Wild & Sweet (The Haven Brotherhood)

by Rhenna Morgan

  Jace scratched his cheek, his beard bristling with the sharp movement. “That why you asked for a rally?”

  “Yeah.” In the driveway, all the other brothers’ cars were already there, which meant little to no waiting before he fessed up on what he’d done. Or where his head was at. If anyone would understand, Jace would. He’d been in a similar position just a few months before, and he’d come out okay. “It’s time. I’m just not sure how the rest of the guys are going to feel about it.”

  Jace clamped one hand on his shoulder and squeezed. “The only reason they wouldn’t back your play is if they thought Gabe wouldn’t do the same.” With that, he slapped Zeke’s back and ambled through the front door without so much as a backward glance.

  Well, shit. Didn’t that just yank the rug out from under all his idealistic plans. Truth be told, he wasn’t altogether sure Gabe would have his back. Not at first anyway. Yeah, she’d come around when he’d taken time to explain, but he had a pretty good idea there would be a whole lot more in the way of explanations in his future before there was any blind acceptance.

  Inside, the soft strains of a television show drifted down from the huge entertainment room. Bigger, masculine rumbles and the steady thump of old-school rock billowed up from the basement. He hit the bottom step just as Knox let loose with his cue and broke the racked pool balls with a wicked thwack.

  “Damn, Zeke. Don’t you sleep?” This from Beckett, who stood with the butt end of his own pool cue anchored on the floor and the shooting end gripped loosely with two hands near his chest.

  “Bloody patients aren’t too fond of doctors napping while they dig bullets out of their shoulders.” He pulled his chair out from under the twelve-foot conference table Jace had bought shortly after they moved into Haven. Every brother had brought their own chair, one that represented a piece of their past, or a place in their life they needed to remember. His had to be one of the ugliest. A battered ivory kitchen chair on casters with obscene orange, black and yellow paisley, but it never let him forget where he’d grown up. It also reminded him his mom and dad didn’t want for a damned thing these days, even if he only saw them once every year or two.

  Jace settled in his own chair at the head of the table. “Knox, table the game for now so we can get our business done. Zeke’s earned a quick one after the day he’s had.”

  “And night.” Axel sat opposite Jace and reclined in his chair, feet up on the edge and hands laced over his belly. “You get Moreno’s word he’ll keep his shit out of our clubs?” he said to Jace.

  “As much of a guarantee as I think he’s capable of.”

  Trevor settled beside Zeke. “All the same, I’d keep Otto and his crew in place. Moreno might honor what he said, but an open playground only offers up fresh opportunities for new players.”

  “Agreed.” Jace rapped his knuckles on the table and focused on Zeke. “All right, brother. You wanted a rally. You got it. What’s the topic?”

  Man, talk about ripping the Band-Aid off and diving into deep territory. “Not sure how much everyone’s heard by now, but last night there was a fire out by Gabe and Danny’s house. The next-door neighbor.”

  “The same one with the break-in?” Trevor asked.

  “Other side,” Beck said. “Danny and I were out working a job when Gabe called. I hung around and did some checking with the fire crew. Nothing official slated when I left, but it’s looking like a well-placed arson job.”

  “And you’re nosin’ around why?” Axel said.

  Zeke swiveled and met Axel’s curious stare. “Because I asked him to.” He let the news sink in for all of two heartbeats. “Something’s going on out there. Break-ins, people who’ve lived there forever bailing with little to no notice, fires where there shouldn’t be fires, Realtors knocking on Gabe’s door every five minutes. It’s a forty-year-old neighborhood. It ought to be the dullest place in a fifty-mile radius. Not drawing in first-responder traffic every week. I’ve got a bad feeling on this one.”

  “Whatever’s tweaking you, I think you’re right.” Knox leaned forward and folded his arms on the table, a Pilsner bottle clenched in one hand. “I only looked a little before I headed out here, but the three houses that have sold in Danny’s neighborhood all have ties to one investment company. All sold to different buyers initially, but all of them turned around and sold to a company called Lakeside Investments.”

  “What about the increase in crime?” Zeke said. “One of the Realtors told the seller down the street all the surrounding neighborhoods were seeing higher break-ins.”

  “Nope,” Beck said. “The only reports of violence that tie with this kind of activity in the last six months are in Danny’s neighborhood. Considering that neighborhood is one long street with only twenty houses on it, that makes for a high tally.”

  Trevor pushed back in his chair enough to cross one booted foot over his knee. “You got anything we can leverage against Lakeside? Something we can turn over easy to the cops?”

  “None.” Knox tapped one finger near the base of his beer, slanted one of his devious I’m-in-the-know-and-you’re-not smiles up and down the table and delivered his next little tidbit with a teaser ending. “All the records I’ve found are tied up tight. Nothing sketchy that ties them to the break-in or the fire.”

  “But?” Axel prodded.

  “I did some digging on Lakeside’s executive team. More than one of their top guys have a history of getting caught with their fingers in the financial cookie jar. I’d bet they’ve got some serious pay dirt in their office.”

  Quiet filled the room, each man looking from one to the other.

  “You suggesting we go in?” Jace said.

  Knox shook his head and reclined back in his seat. “I’m not promoting anything. I’m just saying if this is something we want to shut down, then we need to get inside and see what they’ve got.”

  Beckett locked gazes with Zeke. “Sorry, brother, but we’ve got no skin in this game. Might be cleanest for me to give it to some buddies of mine at DPD. Maybe see if they’ll dig into it.”

  Like hell they didn’t have skin in this game. They had a lot of it. Him in particular. “Danny’s damned near one of us. If we’d already voted on him and learned shit like this was going on in his neighborhood, it wouldn’t even be a question.”

  “You say that like Danny’s the only one you’re concerned about,” Axel said, “but I’m not so sure the pretty lass isn’t an equal part.”

  “Don’t go there, Axel,” Zeke said. “Don’t cloud Danny’s part in the brotherhood with who I’m with. He deserves more than that.” And yet here he’d gone and muddied it up for Danny, tangling with Gabe.

  “Hold up.” Jace sat forward and held up a hand. “Yeah, Zeke’s gettin’ deep with Gabe, but that’s a separate issue. One we’ll cover. But Zeke’s got a point. I think we cover the issue of Danny first. It’s time. He’s paid his dues and shown his colors. Making the call on him answers our next steps on covering his turf.”

  Thank God.

  Zeke jerked a nod at Jace and let out a slow breath. “I brought Danny in. He’s a good man. Honorable, smart and willing to throw himself out there for any of us. The only thing he needs is the same direction and support we give each other. There’s no doubt in my mind he’ll pull his weight.”

  Jace zeroed in on Beck. “You work with him the most. What’s your spin?”

  “I’m with Zeke. He’s solid. Smart. Maybe not all that bookish, but deadly on the street. Got balls bigger than Texas. Shit you not, I’ve seen him stare some crazy motherfuckers down and not flinch.”

  “That a yes?” Jace said.

  “Yeah, I’m in.”

  Jace shifted to Knox. “You got any input?”

  “I’m leaning on the rest of you. What I know of him, I get no bad vibes. Everything I’ve found on him checks
out, and I’ve dug deep. Mom’s a lost cause. She hits Danny up for money now and then but steers clear of Gabe. Nominal cash really. At worst, she’s someone we might have to jump in and bail out a time or two, but so long as she stays at a distance, she’s not a risk.”

  “What about the sister?” Axel said.

  Zeke clenched the armrest and the knot at the base of his neck wrenched tight enough to make his eye twitch. The question was a fair one to ask, one he’d ask himself if he were in Axel’s shoes, but damned if he didn’t want to slug the Scottish bastard. He answered before Knox could. “Gabe could be a problem if she finds out too much. She’s all about rules and neat, tidy boundaries. Especially the law. With everything that went down with her mom and Danny when he was young, it’s how she’s coped. Black-and-white is good. Gray isn’t.”

  “Black-and-white’s not bad,” Jace said. “It just means you gotta bite your tongue around her.”

  And there was his problem. He’d already proven just how inadequate he was on that score this morning. He hung his head and studied his blood-smattered tennis shoes.

  “You think you can do that?” Axel said.

  Zeke met Axel’s stare. “Am I eager or interested in telling her everything we’re into? No. The more innocent she stays, the better. But I can’t lie to her. I won’t.”

  On his left, the worn black leather lining Jace’s chair groaned as he shifted in it. Otherwise the room rang silent.

  “All right,” Jace said. “Let’s table Gabe and keep focused on Danny. Trevor, what’s your vote?”

  “I’m in.”

  “Axel?”

  Axel dragged his fingers through his beard and studied Zeke.

  Damn it, this was exactly what he’d wanted to avoid. If he hadn’t started things up with Gabe, Axel wouldn’t have even hesitated.

  “Never seen anything in Danny that gives me pause.” Axel shifted his gaze to Jace. “I’m in.”

  “Yep. Me, too.” Jace rapped his knuckles on the table. “That’s a solid vote. If Danny’s on board, then he’s in. Which means digging into Lakeside is a no-brainer.”

  Beckett chuckled and took a swig of his beer. “It also makes the person getting inside their office a no-brainer. No one better on our crew for this scale of a job than Danny. With Knox’s help, it should be straightforward.”

  Trevor focused on Knox. “You got any idea what he’d be up against?”

  “Not yet, but me and Beck can scope it out. Probably take two or three days to get a good idea on what we’re talking about.”

  “What do we do in the meantime?” Zeke said. “Danny can handle himself if there’s trouble in the neighborhood, but I don’t like Gabe being home by herself. Her ribs are better, but she wouldn’t hold up defending herself if things went bad.”

  Beckett pushed back on the rear legs of his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. “Then we arm the house. I’ll put a man on watch until we get it wired.”

  “Yeah, wiring her place is going to raise more questions.” More than he’d be able to juggle without raising more suspicions.

  “One thing at a time,” Jace said. “We need intel for the company first. Zeke, you brought Danny in. You going to be the one to make the offer?”

  Hell yes, he was. From the first day he’d met Danny, he’d known this day would come. No way was he passing it off to someone else. “Yeah. I’ll cover it.”

  “Good.” Jace pulled the toothpick from his mouth, leaned into the table and crossed his arms, gaze pinned on Zeke. “Gotta deal with the other piece, brother.”

  Yeah, he did. Though how he was going to deal with the outcome if he didn’t have their support, he couldn’t fathom. For ten years, these men had been his lifeline. The last thing he wanted to do was live a life without them, but letting go of Gabe wasn’t an option either.

  He sucked in a deep breath. “The thing with Moreno. Gabe walked into the room when I was talking with Jace on the phone. She’s got no clue who I was talking to, but she heard Moreno’s name and called me on it. I told her as much truth as I could. Told her I couldn’t refuse helping someone even if I didn’t condone the kind of dope he pushes.”

  Not one man said a word, but every one of their expressions got tight.

  Axel lowered his crossed feet from the table and sat up straight. “You think she’ll do anything with that info?”

  “She knows where Sanctuary is. She could’ve called the cops and sent ’em straight to me while Moreno and his brother were there, but she didn’t. I think she’s trying to be reasonable and let some of her rigidity go, but I can’t guarantee what will happen if she figures out it wasn’t a one-time deal.”

  “That’s a high risk,” Jace said. “You gain us more points prying bullets out of rough crews than any amount of cash ever could.”

  Trevor shifted in his chair beside Zeke. “What is she to you?”

  Wasn’t that just the million-dollar question of the day. One he’d been wrestling with since the first day he met her. “The truth? I’ve never met a woman worth taking this kind of risk before. Not until her.”

  “Ach, Christ.” Axel reclined in his chair, all the tension that had held him moments before replaced with his usual easygoing, playful demeanor. “Another lad headed down the bloody tubes.”

  “I’m not going to lie to you guys,” Zeke said. “What I’ve got with her, it’s good. Real good. I don’t know if we’ll make it. Not with how cautious she is, but if we do? Man, the gamble would be worth it.”

  The room got quiet, every man waiting for him to leap.

  Except Jace, who was more than happy to push. “You claiming her?”

  And there it was. The time for him to man up, or go home. Oddly enough, the words came easy. Like they’d been there all along. “Yeah, she’s mine. No telling if she’ll be willing to stick it out for me long-term, but there is no question I’m on board. The problem is, I don’t want her putting my family in danger.”

  “Fuck that.” Axel sat upright, elbows perched on his wide knees and hands clasped between them. His eyes burned with an intensity he seldom let show, but when he did, it was all consuming. “You want her, you find a way to make that happen. I may be the last man ready to settle down, but if you’re willing to throw down for a woman, then we back your play and we take the risk together. You’re my brother. I trust you.”

  Jace chimed in right behind him. “Agreed. If she’s yours, she’s ours, too. We’ll manage the risk.” He looked to Trev, Beck and Knox. “Any issues from the three of you?”

  “Nope.”

  “None.”

  “Hell no.” Trevor grinned and slapped Zeke on the back. “Gonna be fun having a front seat, though.”

  Of course, it was Trev who’d find humor behind the risk. The two of them had come into the brotherhood at the same time, and in all the years Zeke had known him, the laid-back cowboy had only lost his cool three times. Three explosive, wrath-of-God, lethal-ending times. “Careful, brother. You get too close to front and center, you might find yourself courting your own problems with a female.”

  “Not likely.” He plucked his beer off the table and raised it in a mock salute. “I’ll take a full stable to a single filly any day.”

  “Amen.” Beck lifted his own beer and knocked back a huge slug.

  “You boys don’t know what you’re missing,” Jace said, “but you’ll pull your heads out of your asses eventually.” He rapped his knuckles on the table. “All right. Business is done. Gabe’s protected and Danny’s in. We’ll meet back here on Friday, add one more chair to the table and figure out how to bring Lakeside down.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Storm clouds lined the western sky, moving fast toward the lake. Between the time Zeke had left his Uptown town house and the time he’d turned into Gabe’s neighborhood, the e
arly-evening sun had disappeared behind a thin veil of gray and now cast an eerie, green pall for miles.

  He pulled in behind Danny’s Chevelle, killed the engine and jogged up the front stoop, strengthening wind gusts whipping all around him. Another thirty minutes and every weatherman in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area would be nursing an adrenaline high in front of their cameras, pissing off television viewers with their interruptions and juggling storm spotters better than a circus entertainer. He knocked on the front door.

  Gabe’s voice rang out behind the solid wood. “It’s open.”

  Sure enough, the knob twisted smooth as butter, a fact that had him scanning the neighborhood for confirmation Beck had followed through on his promise to put a man on watch.

  Four houses down, just out front of one of the empty homes sat a baseline black Ford F-150. No bling at all. Just a nondescript truck with heavily tinted windows, its nose pointed so it had a straight-on view of Gabe’s house.

  He pushed the door open and nearly whacked Gabe’s outstretched hand in the process.

  She jumped back. “Oh, I thought maybe I’d locked it. Didn’t you hear me?”

  “Yeah, I heard you.” He shut the door and locked it. “The question is why the front door isn’t locked.”

  “The door’s never locked when Danny’s home.”

  “Well, it should be.” And would be whether it made her ask more questions or not. “You’ve got too many damned Realtors knocking on your door for my comfort. Not to mention the break-in next door.”

  She frowned up at him, deep furrows scrunching up the space between her eyebrows. “What’s got you in such a sour mood? And I thought you had to work tonight.”

  Fuck, but he hated keeping her in the dark. Hated that he couldn’t just lay shit out for her and trust she’d take him and his actions as they came. He pulled her against him and kissed the top of her head, her scent wrapping him up just as tight as her arms at his waist. “I just want you to be safe. I know you’re not used to it, but I want you to promise me you’ll keep the doors locked.”