Chapter Six #2
I’d called Gary right after leaving my apartment, telling him I needed a place to stash the Maybach for a few hours until I had to make delivery.
Josiah had rules about never delivering cars during daylight hours.
He had rules about everything. After sealing the Maybach up in a garage, I jogged over to the Camaro and slid into the backseat.
“Gary will hold onto the car until after dark,” I said.
Mars turned to look at me wearing a grin. “Ya made that look effortless.”
I shrugged, smiling back. “It’s not hard when you know what you’re doing.”
“I got a fright when I spotted those two women walking over to the car.”
I nodded. “Tell me about it. I was terrified they were gonna get into the Maybach.” My stomach suddenly growled loudly, and I realized I hadn’t eaten anything since early morning.
Surprisingly, Mars grinned. “Ya ‘ungry?”
I nodded. “Starving actually.”
He exchanged a glance with Mickey. “Let’s get something to eat. I’m starving too.” When Mickey nodded, Mars pulled out onto the street and flicked his eyebrow at me in the rearview mirror. “What’s good in this town? I’m sure ya know all the good places to go.”
“Um…head downtown to Old Vegas.”
“Where’s that?”
“Oh, go that way.” I pointed north. “Fremont Street. It’s old town, not as glitzy.
More nostalgic than the Strip. The tourists want the fancy, new hotels that were all refurbished starting in the early 90s once the mob lost all their power in this town.
That’s when Wall Street took over and brought all the Japanese money with them. ”
He grinned at me as he turned north. “Ya know a lot of ‘istory about Vegas, yeah?”
I shrugged. “Um…I guess so. I was just born and raised here, so I guess that’s normal, plus I like to read about history and stuff.”
“That’s good,” he said, exchanging another glance with Mickey.
I had the feeling they’d been talking about me.
It was clear to me that Mars’ friend didn’t think much of me, which wasn’t really a big surprise.
I figured as FBI agents, they probably ran into a lot of swindlers and hustlers all the time, but it was still kind of shitty to know I’d been lumped into the category of criminal.
Though I couldn’t really blame them. The criminal side of me was what they knew, first getting caught breaking into cars, and then showing them how adept I was at stealing them.
I’d proven I had experience in both. They thought I was just another Vegas car thief and general all-around shitty guy.
My heart had begun to hurt. I wish they could see the real me.
Vegas had more than its share of the criminal element because tourists were usually pretty gullible, and the economy here was driven by tourism. But it didn’t feel good to know that Mars thought I was just one more crook.
I was, however, starting to warm to this job now that I knew he and his friend were in the business of taking down really bad guys like Josiah.
It didn’t even really bother me to know that once Josiah was out of business—probably in jail—I’d pretty much be out of a job.
Well…I still had Gary, but really, I’d be forced to get a real job. Shit, I wasn’t good at anything else.
I sighed to myself, knowing that meeting these two FBI agents was going to really change my life.
At my direction, Mars drove us to a little mom-and-pop Mexican place that I’d always loved.
The cooks worked really hard to make all the family recipes the restaurant served.
I liked supporting small businesses in town, figuring that everyone deserved a chance to make a better life for their families.
We found a booth near the back and I slid into it, inhaling the sights and smells of the familiar place.
When Amber came over with a pad and pen in her hand, I looked up, cursing under my breath.
“Hi, Cam!” Her perky tone and long, dark hair had once been very attractive to me.
These days, her curves and wide hips held little appeal.
Even the way she made her dark ponytail bounce when she talked or walked kinda bugged me.
It had once endlessly fascinated me. She eyed up Mars and Mickey. “Who’re your friends?”
“This is Mars and that’s Mickey,” I grumbled, pointing to them.
She handed me a menu and then the guys. “Well, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Amber. Coffee anyone?”
I nodded, sliding down in the booth and holding the menu up so I wouldn’t have to look at the agents. For some reason, I didn’t want to see Mars staring at her boobs. I dismissed the thought as quickly as it had come.
“Thanks. I’ll ‘ave a cuppa tea. Can I ‘ave proper boiling water, please,” Mars said. He sounded really friendly, but he’d sounded the same way when he’d talked to my mom earlier. I figured he really was a nice guy under all those sexy muscles.
“Coffee for me, thanks,” Mickey said, joining in. “It’s nice to meet you too.”
“Be right back,” Amber singsonged, bouncing as she walked away.
A throat cleared, and I lowered my menu. Mars was looking at me. “So, ‘oo’s Amber?”
I sighed. “She used to be my girlfriend. Her folks own this place, but I forgot she worked this shift until it was like, too late.”
Mars lifted an eyebrow. “She used to be ya girlfriend?” When I nodded, so did he. “She’s cute.”
I rolled my eyes. “She’s a pain in the ass.”
Mickey snorted and the corners of his mouth turned up. Since he hardly ever smiled and I’d started to consider him to be a lot more serious than Mars, the expression caught me off guard. “It’s not nice to call women a pain in the ass.”
I rolled my eyes again. “Except that I’ve known her since she was like ten. And ever since I decided I only like dating guys, when she’s all flirtatious like that, it just bugs the crap out of me.” I shut up fast, not meaning to say all that. What the hell is wrong with me?
Mars’ eyebrow rose again. “Ya only date guys now?”
I stared at him, thinking how nice it would be to date a guy as hot as Mars was. The more I got to know him, the stronger my attraction grew. When he cocked his head to the side, I realized I hadn’t answered him. “Um…yeah.”
“So, you decided you were bi or something?” Mickey asked.
I shrugged. “I don’t know. I hate labels and I don’t put them on myself. It just happened once I turned twenty-six.”
“What ‘appened?”
“I think guys are less caring about how you manhandle them, you know?”
“Manhandle them?” Mickey asked. The way he stared at me with a raised eyebrow was sort of intimidating.
I shrugged. “I don’t know…you know.” I waved my hand. “You don’t have to be too delicate with them. You can really screw them into the mattress and not worry about whether you’re gonna hurt them or something.”
Mars smirked and the way his eyes lit with interest made me want to swallow my tongue for some damned reason. Why the hell I was spilling my guts to them, I had no idea. “Interesting,” he said. “That’s why I prefer men too.”
Holy shit. This big, tall, gorgeous guy was gay? “You date guys? I never would’ve guessed.”
Mars nodded, glancing at Mickey. They exchanged an odd look before turning back to me. “We both date men exclusively,” Mars said.
I squirmed as the image of a naked Mars pinning me down in bed suddenly popped into my head. When I felt myself getting hard, I cleared my throat, knowing this conversation was super dangerous. I was pissed at myself for even bringing it up. “Oh, wow. Like I said, I never would’ve guessed.”
“Why?” Mars said as Amber returned with our drinks and set them down. After she’d left, he leaned across the table. “You were saying?”
Oh, God. I waved between the two of them. “I mean look at you two. You’re like every gay man’s wet dream. Big, gorgeous, body builders…I bet you bring them to their knees in the bars.” …aaand…somebody please kill me. I had diarrhea of the mouth.
I was shocked when what I’d said seemed to excite Mars, as his eyes flared with heat again. Son-of-a-bitch this guy was potent. One look, and I was close to creaming my jeans.
Mars cleared his throat again. “So, what were ya saying about twenty-six?”
I had no idea what the hell he was rambling about. “What are you talking about?”
“Ya said you discovered ya wanted to only date men when ya turned twenty-six. Why twenty-six? Did something ‘appen?”
I shook my head. “Oh…no. It just happened for me then. Besides, that’s around the same time it happened to another guy I know. But, come to think of it, he went to Catholic school. He was taught by the Jesuits.”
“What’s that got to do with anything?” Mickey asked. He honestly looked confused. “I went to Catholic school too.”
I shrugged. “Were you taught by Jesuits?”
He shook his head. “No…nuns.”