“Conall McCrary. He owns this place.”
“Oh, right.” She pulled a hoodie over her sports bra, curves and skin disappearing under the bulky fabric.
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
She bent down and removed some kind of weird shoes, then stuffed them into her bag. “Nico said I could use this space for practice.”
“Practice?”
“Yeah. I needed some space. He said he’d run it by Old Man…Mr. McCrary.” She slung her bag over her shoulder. “I’ll only come at night, when no one is here. So I don’t interrupt classes or anything.”
“Okay.” It would be exquisite torture, watching her dance again. I already wanted it.
We headed down the stairs together. She smelled faintly of sweat and something sweeter. I moved closer.
“Is this some scheme to come up with the money?” I asked. “Because I don’t know if it’ll work. You’d have to get a lot more naked.”
I’d meant it as a joke, but her face flushed again and her jaw clenched. I was an idiot.
At the bottom of the stairs, the gym was dark except the light over the front desk. Maggie tripped on a mat and I grabbed her arm, steadying her. She jerked away, whipping me in the face with her ponytail.
“My life doesn’t revolve around Officer Ting’s money, you know,” she said.
“It should.”
She stopped walking. We were near the front, close enough to the light that I could see her face, twisted with annoyance. “Would you leave me alone about it?”
My eyebrows lowered. “No.” I would bug her and bug her about that money until the deadline hit, anything to keep me from doing what I had to do if she couldn’t pay up.
“No?” Her hands went to her hips and so did my eyes.
I grabbed the strings of her hoodie and tugged on them, bringing her closer. “I won’t leave you alone until I see all thirteen thousand of those dollars.”
She batted my hand away. “Right. Just doing your job.”
I pulled her into me, our legs entwined. I didn’t let the feel of her distract me. Her hands were on my chest but she didn’t push me away.
“Maggie. This isn’t just about my job. Simon will hurt you.” My grip on her hips tightened, I couldn’t help it. She needed to wake up. She needed to know. “Simon will make me hurt you. Don’t you get it?” He would make me do something I couldn’t do. But I didn’t want to be faced with that choice, or the consequences if I refused.
“It’s all part of the job though, isn’t it? I mean, you must enjoy it. Hurting people. Otherwise you wouldn’t do it.”
Desire turned to anger, and it began to boil under my skin. Of course that’s what she thought. I let her go. “Your life might be black and white. Mine isn’t.”
“God gave us this life,” she said. “It’s up to us what we do with it.”
“Was that on an inspirational poster at Bibles ‘R’ Us?”
She made a face I couldn’t read. “My dad is a preacher.”
She was clueless. If her father was a preacher, her life had probably been all Bible Study and prayer meetings and choir practices. Everything boiled down to a belief in simple moral choices. As if my life, my choices, were so simple.
I crossed my arms. “Maybe some of us are doing the best we can.”
“Maybe your best isn’t good enough,” she said, but her face softened, taking the bite out of her words. She was pitying me now, and that was somehow worse.
“I’m sorry,” she said. My eyebrow twitched in surprise. “If I can’t practice here, I won’t come back again.”
I turned away. “You can practice here.” All the time and never.
She didn’t move. I didn’t move.
“Thank you,” she said.
Chapter 21
MAGGIE
Fraze and I were at Sunset Park, the scorching sun burning the tops of our heads. Sitting there with my brother, throwing rocks into the pond and scaring the geese, I felt like a kid again. Like nothing was as important as doing nothing in that moment.
I scuffed my sandal against the grass, flicking tiny amounts of dirt to the edge of the pond. Fraze had been in Vegas a week. He came to the diner every day when I was working, to see me and get a free meal. But what else he was up to, I had no idea. It was only a matter of time before he left again.
“Why don’t you come to the gym with me tonight?” I asked while Fraze tried to skip rocks. “You can tell me what you think of my piece so far.”
He took off his shoes and socks and rubbed his bare feet against the grass. “Nah. I don’t know anything about that kind of stuff.”
A cool breeze rippled the pond, raising goosebumps on my bare legs. I tugged my skirt down. I’d had an early shift at the diner today. Fraze had met me for lunch, disappeared, and then reappeared when my shift ended at four. We’d been walking around ever since, a bit aimlessly, but that didn’t matter. Time spent with Frasier was never boring.
“Your deadline is coming up, isn’t it?” He got up from the bench and inched toward the water.
“I don’t know if you should put your feet in there.”
Fraze took one look at me and grinned. He didn’t even bother rolling up the ends of his jeans before stepping into the pond.
“I heard there are piranhas,” I said.
He laughed. “Piranhas are people, too. Besides, I’m cooking.”
I watched him wade around the pond, peering into the water as if he could see something in all that murk. It went no deeper than his knees, even in the middle. He waded back.
“I’ve only got a few days left,” I said. “I have an appointment at the bank tomorrow.”
He shook his head. “You can’t take a loan out for that deadbeat. You’ll never get your money back.”
I crossed one leg over the other. “I don’t have much of a choice. I’d rather be in debt to a bank than a loan shark. Unless you’ve got some bright idea you’re not telling me.”
One corner of his mouth tilted. “I might.”
That’s what I was afraid of. “Don’t do anything stupid.”
“I am never stupid.” He stepped out of the pond, shaking his legs off. “Can’t a guy help his sister out?”
“You’re broke.”
Again with the sly grin. “Not for long.”
“What does that mean?” He wouldn’t answer. “Fraze…”
He wouldn’t let me talk. Wouldn’t hear my arguments. Wouldn’t even tell me what he was thinking. It drove me crazy. My brother wasn’t stupid, but he was impulsive, and sometimes that led to stupid decisions.
“Come on,” he said after I’d pestered him for ten minutes. “Let’s go find some dinner. I’ll pay.”
“Sure you will.”
Later that night, I was a building away from East Side Boxing when Jay stepped outside, the door swinging shut behind him. Under the streetlights, I watched him take a deep breath and run a hand over his hair as I approached.
“Four days, Maggie,” he said.
“Hi to you, too.”
He put his palm against the door, keeping me from opening it. “Four days.”
I rolled my eyes. “Yes, thank you, I have a calendar.”
“It’s the money that concerns me.”
Like I didn’t know that. Every time I saw him, Jay would bring up the money, and I saw him more than I wanted to lately.
“I’ve got it under control.”
He tilted his head. “Why are you doing this?”
His question caught me off guard. I looked out into the street at the cars going by. A beater, a sedan, a mini-van, another mini-van, another beater, their lights bright in my eyes.
“He’s not worth your energy,” Jay said.
“You don’t get to decide who’s worth it and who’s not.”
“It must be exhausting, being you.”
I gave him a pointed look. “Sometimes, it really is.”
He turned his head and stared at the door, or at his han
d, I couldn’t tell which. “I know how it feels.”
“Then get out of my way.”
His eyes lowered to mine. “That’s not what I meant.”
“I know.”
He dropped his hand from the door. An imprint of his palm remained on the glass.
“Maggie—”
A car screeched up to the sidewalk. It rocked back and forth when it came to an abrupt stop. The doors opened and five men poured out, all wearing big baggy jackets despite the Vegas heat.
“Get inside,” Jay said to me. His arm was in front of me like a shield, the rest of his body tense and coiled.
Fear, curiosity, and stubbornness all kept me rooted to the spot.
“Jay, my man,” one of the men said. He was average height with a dark shaved head and thick eyebrows. One of his arms was in a sling. The other four flanked him on either side, all of them looking like they’d gotten on the wrong side of a bear recently.
“Rafael Antonio.” Jay dropped his arm but stepped in front of me. “Come for another loan?”
Rafael shook his head. “My business with Ting is over.”
Jay crossed his arms. He turned his head, putting his chin to his shoulder. “Get inside now,” he hissed.
Rafael and the other men approached. As one moved, something flashed near his belt before he closed his coat. A knife? A gun? Definitely a weapon.
“I got unfinished business with you, amigo,” Rafael said.
The entire line of Jay’s back was rigid. “We’ll talk, as soon as my friend goes inside.”
Rafael laughed and some of the others joined in, but Jay ignored them. He turned around, yanked the door open and shoved me through.
“Go do your thing,” he said. “This is none of your business.” He shut the door in my face.
I stood there, bristling, but Jay had already turned his back on me. I didn’t budge.
The men approached. I dropped my bag then shifted to the window to get a better view. Jay was saying something to them. Rafael was talking too, but it was too muffled by the thick glass to understand. Jay threw his head back and laughed. Rafael’s face went dark.
They rushed Jay before I could blink. Four of them were on him while Rafael watched. Jay’s head slammed into the window and I gasped.
Jay put up a heck of a fight. His fists connected with ribs and jaws, anything they could find. He was an animal, scary and strong and wild, but it was still five against one. Jay didn’t stand a chance.
I couldn’t watch. I yanked the door open.
“Stop! Stop or I’ll call the cops.”
One of these days I really needed to call the cops first before threatening to, but I’d acted before thinking. Again. I didn’t really expect it to work on these guys anyway, but they stopped, frozen and staring at me.
“Get out of here, Maggie,” Jay growled.
I moved in front of him. “I said that’s enough.”
Jay grabbed me by the waist. I tried to push his hands away. He wouldn’t let me go. “Get inside,” he said, his voice rough next to my ear.
“This your girlfriend?” Rafael asked, assessing me. “It’s alright chica, you can stay and watch. We’re just giving your boyfriend back some of what he gave. With interest.”
Rafael nodded. One of the other men pulled something from the back of his pants. A gun.
Jay’s arms tightened around me. We spun. I screamed. A shot rang out. A flash of pain. I fell into him. Curses in the air. The rev of an engine.
Jay’s eyes were wide, the first time I’d seen him afraid. He whispered my name right before my legs gave out.
Chapter 22
JAY
Rafael and his thugs had bolted, their car screeching off. Kneeling on the sidewalk, I held Maggie in my arms. Her gaze darted around, she gasped for breath. Blood seeped from her arm, below the sleeve of her t-shirt.
I put one hand on her cheek. “Maggie. Look at me.”
“I’ve been shot, haven’t I? Have I been shot? Ohmygosh, I’ve been shot.”
I whipped off my shirt. “It’s not that bad, but we should get it looked at.” It seemed like the bullet had only grazed her skin. “I think you’re going into shock.”
“You’re not that good-looking,” she mumbled, her eyes on my chest.
I held in a smile, wrapping my shirt around her arm, tightening it just above the wound, then using the rest to try and stop the bleeding.
“Hold here,” I said. She pressed the shirt into the wound and hissed. “I’m going to lift you now.”
I scooped my arms under her back and lifted her. She was almost as tall as I was, but I had no problem carrying her around the corner to my truck. She could’ve walked, but I didn’t tell her that. It felt nice to hold her without her yelling at me for once. Trembling, she pressed her face into my neck. I opened the passenger door and gently laid her inside, then hurried around to the driver’s seat.
Maggie leaned her head against the glass. Her eyes slid closed.
“Hey, talk to me,” I said, pulling into the road.
“I don’t wanna.” Her face had gone pale. Blood had already soaked through my shirt. Maybe I’d misjudged the wound. I sped up.
“Yell at me then,” I said. “You seem to like that.”
She pivoted her head against the window to look at me. “You deserve it.”
Rafael had said the same thing. I deserved what I got. I’d never thought so before. Now, with Maggie bleeding in front of me, it felt true. “You’re not the first person who’s said that to me tonight.” I glanced at her. “Not gonna pull a gun, are you?”
I smiled but she just blinked at me.
“Was he a client?” she asked.
Client made it sound so posh, as if I were some kind of lawyer.
“Not allowed to divulge that kind of information?” she asked when I didn’t answer.
“Rafael was a client of Simon’s,” I said. “A difficult one.”
“Meaning you kicked the crap out of him.”
She was judging me again. But I couldn’t argue, couldn’t even defend myself. She was lying there in my truck, hurt because of me.
Maggie shivered and pulled her knees up to her chin. She started to close her eyes.
I didn’t want her to pass out so I kept talking. “Him, his brother, his friends. There’s always someone.” I blasted the heat, turning the vents so they blew on her. She let out a sigh.
“If you don’t keep those eyes open, I’ll make you.”
She popped them open and stared at me. I kept my eyes on the road but I could feel her watching me. I shifted in my seat.
“What are you going to do,” she asked. “Hit me?”
Anger uncoiled in my belly. Anger and hurt. “I’ll pretend like you don’t know what you’re saying.”
“Whatever helps you sleep at night.”
At a red light, I wanted to reach for her, but I settled for a look. “I wouldn’t hurt you, Maggie.”
“I know.” She looked shocked by her own words, then quickly added, “Not for four more days.”
I pulled up to Alfonso’s, parking my truck in front of his garage. There weren’t any lights on. Alfonso had better be home.
Grabbing a hoodie from the backseat of the truck, I threw it on, then opened the door for Maggie.
“Where are we?” she asked as I helped her get out. “Is this your house?” She looked at my hoodie and sighed.
“No. Alfonso’s.” I slid my arm around her back and helped her shuffle to the door.
“Shouldn’t I be at a hospital? Who’s Alfonso?”
“Hospital isn’t such a good idea. Alfonso knows what he’s doing.” Usually.
I rang the doorbell multiple times, then pounded on the door for good measure. I didn’t stop pounding until a light came on.
Alfonso opened the door a crack, peering past the chain of the lock.
“Open up,” I said. He didn’t hesitate.
I carried Maggie inside and laid her gently on the nea
rest couch. “She’s been shot, but I think it’s just a graze. Can you fix it?”
Alfonso nodded. “Let me get my stuff.” He hurried away. Alfonso was a man of few words and I’d never appreciated it more.
On the couch, Maggie was shivering. I started to unzip my hoodie.
“Stop taking your shirt off,” she said. “I’m fine.”
I raised an eyebrow. “I thought you liked it.”
She snorted, but her cheeks turned a faint pink. That was better than the pallor of a few moments ago.
I knelt beside the couch near her head. The sound of Alfonso rifling through cupboards echoed down the hall.
“Why did you bring me here?”
I shifted closer, sitting down, my shoulder next to her head. “Hospitals ask too many questions.”
She gave me a reproachful look.
“Don’t worry.” A strand of hair had fallen across her face and I gently brushed it away. “Alfonso will take good care of you.”
She leaned away from my touch.
I scowled. “Trust me, would you?”
She returned my scowl. “It’s him I don’t trust.”
So she trusted me then? That was hard to believe.
Maggie was quiet, but her chest rose and fell rapidly.
“Hey,” I said. “It’s going to be okay.”
Her eyes filled with tears and she blinked up at the ceiling. Her whole body tensed, and her face turned hard as if willing herself not to cry. I ran my fingers through her hair. I’d wanted to touch her, and hadn’t wanted to, since the day I’d met her.
She reached for me with her good arm and I took her hand, pressing it against my chest. She seemed to relax.
Alfonso removed my shirt from her arm and checked the wound. Maggie didn’t let go of my hand and I didn’t let go of hers.
“Just a graze?” I asked. Maggie looked from me to Alfonso. He nodded.
“Won’t need stitches,” he said. “I’ll clean and bandage it.”
“Just a graze?” she asked, squeezing my fingers. “Just?”
I tried not to laugh. “Did you want worse? Hoping to get some street cred out of this?”
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