Chapter 24
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
RORY
“Morning, Princess.” I jerked upright and almost smacked my forehead into Marco’s grinning face. “Hunter had to run out and handle something for a few hours. He told me to make sure you iced your throat.”
“Did he tell you to wake me up? Where’s Ty?” I demanded, wincing as my throat burned and half my words didn’t come out properly.
He tsked, sitting back from my personal space to grab my water for me.
“Stop talking. Ty’s fine, he’s gone to school. Want to piss Hunt off? Let’s go do something.”
I glared at him as he flipped the blanket off me, the cold morning chill hitting my bare legs and making me shiver. Snatching my phone from the bedside table, I typed out a quick message to tell him to fuck off, amusement flashing across his face as he read it.
“You’re mean when you wake up. C’mon, let’s go get some breakfast and coffee, then you can come on a job with me. It’ll be funsies,” he insisted, catching my interest a little.
I went to speak, but he motioned to my phone, so I typed my response into my notes.
What kind of job?
He smirked, knowing he was sucking me in. “Someone owes me money. They can either hand it over, or lose fingers. I was going to do it this afternoon, but if you want to come—”
I cut him off, shoving my screen in his face.
Hunter will kill you.
“He knows I won’t let you get hurt. Besides, this guy isn’t dangerous, he’s a pussy. Skeet never let you go on jobs, right? It’ll be fun.”
You’d better not leave me sitting in the car like a dog.
“Hey, if you want some torture practice, have at it. I’ll let you help,” he grinned, surprising me. I must have shown it on my face too because he chuckled. “You like that idea? You want to come be my little murder buddy for the day?”
Promise I won’t get arrested this time?
I gave him a teasing look, and he rolled his eyes. “Promise. Breakfast, torture session, then we can go to the warehouse to check in with Hunt.”
I nodded and swung my legs out of bed, frowning when I noticed some of my clothes folded on the end of the bed.
Where did they come from?
He glanced at them, shrugging like it was no big deal. “You think I only break into your house when you’re home? Hunt said you didn’t have anything with you, so I figured I’d get you a few things. No idea what you’d want, so I grabbed a few random things.”
Why was that so sweet? I should have scolded him for going in the first place, but I doubted I’d be very intimidating with a cracked voice.
“Thanks,” I mumbled, grabbing a change of clothes and heading to the bathroom to shower and change, meeting him in the living room when I was done. I eyed the helmet and jacket in his hands, raising an eyebrow. “Is that a good idea?”
“No talking, just roll with it. The jacket will protect your tats, at least,” he replied as he offered me the jacket.
I slid it on and took the helmet, grabbing my phone out to type a reply.
What if someone shoots at us? I don’t really have the right outfit on for a crash, asshole. My tattoos are the least of my concerns.
“If you want some proper riding gear, I’ll take you shopping and help you find some.
Bring that fancy credit card though, I’m not paying for it,” he answered, waiting for me to put the helmet on before setting up the Bluetooth comms system.
“Try not to talk, but if you need me to stop or you feel like something’s off, let me know. ”
We headed out to the garage, where he put his helmet and gloves on before fixing his own Bluetooth, then he turned the bike around and walked it outside to start it to warm it up.
I closed the garage and waited for him to climb onto the bike before swinging on behind him, heading north through Newhaven.
The bike jerked forward as Marco braked slightly, forcing me forward more and making me scowl.
“Hold on properly,” he chuckled, taking my hands one at a time to tighten my hold on his middle. “If we get any surprises, you need to be ready.”
“You just want me touching you,” I said dryly, a laugh leaving him.
“That too. Pretend to like me for five minutes, it won’t kill you.”
I huffed but held on tighter like he said, his hand returning to the bike as he kept checking the mirrors. I wanted to glance around too but knew it could throw the balance off, so I trusted him to keep an eye out for me.
We arrived at a small cafe in Riverside, and he motioned for me to climb off so he could do the same.
Carrying our helmets inside, we sat in the back booth so we could see the whole room to avoid someone sneaking up on us, and I sat across from him to put my helmet on the seat beside me.
“Point at what you want on the menu and I’ll order for you,” he said without looking up at me from his phone, probably getting scolded from Hunter for taking me out.
“I can talk in small doses.”
“I know, but it’s so peaceful without you sassing me,” he joked, laughing as I kicked him under the table. “Hey, play nice, babe. Get the pancakes. They’re soft and will sweeten you up a little. Coffee isn’t too bad here either.”
A quick glance at the menu told me he was right because a lot of the options were going to be harsh on my throat, so I texted him what I wanted.
Rory: Pancakes and coffee is fine.
He read it as it popped up on his phone before lifting his gaze to mine with a huff.
“Good to know you won’t fight me on it.”
I gave him a fake smile and flipped him off before pushing the menu away, and I studied him as the waitress came over to take our order.
She was very interested in him, his laidback flirting approach working wonders as he chuckled at her bad attempt at a joke, and if things had been different between us, I’d probably fall for his bullshit too.
He definitely had that bad boy look going for him, the type where you knew they’d throw you against a wall and fuck you breathless while calling you a dirty whore, but then would get you water and clean you up afterwards while saying you did a good job.
Why was that so attractive?
I jerked as his leg brushed mine, and I realized he was watching me with a grin, the waitress gone.
“If you’d rather eat me for breakfast, I won’t say no,” he murmured, somehow anticipating my next kick as his fingers wrapped around my ankle. “Stop kicking me or I’ll spank you in front of everyone.”
“I’d stab you,” I warned, his eyes narrowing.
“No talking.” His fingers slipped up the inside of my jeans to tease my skin, and I pulled my ankle from his hold with annoyance. “You’d be fun to restrain. You’d fight me on it, wouldn’t you?”
The thought of being restrained with more than just hands made me physically flinch, and I wasn’t sure it would ever be something I’d be into. Tristan had ruined the idea of that.
“Hey,” he said gently, his brow furrowed in confusion at my response. “I’m teasing. No one gets to do that to you without permission. Bad memory?”
“Tristan,” I answered, not needing to go into more detail than that.
“Sorry,” he winced, having the decency to shut up until our breakfast arrived.
I picked at my food, taking small bites to avoid hurting myself, while Marco inhaled his like someone was going to steal it right out from under his nose.
“I’m surprised you don’t have a bike. You seem to enjoy being on one,” he randomly said when he was finished, and I scrunched my nose.
“How do I pay for that? Don’t say Josie’s money or I’ll punch you.”
“How is that different from the fancy cars?”
“She didn’t buy any of them. Skeet lent me the Corvette that is now destroyed, the Mustang was Slash’s, and the Lambo I’m going to be forced to use to avoid Skeet stealing the Mustang, is Jensen’s. Besides, bikes are easy to steal. That’s why you keep yours at Hunter’s in the garage.”
“You’d look hot in full leathers.”
“You think I look hot anyway,” I scoffed, rubbing my throat when it started hurting more.
“Very true, but my comment is still valid. Stop talking, you’ll hurt yourself,” he grinned, sipping his coffee and not rushing me with mine. He seemed more than happy to text on his phone until I’d finished, then he paid for both of our food before leading me back outside.
We got back on the bike and headed to a small side street out of view to park, excitement hitting me as I followed him on foot through a few streets. I really needed a good fight, but this would do.
“Do you guys host female fights at the warehouse often?” I asked, and he glanced over his shoulder at me as we kept walking.
“Yeah. We don’t have fights as frequently as the Psychos, but the girls fight as much as the guys when we do. You want a fight?”
“I need one.”
“I’ll hook you up, but Hunt won’t let you until your throat’s better. You’d make us some good money, I’ve heard how people talk about you from the Shed.”
“Does it make me a traitor if I start fighting for you guys?” I asked with a sigh, and he gave me a pointed look.
“They already think you’re a traitor, so it’s only going to add fuel to the fire. Do you care at this point?”
“I care that Diesel’s going to get shit over it.”
“Talk to him before doing anything so he has a heads-up,” he suggested, putting an arm out to stop me from walking. “Follow my lead when we get inside, okay? I don’t mind if you want to jump in and play, but let me get my shit out of the way first. I’d rather you didn’t kill him either.”
I nodded, motioning for him to keep walking, and I spotted the house before he even told me which one it was. It was a small house with a rusty car out front, the lawn needed a good mow, and one window was boarded up.
Definitely looked like a dodgy person.
We walked right up to the front door to knock, waiting as we heard someone call out that they were coming. The door swung open and a guy stood in front of us, the smile falling from his face when he realized who it was.
“Time’s up, man. Where’s my money?” Marco asked, giving the guy two seconds to reply before pushing him back into the house and stepping inside behind him. I followed, closing the door with my foot to avoid touching anything. I wasn’t risking it.