Chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE

He was such an asshole. Too damn stubborn for his own good. All those times he considered using his resources to check on her and he hadn't because she hurt his feelings.

Dani liked to say he was the mature one but his actions told a different story. If he had even checked up on her once, he would've known she was suffering.

"Don't do that to yourself, Gage. Don't take that burden on."

It was too late. The burden was there and nothing she said would make him feel better. He came in hot, ready to make her out to be the bad guy, but none of that mattered anymore. She had more than repented for the perceived sins he’d thrust upon her.

He needed to change the subject. Gage cleared his throat. "Something you said about one of the members is bothering me."

If Dani wanted to argue with him more, she instead bit her tongue and allowed him to switch topics.

"Which one?"

"You said that after rehab, one of the guys let you sleep in his room but expected nothing in return. Was he there before you left for rehab?"

The club members of the Hell Raisers weren't known for their generosity. And they were by no means a new club in the area. He’d heard all about them as a kid and knew to stay away from them. Although now that he thought about it, his friend Mark had also been obsessed with them, thinking they were so cool despite the warnings. A small part of him always knew there was something off with Mark but he pushed it away. Maybe if he had followed his gut back then, Dani wouldn’t have felt comfortable seeking him out when things got tough.

"He was. But now that I think about it, he wasn't as high ranking before I went in the first time. He was there but always in the background. It wasn't until I came back that I really noticed him. Or more accurately he noticed me. He would always turn up when someone tried to harass me."

If the man was what he thought he was, Gage owed him big-time for protecting Dani when he couldn't.

"I need to call Bree to have her look into something for me."

"What does Bree do?"

Gage expected to hear jealousy when Dani asked but there was only curiosity in her tone.

"She's a computer prodigy. If there's something to be found, she can find it. She's also married to one of my teammates."

Dani nodded. It was then he realized that, at some point during their heartfelt conversation, he had taken her hand and linked their fingers together. He wasn't sure when it occurred but it felt right. She grounded him when all he wanted to do was spiral out of control and kill every person who hurt her while he was away.

Gage pulled his hand back and stood up. "I better go make that call." But before he walked away, he leaned down and brushed his lips across her forehead. It was the first familiar thing he allowed himself to do.

Forehead kisses were her kryptonite. He knew it and used that knowledge to his advantage.

He headed for the kitchen, not waiting to see how she responded to it. A million different emotions were racing through him at once and he needed time to sort them out.

It would have to wait though. The conversation with Bree couldn't.

His co-worker answered on the second ring, this time with far less attitude. "What can I do for you, Gage?"

He wasted no time jumping into his theory. "I need you to find out if there’s an investigation into the Hell Raisers."

Bree scoffed. "Pretty sure they have several investigations into them at any given time. Probably local, state, and federal if I had to guess."

Gage forced himself not to bite back in return. Instead he replied calmly, "Yes, I understand that, but something Dani said got me thinking they have someone in the club undercover."

A whistle, which did not belong to the female he was on the phone with, came over the line. Which meant he was on speakerphone.

"That's one hell of a risky assignment to take." He immediately recognized Chance's voice. "If the MC even suspected he was undercover, they would kill him. No questions asked."

"Yeah, I know."

So he was curious about who the agent, or hell, even cop, could be that they would risk their assignment to help Dani. If that was what happened. It was just a theory he was running with. "I would first look into the DEA or ATF. They would be the obvious choices to send someone in. The local police department wouldn't have the manpower but maybe they’re assisting."

It seemed unlikely, and from what he knew about federal agencies, they rarely played well with the locals unless it was required. But he had seen stranger things happen.

"I'll see what I can find, but a case like this would be kept tightly under wraps. Like Chance said, it would be a risky assignment and whichever agency it is wouldn't want to jeopardize the agent’s identity."

"I appreciate you looking."

If there was even the slightest chance that he and his team could assist with bringing the MC down, he would jump on it. They didn't yet have confirmation that the Hell Raisers were who shot at them, but his gut was saying it was them. Dani would never truly be safe until the club was taken care of.

"That's what family does for each other," Chance replied.

Not this again. First, Bree. Then, Steel. And now, Chance. His teammates were ganging up on him one by one.

He was ready for this phone call to be over, but of course Bree had to get the last word in. "Oh, and, Gage? Don't think I didn't see that text you sent my hubby. If you believe he can stop me, you're more delusional than I realized."

The sound of Chance laughing at him was the last sound he heard before the call clicked off. There were some days that working with couples had its drawbacks. Today was one of them.

Gage checked the time on his phone and winced. They missed lunch and were now pushing past the normal time for dinner. He was surprised Dani hadn’t complained about his lack of hospitality. Then again, when did he give her the opportunity? Between the shootings, the phone calls, hell, even the arguments; it had been nonstop since he picked her up.

A plan slowly formed in his mind as he walked back into the living room.

"What are you hungry for? I just realized how late it is, so how do you feel about takeout and a movie?"

Black had warned him when he got off the plane that he would need to have groceries delivered since the house wasn't stocked. It slipped his mind, with everything else going on, and it was too late for shopping now.

"I'm not picky and that sounds like a good plan to me. I could use a night of just relaxing."

So could he.

Gage placed the order for dinner, and set up to have groceries delivered in the morning, and let Dani pick the movie while he changed into sweatpants. Dani was still in the clothes she wore when released, so he snagged an extra pair of shorts and a shirt for her to change into. Gage might not have planned to stay in Pennsylvania but that didn't mean he wasn't prepared. A bag with several changes of clothes traveled with him everywhere and he was thankful for the foresight.

"Here, why don't you change into these before the food gets here." He tossed the clothes next to where she sat on the couch.

Without saying a word, Dani picked them up and moved down the hall to the half bath. Gage didn't have time to dwell on the ramifications of how they planned to spend their night because the doorbell rang seconds later.

He checked the security system from his phone. It was their food. Thank goodness for the Chinese places in this area always quoting “ten minutes” until delivery.

Gage thanked and paid the delivery driver. By the time Dani came back out of the bathroom, he had everything set up for them to eat and watch a movie together.

And that was exactly how they spent the rest of the evening.

The shrill screaming of his ringtone startled Gage awake. It took a few seconds to catch his bearings and figure out where he was. The bright blue light of the television screen threatened to blind him.

He reached for his phone on the coffee table but was stopped short by something in his lap. Wait, no. Not something but someone . Dani's head rested comfortably on his one thigh.

"Stop the ringing …" She buried her head deeper so now it was only centimeters away from his growing erection.

Gage cleared his throat, and hopefully his brain, since he was pretty sure all the blood in his body was rushing south. "That's work. I need to answer it."

The call must've been important because whoever was on the other end, called back immediately when he didn't answer the first time. Sliding Dani's head away from his lap, he shuffled to the edge of the couch and answered the call before it could ring out a second time.

"Hello?"

"Well, it's about damn time. Note to self, if I'm dying, you aren't the first person I'm calling." Bree was too animated for . . . he pulled the phone away from his ear to check the time . . . three in the morning.

"Sorry. Fell asleep on the couch and was a little disoriented."

It was a lame excuse and they both knew it. He had fallen asleep in hundreds of different locations over the years but he always woke up ready for anything, no matter what time it was.

"Fine, whatever. I'm calling to let you know your house was shot up."

That gave him pause. He lived in one of the houses in their cul-de-sac behind their headquarters in New Mexico. No one could get within a mile of their place without warnings going off and he would've known. The security for their location was hooked up to alert each of them. There was no possible way.

"How the hell did they get past security? And is everyone okay? Were any other houses hit?" Gage scrambled off the couch. He needed to get back. Screw everything else. He needed to be with his team.

"Not your house here , dumbass. The one you conveniently own in Pennsylvania that you never told anyone about."

He fell back onto the couch. He forgot about that. Not that he owned it, he knew he did, but he forgot that was the address he used on the paperwork when he signed for Dani at the jail.

"What happened?"

"So you're not going to tell me about the other place?"

Bree wouldn't drop the subject. Sure, she might for a minute while she gave a report, but that was as long of a reprieve as he was going to get.

Gage rubbed the spot between his eyebrows. "I bought it off my parents when they moved away. I'm not even sure why since I hated it. It was a spur-of-the-moment thing."

"And yet, you pay the taxes on it yearly and keep the property maintained."

Now he was just getting aggravated. It shouldn't have surprised him that Bree dug into his life here in Pennsylvania but was it too much to ask for a little privacy?

"How the hell did you even find out?"

"I had a search running on you, Dani, and your past to be notified if anything popped. I was alerted a few minutes ago. FYI, you should be receiving a call from local law enforcement about it shortly."

He blocked out the personal aspect of the job and tried to think about things objectively. It would've taken a lot of digging to discover his connection to his parents’ old house. When he was working for Pritcher, he had that information buried deep. It was no surprise someone like Bree found it, but an average person? No way.

"Someone from the jail must've leaked the information."

He was thinking out loud, not really talking to anyone in particular. He looked over at Dani for the first time since he answered his phone. She was only able to hear his half of the conversation.

He covered the phone with his hand and explained. "Someone shot up my parents’ old house."

She grabbed at his arm. "Wait, did someone live there?"

Huh. Guess it was time to tell some of his own secrets.

Gage didn't bother to cover the phone this time. "No one has lived there since my parents left. I bought it off them and it sits empty."

Confusion. Shock. A ton of emotions flickered on her face. Oh yeah. He had a lot of explaining to do.