Troublemaker: Rascals: Book Five

by McCoy, Katie

  But Emerson didn’t seem angry. “10:30, right?”

  I was confused.

  “We’re going shopping,” Emerson prompted.

  I blinked at him, still trying to make the connection.

  “Mom and Dad’s anniversary gift?” he finally said.

  “Oh, right!” I snapped my fingers. “I forgot.”

  “Weird.” Emerson glanced around my apartment. “Because you seemed pretty happy to see me when you opened the door.”

  Because I thought you were someone else, I thought guiltily.

  “Too much caffeine,” I offered as an excuse. “Let me change and we can go.”

  I quickly put on some casual clothes, guilt welling up inside of me. Dante was right—it sucked to lie to Emerson and the others, but I still stood firm on my decision to keep things between us. Emerson would blow a gasket if he knew I was sleeping with one of his friends—especially since that friend was Dante.

  Just a little while longer. That’s all I needed. Just a little more time in our private couple world.

  But today, I was spending some time with the other man in my life. We started at one of my mother’s favorite stores, weaving through the aisles together, trying to find something that my parents would like but hadn’t already bought for themselves.

  “This is the problem with rich people,” Emerson said. “They always buy themselves whatever they want.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Says another rich person. You think you aren’t a nightmare to shop for?” I asked him.

  He grinned “You’re no easy feat yourself,” he reminded me.

  I gave him a nudge. “I’m a dream to shop for. I like everything.”

  He laughed. “You are probably one of the pickiest people I know. Besides, we both know that you’d rather get gifts for everyone else than get anything for yourself.”

  “Because I don’t need anything,” I argued.

  “Exactly my point,” he teased, swinging his arm around my shoulders and trying to give me a noogie.

  “You’re the worst big brother ever.” I squirmed out of his grasp.

  “I’m the best big brother ever,” he countered. “When have I not been there for you?”

  He was joking, but the words hit a nerve. He was right. He had always been there for me, and now I was lying to him. Not only that but I was asking his friend to lie to him as well. I wasn’t being fair to Dante. Or to my brother.

  I told myself that I’d give us a few more weeks of privacy and then we’d tell people. That seemed fair.

  “How’s Alex?” I asked, trying to change the subject.

  “She’s great,” he said, getting that big smile he always got when he talked about his girlfriend. “Working hard, which means lots of late nights, but I’m really proud of everything she’s accomplished.”

  “She is pretty great,” I commented. “Wonder how long it will be before she wakes up and realizes she could do way better than some dude who owns a bar.”

  I was teasing, but there was a flicker of panic in Emerson’s eyes.

  “Has she said something?” he asked.

  I immediately felt terrible.

  “No, of course not!” I quickly told him. “Wow, it used to be so much fun to tease you about girls dumping you. Being in love has really done a number on your sense of humor.”

  Emerson immediately relaxed. “If losing my sense of humor is the price to pay for someone like Alex, then I will eagerly pay it.”

  I gave his arm a gentle squeeze. “You’re a big sap.”

  He laughed. “I guess so.” He took a deep breath. “I’m just really happy, you know.”

  My heart melted a little bit. “I know,” I said with a smile. “And I’m happy for you. For both of you.”

  Emerson turned toward me. “What about you?” he asked.

  My heart sank. Nope. Not the conversation I wanted to be having right now. Especially since I was already feeling crazy guilty about lying to my brother about Dante.

  “What about me?” I played ignorant.

  “I know we were teasing you about the whole fake ‘secret boyfriend’ thing, but has there been anyone new in your life? It doesn’t seem like you’ve dated anyone since you and Mike broke up.”

  I hesitated, not sure how I wanted to answer the question. I ended up flat-out lying.

  “There’s no one right now,” I said, and I immediately felt like crap.

  “Are you putting yourself out there?” Emerson asked.

  “Why?” I countered. “Do you have someone to set me up with?”

  “Uh, no,” Emerson said with a frown. “I don’t want you dating any guy that I know.”

  I bit back a sigh of frustration.

  “How about this?” I asked, changing the subject again, directing Emerson’s attention to a large, expensive, and completely unnecessary vase.

  “Perfect,” he said.

  I was about to wave down a salesclerk when my phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out and saw that it was from Dante, so I did my best to shield the screen from Emerson’s watchful eye. Luckily, he had wandered off to the other end of the store, so I had a little privacy to check my messages.

  Owner agreed to sell. Signing the papers this afternoon.

  I wanted to cheer. Instead, I quickly sent him a response.

  Congrats! Let’s celebrate at your brand-new building tonight. I’ll bring the champagne.

  See you there.

  After my shopping trip with Emerson, I headed home to work. I knew that most people thought that I did nothing but spend money and go out to expensive lunches, but I actually kept myself pretty busy with the variety of charities I volunteered with and the organizations I contributed to. I had agreed to host a gala the next month, so I needed to work on plans for that, but when I sat down at my desk, I found myself researching grants and charities that might help Dante with the operating costs of his new gym.

  I knew that Dante already had a successful gym of his own, but Bull’s gym was meant to serve the community, and I knew that Dante wanted to keep it that way—cheap or free classes for kids in the neighborhood, as well as a variety of resources that they might not get elsewhere. That didn’t exactly spell profit, and I wanted to help. So, I spent the rest of the afternoon looking up possible avenues for additional funds. And I found quite a few. I made a comprehensive list, filled with resources that Dante could use at his discretion. He wasn’t the type of man who would take something he saw as charity, but I was hoping that he wouldn’t see my help that way.

  Around 10 p.m., I grabbed the bottle of chilled champagne from my fridge and two champagne flutes and headed over to Bull’s to meet Dante. The poker game at Rascals would probably last for a few more hours, but I had faith that Dante could find an excuse to leave early.

  It was chilly, so I wrapped my coat tightly around me as headed to the front door of the gym. It was unlocked, so I went inside, expecting to see Dante there. Instead, the place was empty. He must have gotten held up at Rascals, but I didn’t mind waiting. I put the champagne and glasses on Dante’s desk and settled onto the couch to wait for him. For a moment, I thought about stripping off all my clothes and waiting for him wearing my coat, stilettos, and nothing else, but I decided against it. Who knew what kids might drop by for a late training session?

  I pulled out my phone to catch up on the new Real Housewives episode, and soon I was deep in the drama.

  I heard a noise in the front hallway. I sat up, excitedly hoping to see Dante walk in, but there was nothing. So, I settled back onto the cushions, my attention focused on the show.

  I don’t know how long I’d been there when I smelled an odd smell wafting in the air. I paused. Was that . . . ?

  Smoke.

  It was probably someone grilling down the block, so I ignored it for a while, but instead of fading away, the smell grew stronger. I coughed. Something was on fire.

  Something close.

  I got up, feeling uneasy now. I made my way out of the of
fice and down the hall. But when I grabbed the handle to the main gym space, I discovered that it was locked.

  I was trapped.

  16

  Dante

  I usually loved poker games with the guys. There was nothing better than beating your best friends in a game that they didn’t mind losing. We’d drink, shoot the shit, have a good time. But tonight, my mind was elsewhere. Specifically, it was on Hayley, and how eager I was to see her and celebrate with her tonight.

  And it was playing havoc on my poker game.

  “Where are you at, man?” Sawyer asked me after winning another hand.

  “Yeah, usually you wipe the floor with all these yahoos,” Liam joked.

  “Don’t act like you’re exempt from that,” Chase added. “Dante usually beats the pants off of you as well.”

  “Just distracted,” I managed, wishing I could tell them the real reason I wasn’t able to put my full attention on the game.

  I glanced over at Emerson, who was shuffling the deck. He hadn’t said anything—did he know?

  Naw. If Emerson knew, we would have had it out. He wasn’t the type to do things passive aggressively.

  It was still a secret.

  I tried to imagine what the reaction would be if I told the guys what was going on between me and Hayley. I pictured them all looking at me with disbelief at first. And why wouldn’t they? Me and the socialite princess? It would have been hard to imagine a less likely pairing.

  But it worked. Holy shit did it work.

  I could hardly believe how fucking lucky I was. Not only was Hayley smart and driven, but she was sexy as hell. And she seemed to think the same of me. I was still surprised she was giving me the time of day, but I wasn’t going to argue. Not if it meant another night in her arms—or a morning, just curled up with her, feeling at home.

  “I’m out,” I said, hoping that no one would ask why, or where I was going.

  Thankfully, enough years of being a secretive bastard kept my friends from asking questions they knew I’d never answered. And there was no move to challenge that tonight. I was grabbing my jacket when my phone rang.

  I picked up without looking, thinking it was Hayley.

  “I’m on my way,” I said, my voice low enough that the guys wouldn’t hear.

  “Dante?”

  Only it wasn’t Hayley on the other line.

  “Bull?” I asked.

  “You need to come to the gym,” he said, his voice grave. “Hayley’s here. And there’s been a fire.”

  I had never driven that fast in my life.

  When I got to the gym, the place was swarming with cops and firefighters, the latter of which were still working to put out the blaze that had engulfed the gym. My gym now. Or what now remained of it.

  But that was the least of my worries. I tore through the police barrier, looking for her. I found Bull first, who nearly had to pull me away from a cop who refused to let me get any closer.

  “She’s over here,” he said before I could even say anything.

  I nodded gratefully, following him to where Hayley was sitting with a paramedic. He was trying to put one of those shiny trauma blankets on her shoulders, but she kept shrugging it off and glaring at him.

  “Ma’am, you’re in shock,” he said.

  “I am not in shock,” she snapped. “And don’t call me ma’am—you’re my age.”

  If the situation weren’t a huge fucking nightmare, I might have smiled. But as it was, all I could do was go to her.

  “Dante!” She immediately shot to her feet and wrapped her arms around me.

  I hugged her back, but then felt her sag against me. And not in a good way. I pulled back and found that her face was pale white. Carefully, I helped her sit back down, my heart racing.

  “I’m fine,” she insisted, swatting at the paramedic who tried the blanket again. “I just stood up too quickly, that’s all.”

  “What happened?” I demanded, not caring who gave me an answer, just as long as I had some.

  “Arson,” Bull said flatly.

  “We’re investigating,” a nearby police office said as he came over. “I understand you’re the owner.”

  “As of this afternoon,” I said.

  The officer winced. “Well, hopefully you have insurance, but we’re pretty sure this wasn’t an accident.”

  “What happened?” I repeated, needing to hear the whole story.

  “Someone locked her inside,” Bull told me. “Emptied a couple of cans of gasoline and lit it up real good.”

  I saw red. “What?” I turned to him, needing to make sure I had heard him correctly.

  But the look on his face told me that I had.

  “It’s fine,” Hayley said from the ground where color had begun to return to her cheeks. “I’m fine.” She reached out for my hand, and I took it, hating how cold it felt.

  I wanted to warm her up. Wanted to protect her. But I had to do something else first.

  “Can you get her home?” I asked Bull, barely containing my temper.

  “Where are you going?” Hayley demanded, her voice getting a little shrill.

  “I can,” Bull said to me.

  “Good,” I told him grimly. “I’ll call you when I’m done.”

  “Boy—” Bull warned, but I ignored him.

  “Done with what?” Hayley asked, but I ignored her as well.

  She wouldn’t be happy if she knew. Neither of them would be.

  Anger building up inside of me, I stalked back to my car. I knew exactly where to go if I wanted the real story. If I wanted actual answers.

  I went to Nicky.

  As I suspected, he was staying at his usual haunt—the apartment he shared with his scumbag friends on the edge of the Loop, where he went between his trips to prison. I slammed my fist against the door, not caring that it was nearing midnight. I knew he was home. And I knew he was expecting me.

  The door cracked open to reveal Nicky with a mean smile on his face. He had the chain lock on, so I couldn’t get in. But I wasn’t beyond breaking down the door if it came to that.

  “You bastard,” I swore at him.

  “Look, bro.” He fake-yawned. “It’s pretty late. Why don’t you come back tomorrow?”

  “Why don’t you open this door and face me like a man?” I snarled at him.

  He paused for a moment and gave me a long look. “Naw,” he finally said. “I’ll pass. Besides, if that’s what you call a man, well, I think I’m doing just fine.”

  He closed the door and I pounded on it again.

  “I swear to God, Nicky,” I yelled. “You better come out here!”

  The door jerked open a crack again.

  “Or what?” Nicky laughed in my face. “I warned you, bro. I warned you not to make an enemy of me.”

  I hadn’t understood what the fuck he had been talking about at the poker game, but now it made sense. He had wanted in on the game—on the scam, as he called it. And when I wouldn’t let him be a part of it, he had decided to try and take the only thing that ever meant anything to me. And he had burned down the gym, too.

  I was ready to rip his fucking head off.

  He must have sensed it because he closed the door, and then before I could slam my fist against it again, I heard the slid of the lock as he undid it. When he opened it, I already had my hands balled up into fists.

  But he wasn’t alone.

  Nicky stood there, grinning like the fucking coward he was, three linebacker-looking guys standing behind him. They weren’t smiling.

  “You were saying, bro?” Nicky sneered.

  Maybe a few years ago, I would have been dumb—and mad—enough to take a swing, but I wasn’t suicidal. I should have known. Nicky had never played fair—why would he start now?

  “Do we have a problem?” one of Nicky’s goons asked, cracking his knuckles.

  I regarded them for a moment, wondering if I had enough rage in me to take them. If we had been in a ring, with refs and rules . . . But here
, there were neither.

  “Nope,” I finally ground out. “Not tonight.”

  But another day . . . ?

  Nicky slammed the door in my face, and I had to force myself to walk away.

  I hated him. I had never hated someone as much as I hated Nicky in that moment. He could have killed Hayley.

  The thought nearly stopped me in my tracks, and I felt lightheaded. What would I have done if I had arrived at the gym and found the place in flames with Hayley dead inside? A primitive howl rose up in my throat and it took everything in my power to keep it from emerging.

  I got in my car, my fingers clenched around the steering wheel. It took almost thirty minutes for me to get to a point where I was so blind with rage that I couldn’t drive. I took several deep breaths in the quiet of my car and that’s when I realized my phone was beeping, indicating I had missed messages.

  My phone had blown up while I had been confronting Nicky. There were texts from the guys who had heard about the fire—ranging from Chase sending sympathetic but humorous gifs to Liam claiming he would make sure my insurance covered this to Emerson offering Alex’s services in case I wanted to sue someone. Anyone.

  But I scrolled past all of them to read Hayley’s texts. She had sent the most. All of them asking where I was and for me to call her.

  Guilt rose in my throat. She had been hurt—almost killed—because of me.

  It was my fault.

  I gripped the steering wheel harder, knowing that I should have stayed away. I should have resisted her. And I never, ever should have kissed her. By kissing her, I had opened the floodgates and they were proving impossible to close. But it was also a reminder of why I had put those boundaries up in the first place.

  Because when people cared about me—they got hurt.

  The truth was that Hayley was too good for me. I had always known it, had always been aware, but I had let my own needs, my own desire for her blur my judgement. If I was smart, then I’d stay away.

  Then she texted me.

  Come over, she said. I don’t want to be alone.

  This was a bad idea. I should have gone back to my own place—should have ignored her texts. She would have thought of me as an asshole, but that would have put an end to whatever it was we were doing. She’d be furious and maybe she’d never speak to me again, but she’d be safe.