12. Earl

Chapter twelve

Earl

" W e got a fuckin' problem!" Bash bursts into my office, dropping down in the chair in front of me, interrupting the conversation between Sam and me.

I lean back, resting my hands on the desk as I glare at him. He's my brother, but he fucking knows better than to enter my office when the door's closed without knocking.

"Did we forget something?" I ask, gazing past him to the door that still stands open.

Bash rolls his eyes in annoyance, causing Sam to chuckle.

"Now, what the fuck is the problem?"

"We've got a couple of problems. First, someone's lookin' into Melissa's past."

"What's the issue with that? You covered all the tracks, gave her a new identity, and we handled the douchebag she was married to—made his disappearance look all legit and shit," Sam announces proudly. He took great pleasure in ridding the world of the vermin.

"Yeah, but I wasn't as good as I am now. I never went back in to clean up some of the shit that had holes in it. I did today. The only fuckin' problem is someone was diggin' into it before could." Bash leans forward, resting his arms on his thighs. His jaw is clenched and the slight tremor of his hand tells me he's furious at himself for not going back after all these years and making sure shit was still kosher.

"Do we know who was lookin'?" I need to know who we should keep our eyes on.

Bash lifts his hand, running it frantically through his hair. "Fuck no! I've been tracin' the footprint and the dick's jumpin' from IP address to IP address, both here and in other countries. He's good."

"What makes you so sure the person's a he?" Bash just shrugs his shoulders at my question. "Okay, well, you've taken care of what needed to be. We know someone's snoopin', so we'll keep an eye on it. He's gonna fuck up somewhere along the way and we'll know who and where he is. What's the other problem?"

Bash clears his throat and scoots forward in the seat, and I know we're about to be hit with a fuckin' bombshell. He runs the palms of his hand along the rough material of his jeans.

"Out with it, man. What's got you so fuckin' rattled?" I blurt, already reaching down and opening my desk drawer that holds my bottle of whiskey. I pick it up and set it on my desk before pulling out three glasses. I've got a gut feeling we're going to need it.

"Does the name Sakalov mean anything to you?"

Sam and I look at each other with raised eyebrows.

"The family of guns for hire?" Sam questions, slightly confused.

"That would be the one." Bash reaches across my desk, taking the glass I just poured for him and downs it.

"Why would they care about Melissa? She has no connections to them."

Bash shakes his head, a small snort escaping him.

"That's where you're wrong. Seems she does. Not from the past, but currently." Bash just shifts his eyes between the two of us. "Really? Neither of you have figured it out?"

"Obviously we haven't, dickhead. There's no one with the name Sakalov in this town!" I snap, an intense, piercing pain building behind my eyes as my head pounds like sticks on a drum.

"You're wrong, Prez. There is one, but he doesn't use that name. He's Salazar Sakalov's grandson." Bash picks up the bottle of whiskey, refilling his glass.

I sit there, staring at him as I begin to put all the pieces together. Fucking christ. Jaxton Hall is Jaxton Sakalov. Why the fuck is he here and going by a different name? Something in my facial expression must give away my figuring out the puzzle.

"See you finally got it. Seems he stepped away from the family business about seven years ago. He's been bouncing around between cities until he landed here, makin' it his home and settin' his sights on Melissa."

"Fuck!" rushes from my mouth as I bypass my glass and lift the bottle straight to my lips.

"We don't need that fuckin' crazy ass family in our town," Sam interjects. I know his mind is on our kids, our grandchild, and the backlash that could come from us crossing their paths. "Did you hear how they fucked up the Gabraldi family? They cut off the father's dick and made his sons eat it before offing them. They're fuckin' psychopaths."

"Who called her? Was it someone from the Sakalov family, maybe a threat to Melissa to get Jaxton back into the fold?" I ask, as a million scenarios of who it could be flood my mind.

"I don't think so. I truly think Jax is here for her. But I do believe Melissa knows who the caller is." Bash stands, picking up his glass and downing the last of his whiskey, setting it back down. "I'm out of here, but I'll keep lookin'."

"Hot date with your girl tonight? You're in a rush to get out of here." Sam jokes, lightening the mood, as he winks at me.

"Har har har. The two of you are fuckin' comedians," he grouses before storming out of the room.

We both wait for the door to shut before bursting out in laughter. We've all heard Arizona barking at her men that she's ready for a baby, especially after she held Jacey in her arms. I can't blame her. It makes me wish I had another child, one I could experience growing up, since I missed Ashlynn's childhood. Luckily, I get to live that out through my grandson, and hopefully by the end of the weekend, I'll have another on the way. This time a girl that looks just like her mommy.

"Why you fuckin' with him?" I pull on a serious face as I ask Sam.

"Don't act all mighty. You were thinkin' the same thing. Ain't my fault he's got his panties twisted about it. Shit, if my woman wanted me home, fuckin' her into oblivion to make a baby, I'd jump on it." Sam stands and says, "I'm out of here," before he heads to the door.

"Hey," I call out, stopping him in his tracks. "Just give the dating app another shot tonight. Don't think about it and go out with the first person to message you."

He looks back over his shoulder, glaring at me. "Same could be said of you. Why are you here instead of at your woman's house, makin' shit, right?" With those final words, he leaves my office, shutting the door behind him, leaving me to stew in my self pity.

He's right. I need to find out what's going on with her and why that call upset her so much. I also need to come clean and let her know the threat she thinks is still out here isn't. She doesn't need to be afraid of the monster in the dark that's lurking, waiting to pounce and take a bite out of her soul.

With my mind made up, I take one final swig from the bottle and place the lid back on it. There's a fucking hot ass woman waiting for me to ease her ache. I plan to let her know how much she means to me and that I'm fighting for her to the end.

She's mine now and forever; she just needs to admit it.