Wasn’t one life better than none?
Of course me doing my job did have its price. The price was just personal. It was costing me Julie. Yeah, we only had one date. Yeah, maybe we would go out three more times and she would hate my guts. Maybe she was the kind of girl who would nag me to death about everything and wear ugly ass granny panties beneath her sexy little clothes.
I guess I would never know.
And that is what sucked the most.
My option for finding out what was between us was gone.
Slater was sitting at the booth, which was surprisingly vacant… He barely looked up when I slid across the cheap vinyl seat. I picked up a beer, not knowing whose it was, and took a long pull. Then I took another.
If I hadn’t known beforehand that Slater was undercover, I never would’ve guessed he was a cop. He had closely cropped dark hair, dark eyes, and a square jaw. A brooding and arrogant air surrounded him at all times. He fit in well with this crowd. He looked like he belonged on the streets with them. Slater barely spoke and gave the impression he barely paid attention to anything but beer and women, but I knew better.
He hid a sharp and cunning mind beneath his streetwise exterior.
I drained the rest of the beer and set it down on the table, slouching back against the booth. Slater glanced at me.
“What the hell was that?” he said.
I did a quick scan of the area around us to make sure none of the crew was listening.
“They’re in the bathroom, cleaning up Dom’s face.”
I smirked. He was a pansy ass. I still wasn’t sure how he became the quote-unquote “leader” of the organization here, but somehow he pulled it off.
“I can’t believe you went at him like that,” Slater said, picking up a beer and taking a sip to cover the fact he actually spoke a long sentence.
“She’s off limits,” I said, no room for debate in my words.
Slater studied me. “Gets messy when you work on your own turf.”
I didn’t say anything. But he was right. Working undercover in the same town I lived in posed a whole new set of challenges to go with the others I already faced.
“That display of temper actually bought you some points,” Slater said around another large gulp of beer.
I tipped my chin as I spoke. “How?”
“You went right after the boss. No fear. Most guys—especially new ones—try to prove themselves.”
“I ain’t got nothing to prove.”
Slater’s lip curled up on the side. “Not now you don’t. Word of advice?”
I spread my palms wide, inviting the advice.
“Don’t do it again. He’s the kind who wants strong people around him, but if he thinks you’re going to try and take over, you’re out.”
I let those words sink in. A couple of the crew members came back to the table, giving me apprising stares. I kept my body relaxed, but inside, adrenaline pumped through me, putting me on high alert.
One of these lackey’s might decide they wanted to “prove” to the boss that they got his back by coming after me.
The ring in my lower lip stung and irritated me. I didn’t know how people with fifty piercings did it. I suppressed a sigh. This was just one more thing to suck up for the job.
Dom came out of the crowd and stopped to talk to a few people at a nearby booth. He picked up one of the beers and saluted the table, then turned his eyes toward me.
He sauntered over, his lip looking nice and swollen. He was going to have a black eye too. Good. He deserved that and more.
He slid into the booth next to Slater, who barely even glanced at him, and slung his elbows on the table.
“Give me one reason I shouldn’t beat you down for what you pulled.”
I tried to look bored. “Last time I checked, I wasn’t on your payroll.”
“You’re at my table.”
“I’ll stay out of your way. You stay out of mine,” I said and slid out of the booth to stand.
“Sit down,” Dom ordered.
I suppressed a smile. He was a predictable tool. As much as I hated it, having Julie here tonight had actually helped me.
I glanced his way but didn’t sit down.
“Why are you here?” he asked.
I gestured to the room around us. “This is a club. I came to party. Saw my man Slater”—I motioned to him and he grunted—“and decided to come say hello. I see I’ve worn out my welcome.”
I glanced at Slater. “Later, man.”
He drank some beer.
“You used to roll in Myrtle Beach?”
“Yep.”
“You knew Pike?”
“Yep.”
“You part of Pike’s crew?”
“Nope.”
Dom’s eyes narrowed. My one-word responses weren’t really to his liking. I had to admit, I liked pissing him off. “No?”
I half shrugged. “I was. Now I’m not.”
“I told ya,” Slater said to Dom. “Gray moved.”
Dom narrowed his eyes suspiciously at me. I felt the muscles in my neck bunch. This is where I had to pass the test. “You were part of Pike’s crew. He runs more towns than anyone I know. Why would you walk away from that much power?”
“Power wasn’t mine. It’s his.”
“So you want your own power? Your own turf?”
“Power is too much work,” I said arrogantly.
He stared at me, weighing my words. I let him look, refusing to buckle against his doubt. I knew he didn’t believe me. Hell, who would? Who wouldn’t want power? Power was worth almost more than money in a world like this.
Slater cleared his throat. “Gray had other things to focus on.”
Dom turned his gaze away from me toward Slater, and I finally took a breath. Slater grinned a cocky grin. “Some men are more apt to be led around by their dumb handles.”
Dom threw back his head and laughed. He glanced at me. “That bitch really worth all that?”
My gut tightened and anger rose up inside me at the mention of Julie. I didn’t want her brought into this. Not at all. I glanced at Slater. I wanted to punch him in the face. He gave me a look, a split second of warning in his eye.
About fifty cuss words floated through my head. If I didn’t say the reason I moved here was because of Julie, I was screwed.
“What can I say? I like her eyes.”
Dom laughed. “Yeah, I just bet it was her eyes that had you following her up here.”
I grinned suggestively.
Dom gestured to the booth so I slid in. “Man like you must be pretty bored around this Podunk town when you’re used to so much action.”