Chapter Two
Matlock
I was going to fucking kill him! What the hell did he think he was doing? How many fucking times did I tell him to let the club handle it? But he wouldn’t fucking listen to me.
I pulled out my phone and called Keys.
“What do you need?” he asked, his voice sleepy.
“Go over to Simon Nelson’s house and get him some clothes. Meet me at the hospital.”
“On my way.”
I liked Keys. He did what I asked of him, and he didn’t question me. I’d used him on more than one occasion when I needed a discreet investigation into a client. Or an opponent.
I followed the sheriff’s SUV to the hospital, pulling up behind him and parking my car in the lot. I jogged over to the entrance as Simon climbed out of the car.
When my eyes finally scanned him, I noticed just how much blood covered his body. I didn’t know how much of it was his and how much was Alan’s. There was no question in my mind this was about Alan fucking Sanders. I should have taken the motherfucker out myself.
My eyes reached Simon’s, and I saw what I’d missed. I closed my eyes against the emotion I saw. When I opened them, I shook my head, silently reminding him not to open his mouth.
I followed behind him as the sheriff led him to the nurse’s station. Nurse Sally directed us to a curtained room and instructed Simon to get undressed.
“Gentlemen, please give Simon some privacy.”
“Chain of custody, Sally,” the sheriff said as I growled, “No.”
“Matlock,” Sally started.
“I said no.”
“It’s fine, Sally.” Simon stood up and began to undress.
“What did I tell you about opening that fucking mouth?” I snarled. I knew I was being over the top, but I’d be damned if I let Simon go down for this. I knew he didn’t do it, but until I got him alone, I couldn’t grill him for answers.
Simon pressed his lips together and glared at me.
“Put this on, Simon.” Sally left a hospital gown on the bed.
As he undressed, he handed each item of clothing to the sheriff, who put them into an evidence bag until he was standing naked in the room.
The sheriff had turned to the side out of respect as Simon reached for the gown, but I couldn’t control the growl that rumbled out of my chest knowing that someone else was in the fucking room.
Simon smirked, and I growled deeper.
“I need to get a few pictures, Simon. As well as some fingernail scrapings. Then I’ll take your statement.”
“Not until after I’ve talked to him.”
“Matlock,” the sheriff sighed.
“Not until after I’ve spoken to him,” I reiterated as I glared at the sheriff.
“Fine,” Declan relented and did what he needed to do to gather his evidence. Evidence that I would have thrown out for one technicality or another. It was what I was good at.
A knock on the wall had Keys sticking his head past the curtain. He handed me the bag and nodded before he ducked back out and left.
“Will Simon be ready to make a statement this afternoon?”
“Yes.”
I sent an angry glare at Simon when he opened his mouth to answer. He snapped his mouth shut and glared back.
“Then I will take these”—he held up the bag of clothing—“and see you later today.” He slipped out of the room, and I was about to move closer to Simon when Sally came back in.
“I need to look at your cut, Simon. Then you can shower if you want.”
“He can shower at home,” I snapped.
Sally and Simon both turned to look at me. I knew I was drawing her attention by acting like an asshole. But I needed to get Simon out of here. I wanted to know what happened. I wanted to hold him in my arms, and I wanted to fucking kiss him.
As soon as I’d gotten the call from him, I knew it had to do with Sadie’s boyfriend Alan. When I walked into the station and saw him covered in blood, I lost my shit.
Never in my life had I been so fucking scared. Seeing all that blood on him, not knowing if he was hurt. The only thing holding me together was knowing that Alan fucking Sanders would never touch Simon or Sadie again.
I pulled into the driveway at Simon’s house and followed him inside. If he were surprised by my actions, he didn’t let on. We entered the house through the side door that led into the kitchen.
I’d never been to Simon’s house. There was no valid reason for me to be here, so I couldn’t take the risk.
Until now.
Now I had a fucking reason to be here.
He dropped the small bag Sally had given him to hold his wallet and keys on the counter and walked down the hall with me following behind him. He stopped in front of his door and turned to look at me.
“What are you doing?”
“We need to talk, Simon.”
“Go sit down, and after I shower, we’ll talk.”
Staring into his eyes, I saw the question he wouldn’t ask. I wanted to say yes. I wanted to follow him into the shower and fuck him while the water rained down on us.
Instead, I took a step back and nodded. I didn’t miss the disappointment on his face, despite his trying to hide it. I spun around and walked back to the kitchen. It was the right call to make. Simon was a client now. I didn’t fuck my clients, no matter how much I fucking wanted him.
I sat down at the table and waited for him. The sound of the running water down the hall had my cock thickening. I closed my eyes and groaned, reciting tax law in my head as I willed my cock to soften.
I looked up when Simon entered the room, but my gaze hadn’t moved any further than his hips, and the outline of his cock in the grey sweatpants he was wearing. He cleared his throat, and my eyes traveled north to find him standing in front of me, his chest bare.
“Put on some fucking clothes, Simon.”
“No.”
He walked toward the kitchen, and I followed him.
“What the fuck did you say to me?”
“I said no,” he called over his shoulder. “This is my house. Be thankful I put the pants on at all, Tony.” He moved to the cabinet and pulled down two mugs. He filled the coffeemaker with water and turned it on. He turned to face me while the coffee percolated.
“What the fuck happened?”
“I went over there looking for Sadie, and he attacked me. I defended myself.”
I moved forward, pushing him against the counter with my body, and snarled, “Don’t fucking lie to me.”
“I’m not lying.” He looked me in the eye, and while most people would probably believe him, I knew him better than anyone. Even Sadie.
“Where is Sadie?”
“She left town.”
“That was the truth,” I stated, placing my hands on the counter behind him, caging him in. “When?”
Simon swallowed. The hint of fear swept across his face so quickly that if I hadn’t been so close, I would have missed it. But I rarely missed anything where Simon was concerned.
“She hasn’t been at the salon all week. I assumed he’d hit her again, so I went looking for her.”
“In the middle of the night?” I asked, knowing he wouldn’t go over there without a valid reason. His eyes flared at my question, and I knew I had him.
“Would you mind stepping back?” Simon asked, his voice a hoarse whisper. His pupils darkened, and I took a step closer, pressing my body against his. Letting him feel how hard I was.
“Your pulse is racing, Simon. There are only a few reasons for that. Are you lying to me, Simon?”
His eyes hardened when he answered, “No.” But it was futile because I knew he was lying to me. I knew he would do anything to protect his sister. Including going to prison for murder.
“Are you afraid of me?” I asked, dipping my head closer to whisper in his ear.
“No,” he breathed.
“Then you must be aroused,” I confirmed as I rubbed my nose up the side of his neck and pressed my pelvis against him. I clenched my hands on the edge of the counter to keep them from reaching for him. “Tell me to stop, Simon.”
“Don’t stop, Tony.”
I sealed my lips to his neck, nipping at him with my teeth. His eyes closed, and his head fell back. His hands grabbed my waist, holding me against him. Simon wrapped his arms around me, running his hands up and down my back.
When I felt his lips on my neck, I let myself revel in it for just the briefest of moments before I pulled back and stared down at him. “Tell me the truth, Simon.”
“It was self-defense,” he answered quickly.
Too quickly.
Simon leaned into me, and I took a step back from the warmth of his body. Turning away from him, I walked to the door at the edge of the kitchen. I pulled it open and looked over my shoulder. “When you’re ready to tell me the truth, call me. Until then, I can’t fucking help you.”
I stepped outside and slammed the door shut behind me. I concentrated on my steps as I marched to the SUV. If I didn’t, I’d turn around and walk back inside that house and fuck him.
But I couldn’t do that. Not here. Not in Diamond Creek. Here, I was a biker. A member of the Silver Shadows MC and a lawyer. Sure, I had certain kinks; that was why I went to the club in Denver, where I’d first met Simon.
But those kinks didn’t belong in a small Midwestern conservative town. What I did in my personal life was nobody’s fucking business, and I’d be damned if I’d broadcast it to the whole fucking county.
I climbed into the driver’s seat, yanking the door closed. My fists pounded the steering wheel in frustration. I couldn’t go back in there. Not in the state I was in.
I knew he was innocent. If I had to guess, Sadie had killed Alan, and Simon was trying to protect her. He should have called me the moment Sadie called him. He should have trusted me to fix this fucking mess.
For Sadie, self-defense was a given. The whole damn town knew what a bastard Alan was, despite her trying to prove otherwise. Everyone had seen the bruises. We all knew the way he’d talked to her. This would have been a non-fucking-issue if Simon had just fucking trusted me.
I stared at the house. I didn’t know how I would get him out of this, but I would. I started the engine and backed out of the driveway, driving back to the clubhouse. When I arrived, I found Keys sitting on his bike, waiting for me.
“What do you need?”
He wasn’t a prospect anymore. He, Johnny, and Archie had all been patched in after the attack last summer. But I hadn’t called him as a prospect. I’d called him as an employee. He was my investigator. He got me the information I needed, and I found a way to make it legal.
“I need to know what the cops know. Declan won’t put it in the computer tonight; he’ll assume I’d have Nav look at it.” I rubbed the back of my neck. “I need to find Sadie. My guess is, she killed him and called Simon. He would have sent her away. Find her.”
“You got it.”
Keys turned the ignition, and his bike roared as he rode out to search for Simon’s little sister. I needed her to come clean. Without her, I had no idea how the fuck I would keep Simon out of prison.