Not Just Friends (Hot in the City Book 3)

by T Gephart

“You okay, Chief?” Tibbs asked, followed by my, “We heard you yell.”

  “What the hell did your fucking sister say?” Chief blasted, looking angrier than we’d ever seen him. “You get Presley on the phone right now!”

  Presley?

  I looked over at Tibbs wondering if he had any idea on what she had to do with Mack’s combustion, but he looked as clueless as I did.

  “What’s going on?”

  “Hayden sent me a message.” He looked down at his phone, shaking his head. “It’s just. . . she’s. . . said she was done.”

  “What?” I coughed out in disbelief thinking it had to be a mistake. “You sure you didn’t read it wrong?”

  “Did I read it wrong?” He barked out a humorless laugh as his jaw tightened. “You tell me.” He tossed me the phone, letting me read it myself.

  Mack,

  It’s over between us. We clearly want different things and if we continue, someone is bound to get hurt. Please, don’t try and call me, I won’t answer. Trust me, this is for the best. Goodbye.

  Hayden

  I could feel Tibbs behind me, his eyes reading the same thing I was. “Chief, this has to be a mistake. She doesn’t seem like—”

  “Get your sister on the phone now.” The words strangled by his clenched jaw. “She was probably the last person who spoke to her, and I want to fucking know what the hell was said.”

  Deciding to do what Mack asked, Tibbs dialed Presley while I handed Chief back his phone. I had no idea what was going on, but there was no way Presley could be involved. She loved Mack like all of us did, and there was no way she’d do anything to hurt him. Her text to me hadn’t been anything unusual, and if something had gone down, surely she would’ve mentioned it. And while I was worried for the chief and the state of his relationship, my need to find out if Presley was okay was higher on my list of priorities.

  Something didn’t add up.

  We watched while Tibbs relayed the info to Presley, Chief stalking like a caged animal as we waited for more intel.

  “Presley said she left the club a little bit ago, so she assumed she was with you. Bartender saw her go outside to check her phone and didn’t come back.” Tibbs held his phone from his ear, taking a swallow before adding the next part, “Chief, apparently she’d asked about Melinda.”

  “Fuck!” Mack roared, his fist hitting the desk. “Ask Presley if Melinda is there, I have a hunch I already know the answer.”

  Tibbs brought the phone back to his ear and asked Presley, his head nodding when he got the response. “She’s sitting at the bar.”

  “Good, tell Presley to keep her there if she tries to leave. I’m on my way.” He grabbed his keys and phone, calling in a replacement for himself as he walked out the door.

  “We should go.” I pointed to the doorway, the chief already telling Cap he was leaving. “Whatever the fuck is going on, Presley doesn’t have anything to do with it.”

  Tibbs shot me a funny look, my concern for his sister a little more than friendship. “Of course she hasn’t got anything to do with it. But we just can’t leave. Mack’s pissed, but he’d never hurt her. Jesus, why do you look like that? You’re starting to freak me out.”

  I wasn’t exactly sure how I looked, and really didn’t give a shit how it made Tibbs feel. But something in my gut was telling me it was all wrong and I needed to see her.

  It was my turn to talk to Cap, leaving Tibbs in Mack’s office as I went to find him.

  “I need to leave too,” I said, not hesitating as Cap lifted his head.

  He popped a brow, probably wondering where I got the balls to make those kinds of demands, but I’d deal with the paperwork later. “Want to run that past me again, Leighton? Because I know you saw the Chief just leave and we’re down North too.”

  Tibbs appeared at my side, not saying a word as I continued, “Cap, I’ll take whatever punishment you give me. But I’m walking out that door with your permission or without it. I need to go see Presley.”

  “Why the fuck do you need to see my sister?” Tibbs shoved my shoulder. “And what the hell does it have to do with Mack storming out?”

  Presley was going to be pissed.

  But much like Cap’s fury, I’d deal with all of it later.

  “I have no idea about Mack, but something about this doesn’t feel right. And I need to see Presley because I’m in love with her.”

  It was like a bomb had gone off; the room pitched into silence as noise ceased to exist. Tibbs blinked—like he couldn’t register the words—unmoving, while Cap’s gaze ping ponged between us, probably lost as well.

  Tibbs narrowed his eyes, his expression unreadable. “What did you say?”

  “I said I’m in love with Presley. I love her. And whatever the hell is going on over there with Mack or Hayden, I don’t want her to be alone.”

  His head snapped up, taking a step back as he held up his hands. “Wait a minute. What about this girl you’ve been dating?”

  “Presley is the girl. I’ve been dating Presley. I’ve been with her this whole time.”

  Didn’t know if that made it better or worse. Sure, he’d seen me turn down any other girl who’d even looked my way, my interest in anyone else nonexistent. But he also knew how many nights I’d spent in “my girlfriend’s” bed; my time at our apartment so limited he’d started to think I was moving out.

  Which meant . . .

  “You’re fucking my sister!” Tibbs lunged, his voice booming. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”

  “Hey!” Cap yelled, standing up and throwing his weight into the mix. “Both of you need to calm the fuck down. There will be no fighting in here, understood?”

  I hadn’t even raised my fists, willing to take a punch if that was what it took because honestly, I couldn’t blame Tibbs. And I’d take whatever Cap had to offer too, neither of those things changing the situation.

  “Wait!” Tibbs pointed a finger in my chest. “When you met me with her key, you’d been with her the whole time? I was going out of my mind trying to get a hold of her, and you’d been there the whole night fucking—”

  “I love her, man. LOVE her. I’m not with her because I was bored or to use her for sex. I could never do that. Not just because she’s your sister, but because I’ve always cared and respected her. But it’s different now, and I can’t be without her. She’s in here.” I tapped my chest, my words not even close to how much I felt for her. I couldn’t back down, my chest rising and falling with each heavy breath as I stood my ground. “You know me, Tibbs. Look me in the eyes and tell me you think I’m capable of ever hurting her.”

  Cap was in between us but hadn’t said another word. Not sure if that was because he didn’t know what to say or was waiting to see if Tibbs was going to take another swing. I didn’t know either, looking at him and hating the way he’d had to find out.

  But I refused to fight my best friend.

  I just wouldn’t do it.

  Even if he wanted to lay me out for no other reason than lying to him, I’d take it.

  “We were going to tell you.” I ran a hand through my hair in frustration. “We were waiting till your old man came back because Presley wanted tell your family all together. This isn’t just a fling, dude. It’s the real deal. And I only have two regrets about this whole thing. One, that I hadn’t made her mine sooner, and two, lying to you.”

  “Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuccck,” Tibbs huffed out a breath, squeezing the bridge of his nose with his fingers. “You’re making it really hard for me to be pissed at you right now.”

  “I won’t hurt her, Tibbs. Ever,” I promised, knowing it was the easiest promise I was ever going to make. “I’m not Lewis.”

  “Shit, shit, shit. I forgot about Lewis,” Tibbs cursed out, turning back to Cap. “Sorry, Cap, but we both need to go.”

  Cap hadn’t even had a chance to argue when my phone rang, it was Presley and I didn’t even hesitate to pick it up. “Presley, are you okay?” The words out of my mouth bef
ore I could even say hello.

  “Jared, he’s got Hayden.” I could tell she was trying to keep calm, her voice wavering all the same. “Lewis grabbed her from the Diablo parking lot, and he’s taken her somewhere.”

  “Lewis did what?” I asked, the words not making sense.

  Tibbs yanked my arm, the mention of the cocksucker’s name in connection with his sister getting his attention.

  “Presley, I’m putting you on speaker. I’m here with Tibbs and Cap, tell us exactly what happened.”

  Hitting the speaker button, I lowered the phone. “Go ahead, Presley, we can all hear you.”

  “Mack came to the club to set Melinda straight, thinking she’d said something to Hayden. But it wasn’t her. They hadn’t even met. I was checking the surveillance footage, seeing if maybe I could work it out. That’s when I saw him grab her near the staff entrance and force her into his car. I’ve called the cops, and they’ve put a trace on her phone, and Mack stormed out of here like a bat out of hell.”

  “Pres, it’s me,” Tibbs piped in. “Lewis is in deep. Gambling debts. At least fifty K. He needs money, a lot of it and fast. We haven’t been able to find him because he wasn’t just dodging the police but loan sharks as well. He’s in serious trouble so I guess he got desperate.”

  “Then why didn’t he just take me? Why would he hurt her? I swear if anything happens to Hayden, I’ll never forgive myself. I brought her here. It’s my fault.”

  Even though I couldn’t see her, I could hear it in her voice how hard she was trying to keep it together. But she wouldn’t allow herself to crumble, fighting back tears and panic, trying to keep her voice normal.

  She was so strong, but I hated that she needed to be. And the mention of Lewis potentially taking her instead made me so fucking angry I couldn’t see straight. “None of this is your fault. You didn’t do this. This is on him, Presley. They’re going to find her and she’s going to be okay. Stay where you are, Tibbs and I are coming.”

  There wasn’t even a question of whether I was leaving. Short of Cap and the entire crew holding me down, I wasn’t sticking around. They could even threaten to fire me and I’d still be walking, my need to get to Presley at an all-time high.

  But Cap didn’t fight us, tossing us a scanner, pointing to the door, and telling us to go. “Keep your radios on and me posted at all times.”

  With no way of knowing what else we were dealing with, walking to the club was sidelined. If for no other reason than to have the means to go find the chief, the idea that it was going to take longer to get to Diablo killing me as I fisted my keys.

  Tibbs and I raced out of the station without saying a word, both of us sprinting to my Mustang without a discussion. As much as he loved his Impala, Elena could leave him in my exhaust fumes at the lights, and speed was something we definitely needed.

  Doors slammed either side of my car, the ignition on and the engine revving before we’d even fastened our belts. Tibbs turned on the scanner, his phone in his hand already dialing as I left rubber in the parking lot.

  “Rockefeller, it’s Tibbs. We’re on route to Diablo, any word on Hayden’s location?”

  Rockefeller’s impatient voice boomed out of the phone. “We’re handling it, Tibbs. You and your boys keep out of our way. Shit is more complicated than it looks.”

  “What does that mean?” I yelled back, changing lanes whenever I caught a break. We’d have already been there if there wasn’t so much traffic, but sitting behind a bumper and laying on my horn wasn’t happening either.

  “It means you guys will stand down. Let PD handle this. And for God’s sake, find Mack.”

  “Fuck this.” Finding a narrow opening, I hammered on the gas and slid in front of a delivery truck. We almost traded paint, the bastard cursing me out as I drove by him like a maniac.

  “Anything goes down with Mack, you don’t take him in, okay. Fuck procedure, Rockefeller, this piece of shit deserves whatever is coming to him,” Tibbs warned, hanging on as we skidded into the parking lot of Diablo.

  “Don’t tell me how to do my job, asshole,” Rockefeller spat back. “He’s one of ours, doesn’t need to be said.”

  Ending the call, we both ejected from the car and hit the staff entrance of Presley’s club. She was with Bennett just inside the door, her eyes wild, red because she’d either been crying or was trying not to and wringing her hands like a junkie looking for her next hit.

  I couldn’t even talk, pulling her into my arms and kissing her the minute I got close enough. “We’re here, Presley. We’re right here.”

  A racked sob bubbled up her throat, fisting my shirt as she lifted her head. “Have you heard anything?”

  “No, but everyone’s looking.”

  Fuck.

  If Mack didn’t kill the son of a bitch, I sure as hell would, pulling Presley back to my chest as I nodded to Bennett. “You guys secure? We have no idea if he’s working alone or if he’s got some other agenda.”

  Bennett didn’t even bother with his usual bullshit, tipping his chin as his voice barreled out. “Eyes on all entrances and roving guards on the floor. And Presley has a new fashion accessory tonight, me.”

  If I couldn’t be the one to keep her safe, Bennett would be the guy I chose for the job. The man could take down a tank with his bare hands and wouldn’t flinch, and right now, I needed her safe more than I needed my pride.

  “Shots fired, active shooter. Target, West 225th Street. Bronx. All units please respond.” The announcement from dispatch echoed from the scanner Tibbs was holding. “Please maintain perimeter and wait for SWAT.”

  “Jesus Christ, is that where Hayden works?” Tibbs asked, speed dialing Mack. He hadn’t answered the last few times but if ever there was a time to call in a miracle, that would’ve been it.

  I gave Presley one last hug, hating myself already for needing to make the choice. “Bennett,” I nailed him with a stare, “I need you to do this for me, dude. We’ve got to go and it’s too dangerous to take her with me.”

  He nodded in understanding. “They’d have a better chance at getting to the President tonight. Go, I’ve got it covered.”

  Whatever control Presley had before was gone, her beautiful brown eyes pooling with tears as she hugged me first and then Tibbs, telling us both to be safe.

  “I love you, Presley.” I turned to Tibbs and pulled out my keys. “We’ve got to go.”

  Jared

  EITHER WE’D MANAGED to cash in that miracle or one of the angels was intervening, but we finally got through to Mack. He’d gone to check out Hayden’s apartment in Inwood when he’d heard the 9-1-1 call from the store manager come through dispatch. Tibbs rapid fired his additional information, letting Mack know we were on the way as we hit the FDR.

  The phone wasn’t even on speaker, the roar coming down the line as clear as if he was sitting in the car with us. I could only imagine how he felt, the idea that it could’ve been Presley, still very much on my mind.

  Which was why I called North.

  I knew his wife had just had a baby and the last thing he needed was to be tangled up in this mess. But if shit went down, Mack was going to need his family. And as much as I liked to think Tibbs and I could be there for him, there was only one of us he saw as a son, and that was Riley.

  By the time we’d pulled into the Target parking lot, the active shooter situation had turned to shit. SWAT had stormed in and gotten the gunman down, but not before he’d shot a female victim. And I didn’t need to hear the description to know it had been Hayden.

  We met Mack in the parking lot, the guy half out of his mind as Rockefeller tried to talk him down. I didn’t like the detective’s chances; the stare Mack was giving him lethal. Not sure if it was an effort to keep Mack calm or he’d finally decided to throw us a bone, but Rockefeller shed some light on Lewis.

  It seemed the cocksucker hadn’t only been Presley’s ex-boyfriend but was also related to Hayden. In what had to be slim-to-none chances, Lewis Good
man, AKA DJ Lewis G, was actually Lewis Wright, brother to Cooper Wright, Hayden’s ex-husband.

  There’d been some family issues, all of them disowning him—something I completely understood. So, by the time he’d started dating Presley, he was a completely reincarnated fuckface. Between that, the gambling and the debts he owed, he was a man ready to do anything to save his own ass. Even if it was taking someone he once shared a last name with at gunpoint.

  By the time the EMTs entered there was no holding Mack back. And he’d either pulled rank or everyone was scared to tell him no, the chief pushing through the crowd to reach Hayden while Tibbs and I followed.

  It was intense.

  Cops were everywhere, collecting evidence, securing the scene, and a couple had taken the shithead into custody. Why they hadn’t just taken him down with a bullet to the head instead of the leg was beyond me. But I guess that was why I was a great fireman and would have made a lousy cop.

  There was blood on the floor, Mack begging Hayden to stay awake as we looked on, unable to contribute any help. It was tough to watch, EMTs working on Hayden while Mack hovered like he was ready to rip out someone’s spine if they didn’t do everything they could to help her.

  With so much blood, it was hard to see where exactly Hayden had been shot. It looked like a chest wound, the fact she was still semi-conscious a good sign and probably the only reason Mack hadn’t lost it completely.

  “Her pulse is stabilizing. We need to move her,” Maree—one of the EMTs shouted, Taylor—the other—helping roll Hayden onto a stretcher.

  As much as I sympathized with Mack, he was getting in the way, making Maree and Taylor’s job ten times harder because they had to contend with him as well.

  With a silent nod, Tibbs and I each grabbed a side and held him back, Mack blinking back in genuine surprise. Either he’d forgotten we were there or he didn’t think we’d try and stop him, his death stare just as lethal as his tone.

  “I’m going. Move your arms or I’ll rip them from their sockets.”

  “You’re no good to her if you’re getting in the way.” North got in between the chief and the stretcher. “I’ll take you to the hospital, but you’re riding with me.”