by Madison Faye
Roman raises a brow. “A cam girl? Like, one of those online strippers?”
My brow furrows, but I nod. “Yeah, kinda.”
He shrugs. “Well, shit. Mr. Stanford Law with the internet stripper and Mr. School of Hard Knocks with the boss’s wife.”
I laugh. “So you admit it? About Quinn?”
He grins. “I admit nothing, counselor.”
“Be careful, man.”
He nods, still grinning, when his smile fades into a frown.
“Where’d you meet this girl, and don’t say online. Where’d you really meet her?”
I shrug. “No where.”
“Grayson.”
“What?”
Roman’s look hardens. “She doesn’t live in your building, does she?”
My eyes narrow. “What are you talking about?” I hiss.
My buddy’s eyes go wide, and he blows a stream of air through his lips as he sinks back in my office chair.
“Fuck, dude.”
I scowl. “What?”
“Is she one of Joey’s girls?”
I freeze. “You know about—”
“I don’t know-know, but, c’mon man, I hear things. I know the sick fucker has girls doing shit for him all over this city — turning tricks, stripping, massage parlors. He’s a real bastard. Is she — is Zoe…”
“She’s just a cam girl,” I growl. “It’s a way to make money.”
He gives me hard look. “For Joey Luco.”
I look away.
Roman suddenly whistles lowly. “Holy shit, it was you, wasn’t it?”
“Huh?”
“Joey’s head.” Roman gives me a hard look. “I heard it earlier from some of his guys. He’s saying he fell, but one of them blabbed. Some guy in a ski-mask cold cocked him from behind.”
I take a large sip of my scotch, and Roman slowly shakes his head.
“Gray, you are in way over your fuckin’ head here.”
“Leave it,” I growl.
“The fuck I will. Gray, he’s after her.”
A chill ripples through my veins. “What?”
Roman shakes his head. “Look, I’m just putting the pieces together. One of Joey’s girls—”
“She’s not his girl,” I spit heatedly.
“Fine, you know what I fucking mean. One of them, who he’s housing in your building, ditches out on him. You suddenly meet some sweet, sexy girl who happens to strip on webcam for money. And the next thing you know, some mysterious hero in a mask is pistol-whipping Joey in the back of the head.” He shakes his head. “Fuck, it is her, man. And you have to know, Joey is after her, and when he finds her…”
His face goes grim, and my heart stops for a beat.
and the next thing ? I mean…
“I have to go.”
He stands. “You want a hand?”
I shake my head. “No. Just do me a favor and watch out for yourself, alright?”
“Gray.”
I stop at the door and glance back at my friend.
“Be careful, man.”
16
Gray
My heart thunders as I basically break land speed records racing back home. Zoe doesn’t have a cell phone, or if she does, it’s still in her apartment. So I’ve called my own land line about a million damn times, but it just keeps ringing and ringing and ringing.
This isn’t fucking good.
No answer is not fucking good.
My Audi screeches to a stop outside of my building, and I’m tossing the keys to the valet when my eyes land on the car parked down the street. And I freeze.
I’d know Joey’s stupid fucking neon blue Camaro anywhere — a flashy piece of shit with horrible after-market mods and zero fucking taste. It’s parked way too close to my building to be coincidence, and the sickening weight of it hits me in the gut.
I take the entryway three steps at a time. I don’t wait for the elevator, instead running all twelve flights up to mine. My pulse is racing, and I can barely see through the red mist clouding my eyes as I stagger out of the stairway. I make a bee-line for my front door, slamming it open with a crash before I come to a staggering halt.
“Hold it.”
Joey’s standing in my living room, a gun trained right on me.
“Hold it right fuckin’ there, counselor.”
I ignore him for the moment, looking instead at Zoe, who’s doubled over on the ground.
There’s blood.
Time goes still for a split second, before I explode. I roar as I charge at Joey, but his gun comes up fast, aimed right at my face.
“Uh-uh,” he hisses, shaking his head. I look back at Zoe, my face a mask of anguish.
Joey just laughs.
“Oh, she ain’t dead. Not yet.” He chuckles. “But buddy, she’s gonna wish she was once I get my piece.” He winks at me. “Know what I’m sayin’?”
The rage detonates like an atom bomb inside of me, and I’m so close to charging him — gun or not — and throwing his ass through my window. But then Zoe groans, and I stop. Getting shot won’t save her. Dying won’t stop this piece of shit from hurting her.
Joey hoots. “The lawyer! Man!” He laughs. “Shit, I thought you were just some pencil-pushing dork, man!” He glances around my apartment and whistles.
“I think Gino pays you too much, man. Jesus.”
“I kept your ass out of jail,” I spit at him.
“True, true. And I’d take that into account when dealing with you stealing my girl, but—”
“She’s not your girl,” I hiss.
He grins. “Nice rebuttal, counselor. But, she is, and you think you can take her. And see, I want to remember that whole thing with you keeping me out of jail, but you know, the damnedest thing happened to me the other day.” He grins. “Go ahead, ask me what happened.”
“I don’t care,” I growl.
“Well I’ll tell you anyways. You see, I got hit in the back of the head the other day,” he spits, his face suddenly turning from gleeful to plain rage. “Hit in the back of the head by some pussy in a fucking ski-mask. And you? Now things are a little fucking fuzzy about that whole thing with you keeping me out of jail.”
He turns and flips my coffee table over, roaring in anger and looking more and more unhinged by the second.
“So, instead of taking that into account and maybe going easy on you, I’m gonna do something else. I’m gonna make you watch.”
Something clicks in my mind. I’m done watching him have a breakdown. I’m done watching this ticking time bomb slowly run out of time in front of my eyes. I move to the side, keeping my distance from Joey and not coming at him or anything as I step into the kitchen area.
“Oh, I’m gonna make you watch while I hurt her, counselor.”
My hand moves to the drawer under my cutting board, and slides it open.
“I mean a fuckin’ cam slut like her is probably gonna like it anyways, but I’ll have to make her scream extra loud to make sure it gets through your dumb fuckin’ skull.”
I reach inside, past the silverware tray to the other gun I keep there. Not the one from my office safe — the one I clocked Joey with. This one’s a little snub-nose Smith and Wesson that my dad used to carry around when Vegas was a lot meaner.
This one, I’m not going to hit him with.
“Joey,” I growl, my eyes fierce as I wrap my hand around the gun and slowly bring it out, the kitchen counter blocking Joey’s view.
“Counselor,” he sneers back before reaching down and grabbing Zoe up by the arm.
“Get up, honey,” he hisses.
He drags her up, when she suddenly lashes out, catching both of us by surprise. She screams, kicking him hard in the side of the knee and punching at his throat before he manages to push her away with a roar. The back of his hand hits her across the mouth, and suddenly, everything goes still for me.
And I snap.
The gun raises in my hand in slow motion. I pull the hammer back. I look at her,
the girl I love more than I’ve ever loved anyone or anything in this world. And I know right there that I’m going to break a promise to myself.
Tonight, I’m going to kill.
I level the gun at Joey as he raises a hand to hit her again. He never gets a chance to do it. The gun roars in my hand, and Zoe screams as the shot hits Joey dead center of the chest and sends him flying backwards into the wall.
There’s a stunned look on his face as he glances down at the big hole in his chest, and he blinks in shock.
“Fuck, man,” he groans, blinking at the wound before he looks up at me with a sober look.
“Fuck, man.”
He drops to the ground like a rock.
Zoe’s stills screaming as I cross the room in seconds. I hug her fiercely, wrapping her in my arms and pulling her away from the violence on the floor.
“I’ve got you,” I whisper into her ear as she goes quiet and hugs me back. “I’ve got you, pretty girl.”
She sucks in air, shuddering against me as I stroke her back.
“You came back,” she says quietly.
“I was worried about you.”
She’s quiet for a second.
“No one’s ever come back for me,” she whispers.
“I’d come back through fire for you,” I growl, hugging her close. “I will always be there for you, beautiful.”
“Thanks, man.”
I’m standing at the elevator half an hour later.
Roman nods grimly. “No problem.”
He glances down at the huge, rolling suitcase next to him. “I know a guy who owns a trash compactor out on route fifteen.”
“You want a hand getting this into your car?”
He shakes his head. “Nah, I’m good. You got the story straight on the gun?”
We’ve been over this ten times since he showed up after I called him. Roman and I, and Dylan for that matter, have seen our fair share of shit when we were Marines. But I know there’s no way I could do Roman’s job. Roman, who knew exactly how to clean blood off a wall. Who knew to fish the bullet out of Joey before we stuffed his body in the suitcase “just in case,” so it would never come back to me.
Grizzly shit, I’ll say that.
The story with the gun, if any of my neighbors ever question it, is that Zoe and I were cooking pasta, left the lid on too tight, and then didn’t notice until the steam popped it and sent the lid slamming into my fridge. Roman even insisted on making a big fucking dent in my sub zero to make sure the story held.
Dick.
“Thank you,” I say quietly.
He just shakes his head. “You don’t have to thank me, man.”
“Yeah, I do.”
He grins and shrugs. “I’ll call you when it’s done.”
I take a deep breath, nodding.
“Look, keep cool, stay oblivious, and just act naturally. There’s gonna be some hell when Joey just disappears, but honestly, no one fuckin’ liked the guy.”
“He’s a made guy, Roman. The Morettis are going to be looking for him.”
“Yeah, they will, but play it cool and I promise you, no one is going to come after the damn lawyer looking for a smoking gun.”
I grin tensely.
“She gonna be alright?” He nods at the door to my condo, and I know he means Zoe, who’s been waiting inside.
“Honestly? Yeah, she is. She’s a little shook up, but she’s going to be okay. She’s strong,” I say quietly. “Real fucking strong.”
Roman grins. “Good. You could use one of those. Listen, I got this, and you’re going to be okay with all this shit. Just act normal.”
“So, just continue being the retained counsel for the biggest crime family in Las Vegas while one of my friends drives a body in a suitcase to a trash compactor and the other one shoots a fucking porn?”
“Exactly. Normal.” Roman grins as he hits the elevator button. “Stay well, man. And hang on to that girl.”
“I plan on it.”
17
Zoe
“Come on.”
“I’m fine.”
I say it tersely, still sitting in a chair by the window and chewing on my nails. Gray’s friend Roman has come and gone, the two of them dealing with Joey while I sat here replaying the whole thing in my mind.
“Zoe—”
“I’m fine, okay?” I snap.
It’s not fine, and I’m still shaken. And while I want to just throw my arms around Gray and never let him go after everything that’s happened tonight, there’s still something blocking it. There’s still the little flash into his past that I shouldn’t have seen, but now I can’t get out of my head.
That damn picture.
“Gray, it’s fine.”
“It’s not,” he growls, and suddenly, his hands are pulling me up out of the chair. “C’mon, I’m cleaning you up.”
“You don’t own me,” I hiss petulantly. I try and shake out of his grip, even if I know it's just me being petty and jealous, but he holds on anyways.
“No, but you’re mine,” he growls.
“Let go of me!”
Gray just grumbles, and before I know it, I’m gasping as he lifts me up and throws me over his shoulder.
“Gray!”
He strides through his bedroom and into the large master bathroom, setting me on the big marble vanity. He turns and starts to run a bath in the huge, deep tub.
“I’m not a fucking child,” I mutter.
“I never said you were, but I am going to take care of you.”
“Why?” I sass back.
“Because.”
“Why?”
“Because I like you!” he snaps, sending a bolt of heat right into my heart. “Because I really fucking like you.”
“Like you liked the girl with the little boy?”
I wish I hadn’t said it the moment it leaves my lips. Gray freezes, and slowly turns to me.
“Looking through my stuff?”
I shrug. “That your secret family?”
He laughs bitterly. “No.”
“Fine, its none of my business anyway—”
“Her name is Michelle,” he says quietly, standing and turning to train his gaze on me.
“Gray, it’s really none of my—”
“Well I’m going to tell you anyways,” he says flatly. “Her name is Michelle, and the boy is Jason. No, he’s not mine.”
A weight lifts from my chest, and I hide a smile by chewing on my lip.
“When I got back from the Marines…” His shoulders slump and he shakes his head. “I was pretty fucked up when I got back, Zoe. Me head was still back there in fucking Kandahar, I was jumping every time I heard a door slam or a car backfire, and I hadn’t slept through the night in fucking months. Michelle was…fuck, I don’t know. Normalcy. She was what I was supposed to do after war. The perfect little Christmas card family. Hell, Jason even looks like me.”
He lifts his eyes to mine.
“It wasn’t real, Zoe. It was a bandaid for me and a pretend fantasy for her. Michelle was still seeing her ex, Jason’s dad. I didn’t not care for her, and I did care a lot for her son, but...” He shakes his head. “Like I said, it wasn’t real.”
He moves towards me, his eyes burning right into me.
“It wasn’t one shred as real as what I feel for you. It wasn’t even a pale imitation of what I feel when I’m with you, Zoe.”
I look away as he comes closer, but suddenly he’s right in front of me. His hand cups my jaw, and he gently tilts my head back to him, lifting my gaze to his fierce eyes.
“You are everything I’ve ever been looking for, pretty girl,” he murmurs. “You are everything I’ve ever wanted. You’re it,” he says softly, his thumb tracing my lips. “You’re it for me.”
“I’m not perfect,” I whisper.
“Join the party.”
“I’m fucked up, Gray.”
He smiles, and it melts me.
“No, you’re not,” he purrs.
“You can keep trying to tell yourself that if you want, but I’ve seen the real you, and it’s not fucked up at all.”
He leans in, and as his lips brush mine. I whimper.
“I’ve seen the real you, Zoe,” he whispers. “And it’s fucking perfect.”
I gasp as I crush my lips to his, my arms flinging around his neck as he kisses me fiercely and passionately, until I’m gasping for air.
“I was looking for normalcy,” he says quietly. “Turns out, me and normal don’t exactly click.”
“Me and normal aren’t on speaking terms,” I say with a small grin.
“Good,” he growls, winking at me as he kisses me softly. “I think we’re going to do just fine without normal.”
His lips press to mine, and I melt into the kiss. I open my mouth for his tongue, moaning into him as mine swirls with his and as my whole body comes alive for him.
“Water’s getting cold,” he murmurs, pulling back.
“You going to give me a bath or something?”
“Yep.”
I bite my lip, shivering under that heated look of his as I slowly nod.
“Okay,” I whisper.
“Strip,” he growls, his eyes flashing as he pulls away from me.
I shiver, the heat teasing through my body as I slip off the vanity and start to tug my shirt off. It drops away, and my jeans follow. I swallow thickly, reaching back and slipping my bra off before I slide my hands down my body to my panties.
“Show me,” he purrs, his eyes tracing over my skin. “Show me everything, pretty girl.”
I whimper as I slip the panties down my legs, stepping out of them and then padding past him to the bath. Gray holds my hand, helping me in, and when his hand brushes the small of my back, my whole body aches for more.
I sink into the water, trying to push away the thoughts of him with that woman. I don’t want to think about him with her. Or anyone, really. God, I’ve never been the jealous type before either, but whatever it is about Gray makes it ignite inside of me.
“You’re jealous.”
I glance up sharply. “Am not.”
He grins. “Yes you are.”
I pout. “I just…I don’t want to think about you with another girl.”