Page 9 of The Reluctant Siren
“I went into the Army because I didn’t have anywhere else togo,” he admitted.
“Yeah, I figured. You did good work there. You got out, gotyour degree. You take care of the people around you. And that is why I’m goingto ask you to be patient with her because she’s curious about you in a way Ihaven’t seen from her since we were in high school,” Gabe said. “Look, Harlowhas a lot to deal with. You know about her family?”
He nodded. “It’s like yours. She’s got two dads and a momand everyone is happy.”
Gabe’s lips curled up. “I’m glad to hear you say that. It’snot what I tend to hear. You would be surprised how many people I’m interestedin get scared off when I talk about my family.”
“There’s nothing wrong with your family. And nothing wrongwith hers.”
“Well, you haven’t met my Uncle Chase,” Gabe said with awhistle. “He is…incredibly interesting.”
“I think she calls him her deranged dad.” He listened. Itprobably made him a pervert, but he sat in the bar and sipped his beer andlistened to Harlow talk to her friends, hoping for any tidbits of informationshe would give them. “From the stories I’ve heard Chase is the smart butoverprotective one and Ben is what she calls her reasonable dad.”
“You are not wrong,” Gabe agreed. “Chase is one of thosepeople with such a high IQ he sometimes finds it hard to fit in with theregular folk.”
Niall nodded. “I’ve known a couple of people like that. Ialso know no matter how much she complains, she loves him.”
“She does, and I actually think he’s going to approve ofyou.”
He wasn’t sure Gabe was being realistic. “Uh, she would haveto agree to spend time with me before he could approve of me.”
Gabe took a deep breath and studied him for a moment asthough trying to figure out his next move. “You’re not the only one who listensin on a bit of gossip.”
“I thought not gossiping was one of the rules of the club.”Was it gossip if one simply listened?
Gabe snorted, an oddly regal sound. “Sure. All clubs run ongossip. The rule is there so we can spank pretty subs who get caught. You knowthere are two sides to this club.”
This was a clear truth he’d learned quickly. “Yes, the onesassociated with McKay-Taggart and the ones with Lodge Corp, though you all seemto be friends.”
“We kind of grew up together, though my side of the familyis more spread out than Seth and Luke’s,” Gabe explained. “Anyway, the otherside is known for being involved in the security business, and we all knowthere’s security in information. I’ve found subs love to gossip, and they alsolove to please their Masters by bringing them important news.”
“You mean you have them spying on each other.”
“That’s such a loaded word. I rather think of it as keepinginformed. I know we have a board, but for the most part our board members aremostly off on assignment for ‘McKay-Taggart.’” Gabe put air quotes aroundMcKay-Taggart. “So it’s up to me to watch out for any problems that mightarise. Do you understand?”
“Yes.” Niall nodded his agreement. “You are a controlfreak.”
“Says the man who also wears leathers and tops subsnightly,” Gabe said with a chuckle.
He wasn’t wrong. “You like to make sure everything isrunning smoothly and that your family is safe and happy.”
“It’s probably a bit of both. I think Harlow is going to askyou for a favor tonight.”
That was news to him. “You got this from your gossipnetwork?”
“Let’s say the walls of the women’s locker room bounce soundaround a bit,” Gabe admitted. “If you’re in the shower area, you can probablyhear anything going on around the lockers. Harlow and Ruby have taken on acase, and they need someone to go undercover with them.”
He tried not to let his surprise show. “I thought they usedMcKay-Taggart when they needed bodyguards.”
He knew way too much about Harlow’s business and herpractices. At first he’d researched them to be able to put Jensen’s mind atrest. Then he simply wanted to know everything about her. He wanted to put hisown mind at rest.
Gabe sighed. “Uncle Chase has been on edge since theirbrand-new receptionist managed to make herself a material witness in a drugtrafficking ring trial. To say it went poorly is understating the word poorly.Chase lost his cool, but then something happened to Harlow a few years back.”
Niall was so curious about who knew the truth about whathappened that day. He only knew what Jensen told him. “Do you know anythingabout it? All I’ve heard is a case went bad, and she ended up in jail.”
“She doesn’t talk about it,” Gabe replied. “At least not toanyone who will tell the tale. I suspect there was a man involved, and he hurther. Not physically. She would have defended herself and told everyone what afucker he was. I think he broke her heart. She would keep that private. Shewould think that was at least partly her fault.”
It made his gut tighten. “If some asshole hurt her, itwasn’t her fault.”
