Ajax (Time Served MC: Nomads #5)

PROLOGUE

ONE YEAR AGO

A JAX

“Why are we here?” Fish asked grumpily. “I thought we were going to eat.”

“I have an appointment. It probably won’t take long.”

Fish sighed and his brow furrowed in concern as he asked, “Are you sick?”

“Do I look sick?”

“You don’t look any different from the last time I saw your grumpy ass, but if you’re not sick, then why are you going to see a doctor?”

“There’s a nurse I’d like to speak to, and she works here, so I made an appointment.”

“Did she block your number or what?”

“What the hell kind of question is that?”

“I was trying to be nice instead of outright calling you a stalker.”

“If you can’t figure out what the fuck I’m doing here, then why did I hire you to work for me?”

“Because you wanted an excuse to visit Florida whenever you felt like it and no one else would put up with your shit.”

“Both are valid reasons, but that still doesn’t explain why you can’t figure out what the fuck I’m doing here.”

“It’s about a woman, so you’re clearly not thinking straight.”

“Did you ever stop to think that maybe this is a job?”

“Fuck, I hope so. There’s no other good reason to be this far north in the winter. I don’t know how these people live like this,” Fish said with a grimace. “My nuts are so shriveled from the cold that it’s gonna be at least June before they thaw out and get back to normal.”

A woman walking in our direction, who had obviously heard Fish’s frozen nuts complaint, stumbled before she righted herself and hurried past us. When I glanced over my shoulder to make sure she was okay, I saw she was looking back at us, probably to make sure that the perfectly normal, although strikingly handsome, guy had the crazy one on a leash.

Unfortunately, I didn’t. I didn’t even have a muzzle on him. Fish had chewed through it days ago, and I hadn’t made time to go find another one.

“Can you amuse yourself for half an hour without causing a riot?”

“Around here? I doubt it.”

“I’ll be out shortly,” I assured him. I looked up and down the street before I said, “There’s a diner over there. Go have some coffee or something while you wait. I don’t want the cold to affect your delicate sensibilities.”

“Aww.”

“Actually, I don’t want to hear about your nuts anymore, so I’m giving you the opportunity to warm them on a seat inside.”

“You’re so good to me, Ajax.”

“At some point, I’m either going to fire your ass or kill you. Every day is a test of my patience that leaves me pondering which direction I should take.”

Fish chuckled as he walked past me towards the diner, flipping me the bird over his shoulder. I laughed when he walked out in front of a car and they almost hit him and then groaned when Fish slapped the hood and yelled, “I’m walkin’ here!”

I stood outside to make sure there wasn’t a gunfight, which was a distinct possibility considering we were in the middle of Detroit, before I turned to face the door of the clinic where I’d made my appointment. I tried to tell myself that I was waiting outside to make sure that Fish made it to his destination without causing a riot, but deep inside, I knew it was fear keeping me still.

What if she was a horrid bitch when I’d been imagining an angel all these years?

Surely not. Years ago, when we were writing back and forth, I would have noticed if that was the case, right? But, then again, I had been confined to a men’s prison with no female in sight other than a few of the guards who were manlier than I ever aspired to be, so the sweet woman I remembered may very well be an illusion.

I sighed before I reached for the door. There was only one way to find out, and standing in front of the only door leading into the place wasn’t it.

Besides, Fish was right. It was too damn cold to stand here for long.

◆◆◆

“You know how to read?” Fish lowered his newspaper and glared at me over the top as I slid into the booth across from him, and I laughed at the look on his face. “You’re pretending, aren’t you?”

“You email me incessantly, and I read every single one on the off-chance that there may be a tiny grain of new information. Same with the constant text messages and every fucking stupid meme you come across. Sometimes, just because of how much you insist on communication, I wish I was illiterate.”

“I pay you a decent wage, and this is how you talk to me.”

“Enough about my charming wit and personality, Ajax. Tell me about your appointment. Do they think they’re going to be able to clear up that STD?”

The server, who had approached our table with a welcoming smile, grimaced before she set my glass of water on the edge of the table before she pushed it closer to me with the tip of one finger.

Fish actually giggled, and I counted the ways I could painfully torture him before I let him die.

In an effeminate voice, I said, “Sweetheart, they’re called STIs nowadays. Didn’t your doctor tell you that when you went in for your last round of shots?”

The server, who had been so cheerful on her way over, turned around with a huff before she stomped toward the kitchen.

“You broke her little heart, Ajax. She was vibing on me.”

“Shut up, hippie.”

“What did you find out?”

“Well, I found the woman I’ve been dreaming about since . . . well, forever, and she’s happily married with a bunch of grown kids and a grandchild on the way.”

“That sucks.” Fish cleared his throat before he said, “I mean for you, not her. What did she say when she saw you?”

“She didn’t know who I was. I used an alias when I checked in.”

“Shit. Now I really think it sucks. This could have been one of those star-crossed lovers stories, but it’s probably gonna end with you binge drinking and trying to get us killed.”

“Most likely.”

“Well, I can guarantee the server isn’t coming back. Wanna blow this joint and find a bar?”

“Fuck yes. I want that more than anything.”