Page 77 of Bonded By Christmas
“Jesus,” I mutter, shaking my head. “This is the last shit I need.”
“Especially with your pretty sister on the verge of going into heat.” Patrick laughs.
“Stepsister,” I correct, because he made it sound weird.
“Yeah, sure, right.” He continues laughing. “Anyway, if I were you, I’d put a call in to Moretti. Let him know he can hand over the interlopers or there will be problems.”
“I’ve only been at this job for three years, and I’m already ready to retire,” I say, my frustration spilling into my tone.
“Ahh, it’s not so bad,” Patrick says.
“Are Charlotte and her son okay?” I know it’ll be the first question out of Lacey’s mouth, and I’d like to be able to truthfully tell her they’re fine.
“They’re good. The boy never seems to run out of things to say, but Charlotte agreed to come with us mostly willingly.” He chuckles. “At least, once we explained the severity of the situation. However, I’m hoping you’ll contact Moretti andhandle that for all of us. Maybe then she’ll stop planning her exit route for the second one of us falls asleep.”
Again, I’m baffled.
How the fuck does everything become my problem to solve?
Grim comes into the office as I’m wrapping up the call with Emory Moretti. The bruises and cuts he’s been sporting since his last fight are finally almost healed, but if all goes to plan, he’ll have a few more to contend with after tonight.
“Lacey is having a fit about something,” Grim says, scratching his beard. He shrugs. “Got any idea what that’s about?”
“Shut the door,” I tell him, shoving my phone into my pocket. “We have a problem.”
“It’s always something,” he mutters, perfectly echoing my thoughts.
“You have no idea.” I exhale heavily. “I believe I have a better understanding of exactly what happened the night Lacey was attacked…” I go on to inform him that Charlotte must have, at some point in time, been tangled up with a motorcycle club out of Jacksonville. I have no information as to why they’re now hunting her, but I feel confident that they were actually after her that night at the Christmas festival. “Perhaps they smelled Lacey and got distracted. I have no idea, and Charlotte isn’t talking. At least not yet, hopefully the O’Connors will be able to gain more details as she begins to trust them.”
“They sure weren’t hard to kill for being affiliated,” Grim says, chuckling. “Point me at the others. I’ll handle them by nightfall and be back in plenty of time to cuddle up in the nest for bed.”
“Actually…” I smile tightly. “I have no interest in having the entire MC show up on our doorstep. Emory Moretti was approached by the man in charge of their Boston congregation. There are six men in town. I spoke to someone named McCarthy and explained why his men were removed from the equation?—”
“What a goddamn mess,” Grim interjects.
“It is,” I agree. “But it’s not as bad as it could be. Even outlaw bikers understand the code. Their men attempted to touch something that didn’t belong to them, and they paid the price.”
“What now?”
“Lacey is probably going to be rather furious with me, but Emory Moretti negotiated on our behalf.” I swipe a hand over my face. “You’re in the ring tonight with two of their guys. You come out on top, and the slate is wiped clean. You fail to hold your own…” I shrug. “They’ll probably attempt to beat you to death.”
Grim scoffs. “You really think the others will walk away once I wipe the floor with their men?”
“If they have even an ounce of intelligence, they will, but from what we’ve seen so far from their people, I won’t be holding my breath.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
Callum
Lacey is a nosy little thing. She won’t stop poking around in the bond, even as Grim and I do our best to block her.
Hell, I don’t even know anything.
She calls her friend Charlotte while Wilder handles the phone call with Patrick.
Once Grim goes in to get an update, I drag Lacey upstairs to shower.
She grumbles and gripes to the point I give her a few swats bent over the bathroom counter. Apparently, I don’t go hard enough because her attitude doesn’t improve.
