by Blair Grey
Landon nodded, though, like he understood that. “Well, I’m glad you wanted to bring me here,” he said. “I’ve been exploring Sarasota with my brother, at least as much as we can around the whole work situation. But usually with him, we’re checking out beaches and bars. You know, scoping out hot chicks.”
I felt a stab in my chest. Of course he was out looking for other attractive women with his brother. What, did I think I was the only female in his life?
But Landon looked like he immediately regretted what he had said. “Not that I’m looking for hot chicks,” he hurried to say. “I just mean, that’s what Braxton is doing. So we go to places that he’s going to find some eye candy. Otherwise, he’d spend the whole day complaining about how I was cock-blocking him with visits to empty piers and stuff like that.”
I had to laugh, even though I could still feel traces of jealousy coursing through me.
Landon stood up, dusting off his hands on his jeans and then offering me a hand up. “You look tired,” he said. “I should probably get you home. And Braxton and I are supposed to meet up with this guy Jason tonight anyway.”
“Yeah, okay,” I said. I grinned and bumped my shoulder into his. “You want me to drive again?”
Landon laughed. “I think I’ll do it this time. Last thing I need is you wrecking my poor baby,” he said, winking at me.
“Hey, I didn’t do that bad a job at it!” I protested indignantly.
“No, you really didn’t,” Landon said. I could tell that he wanted to say something else, but he held back.
It seemed like there were so many secrets between us. So many things that we each wanted to say, but we were each holding back. I wondered what might happen if we were totally honest with each other. Would we maybe be on the same page? Would we maybe be able to start a real relationship instead of just a friends-with-benefits situation?
But those thoughts were dashed when we reached my place. “I know that we’re just friends,” Landon said. “So I’m hoping that as friends, I can see you again sometime soon? I like spending time with you.”
Just friends. There it was again. We were just friends, and that was all that we’d ever be. I tried to quash the surge of disappointment. “All right,” I said, even though I knew that that was probably not the best idea. If I wanted something more than friends with benefits and he clearly didn’t, it was time to nip this in the bud. But it seemed like every time I tried to tell him no, he found a way to convince me. So why not just give in to him?
A slow smile spread across Landon’s face. “So I’ll see you soon, I guess,” he said, leaning toward me. For a moment, I thought he was going to kiss me on the lips, to get me fired up, to follow me inside and have his way with me again. And I wouldn’t have minded if he did.
But instead, strangely enough, he just kissed my cheek. Then, he reached around me to open my door, letting me out. “Have a good night.”
I got out of his car and walked up to my front door, trying to hide my disappointment. Trying not to feel emotional. But I could feel tears pricking the corners of my eyes. We were just friends, not even friends with benefits anymore. It was what I had been trying to convince both of us that I wanted, right from the start.
Now, though, I wanted so much more. And just friends felt incredibly hollow.
25
Landon
We spent Tuesday and Wednesday staking out another business. This was one that Jason had chosen for us, one that he said we might have decent luck with. The proprietor hadn’t been with Red Eyes for as long; the business hadn’t been open for as long as some of the other places in town, but Jason swore that they were loyal to Red Eyes up until recently.
It was kind of nice to take his lead on this one. To not have to be the one formulating the whole plan on my own. I had a feeling I was going to like working with him. He balanced out Braxton pretty nicely.
“So how did you get involved in all of this anyway? The Red Eyes business?” I asked as we idled in a nearby parking lot, trying not to look like we were sizing up the place.
Jason glanced over at me and gave a half shrug. “You know how it is, I’m sure,” he said. “Same as a lot of the guys, I needed a home. And Neil was there for me.”
“Neil seems like a good guy,” I said cautiously.
“He is,” Jason said immediately. “He and I have had our ups and downs; we don’t always see eye to eye. But he is a good guy. He has the best intentions.”
I frowned, wanting to ask him about those ups and downs. But before I could, he was asking me the same question. “What about you guys? What got you involved?”
I shrugged. “Same thing, I guess. Ray took us under his wing. He’s like a father to us.”
“A father who shipped you off to Florida to deal with someone else’s mess?” Jason asked.
Braxton narrowed his eyes at the other man, but I knew Jason didn’t mean that to come out the way that it sounded. I gave my twin a look and then shrugged again at Jason. “He trusts us. He knows that he can count on us. And Ray and Neil are apparently old friends. Plus, we might not really know you guys, but we’re all part of the same MC. That means we’re all part of the same family, no matter how distantly related we might be.”
“Hmm,” Jason said.
“What’s this kid doing?” Braxton asked, effectively ending that conversation. We all looked out at the timid-looking boy approaching the car. He didn’t look homeless, but there was no doubt that he was making a beeline straight for our car, looking nervously around as he did so.
“You think he recognizes who we are and wants to join the MC?” Braxton continued, sounding amused. “He’s pretty scrawny, but maybe he’d make a good treasurer. Sounds like you guys might need a new one of those after all.” He glanced over at Jason, and I was surprised to see a flash of anger on the other man’s face. Jason hadn’t seemed to mind anything else that Braxton said to him, but that one evidently hit a nerve.
The kid came up to my window and hesitated for only a second, glancing back over his shoulder, before he knocked on the glass. I slowly rolled the window down. “Yeah?” I asked.
“These guys paid me to give you a note,” he said, his voice barely audible. He held out the piece of paper, and when I didn’t take it, he dropped it into my lap. Then, he turned and fled, like he was afraid of what I might do to him.
I rolled my eyes and picked up the note. I was tempted just to throw it out, but I was also curious. Who could have paid him? Probably Mambas. Maybe they had decided to give up their anonymity. Maybe the note said that they wanted to arrange a time to meet with us.
Instead, the note was threatening. Brief, but threatening. It’s time for you to go back to New Mexico…for the sake of your brother as much as yourself.
I frowned down at it. It had been printed out, so there was no way to trace it back to anyone. “Looks like the Mambas are trying to send me a message,” I said, crumpling the thing up before either Jason or Braxton had a chance to see it.
“How did they recognize us though?” Braxton asked. “I thought that was the whole point of being in a different rental car.”
I gave him a grim look. “They have my license,” I reminded him. They know what I look like. They know all my details. And I’m sure they’ve been able to figure out who you are from that as well, through the public records. Easy enough for them to stick someone on us to watch our every move.”
“There’s going to be trouble if you don’t listen to them,” Jason said, shaking his head. “Whatever they’re threatening you with, you can believe that they’ll follow through on it. They’re not a merciful MC.”
“What do you know about it?” I snapped. We still hadn’t had this conversation. I had been trying to think of a way to convince him to tell us, figuring that if Neil and Ray were both so closemouthed about what they knew about the Mambas, Jason might be the same way. But I couldn’t hold back any longer. “You seem to have dealt with them in the past.”
Jason sh
rugged. “I know about as much as anyone,” he said. “They always travel in threes. No one really knows who’s involved with them.”
“Bullshit, you know more than that,” I said heatedly. It wasn’t like me to let my anger get the better of me, but some of Braxton’s impatience was wearing off on me. I wasn’t ready to start swinging punches at random groups of three that we passed in the street, but I was definitely more than ready for a little action.
When we had first learned that the Mambas were the ones behind all of this, it had seemed like things were falling into place so easily. Like we might really get to the bottom of this soon. But now, it was like Neil had said: It was like they were playing with us. A series of feints, nothing more. We were at a standstill.
And if they knew that we were here trying to case this place, it meant they wouldn’t be stupid enough to be seen here, not if they didn’t want to be. Which evidently they didn’t if they needed to pay some random kid to deliver a note for them.
I rubbed at my temples, feeling a headache coming on.
“Look, I don’t know what you want me to say,” Jason said, sounding like he was edging toward anger as well. So much for working well together as a team. “I don’t know anything more than you guys do. Actually, since you guys were the ones who found out that this was all Mambas work to begin with, you probably know more than I do.”
“I know.” I sighed, the fight going out of me. “Let’s get out of here. No point sitting around. They aren’t going to let us see them today.”
“So what, you’re just going to give up?” Braxton snapped. “We’re just going to head back to New Mexico with our tails between our legs?”
I gave him a mild look. “Of course not,” I said. “But we do need to come up with another plan.”
There was silence in the car as I drove Jason to his house and dropped him off. Finally, Braxton spoke up. “We need to come up with something quickly,” he said. “If they’re really just playing with us, we need to figure out some way to track them down before they get tired of their game.”
“I know,” I said. But what I didn’t know was what else we could possibly do.
26
Anne
I could tell that something was up with Donald when we worked together on Thursday. He wasn’t his normal, chipper, flirtatious self. I had seen three different platinum blond women leave without him so much as batting an eye at them that morning. Normally, Donald couldn’t get enough of the blondes.
But I wasn’t going to ask him about it. I didn’t really want to hear about his problems. I was just glad that he wasn’t hitting on me anymore. And maybe it was nothing to begin with. Maybe he had just finally decided that it was time to get professional.
I almost snorted out loud at that thought. That would be the day.
Sure enough, Donald quickly proved that it had nothing to do with being professional. I hadn’t asked, but he started to tell me all about his problems anyway.
“Have you ever been in love with someone?” he asked.
I rolled my eyes, not even bothering to respond to that. It was none of his business if I had been.
But I immediately thought about Landon. Was I in love with him? No, not yet. I didn’t know him well enough. I liked spending time with him, and the sex was great. I’d like to see him again, and I’d like to get to know him better. I didn’t like thinking about this thing between us ending. But it wasn’t love. Not yet at least.
There was a distinct possibility there, though. One which frightened me. I could actually almost see myself falling in love with him, someday. But this wasn’t about me. This was about Donald.
“Remember that girl that I met?” Donald continued. “I don’t know why, but she decided to break up with me.” I rolled my eyes, and he scowled. “Don’t be mean. You know, I really thought this girl was the one.”
“Do you really think that you could find ‘the one’ in a matter of weeks?” I asked, shaking my head.
Donald shrugged. “If you had asked me that before this girl, I would have said of course not. But now, I’m not so sure. She was something different, something special.”
“Sure,” I said, trying to make it clear that I didn’t really care.
But Donald wasn’t finished. “Do you think it’s something to do with my personality?” he fretted. “I know you don’t like me very much, but I’ve been trying to be better lately. For her. I haven’t asked a single woman for her phone number since she and I started officially dating.”
“That’s pretty big for you,” I said, looking over at him in surprise. I knew that he had still flirted with customers. I heard it every time we worked together, which was why today had seemed so strange. But he was right, when I really thought about it, I realized I hadn’t seen him collect any phone numbers lately. Nor had he really bothered me lately.
I would have noticed the difference if I hadn’t been so caught up in my own relationship worries.
I shrugged. “Your personality is probably part of it still,” I said. But Donald looked crushed when I told him that. I had to consider how he must feel. Telling him that his personality was terrible would have to make him feel that there was nothing he could do to fix it. To change things.
That he was destined to be alone forever because no one could possibly love him for the long run.
And when I really thought about it, I was no stranger to that feeling. It was everything that I had felt since my ex and I had broken up. Like I was never going to be worthy of anyone. And that there was nothing I could do to make myself good enough for anyone.
As much as I might dislike Donald, he wasn’t a terrible guy. I shook my head. “You’re right; you’ve been better lately,” I told him. “I’ve noticed.” I hadn’t really until he mentioned it, but he didn’t need to know that. I shrugged philosophically. “Maybe she just wasn’t right for you. But you’re a good guy, and I’m sure you’ll find someone.”
“You really think so?” Donald asked, and it was all I could do not to roll my eyes. What, was he fishing for compliments now?
But the truth was, I had the feeling he didn’t have many close friends. He was always busy with these women of his; that was just the kind of guy that he was. And I knew that I had been lucky to have Lina there to help me through the worst parts of my breakup. Granted, that breakup had been three years in the making, and I had to think that I’d been in worse shape than Donald was now.
I just didn’t know, though. I had to figure that there were some serious problems with Donald’s home life growing up that had made him into the misogynistic guy that he was today.
So I smiled at him. “I’m sure you’ll find someone,” I repeated, even though I had the feeling I was opening myself up to more of his advances. Just let him not start thinking that I was the perfect woman for him. I had enough drama on my plate already, with what I was going through with Landon.
Not for the first time, I wondered if I should just talk to Landon about all of this. Like Lina had suggested. Maybe if we cleared the air, things might feel a little better. At least I would know for sure if this relationship was doomed or if he might, somehow, possibly, want something more.
I glanced up as three guys entered the shop together. I frowned. They didn’t look like they were family, and it was kind of weird for three dudes to just be hanging out together and decide that they needed to swing by the pharmacy.
“Can I help you guys?” I asked, still sizing them up. They weren’t quite as broad-shouldered and muscular as Landon and his brother were, nor did they have tattoos covering every inch of visible skin along their arms. Where Landon and Braxton looked like biker dudes, these guys looked like, maybe, college football players.
But Donald still didn’t want anything to do with them. I hid a smile as he immediately found some excuse to duck into the back room, just like he had when Landon showed up.
The guys were assessing me, too, just staring at me for a moment. One of them finally stepped forward.
“Anne,” he said, and there was something about the way he said my name that gave me a weird feeling, like they were here to see me rather than to pick something up from the pharmacy.
I gritted my teeth, wondering if I should threaten to call the police or something. I hoped they weren’t here to rob me or something. But they didn’t look like they were reaching for their weapons, so I held off for the moment.
“Can I help you?” I repeated, making my tone frosty. Whoever these guys were, I didn’t like the looks of them and I didn’t particularly want them there. The sooner they got the message, the better.
“Have you ever met a guy named Landon Stevens?” the guy opposite me asked.
“Even if I had a customer in here with that name, I’m afraid I couldn’t tell you anything,” I said coolly, wishing I felt as collected as I was trying to pretend I was. “It’s that whole doctor thing, you know. You can’t know what he’s on or even that he’s on something. Insurance and what have you.” I was rambling now, but I couldn’t help it. My eyes kept flickering over to the other two guys lurking behind this one.
What the hell did they all want anyway?
The guy looked amused, but there was a dangerous glint in his eyes as well. “I’m sure with the right persuasion, you might be able to tell us something. Besides, I’m not just asking if you have a customer by that name. I’m asking if you know anyone by that name. Landon Stevens.”
I could tell that he was carefully watching my expression, and I tried to stay neutral as I shrugged. “Not that I know of,” I told him, hoping he wouldn’t be able to tell that I was lying.
My heart was hammering in my chest by now, though. Who the hell were these guys? Why were they looking for Landon? For the first time, I started to think about how strange it was that Landon and his brother had decided to pick up and move across the country for no real reason. There had to be some sort of backstory there, some reason that they had settled here in Sarasota.