Page 15 of Waging War
His right eye twitches before he swivels toward the woman. “I’ll have whatever he’s havin’.”
“That’s cute. Are we on a date?”
Cooper inches his stool close enough to make a weaker man uncomfortable. He’s trying to show dominance, but unfortunately for him, I don’t give a rat’s ass about what he’s out to prove.
He drops his voice to a rough whisper. “I had a nice little chat with Kenneth on the way home from the hospital.”
I blink, the picture of innocence. “Did you now?” The bartender slides him a matching highball, and I take a long, slow pull from the bottle I’ve been nursing, relishing the tic in his jaw and the rigid way he observes me.
“Cut your shit, Ben. I don’t like you and I don’t trust you. I’m not sure how you got Kenny to agree to this scheme you and the mayor have worked out, but if it weren’t for his direct order to stand down, I’d dice you up and leave you for dead in the alley.”
Christ. What is their obsession with premeditated murder?
Popping my knuckles, I turn toward him. Cooper swallows as I lean into his obnoxious man-spread, getting nice and cozy with our knees touching.
Deep down, Cooper’s probably a decent man. But what he fails to understand is just how little he intimidates me. Though I can appreciate the effort it took to come here and confront me, sadly, it’s been wasted.
Nice-guy Ben doesn’t exist around here. In fact, nice-guy Ben doesn’t exist at all.
“You’ve got some balls waltzing intomyterritory, knowing full well that I could have you killed where you sit and no one would bat an eye,” I tell him. His face is reddening, and the snake coiled low in my belly slithers across my lips, forming a cruel smile. “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll finish that drink and ride back to your crew without another word.”
His gaze flicks to the casino floor and back, the badass façade cracking slightly. “Where is she?”
“Who?”
Unconvinced, Cooper shakes his head. “You know who. Tell me where she is, Ben, and all of this can be water under the bridge. Our family has been split up for long enough, but knowing Kenny and Hazel are alive means the Wolves can finally be whole again.”
When I don’t offer a response, he adds, “We just want our girl back.”
My shoulders twitch. It’s not my problem that he hasn’t been able to keep their gang together, and I don’t care for the possessive way he saysourgirl.
Like he really meanshisgirl.
The stool squeaks when I sit back.
Do Hazel and Cooper have some sort of history? Is she pacing the floor of her prison, plotting another attack so she can run back to her biker boyfriend?
Admittedly, he’s closer to her age, and I imagine the perks of being shacked up with the VP of the Wolves are unlimited. But the idea of them together doesn’t sit well with me, and the thought is as dangerous as the female herself.
Cooper would never let her out of his sight, even if I could give him what he’s asking for.
Oddly enough, I’m not sure that’s what Hazel wants.
After fishing through my wallet for a twenty to tip the bartender, I slide it across the bar and move to stand.
Cooper steps in my way. “We’re not finished here.”
I swing my gaze around. Several security guards make eye contact.
“You got trouble over there?” one of them says in my earpiece, but I shake my head. I should let them drag him out of here. If Bruce’s men recognize him as a wolf, they’ll enjoy a little slow torture before tossing him out in the nearest field to rot.
“We’re more than finished here. Given the risks, it was foolish for you to come here tonight. You know the assignment. I suggest you swallow your pride and do what’s asked of you.”
Shouldering past him, I make my way to the exit, but not before I hear him comment, “I thought that at the very least, you would be a decent man.”
“Yeah,” I scoff. “Well, think again.”
* * *
