9. Nash
“What the hell is going on here?” Earl was yelling as Nash held the front door open to let Mica walk inside of the dealership.
They really didn’t have to use the door since the entire front window had been shattered.
“Looks like they drove something big through the window. Probably a dump truck or a big ass flatbed. That’s how they got the bikes out so fast,” the deputy said.
Nash had seen this guy in town often but was totally blanking on what his name was now.
“There’s a half million-dollar alarm system designed to guard this place like its Fort Knox. How the hell did they get around that?” Earl asked, his face flushed with anger.
“They didn’t,” the deputy said shaking his head. “The alarm went off. The security company called us. We were on the street in two minutes. Got here in another five and they were gone. That’s why I think they had a flatbed or something large enough to get through the window and carry all the bikes they wanted to steal away, as fast as they possibly could.”
“Sonofabitch!” Rock said from behind Nash.
He’d followed them from the community center after Mica shared the news.
“Then you and your slow ass cop friends owe me for every one of those bikes that were taken,” Earl snapped, before pushing past the deputy.
“I’ll get a list of what was taken,” Rock said to Nash.
Nash nodded. “There were three Panigale’s lined up right on the front row there.” He motioned by pointing a couple feet in front of the broken window.
“He’s right,” Mica said.
She’d been quiet on the ride over and even moreso when they walked in. This was in stark contrast to how friendly and excited she’d been throughout the event. He’d wondered how she was going to act after she’d run out of his place this morning. That shit had been crazy. He’d never had a woman literally run away from him. But when he’d finally gotten out into the living room with his boxers twisted and shin throbbing after he’d slammed it into the side of his bed while rushing to get to her, he’d declined to chase her any further. He wasn’t in the habit of begging women to stay. No matter how much he liked them. And he could admit that he was really starting to like Mica.
Still, that didn’t stop him from noticing how hard she was taking news of the break-in for someone who had only been working here for a few weeks. Granted, she’d been working really hard to get the books in shape, as she’d told him, and he believed her. But he couldn’t help to also wonder who had called her about the robbery, considering she was just the accountant.
“The second row of bikes that should be here were BMWs. A black S1000RR and two multi-colored M1000RR’s. The Yamaha R1, two of them, black with cobalt accents, were here as well. That’s roughly two hundred thousand dollars’ worth of bikes that are gone,” Mica told them.
She walked to the spot where each of the bikes she’d mentioned had been displayed, her booted feet crunching over the broken glass on the marble floor. Nash was more than a little impressed at the fact that not only had she known the price of each of those bikes, but she also knew the name and models, as if she’d been studying their inventory. Admittedly, he had no clue what an accountant’s job entailed beyond making sure the math was mathin’, but as he continued to watch her, he continued to wonder.
“We’ll be able to provide a list with the make, model, serial number and approximate value of each bike,” Nash told the deputy. “We also have pictures so we can get those for you as well.”
“That’ll be perfect,” the deputy spoke as he finished writing in his notepad. “We’ll put notice out to the area body shops and dealerships just in case our perp tries to sell them directly to another location.”
Earl was back, walking between the area where the deputy and Nash were facing each other. He stood with his back to Nash, because Earl Banyon was an ignorant bastard.
“That’s about the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. There’s no way they’re going to try and sell those bikes anywhere in this area. They’re probably already on I-95 heading south to where nobody will know my merchandise has been stolen, because you only plan to notify area shops!” Earl yelled in the deputy’s face.
“Now, that’s enough!” the deputy shouted back this time. “We’re going to do our best to try and recover your property, Mr. Banyon. But you’re going to step back with your ranting and insults because there’s no need for all that. We’re not the bad guys here.”
“No. You’re probably not. But you aren’t out there trying to catch them either,” was Earl’s seething retort.
The deputy only shook his head at that. He moved away from Earl but looked back at Nash saying, “The sooner you can get me that list, the sooner we’ll get the word out.”
Nash nodded. “I’ll have it to you in a couple of hours.”
When the deputy was gone Earl cursed once more. “Fucking thieves!” he yelled. “But that’s okay. That’s exactly why I’m selling this place. It’s not making any money and now this. Yeah, I’m definitely selling now.”
Still trying to get a grasp on his thoughts and remain present in this moment, Nash was over Earl’s bullshit. “Just who the hell do you think you are? You can’t do that!”
Earl turned to him. He got right up in Nash’s face, his breath smelling faintly of liquor, his eyes all but glistening with hatred.
“I can and I am,” he spat. “And while I’m at it, I’m going to make sure that every shop in the DMV knows not to hire your convict ass. Hell, you probably orchestrated this robbery. Don’t think I haven’t seen how you’ve been studying those bikes!”
It took every ounce of restraint Nash possessed not to put this bastard on his ass right now. Experience and time served held him still. The old Nash, or rather the young and immature one, wouldn’t have hesitated to beat Earl into silence for his continued disrespect. The new Nash held his ground without physical violence.
Partly because he was caught up in the odd look on Mica’s face. She was staring at Earl, her eyes wide and full of fury. Nash and Mica had been lovers for barely twenty-four hours so he wasn’t kidding himself into believing all that anger was on his behalf. She knew what type of guy Earl was, had witnessed more than a few of his rude moments in the weeks she’d been here, yet Nash had never seen her this enraged by the man.
And before he could get his volleying thoughts together and go to her to make sure she was okay, she started moving. With slow, almost predatory steps, she walked over to him. “Hey,” he said when she was close enough for him to reach for her hand.
But she only shook her head and kept moving until she stopped in front of Earl.
“You will not be selling this dealership, Mr. Banyon. And, while we’re on the subject, if anyone is going to need another job, it’s most likely going to be you,” she said in a tone that was heavily accented, serious, cool and sexier than anything Nash had ever heard.
Earl chuckled, his wrinkled face twisting with the action. “What the hell are you talking about? You have no right. You’re only here to work up some bogus ass report to send to the lawyer. I run this place and I can do whatever I damn well please!”
Mica took another step toward him. The way her brow hiked up at his remark gave the distinct impression that she couldn’t give two fucks about how cold and angry his piercing gray gaze was. “I own this place, Banyon. So, despite your delusional thoughts, I will be the one making all decisions about selling or not selling this dealership.”
“You’re a filthy liar!” Banyon yelled. “This place is owned by?—”
“Michel Monroe,” she completed his sentence. “That’s my name, Michel Lynette Monroe. My mother always called me Mica. Bellamy Anderson was my father which, upon his death, made me the sole owner of Bellamy Motors and executor of his estate. All this you’ve been walking around here talking about is yours, is not. I own this place and I’m firing you!”
Earl was silent. Rock stood with his eyes just about ready to bulge from his face. Nash, well, he just stood rooted to that spot, his fingers unclenching at his sides as he stared at the woman he’d spent a fantastic night making love to and a great day doing community fellowship with. A woman that he had no idea was related to his mentor. A woman, he concluded, he knew absolutely nothing about.
“You’re his daughter?”
Mica had gone up to her office to find the folder with all the information about the dealership’s current stock. She turned around slowly at the sound of Nash’s voice.
“Yes,” she answered.
He shrugged. “I didn’t know Bell had any children.”
“He didn’t either. Not until two years ago when he saw a picture of my mother and I in a magazine.”
“A magazine? So, you’re really a model and not an accountant?”
“No,” she replied and cleared her throat. “I do have a masters’ in finance. My mother is a photographer. A magazine that she’d worked with for years was doing a special on professional single mothers. My father saw the article and he knew…”
Mica’s words trailed off at that moment. She’d often wondered how Bell had been so certain that she was his child, especially since at that point, he hadn’t seen her mother in over twenty years. Now, it finally hit her. For some reason the reporter had insisted on publishing the children’s entire names before giving their brief bios within the article. Earlier today, when Amy told her the story of why Bell stopped riding, she’d mentioned his sister named Lynette. Her mother had given Mica her aunt’s middle name.
“You came here knowing you were going to take over this dealership. Why all the secrecy? Why not just march through the door and stake your claim?” he asked.
He was irritated. She could tell by his furrowed brow and that muscle twitching in his jaw. That was just great, because she was irritated too. This was not how she’d envisioned telling him. Truth be told, she hadn’t yet figured out how she was going to tell him. As she’d lay in his arms all through the night and each time he’d moved so easily and deliciously inside of her, she had wondered. She’d thought of the words and how best to explain her deception but in the end she had yet to decide when she would put those words out there.
Seems as though fate had a better idea for the big reveal.
“I didn’t think any of you would accept me as the owner,” she said. “And I wanted to learn about the company without the title hanging over my head. If I’d come in and staked my claim everyone would have treated me the same way they treated Banyon,” she spoke, her fingers gripping the folder tightly.
“That’s not true. We all had reason to despise him. That was years in the making and it had more to do with the things he did and said rather than the title he carried. We would have had no choice but to accept you as the heir and rightful owner.”
She wanted desperately to believe his words. “Even if I am younger than all of you and, at that point, had never even taken a ride on a bike?”
Nash shook his head. “Kandra doesn’t ride and yet she’s one of the best sellers on the floor. Don’t you think it was unfair to pre-judge us and make assumptions before you even knew us?”
“I can see that,” she said. “And I get it, really, I do. Because I’ve experienced more judgmental stares and reactions than I care to recall. Which has perhaps made me more cautious about new people. I may have grown up in a big city, but my circle was very small. Trust doesn’t come easily to me.”
“You could’ve trusted me,” he said.
She attempted to cross her arms over her chest, but the folder got in the way. So, she dropped her arms and huffed. “I could say the same to you,” she said and watched him closely for his response. “Why did Banyon say you had a criminal record?”
Nash leaned against the door but didn’t speak right away. He was so ruggedly handsome, so good with his hands whether it be working on bikes or working her. And there was compassion in him. She’d heard it in the way he spoke of Bell that first day they met, and again when he’d talked about his parents.
“My brother was seventeen,” he spoke after another few moments of silence. “I was twenty. I picked him up from school and was giving him a ride home before going to my job at the movie theatre. There was a car stopped in front of me and a tractor trailer in front of the car. I decided to go around them and had to speed up to get out of the lane of oncoming traffic. By the time I pulled over in front of the tractor trailer, a cop had come out of nowhere. He stopped us and asked if he could search my vehicle. I was used to bogus traffic stops but I knew he could ticket me for crossing over into the opposite lane and speeding, so I decided to be as cooperative as possible, hoping to buy myself some points for good behavior.”
“That plan backfired big time.” He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “Henley slipped a brown paper bag beneath the seat just before the cops pulled me over. In the bag was a kilo of cocaine and a gun. They arrested both of us. I told them it was my car and my drugs. Henley got twelve months supervised probation because he was charged as a juvenile. I served five years in jail for charges of possession and conspiracy to sell drugs, reckless endangerment, and handgun violations. Five years in, and five years’ supervised probation was the plea bargain my public defender worked out. I did the time and when I got out, Bell was there to give me a second chance.”
He”d told that story so matter-of-factly, as if he were reciting a dreary ass poem and her heart ached for him. “I didn’t know any of that,” she said for lack of something better. What she’d really wanted to do was run to him and wrap her arms around him. To hold him tight and tell him how great a man and brother he was for doing something she knew she couldn’t have done.
“Then I guess we’re even. Neither of us know who the other really is. Or at least we didn’t, until now,” he told her.
She nodded in agreement. “So, what do we do now?” she asked.
He stared at her quietly, keenly, until she felt like she wanted to either yell or cry. This evening was turning into an emotional rollercoaster. She’d never had to fire anyone before and she’d certainly never had to deal with any sort of illegal acts. All that on top of the night she’d spent with Nash and the terrific day they’d had, including all the background information she’d learned about her father. There was a lot going on and she didn’t know what to do or say about any of it at this point.
“You deal with your business and I deal with mine,” was what he finally said before he turned and walked away.
For a few stunned seconds, she just stood there. What the hell had just happened? Was he angry with her? Should she be angry with him? Her head began to pound with a headache she was certain was a direct result of stress. This day had been stressful as hell.
She had no idea how long she stood there staring at the empty space, but after a time she figured it was pointless to continue questioning when she knew the answer wasn’t coming anytime soon. Nash was right about one thing, she had to deal with Bellamy Motors. That’s what she’d come here to do and she wasn’t going to let her father down. Nothing else mattered, at least not at this moment.