Chapter Five
Matlock
I stormed into the clubhouse, going directly to Nav’s office. I didn’t knock; what I needed from him was too fucking important to waste even three seconds.
“I need everything you can find on Rosalind Winthrop.”
“Well, hello to you too,” he said without looking up from his computer.
“I don’t have time for your shit attitude, Nav.”
King slipped into the room and studied me. “Gunner told me about Simon. But judging by the look on your face, I guess he left something out.”
I shook my head. As I loosened my tie, I paced Nav’s office. “Gunner didn’t know. He left before we went inside. Everything was fucking fine. He gave Declan his statement, and Dec bought it. Clear-cut self-defense. Then Rosalind Fucking Winthrop walked in and had Simon arrested.”
“What for?” Nav asked.
“Evidently, she isn’t buying self-defense,” I snapped. I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down. It wasn’t unusual for me to get worked up over a case or a client. But Simon was different. My brothers didn’t know that, though.
“Where’s Keys?”
“Looking for Sadie.”
“You think she killed him?”
“I do. I had Nav check his phone records earlier. She called him at three in the morning. My guess is, he attacked her again; she fought back and killed him. If Simon had just fucking called me when he got there, I could have fixed all this shit.”
King shared a look with Nav.
“What?” I asked.
“Nothing,” King said. I didn’t believe him. I could see the question in his eyes. A question I wasn’t prepared to answer. “Who is Rosalind Winthrop?”
I rubbed my hand over my face, and then patted my chest and hips, searching for my cigarettes. Simon hated that I smoked, but we weren’t together. He’d made it clear that if I wouldn’t claim him, he would do whatever the fuck he wanted. That meant I could too.
I pulled out a cigarette and moved it up between my lips when Nav whined, “Don’t fucking light that shit in here.”
“Asshole.” Holding the cigarette in my fingers, I continued to pace the room. “Rosalind Winthrop is from New York. We were in college together.”
“Scorned lover?” King asked. I heard Nav snort, and I glared at him.
“No. She had a thing for Fury, but he wouldn’t give her the time of day.”
“Shit,” Nav cursed as he turned to look at me. “I forgot you grew up with Fury. How come you didn’t join the Soulless Sinners?”
“I left not long after I passed the bar.” It was all I would say about that. “Even if I’d stayed, I wouldn’t have joined. George Stone was a dick.”
“So what’s this woman doing here? And what’s her beef with you?” King asked as he leaned against the wall. He looked relaxed. But I knew better. King hadn’t had a moment to relax since last Thanksgiving. And now, with Grace pregnant in the middle of a war, he was always on edge.
I was happy for him and Grace. Glad they finally gave in and let themselves be happy. Grace would be a great mom. King, on the other hand, would be an asshole father if Grace had a girl. I knew it was killing him not to know, but Grace insisted she wanted to wait.
I’d never seen myself having kids. Never saw myself settling down. Occasionally, Simon made me wonder if it was possible. But I’d shut that shit down. My whole life I’d been hiding who I was; now I was too fucking old to change it.
“She claims she wanted a change of pace, but I know Rosalind. She was forced here. I just need to know why.”
“And her beef with you?”
“She doesn’t have beef with me. She didn’t even know I was here until she walked into the station. This is about Simon. It has to be.”
“Does Simon know her?” Nav asked.
“How the fuck would Simon know her? He’s lived in Diamond Creek his whole fucking life. He’s never even been out of Nebraska, except to go to Denver.”
King looked at Nav and shook his head slightly. Nav sighed and turned back to his computer.
“What?” I asked, my eyes dipping from one to the other. “You have something to say?”
“Nope.” King pulled away from the wall and said, “Nav will get you the information you need. Go outside if you’re gonna smoke. I don’t want that shit around Grace.”
“I’ll wait here.”
“No, you fucking won’t,” Nav snapped. “This will take a while, and I don’t need you hovering over my damn shoulder. Get the fuck out.”
“Asshole,” I hissed.
I walked outside and stood on the porch. It was almost spring, and the temperature had finally warmed up to something comfortable. When we moved here, I’d been surprised by the weather and how similar it was to New York.
There were times I missed living in New York. There was no question I could have made a fortune there. I could have made enough to join the Soulless Sinners, even with their asinine rules and requirements. Like they were something special.
But I couldn’t go back. There was no statute of limitations on what I had been accused of. There was also no evidence because I was fucking innocent.
I pulled out my phone and called my oldest friend.
“Hey, Tony. What’s up?”
“Do you remember Rosalind Winthrop?”
The phone got quiet, and I looked at it to make sure we were still connected. “Chris?”
“I do,” he sighed. “She made my life hell until I joined the club.”
“She’s here,” I said.
“She’s fucking where?” I could hear him moving.
Likely going somewhere he could talk in private.
Fury and Vicious were living in California.
After everything that had happened in New York at the tree lighting ceremony a year ago, and then Carly, Fury’s wife, being kidnapped, they’d taken Linsey, Vicious’ wife, and the kids they all shared and left New York.
And now that the Soulless Sinners had patched over to the Golden Skulls, I wasn’t sure Fury would ever go back, except to visit his mother.
“Here, in Diamond Creek. She’s the new county prosecutor.”
“Something ain’t right there, Tony. She’d never willingly leave New York. Did she know you were there?”
“She played it like she was surprised to see me at the station, but I’m not sure. Said last she knew I was in Arkansas. No one knew where I went when I left except you.”
“I didn’t fucking tell anyone.”
“Calm down, dumbass. I’m not accusing you.”
I stepped off the porch and walked toward the back of the clubhouse. I knew Fury would ask, and I didn’t want to be overheard.
“What were you doing at the station? A client?”
“Simon.”
“Shit, Tony. What the hell happened?”
I ran a hand through my hair. “His sister was seeing this guy who was beating the shit out of her, but she wouldn’t leave him. She wouldn’t let us help her either. Well, he ended up dead, and Simon ended up covered in blood.”
“Fuck. She killed him, didn’t she?”
“I think so, but she took off. And he won’t tell me the truth. Said he didn’t know if he could trust me.”
“Why are you such an asshole?” Fury asked.
“Don’t fucking start, Chris.” I held the phone between my ear and my shoulder as I lit another cigarette. I closed my eyes as I inhaled the nicotine, only to blow it out in front of me.
“Things aren’t the same as when we were kids, Tony.”
“Things aren’t all that fucking different either. You don’t understand what it’s like. I could lose everything. My clients, my club.”
“Bullshit, Tony. Your brothers don’t have a problem with Sypher and Pippen.”
“Sypher does a lot of shit with Nav. And Pippen is Amber’s brother. They get a fucking pass.”
I took another drag of the cigarette, waiting for Fury to respond. He knew I was right.
“You are so fucking stupid. And have no fucking faith in your brothers. Steele is dead. Stone is God knows where. The men in the club who would care are gone. Join the rest of us in the new fucking millennium.”
“I didn’t call you for this shit. I called to see what you knew about Rosalind,” I growled into the phone.
I didn’t need this shit. He didn’t have a fucking clue what it was like to be me.
The cases I’d fought to help men and women beat the discrimination they faced simply because of who they loved.
It was an endless battle. There would always be bigots who believed their views were the only right ones. And here in Nebraska, in the conservative fucking Midwest where everyone and their brother went to church, it wasn’t any different.
I knew what I was doing when I moved here with King. I’d made my peace with it. When I found the club in Denver, everything fell into place. When I wanted to have sex, it was a little more than a two-hour drive.
It was worth it. A weekend in Colorado every few weeks was enough. Until I met Simon. My entire life had flipped upside down. Then flipped again when I found out he lived in the same damn town.
We’d just finished breakfast at the diner. King, Cash, Gunner, myself and a few others. We stepped outside to walk to our bikes when a whistle pierced the air.
“Good God! Goliath, you’ve been holding out on me!”
My head snapped up. I knew that voice. The one that haunted my dreams and left me hard as a fucking rock when I woke up.
“Hey, Simon,” Gunner chuckled. “This is King, my president. Cash, my VP.” Gunner’s voice faded as he introduced everyone, and I couldn’t stop the questions running through my head.
How the fuck did Simon know Gunner? He didn’t have a fucking tattoo.
I’d have seen it. I’d licked and bitten every inch of his body.
“And this is Matlock.”
Simon looked at me. A smile spread across his lips, and when he opened his mouth, I shook my head. His smile faltered for a second before he caught it and said, “Like the show?”
I didn’t answer; Gunner did. “Yeah, Matlock’s the club’s lawyer. He’s old as fuck, like the show.”
I flipped him off.
I was only eight years older than the son of a bitch.
“Well, everyone needs a daddy, right?” Simon purred as he took a step forward. I felt my dick twitch and vowed he’d pay for that shit at the club.
Stepping back away from the man I wanted to pull into my arms, I quickly said, “I need to get to the office.” So I can jerk off. “Nice to meet you, Simon.”
I didn’t wait for his response. I nodded, then walked over to my bike and climbed on, turning the ignition and letting her roar. She was the only girl I’d ever have between my legs.
I looked back over at the group. No one paid me any mind except Simon. I saw the hurt in his eyes. We hadn’t talked much about our private lives. I didn’t know he lived in town. If I had, I would have cut things off already.
Now, I was fucking addicted to him.
“Sorry, Tony, I don’t. I haven’t heard anything about her, but I’ve been gone almost a year. Happy to make some calls if you want?”
“Nah, I’ve got Nav looking into her. Just figured I’d see if you remembered anything.”
“Think about what I said, Tony. You deserve to be happy. Fuck anyone else.”
“Thanks, Chris. I’ve gotta go.” I hung up the phone and thought about what he said. It was all I thought about every damn day since I saw Simon that first night at the club when he gave himself to me without question.
I’d known I was gay by the time I was fifteen years old. But back then, especially among the wealthy, it wasn’t something you admitted.
To anyone.
I’d taken a chance with Chris. He didn’t judge me. He didn’t walk away and tell me I was disgusting, like my parents had. He was the only person in my life who knew the truth… until now.
I never thought I would meet someone who would make me consider building a life. Not until Simon.
And I was still too chickenshit to try.