Chapter 16
sixteen
The door to my office swings open, and Brex strolls in with a couple of coffees, sporting his usual easy grin that makes women melt and most men want to punch him in the face.
“Morning, Cap.” Dropping into the chair across from my desk, he slides one of the cups toward me. “Thought you could use this.”
I take a sip, grateful for the much-needed hit of caffeine. “Thanks. Welcome back. How was Canada?”
Brex leans back, stretching his legs out in front of him. “Rough. We had a couple of touch-and-go moments up near Fort McMurray. Winds shifted on us without warning, nearly cut off our exit route.”
I straighten in my chair. “Everyone get out okay?”
“Yeah, thankfully. We had to evacuate a small community of around fifty people. Helicopter was our only option with the roads blocked.” He runs a hand through his hair.
“Had to make three trips. Last one was cutting it close. The smoke was getting so thick, if it wasn’t for the new navigation system, we probably wouldn’t’ve made it out in time. ”
“Shit.” I shake my head. “Good work.”
“Just doing my job.” He takes a long draw from his cup. “How’s everything been here? Any action while I was gone?”
“Quiet, for the most part. A few car accidents, one kitchen fire over on Maple. Nothing major.” I lean forward, resting my elbows on the desk. “How’d things go in Portland with Dex?”
The question makes Brex’s smile falter. He sets his cup down, drumming his fingers on my desk.
“Not great.” His voice drops. “He’s been getting into fights outside the ring again. Got arrested last week for assault.”
“Fuck.” I run a hand down my face. “What happened this time?”
“Some guy at a bar made a ‘your momma’ joke. And you know how Dex gets.” Brex’s jaw pulses. “Put the guy in the hospital. Three broken ribs, a fractured jaw.”
“Jesus. Is he looking at jail time?”
“Probably. His lawyer’s trying to work out a deal.” Shoulders tense, he turns his attention to the trees outside the window. “I don’t know what to do with him, Lo. He won’t talk about shit. Won’t go to therapy. Just keeps saying he’s all good.”
“Maybe he needs a break from fighting. Some time back at the family ranch might do him some good.”
Brex snorts. “Try telling him that. He says fighting’s the only thing keeping him together right now.” He looks back at me. “I’m worried about him. Really worried.”
I nod, understanding the weight of his concern.
The Saint brothers have always been a tight-knit crew, especially after losing their father. Dex has always been the protector. Now it seems like he’s the one who needs saving.
“Let me know if there’s anything I can do,” I offer.
“Thanks.” Brex drains the rest of his coffee and goes quiet.
Rubbing the back of his neck, he grimaces as he takes in a breath and gives me a look.
Damn it. I know that look. One that tells me I might not like what he has to say. “Speaking of Portland. You’ll never guess who I ran into while I was there.”
“Who?”
“Pretty,” Brex murmurs.
Setting my cup down before I crush it and get coffee all over my desk, I growl, “What?”
“Yeah. You know. Reyna.” My chest tightens, dick instantly hard when he says her name. “But you already knew her name, didn’t you?”
When he pops an eyebrow, all I can do is shrug. I’ve refused to talk about her with him. For some reason I refuse to admit. Even to myself.
The last thing I’m going to admit to Brex is that my intentions to avoid Reyna at any cost have fallen by the wayside.
Ever since she dunked my ass at Skin & Ink’s charity event, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about her. I was only able to keep myself from seeking her out for a few days before I caved, casually walking by Summit Studio any time she was helping Sasha with a yoga class.
One day I just happened to walk by while she was teaching a pole dancing class. It brought back way too many memories. So I stopped.
Then, Jax talked me into doing freaking yoga—which kicked my ass, by the way—and, of course, she was there. Strutting around the room. Adjusting poses while murmuring in soft, sexy tones. It was all I could do to keep Mr. Happy from making an appearance in front of thirty some odd other people.
Still, for the most part, I’d managed to avoid her despite knowing she was going to be working for LFSR.
And that brings me up to now. Her first day is tomorrow. Which is why I’ve decided to schedule her on the opposite shift from mine. Three days on, three days off.
Except I don’t want her to be on her own with the other guys. And I can’t risk being around her. Too much temptation. So that’s where Brex comes in.
His next words jolt me back to the present.
“Ran into her a few blocks from Dina’s. Two drunk assholes had her cornered in an alley.”
My blood runs cold. “What the fuck do you mean, cornered?”
Brex’s expression darkens. “Exactly what it sounds like. Two guys, drunk off their asses, had her pinned against a brick wall. One of which had his dirty hand up her dress.”
The rage that floods my veins is instantaneous and white-hot. My knuckles crack as my hands curl into fists. “Did you—”
“Put one of them through the wall? Yeah.” A feral grin of satisfaction splits across his face. “The other one ran off before I could get to him. Neither of those assholes will be harassing anyone for a long time. Not with a broken jaw and a couple of cracked ribs.”
Rage floods my body. The thought of anyone laying a hand on Reyna makes me want to find whoever’s responsible and finish what Brex started.
“She okay?”
“She was shaken up.” Brex leans forward, elbows on his knees. “Got her breakfast at Dina’s.” The next look he gives me is resigned. “I know why she left like she did. That morning at the hotel.”
My head whips up in surprise.
“She told me about the texts on your phone.”
The words land like a slap. My mind goes in circles thinking back to that morning, trying to remember what texts he’s talking about. Then it hits me.
So that’s why she left. Why she disappeared without a word. Because she saw my former hook-ups texts and jumped to conclusions.
I should feel better about it. She judged me without giving me a chance to explain. But all I feel now is a hollow ache in my gut.
“What else did she say?”
Brex shifts in his seat, posture transforming into a subtle tension in his shoulders that wasn’t there before. “Not much. She was pretty closed off about it.”
“And?”
Challenge flashes in his eyes, almost as if he’s daring me to react when they meet mine. “And then she let me walk her home.”
Fucking shit. I know that look.
“Did you fuck her?”
His nonchalant shrug makes me growl in frustration. “No. Pretty much everything but. You could’ve at least told me how beyond phenomenal she was at giving head. Best blowjob of my life.”
Jealousy hits, sudden and vicious, until I can barely breathe. Images of Brex’s hands on her, his mouth on her skin, the same moans and gasps I dragged from her throat filling the air.
I brush it off. Push it down. Lock it away.
Because Brex just got back after being gone for close to a month. And he hasn’t mentioned Reyna once since last year. Not a word. Because I told him not to. I shut down every conversation about her, every question, every casual mention. I made it clear: talking about her was off-limits.
My guess? He hasn’t seen her since that night in Portland. Doesn’t even know she’s moved to Lakeside. Doesn’t know she’s been living right under our noses for weeks now. And he definitely doesn’t know she starts work here tomorrow.
Because I haven’t told him.
“Well... About that—”
A knock at the door cuts me off. “Enter!”
“You wanted to see me, Captain?”
Thankful for the interruption, I motion for Dave to come in. “Yeah. I need a favor.”
I shoot Brex a look. “We’ll talk more about this later.”
With a heavy sigh, he gets up. “Whatever. I’m gonna head over to Summit. Need to work off some steam.”
Motioning for Dave to take a seat, I mentally shake my head, dreading the conversation Brex and I are going to have about Reyna.
As captain, it’s highly recommended that I keep my hands off her. However, there are no rules in place in regard to employee fraternization. And that’s what worries me.
Brex has it bad for her. And, unfortunately, so do I. So we need to figure out what we’re going to do about it.
Soon.