“Better get ready to see a lot more of me, darlin’,” I drawl, purposely goading the pint-sized ballbuster with a wink in her direction.
“What is go—” Sophia sticks her head out of the office and catches sight of me. “Tse? What are you doing here?”
“Ah shit,” the blonde mumbles before turning back to the bar.
“Tse?”
I face Sophia and am about to answer when Ramirez steps up behind her.
“Come in, I want you to see this.”
He disappears back into the office and I step up to Sophia, who stands frozen in the doorway. Leaning down I drop a kiss to her forehead.
“You heard the man, Fee.”
She abruptly moves aside, color flushing her face.
Ramirez waves me over. “Have a look.”
I get behind him and direct my attention to the computer. The screen shows the feed of a security camera, from the angle I’m guessing it’s the one I know Ouray and the guys mounted over the back door earlier this week.
The picture is of the east side of the parking lot where it backs onto a run-down property, separated only by some brush and trees. The boarded-up house is on the next street over and faces the railroad tracks and the river beyond.
The first guy approaches from the south, moving in the shadows along the line of trees. The second figure suddenly appears at the back of the neighboring building. I’m not sure whether he actually came from the house or from the narrow alley on the side. With the tree coverage it’s difficult to see. They appear to talk for a minute and then exchange something before each of them heads back in the direction they came from.
“Looks like a drug transaction,” I suggest.
“That was my take. And in broad daylight. We were just going back through the feed and it looks like that wasn’t the first deal of the day.”
“Not a bad location for it,” I point out. “From what I recall, that building,” I tap on the screen, “is condemned, and from there it’s easy to disappear in the overgrowth along the railroad or the river. Lots of businesses along this side to park a car unnoticed and walk under cover of those trees. It’s less obvious than stopping at a street corner or parking in a back alley somewhere.”
“That’s what I figured. This doesn’t look like some kid selling a bit of pot on the side. Too many transactions and too well thought out. It looks professional and organized.”
He turns his head and looks up at me.
“You boys wouldn’t still have an ear to the pavement, would you? Maybe heard of any new players in town?”
Sophia, who’s been quiet so far, makes a small sound in the back of her throat as her eyes flit to me. But I focus my angry attention on the cop.
“Go fuck yourself, Ramirez. You know damn well that’s ancient history.”
It’s been at least a dozen years since we had anything to do with drug trade in this city, and the fucker knows it. Not a part of my past I appreciate being broadcast in front of Sophia.
“Relax. All I’m asking is whether anyone’s picked up on any chatter. People are more prone to talk around you than they do around us.”
As fast as my hackles went up, I calm down again. I hate to admit he’s got a point.
He pulls a flash drive from a port on the computer and gets up, tucking it in his pocket.
“Taking a copy of the feed with me, but it would be helpful if we could monitor traffic remotely. It’s currently on a closed network.”
“I can ask Paco, he knows about that stuff,” I concede.
“Great. I’ll be in touch.”
With a nod to Sophia he’s on his way, leaving us alone in her office.
“There was a time when the club was involved in the drug business, weapons trade, a lot of illegal shit I’m not particularly proud of,” I volunteer softly without looking at her. “That was over a decade ago, before Ouray took the helm.”
“Drugs?”
Now I look up at her expecting to see judgment, but other than maybe a hint of concern there’s little else showing in her expression.
“Among other things. Ouray’s plans for the club met with some resistance at first—money had been good and the brothers didn’t want to give up on that, some of them left for other clubs—but over the years he made good on his word we could make decent money going legit.”
“Oh.”
She folds her arms in front of her and doesn’t appear fully convinced, so I take a step toward her and put my hands on her shoulders.
“Those of us left from the early days and stuck it out are happier for it. I won’t say there aren’t times the boundary of the law isn’t tested, but what I can guarantee you is that not one of us has regrets leaving that life behind us.”
Large, honey-brown eyes look up at me, searching for the truth in my words. I know she’s found it when her features finally soften into a faint smile. My gaze is drawn to her lips. Pink, soft, and full.
Fuck me.
“Okay,” she whispers.
The next moment my mouth is on hers.
At the first taste of her I groan softly. The urge to claim her is strong, but instead of plunging my tongue in her mouth, I slick the tip over the swell of her bottom lip before lifting my head. Her eyes flutter before they open on mine, her pupils dilated.
Any other time, with any other woman, my hand would already be down her pants, interested in only one thing. Sophia is different—she’s more.
I don’t want her to see me as the proverbial bad boy.
I want her to see me.
CHAPTER 7
Sophia
“PUT THIS ON.”
He hands me a helmet and it suddenly gets real.
The helmet is similar to his—little more than an inverted bowl—although I see this one looks a bit more padded and has a bright red stripe running front to back.
“This looks new,”
