Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen

THERON

“So, are you going to be able to go?” Emmie asks me again.

I haven’t answered her yet, pretending that I didn’t hear her because the last thing I want to do is go to dinner with her fucking family. But maybe that’s what I need to do to get in with her father.

Instead of making the excuse of being busy, which is what I want to do, I agree. I want to know what the fuck is going on with these people, figure out how they know Ravet and when the exchange is supposed to happen, and get this shit done. Then I can scrape this bitch off.

“I’ll be there,” I confirm.

She smiles. It’s fake. It doesn’t reach her eyes, but I don’t call her on it. There’s no reason to. I don’t give a single shit about her being real or fake. I’m being fake, so what the fuck ever.

Dropping her off at home, I decide not to stay the night. It’s been a couple of days since I’ve seen Lucille, and I’m starting to have withdrawals. When I leave Emmie, I set my personal alarm for her place. She doesn’t know that I have it, which helps me keep tabs on her, along with the app on my phone.

As I drive toward Lucille’s, my phone buzzes with a new notification. Pulling over to the side of the road, I reach for my phone and look down at the screen. I expect to see a notification about Emmie’s alarm, thinking that she left after me, but it’s Merrick.

MERRICK: COME TO THE OFFICE

Fuck.

I turn my car around, my balls aching in protest. Depending on what Merrick wants to talk about and what he’s discovered, I might still have some time to dip my dick in Lucille later tonight.

A few moments later, I’m walking into the surveillance room, and I’m surprised to see that the whole gang is there. Merrick is leaving in the morning for his new father-in-law’s surveillance job. So, I’m surprised that he’s here working right now.

“What is going on?” Hale asks.

Merrick inhales a deep breath, holds it for a moment, then lets it out slowly. “Tomorrow, after your little family dinner get-together, is the exchange. Ravet is going to be at the Willow Club.”

“Tomorrow?” I ask.

“Tomorrow,” he confirms.

“That gives us dick for time,” Boden growls.

He’s right. It doesn’t give us much, but I’m also on the inside of all of this, so at least there is that. Pressing my lips together, I rock back on my heels as I shove my hands in my pockets.

“What do we do?” I ask.

“We do nothing,” Merrick says. “You are going to go to that dinner, wired.”

I arch a brow. I can’t help but wonder if that’s the wisest decision we’ve ever made. Sure, we have ways of hiding all of that shit. Asher will probably never see it, even if he checked me, which I doubt he will.

But there is something a bit unnerving about it. This isn’t just a regular surveillance job. This is my past… our past, coming back. We want vengeance more than anything in this life, and if we fuck this up, it could be another ten years before we’re able to have an opportunity like this again.

If I fuck this up, I fuck my brothers up. Everything is riding on this, including healing. Something that all six of us need. As the days have gone by, I realize now more than ever that I need this in order to move on with my life—with Lucille.

She is the one who I was always meant to have as my own. I was just too fucked up to keep her all those years ago. She’s back, and I am going to ensure that she never leaves my side and, more importantly, my bed ever again.

“And you guys?” I ask.

Merrick smiles. “Thought you would never ask. I was thinking about this while everyone was coming down here. I think we’ll keep someone here to watch the club and you on a split screen. Each one will be recording as it goes down so we have evidence of whatever we need.”

Hale lifts his hand. “I’ll stay here.”

I’m surprised because he is, without a doubt, someone who prefers to be in the field. He flicks his attention to meet mine, no doubt sensing my gaze on him, and jerks his chin in my direction before he speaks.

“Don’t want to be anywhere near him. I don’t think I could control myself. Being here, away from him, will be the best place for me and us.”

I cannot only understand that, but I can respect it as well. With Hale and me not being part of the rest of the plan, we take a step back and allow the men to hatch whatever it is that they have in mind. I know I need to leave soon. I need one more night of peace before this shit explodes.

And I know where my peace is.

There can only be one place.

LUCILLE

Standing at the bar, I look coyly over my shoulder, batting my lashes at the man beside me. He’s not my type, not in the slightest. Even if I didn’t hate his sister, he still wouldn’t be for me. It’s not that he’s ugly or anything because he’s not.

In fact, he’s impeccably dressed and groomed, better than I could ever be. Which is a turnoff. I want a little rugged when it comes to men.

He glances over at me but doesn’t see me. The man looks right through me. A few years ago, that would probably be a trait that I would find attractive. And maybe if it were someone like Theron, my panties would be melted. But I think it’s more the man and not necessarily the cockiness that is unattractive to me.

I flick my gaze down to the drink in his hand. Martini, which kind of looks silly in his large hand. But who am I to judge? Slowly, I lift my gaze up to meet his. He arches a brow, lifts his drink to his lips, and takes a sip.

I imagine this man is used to women falling all over him. He’s wearing an outfit that costs more than a month’s worth of rent, and he’s good-looking. I don’t do that, though. As I sit here attempting to flirt with him, all I can think about is how I don’t want to be here.

Honestly, I would rather be anywhere else. I don’t want to play with this guy. It seemed like a really good idea at the time, but it doesn’t anymore. I slide off my stool, leave my drink on the bar, and head to the bathroom.

After using the restroom, I wash my hands and take in my appearance. I don’t like what I see. My makeup is too heavy, and my hair teased too much. My dress is too low-cut, too tight, and definitely too short.

This is not me, not in the slightest.

Turning around, I inhale a deep breath and head out of the bathroom. As I make my way through the bar, I ignore anyone and everything around me. I am going home. I’m going to strip this shit off my face and take a long hot shower, then I’m going to pour myself into bed and rest in hopes of a new plan coming to me.

Stepping out of the bar, I turn to the right and head toward my car. Before I can reach my vehicle, I feel a warm, firm grip wrap around my bicep. Whipping my head to the side, I lift my eyes to see a man looking down at me.

It’s him.

It’s Charlie Grant.

Holy shit.

He smirks and takes one step closer to me. My heart races and blood rushes through my ears. I think I just fucked up—big time.

“I noticed you eye-fucking me. Why are you leaving?” he asks.

His voice isn’t as deep and definitely not as sexy as Theron’s, but right now, he’s exactly where I thought I wanted him. Except, I’m not sure I want to do this anymore. Pressing my lips together, I roll them a few times as I try to think of something to say.

“It’s late,” I lie.

It’s ten, which I would not consider late. He knows it’s a lie, too. Charlie’s brow rises before he lets out a chuckle.

“I have to deal with my family tomorrow night. At least let me have a nice evening with a beautiful woman before I am sent into battle.”

I can’t do it.

This is the opportunity I was looking for. I could play the game, cuddle up with him, and work my way into his life, at least enough to mess with Emmie. But I’ve lost all of my ambition to do that.

“I’m sorry. I need to head home.”

I shake off his grasp then continue toward my car. I hear him mumble behind me, but I ignore him and his words. This was stupid. I need to continue focusing on Emmie. Tonight, I’ll come up with another plan and implement it tomorrow.

Because this one was one of my dumbest ever. I need to stick with the devil I know, or at least slightly know, which is Emmie.

It doesn’t take me long to get home, and when I walk into my apartment, I let out a sigh of relief as I kick off my high heels. Slowly, I move toward my bedroom, where I strip out of my dress and toss it on the floor, not giving a shit because nobody is going to see the mess but me.

The moment the steam from the shower hits me, my shoulders fall, and I finally feel at ease. Stepping into the warmth, I close my eyes and let the water wash over my face. I take a longer shower than normal, washing my hair and letting the warm water massage my sore muscles.

Only when the water starts to turn cold do I finally shut it off. I dry my body off, wrap the towel around my hair, and move around my bedroom, pulling on a pair of panties and a tank top to sleep in. Then I comb my wet hair out before I crawl into bed.

I don’t lie down immediately. Instead, I reach for my laptop on my nightstand and open it up. Logging into my fake social media, I make a few comments and like a couple of posts from random people.

I type in her name, then begin scrolling through her page. She’s made six posts today… six. I find that so odd. I can’t imagine having anything to say to people six times in one day. Maybe I’m more of an introvert than I thought.

Her last post is the most interesting. She’s getting her nails done tomorrow before a big family dinner. I like the sound of that. I also know that she has to work in the morning before her appointment.

I’m not working tomorrow at all. I suppose I’ll have to spend the day visiting with Emmie.