Chapter 7 #3
He shook his head. “I might as well have. He came here for me.”
“Cayden, look at me.” When he didn’t, she added, “Please.” Cayden gritted his teeth.
Damn that word. He couldn’t resist her when she said it.
He leaned his chin on his left forearm and looked at her.
Her chocolate eyes were kind. She didn’t look angry in the least. “We need to go talk to the cops. Afterwards, you and I are going to have a talk about you taking responsibility for actions that aren’t yours. ”
He had no choice but to nod. Looking over at where the two officers waited, he said, “Come with me?”
“Of course.”
He stood up straight and took her hand. Apparently today was the day for revealing secrets. He wasn’t letting go of her, making their relationship obvious to anyone looking.
Officers Wittman and Jackson extended their hands as Cayden introduced himself and Trixie.
He made sure to point out that Trixie was the owner of Romero’s, not wanting the officers to assume he was.
Cayden was also upfront about being on parole and gave the officers the numbers for Mr. Wynn and Mr. Jones.
Wittman stepped aside to call Mr. Wynn and Mr. Jones. Cayden was not happy about that but knew he had done nothing wrong. Jackson asked the standard questions before the biggest one Cayden had been dreading. “And why would Bucky bring the stolen vehicle here?”
“Because he likely believes I’m chopping here on the side.”
“Are you?”
Cayden’s eyes narrowed and his hand tightened around Trixie’s. “No.”
“Mr. Russo, with your record, you have to admit that it is suspicious for you to be working here.”
Trixie jumped in before Cayden could. “Mr. Russo is a valued employee here, Officer Jackson. He’s an exceptional employee.”
Jackson pointed his pen towards their entwined hands. “And I’m sure that has had no influence on your answer or perspective, Ms. Romero?”
“My perspective is crystal clear,” she snapped. Cayden gripped her hand in warning. “Regardless of my relationship with Mr. Russo, he works here legally and has never done anything to make me question my trust in him.”
“There’s nothing in my parole that states I can’t have a social life,” Cayden added before Trixie said anything else. Her words, though tense because of the situation, had made Cayden’s heart soar.
“No,” Jackson agreed, “but it might lessen the credibility of her testimony if she has to give one, either for or against you.”
Cayden’s back stiffened. “I am not the one who stole that car. I am the one who called you. I could have let Bucky just drive off with it, but instead, I did the right thing. I called the cops so that you could return the vehicle to its rightful owner. I am not under arrest so my relationship with Ms. Romero is none of your damn business and none of your concern.”
The heat he was feeling had nothing to do with the summer sun beating down on them. They were looking at him like he was still wearing his old cut.
He saw Mr. Wynn’s truck pull into the lot just then.
Cayden wasn’t sure if he was happy to see the older man.
The fact that he had to be called at all grated on Cayden.
There was nothing like having to have one’s parents called to impress a girl.
They only had to deal with this for eleven more weekends, and then they were responsible only to and for themselves.
Trixie smiled as Mr. Wynn approached, which lightened Cayden’s mood considerably.
Jackson and Wittman continued to question Cayden about Bucky.
No matter how many times they asked the same question, Cayden provided them with the same answer.
Bucky had brought the Royce to Romero’s believing that Cayden was running a job here, and he wanted in.
They didn’t like that Cayden didn’t know Bucky’s last name, nor did they like that Cayden didn’t know where Bucky was currently living.
They also weren’t happy that Cayden had let Bucky “just walk away”.
They appeared to have no sympathy for the complicated position Bucky’s presence had put him in regarding his parole.
He did not tell them that Bucky was wearing a Black Python’s prospect cut.
They wasted most of the day answering those questions.
The lunch hour came and went, and there was no way the staff wasn’t gossiping.
Terrance had been sent back inside, and Cayden was holding Trixie’s hand in full view of the open bay doors.
Though they’d been discreet, Cayden didn’t know how much the staff had suspected about his relationship with Trixie.
They had to go through the whole thing all over again when Mr. Jones arrived. If Trixie hadn’t been at his side the whole time, Cayden had no doubt that the famous Russo temper would have made its presence known. Instead, he leaned on her.
He hated this. Hated the whole thing. The cops weren’t grateful he’d called them.
As soon as he’d told them his record, they’d looked at him with an air of caution.
To them, despite the fact that he had been the one to call them, he was a suspect.
They likely thought he’d only called them to cover his tracks at Bucky’s unexpected appearance or that the whole thing was some elaborate ruse to trick them.
Cayden just had to stand there and grip Trixie’s hand as a reminder that he’d done nothing wrong.
A tow truck had come and gone for the Royce, which had been confirmed as stolen.
“Are we done?” Trixie finally asked. She’d been such a trooper. Cayden had no idea how he was going to make this up to her.
Orgasms. Lots and lots of orgasms.
The officers finally nodded. “We’ll be in touch.” They handed Trixie one of their business cards and shook her hand. They didn’t offer Cayden the same courtesy.
Once a biker, always a biker, he thought cynically.
As soon as the black and white was out of the parking lot, Trixie stepped in front of Cayden. She was still gripping his hand, as she had for the last several hours, and placed her other on his cheek. “I need you to do something for me.”
“Anything,” he promised before thinking better of it. What if she asked him to give her some space? He didn’t know if he could do that.
“I need you to take a deep breath. You are fine. I am fine. We,” she emphasized, “are fine. I am not angry with you and I do not hate you. In fact, I’m quite proud of you right now.”
He flinched. “You shouldn’t be. I wasted your whole damn day with this stunt.”
“You did not. You did the right thing, no matter how annoying or,” she made a face, “aggravating those two were. At the end of the day, that’s all I can ask of you.”
“Cayden.” The couple turned towards Mr. Wynn. “I’m sorry, son, but I have to take you back to the house.”
He stiffened. “Why?”
Mr. Wynn had the good sense to look guilty. “This was a work incident. Until it’s been reviewed, you’re under house arrest.”
“No!” The men turned to Trixie at her exclaim. “That’s not fair!”
“Fair or not,” Mr. Jones interjected, “it’s the law.”
Cayden deflated in defeat. Ten weeks. He just had to make it ten more weeks.
“You can’t send him back to jail!” Trixie squeezed his hand so tight he feared she was going to hurt herself. Her other hand looped around his arm, and she clung to him like he was her lifeline.
God, he didn’t know if he should be thrilled or pissed by her reaction. She shouldn’t have been subjected to this day at all. This was his fault, his doing, his darkness. Trixie was too good for him. Even Cayden 2.0 wasn’t worthy of her.
He carefully ungripped her hand from his arm and then removed his hand from hers.
He bent to kiss her fingertips. “I’ll be fine, baby.
They have no cause to send me back to jail.
I am just under house arrest until they verify that I didn’t break parole.
It’s stupid and it’s aggravating, but it’s what has to happen.
” He cupped her cheek, loving how she cradled her head into the caress. “I’ll see you this weekend.”
“Actually.” They both stiffened at Mr. Jones’s voice. “With it being so late on a Thursday, they likely won’t get to review your case until Monday, which means any furlough passes will be revoked.”
“No!” Trixie shouted again. “You can’t do that!”
Mr. Wynn approached her. “I’m sorry, Trix. I have to.”
“But—”
He stopped her protest with a look. “It’s the law, Trix. Don’t fight it. You’ll only hurt yourself or Cayden further.”
At those words, Trixie clamped her mouth shut. She closed her eyes, but Cayden had seen her tears welling up. He leaned forward to kiss her lids, her nose, and then her lips.
Looking over at Mr. Wynn, he asked, “Can I go inside and get my stuff?” He indicated to his coveralls. “I should change too.”
Mr. Wynn nodded. “Of course.”
“I’ll need to go with you,” Mr. Jones added.
Cayden let out a long sigh. Grounded and a chaperone. Yeah, she definitely deserved better than him.
Trixie had put off confronting her employees by taking the coward’s way out: she just didn’t show up for Friday morning’s staff meeting.
Everyone seemed to know to keep their distance from her.
Even Jeff and Joey skirted around her. For the first time in her life, working on a car did nothing to calm her nerves.
There was a pit forming in her stomach, and it just kept gnawing its way bigger.
House arrest meant that Cayden had lost his phone and visitor privileges, along with his weekend furlough.
The closest they had come to talking since she’d watched him being driven away in Greg’s truck was her calling the house phone and talking to Peggy while Peggy talked to Cayden.
There was nothing sexy about having your surrogate aunt tell your boyfriend you missed him.
It was like he’d taken a part of her away with him. Their separation this time was different from when he’d had to go back to the house midweek. It felt…forced. Like she was as much under house arrest as he was. She wasn’t even allowed over at the Wynns’ to see him.