearsay and listening to my dad talk.He doesn’t have much faith in them.”

He stared at me for a long moment.“Your choice, but you can sleep on it and decide in the morning.Not like they’re going to do much about it tonight anyway.”

Relief flooded through me.I really didn’t want to deal with anyone right now, and I didn’t want to argue about it.“Sounds like a plan.I’ll go get you that bedding now.”

Deuce shook his head.“Not necessary.Just tell me where and I’ll get it myself.You sit and drink your tea.I made decaf Earl Grey.Something warm in your belly will help you sleep.”

This guy was almost too nice to be real.How come I never met anyone like him on the damn dating apps?I smiled gratefully and reached for one of the mugs.“There’s a linen closet at the top of the stairs to the left.”

Deuce turned and left the room, and I heard his footsteps ascending the stairs.The man was not light on his feet.He returned moments later, his arms full of bedding.He tossed it on the overstuffed chair on the far side of the room.Plucking one of the blankets out of the stack, he spread it over me and tucked it in.

Picking up the other mug, he tossed the remote control to me.“So what are we watching?”

I crinkled my nose.“An old favorite of mine.Darlin’ Bride.”

* * *

Deuce

It didn’t take long for Sophia to fall asleep.She looked adorable, snuggled up in the corner of the sofa with the blanket pulled up tight to her chin.The gauze bandage on her arm was still dry, which I took to be a good sign.The bleeding had stopped.

I picked up my phone and texted Rattler.I wanted a couple of prospects over here watching the house.Sophia didn’t think the kidnappers knew where to find her, but it was better to be safe than sorry.He replied within minutes, which meant whatever business Ace had pulled him for was done.He promised to send a couple of guys over ASAP.

I got up as quietly as possible and carried the tea tray back to the kitchen.Sophia’s house was cozy and inviting.I liked it.The kitchen had a small island in the middle, and French doors leading out to a patio.I did a quick security loop of the house, checking to make sure all the doors were locked and the curtains were closed.If anyone was out there, I didn’t want them to be able to see the inside layout.

Hopefully the sight of my bike parked under the carport would deter any would-be bad guys from thinking Sophia was alone and an easy target.If not, I’d take care of them, but Sophia didn’t need any more drama tonight.

I considered carrying Sophia up to her bedroom, but I wasn’t sure how sound a sleeper she was.She looked comfortable where she was, so I decided to leave her alone.

Loading the dating website she’d accessed earlier on my phone, I browsed for a while, using the login details I’d saved from her earlier.It looked like a legit site.Lots of lonely guys and gals looking to hook up.If George and crew were using it to target women, it was unlikely the admins knew about it.Maybe Shadow could dig a little deeper.I needed to let Ace know what was going on, though.As Prez, it would be his call as to whether or not Riptide got involved.I sent him a quick text.Moments later, my phone rang.

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