Page 23 of Dealing Dirty
That earns me a gentle laugh. “Name’s Ethan,” he says, extending his hand to me.
First Hazel, now this guy. Is there a sign on my back inviting people to make my acquaintance? “Juliana.” I smile shyly.
Curiously, the man Ethan came in here with is alone, leaning against the far wall. Something about the way he’s hunched over, shifting his eyes around, has me staring a little longer than I should.
“That was quite an entrance,” I say as the man across the room brings his eyes to mine. “What’s with your friend?”
Ethan’s head tilts. “Oh, don’t mind him. He’s socially awkward.” He conceals his mouth from the rest of the bar. “Poor guy’s thirty-seven and still living with his mom.”
The way he teases makes me smile.
“You know, you’re too beautiful to work in a dump like this,” he says.
My cheeks burn, and whether it’s from embarrassment or irritation, I can’t be sure. Jack is my friend, but more importantly, he’s my boss. He wants to make The Pound a better place, and I don’t appreciate this guy making fun of it—no matter how flattering he is.
I’m about to tell him as much when he trails one final look over my lower half. “It was nice to meet you, Juliana.” He purrs my name before sauntering away, leaving me dumbfounded.
I watch him snap and point toward the door, and his friend smoothly pushes off the wall before making for the exit.
Cooper positions himself in front of Hazel as Ethan boldly makes a pass by the Wolves.
She rolls her eyes with crossed arms, unimpressed, but my jaw pops open when he stops and turns back toward me. He winks over his shoulder before grabbing the door handle, then steps out into the raging storm with his friend in tow.
Micah’s thumb traces his lower lip while he watches the front door close behind them. I have a good feeling we’re thinking the same thing: this isn’t the last time we’ll be seeing those two.
Chapter Seven
Derrick
“You didn’t!” Sasha gasps from the recliner in my living room. She zeroes her light blue eyes on the snack I’m carrying.
“What kind of brother would I be if I didn’t stock this place full of your favorite treats?” I wiggle the Snickers and Kit-Kat bars at her, and she snatches them out of midair.
Every bone in my body creaks as I dissolve into the recliner next to her. My night consisted of stocking the back of the bar with supplies and kegs before jumping in with the kitchen crew to tackle orders. My shoulders are aching, but I’m happy to be home.
It’s nice having Sash here with me. Kind of feels like we’re back home with Mom and Dad, waiting for them to turn on our favorite cartoons. We were never without a bowl of colorful, sugary cereal on Saturday mornings. Periodically, Dad would get off the late shift at the factory and bring us home various treats—usually a random something or other from a gas station he’d stopped at. But he never forgot a chocolate bar for Sasha.
We kept our dentist in business, that’s for sure.
She gazes longingly at the candy as her thoughts seem to migrate toward the same memories. “I miss Mom and Dad so much. We really should make a trip to see them soon.”
I pull the lever that kicks the foot of the recliner out and stretch the seat back. “Yeah, we should. I’m surprised Dad hasn’t called to tell us what a steal airline tickets are right now, following that up with some expired coupon codes.”
Sasha’s eyes touch the ceiling. “He’ll never learn! You can’t expect discounts fromeasyfreecoupons.comto be legit.”
Sasha laughs around her chocolate. She’s always been my adorable little sister, and even now, I can still see her pigtails, mismatched pajamas, and that old, tattered stuffed bunny she insisted on keeping until she was fourteen. Now, she’s a grown woman, living her dream of being a detective, and a damn good one at that. My heart swells with pride for her.
“How’d it go today?” I ask.
She slides her feet out from under her, swiping up the Kit-Kat and tearing the wrapper with her teeth. After taking a bite out of the whole thing like a psycho, she says, “Good! Chief seemed excited to have me back, and some of my old comrades are still there. I guess things at the station have been on the quiet side the last few years.”
My stomach churns. It kills me to leave her in the dark, but Bruce can only be stopped if we’re able to cut him off from every angle. If I tell her about our situation, she’s going to hyper-fixate on it and undoubtedly cause trouble. She’ll draw unwanted attention to the PD, and I have no way of knowing what the police chief’s stance is in all of this. As of now, I’m assuming the worst.
“I’m already hot on my first case,” she says, wiggling her brows.
“Look at you, hotshot.”
“I know! Do you have any idea how many gangs are in this town?”
