Risk It All (Risqué #2)

by Scarlett Finn

  Her broad smile grew and she sagged onto the solid floor. ‘Oh, Love, we did it.’

  They’d already had sex so he assumed she meant the position of having him on top or the location here at Risqué.

  ‘We can do it again,’ he said, kissing her throat and cheek.

  ‘Let’s get dressed and finish up here,’ she said. ‘You’re going to need your sleep now that you have another job to take care of every day.’

  ‘Every day?’ he said, taking her hand to pull her to her feet when she gave him a nudge.

  ‘You never know when I’ll need satisfaction,’ she said, swiping up their clothes from the stage.

  ‘So I’m just on call now twenty-four seven,’ he asked, taking his tee-shirt when she handed it to him.

  ‘You can have weekends off,’ she said, covering her breasts, which caused him to groan.

  ‘Don’t need time off, page me whenever you need me, Doll,’ he said.

  She fizzed with static energy that bounced off him making him hyper-aware of her proximity. Overcoming her fears infused her with such a powerful delight that it was contagious. There was still a long way to go, and he wouldn’t be pushing any boundaries for a while, but it was nice to see her being playful.

  It was only banter at this stage because she wasn’t capable of throwing out all of her hang-ups. But he was pleased to know that she had hope that there would come a time when they could be on each other every minute of the day. He planned to be there for her, providing whatever she needed, he would give her anything she asked for.

  Together, they completed the last of the tasks at Risqué. The novelty of having a companion with him during his routine was enthralling. Now when he spoke, someone spoke back. Someone laughed with him, gave him opinions and advice, and was there with him to cut the work in half, which was highlighted when they left the club earlier than he ever had before. They locked up and were in the truck on the way home in record time.

  Pulling on the parking brake he turned off the engine and she leaned over to kiss his cheek. Then she was out of the truck and running upstairs toward her own apartment. His hope had been that they would spend the night in his bed, all night together, but his chances didn’t look good now.

  Not giving up without at least asking, he followed her and reached her door at the same time she stuck her key in it.

  ‘Are you going to invite me in?’ he asked.

  She spun to reply, but Suzette’s door opened in time with Ivy’s. ‘I called Gus!’ Suzette declared to Ivy who was wrapped up in a sheet. ‘He’s going to throw you out!’

  ‘I don’t think so,’ Ivy declared. ‘Maybe you better invest in some earplugs… or just ask a surgeon to remove that stick from your butt!’

  ‘What’s going on?’ Blaser asked, approaching the feuding women.

  ‘That… that pair of Neanderthals! That’s what!’ Suzette shouted. ‘They’re always at it! It’s stupid o’clock in the morning and all I can hear is them panting and grunting!’

  Suzette’s red-faced fury was nothing to smile at, so he cleared his throat and turned his focus to Ivy, but she was no calmer.

  ‘Someone needs to chill out!’ Ivy said. ‘We’re consenting adults! He’s my husband! He can fuck me any way he likes anytime! We don’t need to live by your arbitrary calendar! If you don’t like it – fuck off!’

  ‘I don’t think so,’ Suzette said and the women moved toward each other. ‘I’m family! You’re a troublemaker!’

  Rushing over, Blaser got himself between them to prevent a physical altercation. Ivy was naked under that sheet, no doubt about it, but she wouldn’t let that slow her down if the huffing rage she was exuding were anything to go by.

  ‘You’re the one banging on walls and cussing us out!’ Ivy said, trying to swipe Blaser’s arm out of the way.

  Gus bounded up the stairs, doors were opening along the walkway and the only person not watching events unfold was Dax. The women continued to try and get around him and Gus came over to help Blaser extricate himself from the flailing limbs that attempted to swat at their opponent despite the two men in between them.

  Gus took hold of Suzette and yanked her back toward her apartment, he got her through the door and she tried to sneak around him when he looked back at Blaser.

  ‘Take her in there and calm her down,’ Blaser said to him, pinning Ivy’s arms down at her sides. Gus nodded and did just that, closing the door to cut off Suzette’s screeching.

  ‘She is so uptight,’ Ivy said as Blaser directed her back toward her own apartment. She noticed how many gawkers there were and she stared right back at them all without shame. ‘What the fuck are you lot looking at?’

  ‘It’s over,’ Blaser said to them all. ‘Go back inside.’

  Most of the men were not long back from their shifts at Risqué and for those who worked in the garage they’d be expected at work bright and early. So there were no objections, just some smirks and sniggers as the men went back into their abodes.

  Worried about what he’d see, he took Ivy inside her apartment, but saw no sign of Dax. ‘You were making the racket alone?’ he asked. If Dax were here, then Blaser could see no reason why he would leave his wife to deal with the complaining neighbour alone.

  ‘He’s in the bedroom,’ Ivy said, lifting her arm then tugging it down to free it from Blaser’s grip.

  ‘He let you out there alone?’

  ‘She can handle herself!’ Dax called from the bedroom. He might not have made an appearance, but he had obviously heard everything that went on.

  ‘There were ten guys out there,’ Blaser said, exaggerating only slightly. ‘She’s naked.’

  ‘Every one of them has met me,’ Dax said. The blurred outline of his figure came into the hallway but remained next to the bedroom. ‘Do you think any of them would take the chance of touching my wife?’

  Dax made a good point and loyalty was a big deal around here. Still, Blaser wouldn’t have liked Bri to be on show for a group of slobbering men.

  ‘He has a deep end philosophy,’ Ivy said, tucking in her sheet.

  ‘What does that mean?’ Blaser asked.

  ‘I like to watch her jump in and give it her best before I dive in to bail her out.’

  ‘I swim just fine, thank you,’ Ivy said, directing her scowl into the darkness. ‘Your family made sure of that.’

  ‘Always pissed about something,’ Dax muttered and disappeared back into the bedroom.

  ‘Are you spending the night at Bri’s place?’ Ivy asked him.

  ‘Uh… I don’t know yet.’

  ‘You should. Then that wench will get it in surround sound. There’s no way we’re going without sex just because her panties are full of cobwebs.’

  ‘She’s had a rough time,’ Blaser said. ‘Cut her some slack.’

  ‘Fair enough,’ Ivy shrugged. ‘Since you asked so nicely and all. Goodnight.’

  Dismissing him, she sauntered back to the bedroom without actually seeing him out. The apartments were his and he was a friend. He also wouldn’t stand here all night listening to the couple enjoy each other, so he guessed he was supposed to see himself out.

  When he got onto the outer walkway and closed Ivy’s apartment door at his back he was just in time to see headlights sweep the length of the apartment block. A car drove into the space next to his truck and Blaser had to approach the railing to look down and see who was getting in so late. The headlights went off, the engine died and a door opened.

  It took his eyes a moment to recover from the dazzle of the headlights, but when they did he picked out the features of his cousin Mattie, standing next to the car looking up at him.

  ‘This a bad time?’ Mattie asked without having to raise his voice too much, the hour of the night meant there was little ambient noise to obstruct his words.

  ‘What do you want?’ Blaser asked him.

  ‘A word.’

  These days, crossing paths with Mattie was rare. He sometimes heard whispers at the c
lub or from the guys at the garage about what his cousin was up to, but this recent spike of contact had him intrigued.

  Glancing back, Bri’s door was closed and there were no lights on, so he assumed she had gone to bed alone. Everything was quiet again, as it should be at close to four in the morning. Other than his own niggling need for sleep he had no reason to say no to Mattie.

  ‘My place,’ Blaser said, moving to the stairs then descending them.

  Digging his keys from his pocket, he unlocked his apartment and let his cousin inside. Mattie went to the kitchen table and sat down, choosing function over comfort, which heightened Blaser’s intrigue.

  ‘I’m amazed that you’re still living here,’ Mattie said, spreading his hands on the table.

  Blaser flicked on lamps and retrieved a couple of beers from the fridge though he wasn’t surprised when Mattie turned up his nose at the offer. Slipping the second beer back into the fridge, he opened his own and propped himself on the kitchen counter then crossed his ankles and took a long slug from the frosty bottle.

  ‘It’s convenient,’ Blaser said. ‘And you wanted me here to look after the place. It was one of your conditions for selling me the garage.’

  ‘That was five years ago,’ Mattie said. ‘You’re still happy here?’

  ‘Like I said, it’s convenient. I’ve got an early day tomorrow, so why don’t you cut to the chase?’

  ‘I heard about what went down in Risqué.’

  ‘What went down?’

  ‘The fight night.’

  Lowering his bottle, Blaser slid it onto the counter but kept his eyes trained to his cousin. ‘What about it?’

  ‘You haven’t lost your touch, you can still sniff out a winner.’

  ‘It wasn’t my idea,’ Blaser said. ‘I did it for a reason, it was a one off.’

  Denying it would be ridiculous. Mattie hadn’t factored into his decision to hold the fight night in Risqué, but it shouldn’t have been a real surprise that he knew. Mattie had his ear to the ground, at least his men did; there was little that went on around here that Mattie didn’t know about, especially as involved his own family and illegality.

  ‘I didn’t really care when I heard,’ Mattie said. ‘I wasn’t surprised. If Bri’s back in your life, then I guessed your old ways wouldn’t be far behind.’

  ‘She’s nothing to do with it,’ he snapped, pushing away from the counter. ‘Don’t bring her—‘

  ‘Does she know?’

  ‘Yeah. She knows everything, Colt too, so if you’re here to blackmail me—‘

  ‘Blackmail you?’ Mattie smiled. ‘I think it’s incredible… When I heard you had the Ravager—‘

  ‘This is about Dax?’ Blaser asked, recognising the name he fought under.

  ‘We could make a fortune.’

  ‘We?’

  ‘You have to get him on board and we can keep using Risqué—‘

  ‘You have plenty of your own premises.’

  ‘My facilities aren’t suitable.’

  ‘Because they’re too upmarket?’ Blaser asked. ‘Or because you’d prefer not to get burned when we all get caught?’

  ‘Dax is your friend,’ Mattie said. ‘If you could bring him to a meeting—‘

  ‘He lives right upstairs. Why don’t you knock and ask him yourself?’

  ‘He doesn’t like to be approached. The way I understand it is he has a scout who makes his connections for him.’

  ‘Then what use am I?’

  ‘You already have his ear,’ Mattie said.

  ‘Dax isn’t interested in making a habit of fighting in my club. I think his wife would have something to say about him getting beat up every night just to satisfy your chums.’

  ‘You don’t know much about his reputation if you assume he’ll be beaten,’ Mattie said. ‘And his wife can be persuaded.’

  Blaser didn’t like the sinister edge to his cousin’s voice. ‘Did you just threaten his wife? If he gets a whiff that you even suggested—‘

  ‘Hurting his wife would be stupid,’ Mattie said. ‘I’m not interested in being his enemy. Women are easily swayed by promises of diamonds or riches, there’s something she wants, and if we make her happy, Dax will follow.’

  ‘I don’t think that Ivy is the sort. I can tell Dax that you’re interested, but I wouldn’t hold my breath if I were you.’

  ‘You’re open to it? If we get Dax on board—‘

  ‘No,’ Blaser said. ‘I’m not getting involved.’

  ‘Why not? It will be lucrative for you.’

  Shaking his head, Blaser went back to his beer. ‘Not everyone is motivated by money.’

  ‘So what does motivate you, cousin? That sexy number upstairs?’

  ‘Why?’ Blaser asked, twisting to peer over his shoulder. ‘You thinking about making another play? She’s not interested in you.’

  ‘I got that message loud and clear,’ Mattie said, defeated but not dismayed. ‘How long is she going to stay interested in you if you’re working every hour god sends? Think about it before you turn me down flat.’ Rising from the table, he stayed in place, tipping his chin toward Blaser. ‘She’s not going to want to live here forever, she’ll want a house, a decent car, a life… She’s not going to be interested in running around after you while you work, unless what you’re looking for is a glorified slave you can fuck. She’ll put up with that for a while I’d guess, but eventually she’ll want your attention. Women are all the same, they tell you it’s ok, and they play the game, but eventually she’ll want you to hand over your balls unless you can hand over the dough and show her who’s boss. You want to provide for her, right? To look after her?’

  ‘Sure,’ Blaser shrugged. His fingers were growing numb around the glistening bottle that was sliding through his digits. Increasing his hold he balanced his grip so as not to break the glass, but he’d suddenly lost his taste for the liquid.

  ‘This is the best way, think of the money you could earn literally overnight. You wouldn’t need to work all night every night. We could do this once or twice a month and that would earn you enough to support Bri, to look after her in the way that she deserves.’

  ‘Dax won’t be interested.’

  ‘I think he will,’ Mattie said, coming around the table. ‘Even if he’s not, he’s not the only fighter around. You’ve got a name now, everyone knows Risqué. This can happen… It’s late. I know you’re up early every single morning, so I should let you sleep. It’s a shame you’ve got such a sexy girl right above your head, but you’re just too busy to spend the night with her… How long will she put up with that for? How many mornings will she have to wake up alone because you have to get to work?’

  Mattie patted his shoulder and the act was enough to shake Blaser from his daze. ‘She understands.’

  ‘But should she have to?’ Mattie asked and with another pat he began to head for the exit. ‘Think about it and I’ll be in touch.’ He opened the door. ‘It would be great to get the family working together again, don’t you think?’

  Mattie left, closing the door behind him, and Blaser went to the sink to pour out the rest of his beer. Watching the fizzing liquid foam and slide away down the drain Blaser couldn’t work out if a door had just opened for him, or if he was about to get one slammed in his face.

  Chapter Nineteen

  ‘You’ve been a million miles away tonight, boss,’ Crystal said, strutting up to his side in Risqué the following night.

  His meeting with Mattie had played in his mind for most of the day, there was something about the offer that niggled at him. ‘Come here,’ he said.

  Snatching Crystal’s hand he took her from behind the bar, across the room and up into his office. Closing the door, he released her hand and strode over to the desk.

  ‘What’s going on?’ she asked.

  ‘Mattie came to see me last night.’

  ‘Ah, the great achiever,’ she said, striding over to the pool table that was usually concealed behind a curtain tha
t cut his office in half. Tonight it was open because he’d played a few frames with himself that afternoon while he tried to straighten out his thoughts. ‘What did he want?’

  ‘He made me an offer.’

  ‘What kind of offer?’ she asked, hooking her hands on the table and thrusting herself up to sit on it, crossing her long, smooth legs then leaning back, keeping her focus on him.

  ‘He wants to use this place.’

  ‘Use this place for what?’ she frowned. ‘You’re not thinking about… are we talking about something off the books?’

  ‘Way off the books,’ he said, moving toward her.

  ‘And you’re thinking about it,’ she stated. Crystal had been a staple in his life since he left prison and she had never broken his confidence, not that he knew about anyway.

  ‘I shouldn’t be. I know I shouldn’t but… I could pay off this place, pay off Colt and Ruger. I could upgrade the garage, get all that new equipment that the guys have been raving about.’

  ‘Those are good points.’

  ‘I could use the money, Cryst, you know? I could really pamper Bri, I could take her out to fancy places and away for vacations, not like I can now. I’m working all the time, how long will she put up with that?’

  ‘I don’t know her very well,’ Crystal said. ‘We went to high school together, but I haven’t seen her for years. Does she need all of those things?’ Crystal had moved here from Texas with her family when she was a teenager.

  ‘What woman doesn’t?’ he asked, stopping a few feet from her and folding his arms. ‘I mean if some guy came and offered to take you away from all the bullshit of life and pamper you on some beach somewhere, wouldn’t you jump at the chance?’

  ‘It would depend on the guy,’ she said, pointing her toe she nudged his knee. ‘Lots of money in little time means illegal and with your history…’

  ‘I could go away again,’ he said. ‘I know.’ Groaning, he scrubbed his hands over his face and turned his back on her. ‘I shouldn’t be thinking about this at all.’

  ‘Have you spoken to Bri about it?’