CHAPTER 9
AVA
“Hey,” I greeted as I pulled open the door of the huge black truck that pulled up outside of Jack’s apartment building.
“Hey sweetheart,” Deacon greeted. He was dressed in jeans and a thick puffer coat that just made his enormous frame seem even bigger and definitely larger than life.
He was also wearing a green beanie that perfectly suited his coloring and I couldn’t help but take several seconds to appreciate just how attractive the man was as he sat smiling brightly at me.
“Remember what we said. Call Mason if anything seems off,” Jack piped up as he wrapped his hands around my hips and lifted me clean off of the ground and into the truck.
“Fuck me Jack! I can get myself in a damned car!” I snapped as I glared at him.
“Hey men,” Deak greeted and Jack gave him a nod.
“Keep her very close. She’ll tell you she’s fine but she’s barely slept or eaten and she fell this morning,” Jack lectured like I wasn’t even sat right there between them. “I don’t even know why we’re letting you go and do this,” he added as he looked to me with disapproval.
“Letting me? Fuck you Jack. I’m thirty four years old and you are not my damned keeper. Who the hell do you think you are?” I growled.
“Okay, time to go I think,” Deacon spoke up. “Don’t worry. We’ll be fine,” he added as he looked to Jack. I wasn’t even sure if Jack heard the whole thing as I grabbed the door handle and slammed the door closed hard.
“Asshole!” I slammed my flat hand against the s=dashboard in anger as it flooded through me.
“I’m thinking he could have handled that better,” Deak agreed as he slowly pulled away from the curb, leaving Jack stood watching us with a scowl on his face.
“I am so sick of them treating me like I’m some cripple they need to take care of! I know I’m a mess, but I have managed alone for a long time and the last thing I need is them thinking they get to overtake the scraps that remain of my life!”
It had been one hell of a long morning as we went through Colt’s cell records and looked into each number individually.
The guys hadn’t mentioned any of the relationship crap again, but they had fussed over me constantly, watching how much I ate and telling me I needed to drink more water.
When I’d insisted on chasing down one of the leads we got from the cell records they’d both tried to stamp their foot down and stop me to the point where I’d lost it and called Deacon to come and get me.
I had to get away from them before I did something very drastic to one set or even both sets of their balls.
“They care about you,” Deacon suggested and I turned to him with a glare.
“They’re being complete assholes. I’m not helpless and them trying to treat me like I am is just fucking with my head,” I sighed as I calmed some.
“Anyway, thanks for picking me up. While those guys are insane, I think they may be right about me not heading out alone until I have full use of both arms again,” I joked dryly.
My shoulder still hurt like hell, but I’d tossed the sling the doctor had given me.
I could handle a little pain, but that thing had been annoying the shit out of.
“Yeah. Gotta to agree with them on that. And it’s no problem. I’m not working until Saturday now,” he assured me. “Where are we going?”
“Into the city. Colt was making regular calls to a restaurant called Da Pietro , like very regular and I want to know why,” I explained.
“I know that place They make the best pasta. I’ve been a few times. Once with Colt actually.”
“Really? Did he speak to anyone there?” I asked excitedly.
“I don’t think so. Not past being polite anyway. How often was he calling there?” Deak asked.
“Most days. Sometimes twice. It definitely feels weird,” I shrugged. “Maybe we can grab something to eat while we’re there at least.”
“You know you’re welcome to stay at my place tonight if those guys are driving you crazy. It’s not as fancy as Jack’s loft, but have a spare room and I can grill a decent steak,” he offered.
“I might just take you up on that offer. Thanks Deak.” Anything to get away from the craziness that awaited me back at Jack’s.
It was strange how safe I felt with Deacon.
I barely even knew the guy, and he was certainly an intimidating figure, standing as tall and broad as he did.
If he wanted to he could take me down easily in the state I was, but I had no fear of him since the moment I met him.
I just knew he was a good guy, and more then that, he just had this ability to make me feel safe.
He was doing just that as we walked the few blocks from where Deak had parked to the restaurant.
He was at my side, and he made no attempt to touch me in anyway, but he seemed to have this ability to just surround me so that everyone who was rushing down the sidewalk, took a wo=ide berth around the both of us.
It was a relief, since I was already flagging, my legs exhausted by the walk and starting to cramp already.
A sigh of relief slipped form me when I glanced ahead and saw the sign for the restaurant Deacon had been leading me to. I honestly didn’t know how much walking power I had left with the pain I was in.
“What’s the play? Are you going in there asking questions, or do you have something more subtle planned?
” Deacon asked as we neared the entrance.
I looked the place over as we passed the huge open windows.
It was modern and tasteful, the signage simple, but classy.
Inside it looked modern with high backed booths down one side and closely set up table covered in white linen throughout the space.
It was still early, so the place was empty except for the staff bustling around to set up.
“Subtle’s not really my style,” I replied with a smile.
“Now that I can believe,” he chuckled as we pushed through the door of the restaurant and stepped inside.
I could already smell the amazing aromas of herbs and fresh bread baking the second we stepped inside.
There was quiet back ground music playing and I instantly loved the place.
It had been so long since I did something as simple as eat in a restaurant and standing there I realized how much I’d missed it.
“Sorry, we’re not open for another hour,” A young waitress told us as she looked up from where she was setting cutlery on the tables.
“We’re not here to eat. I just wanted to ask a few questions,” I spoke up.
“Are you cops?” she asked as she studied the both of us with some doubt.
“Yeah,” I lied. “Is there a manager around we could speak with?”
“The manager’s not here yet, but the owner’s in the back. Should I get him?” she asked as she looked around rather nervously.
“You can show us to his office,” I told her as I walked further into the place as steadily as I could.
It hard to pull off the confidence I used to be so good at faking as a detective when you couldn’t walk without the aid of a stick and were shaking like you’d swallowed a vibration plate, but the girl didn’t argue as she moved in front of us and simply led us into the back.
She walked to the end of a short hallway and knocked on a closed door before sticking her head around it as she opened it.
“Mr. Morton? There are some cops out here to talk to you,” she told him nervously. When she stepped back and opened the door for us I walked in, grateful to Deacon for allowing me to take the lead. I was pretty sure neither Jack nor Mason would have done the same had they been with me.
The office was impeccably neat and smelled strongly of cleaning products.
There were filing cabinets across the back wall and a large antique looking desl straight ahead, behind which sat a guy who was obviously the wowner of the restaurant.
He was wearing a perfectly pressed shirt which was plain baby blue, but at the cuffs, which he had rolled up, there was a colorful, flower patterned fabric, just peeking out.
The same fabric circled the inside of the collar too, and on his wrist was a tasteful, but simple silver watch.
He was in his late thirties, or maybe early forties, with a thick head of sandy blonde hair that looked a little unruly as it flopped slightly into his eyes.
He was clean shaven and definitely good looking if you were into the clean cut image.
“Mr. Morton. Thanks for seeing us I’m…”
“Bam,” he cut in, shocking the shit out of me.
Colt was the only person who had ever called me that, and I had asked him to never tell anyone else, embarrassed for the reason he’d given me that name and not wanting it to stick.
But it had stuck for Colt and he still called it me to that day…
or at least he had the last time we spoke.
“H-how did you know that?” I gasped as I looked from him to Deacon with confusion and some concern.
I felt Deacon move closer to me, pressing himself against my back as his hand wrapped around my right hip protectively.
I was too taken aback by what had happened to care. In fact the support felt reassuring.
“I’ve seen your pictures at the apartment, and Colt…he talks about you al of the time.”
“Who are you?” I questioned suspiciously. “Do you know where Colt is?”
“He…he’s supposed to be with you. He called me, said he was coming to visit you last week. Is he alright?”
“Your name,” Deak reminded him, sounding rather intimidating even with just those two words.
“Sorry. I’m Ky. Kylan Morton,” the poor guy stuttered as he eyed Deacon warily. “Can one of you tell me where Colt is? Is he safe?” I could see the worry written all over Ky’s face as he asked about my brother, and then there were his initials. K.M.
“You and Colt are dating,” I said as it all seemed to make sense suddenly. I had never know my brother to ever have a date, or ever seen him bring a girl home. I had always just thought he was trying to shelter me, but maybe…