His phone rang with a ringtone he assigned to all the Jacksonville Riot brothers and he knew it would be Turk. He pulled the phone from his back pocket, turned on his heel and headed back to his room. “Yeah, Turk.”
“She’s in a hotel room.”
He nodded, but couldn’t pull up any words. They had both been in the wrong earlier, but her immediate reaction defaulted to bolting. He suggested sex with no ties; she packed her shit in the only box available. She thought she could fall in love with him; she retreated to her futon to scroll through apartments. He overreacted to her justifiable reaction to his disregard for public displays of affection; and she stormed out.
Yeah. He didn’t need that constant yo-yo shit in his life, which was why he told Turk he wanted serious space from her ass. Since he only saw him twice a year, Turk didn’t know he didn’t mean it. The sharp pain in his chest from the idea of her in a hotel room underscored what he already knew.
She was it, and he loved her.
Deep down he wanted to roar into the hotel she was at and knock her door down, but that wouldn’t work.
“You hear me, man?” Turk asked.
Har shook his head. “Sorry, Turk. But yeah. I heard you. I’m glad she’s at a hotel and not some sleezy dive like she was in before.”
Turk chuckled. “A man who wants lots of space from a woman doesn’t give two shits about where she’s at, but for what it might be worth to you, she’s never been one to pass up a deal, and she’s staying at the casino where she works.”
His lips spread into a wide smile. “That’s good to know, Turk. Thanks. Owe you a marker for this—”
“Fuck that. Buy my ass a drink and some good pulled pork at Biketober Fest next month, we’re fuckin’ square, man.”
He chuckled. “Done. Later.”
As he tucked the phone back into his pocket, his other hand yanked his keys out to unlock his room door. She could have this night away from him. He didn’t like it, but he’d deal. Thinking about her at that casino jarred another thought and he called Turk back.
“Yeah, Prez?” he answered.
Har chuckled. “Not your president, man, but thanks. Had another favor to ask.”
“You got it.”
He smirked. That was the loyalty the Riot brothers were known for. “You might regret this later.”
Turk chuckled. “Not likely.”
He nodded. “Fair enough. Ask Liar to call me. Beast, too, if he’s around. Both of their dads work at the casino, and I know Charlie deals cards since I watched him relieve her from a table more than once.”
“Consider it done. Later.”
Two hours later, Har’s phone rang again with a local number he didn’t recognize, but he answered it since he suspected it would be Beast’s father, Delmas, who worked the hotel side of the casino property employing Stephanie.
“My son tells me, you want to talk to me,” Delmas said after Har answered.
The man’s tone said he wasn’t down with bending rules, but Har hoped he could convince him otherwise. “Yes, sir. I fucked up with my woman.”
A deep, throaty laugh rang through the line. “That might be the first time I heard one of you bikers admit to doing wrong.”
He snorted a brief chuckle. “And probably the last, sir.”
“Yeah, you can save the ‘sir’ business for now. Got that this woman works here, but how is it that I’m supposed to help?”
When he finished with his request the line was eerily quiet, but he waited it out.
Delmas sighed. “I swear to all that’s holy, if it ain’t my own son, it’s one of you ‘brothers’ trying to put my damn retirement in jeopardy. I’d say you owe me after this, but I can’t imagine what you could give me to make up for this sort of thing.”
“Sir,” he started, but Delmas cut him off.
“What’d I say about that ‘sir’ shit? Save it, Har. Know who you are and what you are to that club. So, if I can’t deliver, you’ll figure your own way into the room, even if it means a battering ram, which I’d end up repairing the door afterward anyway, so... I’ll need until at least lunchtime. There’s a woman who works dayside who’s sweet on me, but I need this type of info, I gotta bide my time.”
Har smiled. “Whatever you need, Delmas. And seriously, if this puts your job in danger, don’t bother. Like you said, I can figure something else out, but I’d rather sneak up on her, if you know what I mean.”
“I do. I’ll call you tomorrow.”
He showered before climbing into his bed. Even if she’d only spent a few nights with him, he struggled to find sleep without Stephanie.
Chapter 23 The Price You've Got to Pay
Har
IN THE MORNING, ROMAN cornered Har at the coffee pot. “I’m thinking brother and sister have a faulty vehicle which will—”
Har held a hand out for a moment. “Say no more. That’s feasible.”
He grinned. “Except for one problem.”
Har’s eyes narrowed. “Come again?”
“We have to get rid of Carter too, don’t we?”
Har fought wobbling his head. He hated the idea still, but knew it couldn’t be avoided.
He hesitated too long.
Roman bit out, “Lightning does not strike twice, Prez.”
He held his hands out in a conceding gesture. “You’re right.”
“Anyway, I’m thinking sister and boyfriend are traveling when big brother crashes the party or comes to the vehicle to help them.”
Block sauntered up to them. “Just found out, Wreck recently bought a small house on the wrong side of town. A house that’s known as a cook-site.”
Roman turned to Block, his eyebrow arched with curiosity. “Meth, you don’t say?”
Block grinned. “Yeah. Even though harder drugs would bring us more money, skimming full payments for our product would help Wreck with a down payment on that property.”
Har shot a grin at Roman. “My guess is that this already occurred to
