Page 28 of Dark Encounter
"And you're not now, pansy-ass." I chucked the pillow and got up to get dressed. She was a pretty set of tits and a fine ass to tap. Period.
"You almost make my heart stop every time I see you."My voice echoed in my head from the night before. It was the truth, but saying it out loud made it that much more real. I had to walk away. I had to force myself to grow the fuck up. A man like me couldn't have a woman.
"Or next time you're down in the river, it'll be your girl swimming with the fish just like they did your sister." I ran my hands down my face as fear filled me. I hadn't stopped looking for Delaney's murderer though the cops called it a pre-teen suicide and blamed it on us losing our mother the year before. Nothing could have been farther from the truth, and the part that nagged at my soul was that my father didn't fight, didn't look. He fucking gave up. Why?
I dressed quickly and walked out into the hallway, making my way down to the large living room near the front of the house. I needed to get my mind off my nightmares andnothave it move to me falling in love with Grace.
I kissed her. Fuck me. I shouldn't have.
Breaking my own rules meant I was in deep. How it happened, or when it happened was beyond me, but I had to reconcile it. I wasn't a boy anymore, and my lust and desires could fuck off if it meant keeping my girl safe.
"You look like shit." Kane glanced up from eating something from a bowl. "That you screaming like a bitch down the hallway?"
"Yeah. Let's have someone take the person that matters most to you, fuck her for weeks, cut her up and dump her remains in the river out by your house and see how you fare." I walked by him and popped the bowl, flipping the cereal all over his lap. "Fuck you too."
"Erik. Come on, man. I didn't mean any of that. I just-"
I flipped him off and walked to the breakfast bar in the kitchen, taking a seat. Lizzy was busy making eggs and bacon, the cute Swedish girl glancing over her shoulder and smiling brightly at me.
"Morning. Want something to eat?" She turned and put a hand on her hip. My father had hired her a few years back, and we all remained respectful to her. She was a good woman... too good to be involved with a depraved bunch like we were.
"No. I'm good." I ran my fingers through my hair and glanced over at Kane as he walked in. It was hard to ignore the desire in Lizzy's eyes when I was around her, but having Grace front and center in my mind helped. My father would cut off my feet if I touched his staff. I'd lost interest the moment I stepped foot in the library anyway.
"Dude. I said I was sorry." Kane walked to the sink and tried to wash his shirt and pants off.
"Something happen?" Lizzy glanced over at me, her long blond hair in a playful ponytail.
"No. He's just being his usual dickish self. No biggie." I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding and let my animosity go.
"We got a hit this morning." Kane glanced over his shoulder.
"We?" I snorted. "Since when do we work together?"
"It's one of the three guys that took money from your father. I did my research, and none of the assholes have the money to pay him back, so you're up. Grab your gun and let's get going."
"Fine." I got up, grabbed my gun from my bedroom and met him outside a few minutes later. "Who are these clowns? Did they know they were stealing from us?"
"Hell no. They're just college idiots." He got into his side of the car and buckled up.
I took a deep breath, trying to let the stain of my dreams fade before getting in the car beside him. It was going to be a long fucking day having to deal with Kane and ignore Grace.
* * *
"Dude. I swear we didn't know." The guy couldn't be more than twenty-two or so. "We were in a sticky situation and-"
"Where's the money, mother fucker?" I lifted my gun as we stood in a back alley in the middle of the day. Getting caught wasn't my concern. Getting finished was.
"It's gone. We stole it to give it back to someone." His voice broke, and tears spilled onto his cheeks as his jeans darkened from him pissing himself. "Please. I'll get it back."
"You believe that?" I glanced over at Kane, who was leaning against the brick wall behind us.
"Nope. Not for a minute. Hurry the fuck up." He gave me a look.
"Man, please. Just give me some time and I'll-"
"Time's up." I pulled the trigger and tucked the gun in the back of my jeans, grateful for the invention of the silencer.
"I'm hungry. Let's eat and then get out of here."
