Chapter 25
CHAPTER
TWENTY-FIVE
Rain
I run my hands through my hair as we exit the closet.
“Trying to tame down the sex hair?” Ridge teases as he catches up to me.
“The sex might have been good, but it wasn’t sex hair great. We would have needed to be in there longer to make that happen,” I sass.
Ridge grabs me around the middle and tickles me.
“You’re a goddamn menace. I’ll show you good later tonight when I edge the fuck out of you,” he threatens.
“Hmm, you always make promises, but do you ever follow through?” I egg him on, my heart racing.
I’ve never been edged before, and honestly, I’m down to try. In fact, if I didn’t know that the girls would give us shit for taking off early, I would take him up on his offer and head home now.
Right when we come out of the hall to rejoin the party, the door bursts open. Cops dressed in head-to-toe black swarm us, shouting at people to get down. The girls start screaming as guns are pointed at them.
Holy shit. We’re being swatted on opening night.
“God dammit,” Ridge mutters as my heart races.
People are screaming, crying, and yelling. It’s pure fucking chaos. Two cops come right up to us, guns drawn. Instinctively, I raise my hands in the air, showing them I’m not a threat, and start to lower myself toward the ground.
One of the cops reaches out and catches my arm, squeezing it hard enough to leave a bruise. I cry out more in surprise than in fear.
“Don’t even think about it,” he hisses.
“Don’t fucking touch her. She was complying,” Ridge snaps.
My stupidly handsome, loving husband tries to pull me away from the dick with a badge, only to have a barrel placed on his forehead.
It doesn’t even faze Ridge. He would gladly take that bullet for me. I refuse to let him, though. I don’t want to live this life without him.
“Adam, don’t,” I beg, switching to his real name to emphasize my seriousness.
“Give me a reason. I dare you. Make my fucking day,” the cop mutters.
Ridge reaches up and pushes the barrel away. “You didn’t even have your finger on the trigger, douchebag, and the safety is on. What is this? Your first raid?” He taunts the man.
I squeeze my eyes shut. “Jesus Christ, can we not make this worse for ourselves? Keep your damn mouth shut.”
The cop who’s holding me spins me around and places cuffs on my wrists.
“You’re all under arrest,” the cop says, his voice finally registering.
Oh, great. It’s the detective who has a hard-on for Ridge. Wonderful. Fucking great.
“Let go of her. We weren’t doing anything. What grounds are you arresting us?” Ridge snaps.
“Over occupancy,” Detective Hampton says gleefully.
“Dude, unless you’ve changed professions recently, you aren’t the Fire Marshall and don’t get to make that call.”
“Are you resisting arrest?”
I bite my tongue until I can taste copper. I hate how much joy he is taking in this. If I thought I could get away with it, I would knee him in the balls. Instead, my logical mind wins, and I keep my mouth shut.
Not getting the reaction out of me that he wants, Detective Hampton starts dragging me to the door.
“Rain!” Ridge calls out.
I look over my shoulder and see him trying to push past the cop.
“Add assaulting an officer to your charges,” Hampton calls out to the officer holding Ridge, his tone gloating.
Ridge doesn’t give him the time of day. “I’ll meet you there, baby. I’m right behind you.”
I nod and turn forward, scanning the room. Immediately, I find the other old ladies and see that they aren’t being bothered. In fact, some of the cops have circled around them, protecting them.
Interesting.
When we get outside, I watch as a couple of brothers are ushered into cop cars. Panther is off to the side, talking to a cop. If his hand movements are anything to go by, I assume he’s telling the guy how fucked up this is.
When Detective Hampton goes to shove me into the back seat of the SUV, he grabs my ass.
“Watch it, handsy!” I snap.
He chuckles. “It was a slip of the hand. You tried getting away. Guess you are getting another charge too.”
Before I can tell him he’s full of shit, he slams the door and gets into the front seat.
“We both know I wasn’t trying to get away, needle dick. Let’s be honest, you know the only way a woman will get close to you is if you have her in cuffs, so you take advantage when you can.”
“Watch it,” he warns.
Thanks to the streetlights, I can see his knuckles turning white already as he squeezes the steering wheel.
“What? Don’t like hearing the truth? I heard you had a thing for sex workers,” I say, remembering all the information Ridge gave me on the guy. “It’s okay to admit your dick doesn’t work like a normal man. I won’t judge.” I shrug.
He growls, slamming his hand so hard on the steering wheel that he makes the horn go off.
“Enough! This is your last chance to tell me what you know about Adam and the Mountain River MC. If you cooperate, we will cut you a deal.”
“Dude, no judgment, but are you slow? Like, are you all there mentally? I already told you that I know nothing and that you won’t get anything out of me. This is a vendetta for you, plain and simple. It’s really sad now that I think about it. How long have you been obsessed with my husband?”
“I’m not obsessed with him!” he yells so loudly I barely suppress my flinch.
“That’s what someone obsessed would say.” I hum.
“God, how the fuck does he put up with you?” he says more to himself than me.
I know I should watch my mouth, especially when I’m alone with the guy, but if there is one thing I know how to do, it’s run my mouth.
I can’t help it. I blame my dad. He raised a girl who doesn’t put up with anyone’s shit, least of all some goddamn corrupt pig.
I don’t like calling cops that, but this one fucking earns the name. He is a pig through and through.
“Hey, it takes a special type of man to handle all of this. You wouldn’t understand since you don’t have anything that works below the belt,” I quip back.
“Tell me what you know,” he grits out.
“I plead the Fifth,” I sing-song.
“You can’t plead the Fifth.”
“Pretty sure I can. It’s a law. People do it every day. You can’t make me testify against my husband. Remember? Adam? The man you are obsessed with and swear isn’t really my husband? Well, to the state, and in my heart, he is. So good luck,” I say as we pull into the police station.
Instead of pulling into a parking spot, he comes to a stop right outside the doors where other officers are waiting. He gets out and drags me out of the back seat.
“Just give me something, anything,” he pleads as he shuts the door.
“Aww, you’re begging now. That’s so cute. I’ll tell you one thing.” I watch as his eyes light up. “I want my lawyer.”
The sound of approaching footsteps gets my attention, and I look behind him.
“Does my hair look okay, boys? I want to make sure I look good for my photo-op,” I say to no one in particular.
One of the cops shakes his head, but I don’t miss the way the corners of his mouth twitch up.
As Detective Dickhead leads me into the police station, I take a deep breath for the first time since I got dragged away from Ridge. It’s almost over. I’m sure the lawyers are on their way, and I’ll be home in a few hours, tops.
I got this.
Ridge
It’s crazy how fast things can change on a dime.
One minute you could be teasing your wife after fucking each other’s brains out, and the next you can have cuffs on your wrists.
I lift my arms to scrub my hands over my face, but come up short.
The chain rattles against the table, reminding me where I am.
Groaning, I tip my head back.
I should be concerned about myself. What this means for the club, me, but the only one I’m worried about is Rain.
I’m not worried about her giving them something on us. No, my girl is fucking loyal. She would have them chasing their tails for hours before they even noticed.
What I’m worried about, though, is her running her mouth. I love that smart-ass mouth of hers, but it can get her into trouble. Hampton is already hot-headed enough. He doesn’t need her encouragement, and knowing my wife? She laid into him.
Hard.
She’s hell on wheels. She won’t go down without a fight, especially not since she knows why this guy is after me. She didn’t like hearing how he roughed me up long before she knew me. She was ready to throw blows right then and there.
The clock ticks on the wall, and I look over and check the time. I’ve been in here for thirty minutes. That’s thirty minutes Hampton has been pressing my wife’s buttons. Thirty minutes where he could have his buddies give him a room with her without any monitoring.
My anger rises. If he touches her, I will kill him with my bare hands right here in the middle of the station, consequences be damned.
Where the fuck is my lawyer?
The sound of the doorknob turning resonates throughout the sterile room. Instead of my lawyer stepping through, though, Detective Hampton does.
Fuck.
I tip my head back and sigh.
This is exactly what I need right now.
“Hampton, I’d say it’s good to see you again, but I don’t fucking like you,” I say as I look back at him.
He smirks as he drags the chair against the cement floor, making it whine before dropping into it.
“Miss me?” he quips.
“I forgot you existed, to be honest,” I say nonchalantly.
His jaw clenches.
“You know, I always knew you were a little shit, and seeing you now? Well, it’s proof that a tiger doesn’t change its stripes. You were a hellion, already well on your way to a life of crime as a kid. Looks like you kept at it, but only got deeper,” he starts, trying to push buttons.
If he thinks telling me I’m a delinquent is going to do anything for him, he’s mistaken.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about. Last I checked, the only thing on my record is a ticket for a taillight out about five years ago,” I say, keeping my cool.
He leans back in his chair and crosses his arms. “Come on, we both know you and that little club of yours noses aren’t clean. You run with the Devil’s Den for Chrissake. You have ties to other clubs. If their hands are dirty, it’s safe to say yours are as well.”
“Sounds like you’re projecting. Does that mean you sold yourself too? All that time you were undercover working with call girls…” I smirk. “I didn’t realize that you can be guilty by association. Last I checked, you need evidence.”
His jaw clenches.
“Your wife talked. I’ll give her credit. She gave it the good ol’ college try. She tried to stay quiet, but you know that mouth of hers, it got the best of her, and she let it all out,” he says, changing the subject.
I almost laugh in his face, but I don’t. My girl didn’t say a word. I know that with my whole being. Still, it doesn’t mean I am not nervous about what he might have done to her. I can’t let him see that he bothered me, though, so I keep on like it’s nothing.
“Oh, yeah? And what did she say?” I muse.
“She told me about the load of guns she saw on your compound. Said you were going to sell them to the cartel in exchange for drugs,” he says confidently.
I tip my head back and laugh, shoulders shaking.
“Dude, I’ll give you credit. That is one hell of a lie, but let’s be honest, my wife said nothing of the sort. You can make up anything you want, try to get me to snap, but you won’t get a reaction. Want to know why?”
“Why?” he grits out.
I lean forward, resting my arms on the table, and smile.
“Because my wife is loyal. You could try to convince her to say something, but she wouldn’t.
” I pause for dramatics. “That’s a lie. She would talk, but it wouldn’t be about anything important.
She would be insulting the fuck out of you, calling you out about your inadequacies.
” I look him up and down. “Let me guess, she called you out for having a small dick. She mentioned when she met you before how you were all drunk on power to compensate for your small cock. I didn’t like her talking about your cock much, so I showed her what a real one tastes like. ” I emphasize my comment with a wink.
“You mother—” he snarls, his hands slapping the table.
“I’m not a mother, but lord knows I will make her one. Fuck, I can’t wait to leave my kids in her,” I taunt him.
His chair slides back, hitting the wall as he jumps up. His hands come around my throat and start to apply pressure.
“Careful, cameras are rolling. You should know better,” I rasp.
“Cameras are off. Say good night,” he says.
I control my breathing, trying to take whatever little breath I have. I let myself grow completely lax. Most people would be struggling, but not me. I trained myself for this. Even if he were to kill me today, there wouldn’t be a single mark on him to make them think I did a damn thing to cause it.
As he really starts to squeeze, the door slams open.
“Dude, the lawyer is here. You have five seconds,” a breathless young cop says.
Before he can even let go of me, my lawyer barges in.
“Get your hands off my client,” the club lawyer hisses, while two other cops come in behind him.
“He came at me,” Hampton says, stepping away, hands raised.
Mr. Smith raises a brow. “His hands are chained and folded on the table. There are two people in the room who are supposed to be watching the camera feed that happens to be off. Stop lying.”
Hampton’s jaw clenches.
“Now, how about you give me a minute alone with my client as his constitutional right,” Mr. Smith demands.
Hampton glares at me before leaving the room, slamming the door shut behind him.
“He’s a fucking lawsuit waiting to happen,” Mr. Smith mutters.
“You’re telling me. This isn’t my first run-in with him. Now tell me, have you seen Rain yet?”
He sits down across from me. “She’s out and waiting with the brothers. They are processing your paperwork right now to get you out of here.”
Sighing, I relax. “Thank fuck. Did you find anything out?”
“All I can say here is that all eyes are on the club. They had to let all of you go because of unlawful arrests. Not to mention the fact that they shouldn’t have even been there since they have no say in code enforcement. The Mayor is pissed and doesn’t want this to become a thing.”
“All of us?” I ask in shock, skipping over what he said about the Mayor.
Surely someone put up a fight.
Mr. Smith smirks. “Yes, even those of you who threw punches. It helps when it’s all on video that a cop uses unnecessary restraint and throws punches first. Or, in your case, places a barrel to your forehead unexpectedly.
Nice move pushing it away, though. I’m pretty sure I would have been shitting bricks if I were in your shoes. ”
“Not the first time,” I say without thinking about it.
“I don’t want to know. Now, before we get out of here, I have one question.”
“What’s up?” I ask, exhaustion hitting me like a freight train.
“Do you want to press charges against Detective Hampton?”
“Can I?”
“Let me see what I can do. Just sit tight. I’ll have you out of here soon.”