Golden Trail (79 page)

He closed the door and turned toward the
kitchen where Rocky was standing wearing a purple t-shirt with a
snarling white bulldog on the front and she was looking at him.

“Sweetcheeks, I appreciate the effort but I
gotta tell you, I’m a sure thing.”

She grinned but planted her hands on her
hips. “A house doesn’t always have to be filled with the sounds of
shoulder pads crunching and grunting and the smell of stale beer,”
she returned.

“Nope,” he agreed, shrugging off his jacket
and walking to the armchair. “Sometimes it has to be filled with
the sounds of shoes skidding on a court and whistles blowing and
the smell of nacho cheese.”

He tossed his jacket on the chair and turned
just in time to brace because Rocky had run from the kitchen and
was in the act of launching herself in his arms.

He caught her at the ass, she wrapped her
arms and legs around him and dropped her head, her mouth hitting
his, opening, his opened in return and her tongue slid inside.

He let her kiss him then he growled and took
over the kiss until she mewed and then her head came up and she
looked him in the eye.

“Catch any bad guys?” she whispered as he
walked her to the kitchen.

“Unfortunately… no,” he whispered back.

Her brows went up. “Any bad women?”

“Ditto on the no.”

“Damn.” She was still whispering and he set
her ass on the counter, she kept her limbs tight around him so he
moved in close and wrapped his arms around her.

Layne changed the subject. “What’s for
dinner?”

“Mushroom risotto.”

It was Layne’s turn to lift his brows. “Does
that have meat in it?”

She smiled. “Um… no. It has mushrooms in
it.”

“Pepperoni?”

“No.”

“Sausage?”

“No.”

“Hamburger?”

She started giggling and forced out a,
“No.”

“Baby,” Layne whispered.

“You’ll like it. It has lots of parmesan
cheese in it and cheese makes everything awesome.”

Christ
.

Jasper had said that and she remembered, she
remembered what his boy said.

Christ.
He loved her.

He didn’t tell her that, instead he asked,
“Is this my welcome home every night?”

“Do you want it to be?”

“Yeah.”

“Then yeah.”

Fuck, he remembered this. This hadn’t
changed. Coming home to Rocky had always been the best part of the
day. Always.

Shit yeah, he loved her.

“You gonna feed me or let me fuck you on the
kitchen counter?”

Her mouth got soft, her eyelids lowered but
she asked, “Without food, do you have strength to fuck me on the
kitchen counter?”

“Haven’t had anything since breakfast.”

Her lips tipped up. “Then I’m going to feed
you.”

“All right, then I’m gonna get a beer.”

She didn’t let him go and Layne didn’t
move.

“Sweetcheeks,” he prompted as her limbs got
tighter, her face got softer and her eyes dropped to his mouth

She was changing her mind and Layne liked
the direction it turned so he slid his hands up her back.

Then she froze.

“I still don’t have blinds,” she
whispered.

Shit.

“Right,” Layne whispered back, she moved in,
touched her mouth to his then released her limbs.

Layne got a beer, Rocky took another sip
from her white wine before she pulled a pan out of the oven. Then
she fed Layne mushroom risotto and it was pretty good.

But it could use meat.

* * * * *

Wednesday, 4:02 p.m.

Layne’s cell rang, he looked from Dev
sitting across from him in his office to his cell on the desk. He
read the display, gave Devin a one minute finger, picked up his
cell, flipped it open and put it to his ear.

“What’s up, sweetcheeks?” he said by way of
greeting.

“Something weird just happened,” Rocky
replied and Layne’s eyes shot to Devin as the muscles in his neck
got tight.

“What?”

“Um… a woman came up to me after school and
talked to me like she knew me. Really chatty, really friendly and,
Layne, she talked
for ages
. I’ve seen her around, not much
but I’ve seen her around. Her name is Lissa McGraw. She’s Alexis’s
Mom.”

“And,” Layne prompted when she
hesitated.

“Well, she said that you and her man are
tight, you’re partners and since you’re partners, we should all get
to know each other and to do that we should have dinner. So she
kind of set a double date before the game on Friday and then said
we could all go to the game together. I didn’t know what to say.
She was so friendly, I couldn’t refuse. Um… do you have a
partner?”

Layne relaxed, sat back and his eyes dropped
to the desk as he grinned. “That’s Ryker’s woman.”

“Ryker the big biker guy?”

“Yeah.”

“Is he your partner?”

“No, he isn’t my partner but I’m his.”

“What?”

“Ryker and I view our relationship in
different ways.”

“Oh,” she whispered then shared, “He’s kind
of scary.”

“He can be,” Layne agreed. “He also cares a
lot about Lissa and her daughter.”

There was a hesitation and then, “So, he’s
big and scary and looks somewhat like a raving lunatic but he’s
good people.”

Layne’s grin got bigger. “Yep, that’s about
it, sweetcheeks.”

“Are we having dinner with them?”

“That isn’t at the top of my list of things
I wanna do but I get the sense that big, scary, raving lunatic
Ryker does not have a lot of buds and Ryker tells me Lissa spends a
lotta her time working her ass off to give her girl a decent life
and likely, with Ryker her man and him looking like a raving
lunatic, she doesn’t have a lot of chicks of her own so I reckon
they’re recruitin’ a posse and we’re pretty much the only
candidates in the ‘burg who wouldn’t run a mile. Not to mention,
Alexis was a target and we made it so she was safe so I’m guessin’
Lissa feels grateful and friendship is a good gift to give when you
don’t have much else to offer.”

“So,” Rocky said, drawing out the word,
“we’re having dinner with them.”

“Wouldn’t kill us.”

“You like him,” she observed.

“He’s solid,” Layne replied.

“I liked her, she’s nice and it was kind of
sad because she also seemed desperate which she shouldn’t have to
be because, well… she was so nice.”

“Proves my point.”

“Yeah,” she whispered.

“He wants her to have a decent life, baby,”
Layne whispered back. “He’s not a man who shares much but what he
says, she hasn’t had it too good and he wants her to have
good.”

“He doesn’t scare me anymore.”

“He shouldn’t. Can’t say he’d lay down his
life for you but you’re my woman and if anyone hurt you, he
wouldn’t blink before huntin’ them down and breakin’ their neck
just because he’s built a connection to me and that’s his kind of
justice. And I’m not sayin’ that to say it, Roc, I mean he’d hunt
them down and break their neck… literally.”

He could tell she was smiling when she said,
“Now, I’m beginning to like him.”

Layne chuckled.

“Are you busy?” she asked.

“I’m always busy,” he answered.

“I’ll let you go.”

“What’s for dinner tonight?”

“Meat.”

“Just meat?”

“Yep, a smorgasbord of meat.”

“You’re full of shit,” he muttered through a
smile.

“See you later,” she replied through a
giggle.

“Later, sweetcheeks.”

He flipped his phone shut, looked at Devin
and felt his neck muscles contract again when he caught the look on
Devin’s face.

“What?” Layne asked when Devin didn’t
speak.

Devin shook his head.

“What, old man?”

“Just thinkin’, thinkin’ about a man who’d
walk out a door and never turn back. Thinkin’ about where he went,
what he did and how it could never be worth losin’ what he left
behind. Your father is a grade A, one hundred percent, jackass,
boy, turnin’ his back and never knowin’ the man you would
become.”

Layne didn’t speak, his throat was burning,
his chest was frozen and that golden trail was searing through his
system.

Then he found his voice. “You gonna kiss
me?”

Devin rolled his eyes.

“A hug?” Layne suggested.

Devin’s eyes narrowed.

Layne stared into them. Then he said,
“Thanks.”

Devin replied with, “Right.”

Moving on.

“I need you to get to Jeremy,” Layne
stated.

“We need more time,” Dev surmised.

“We’ve run everyone in her crew and they own
no property. Phone records show calls to her crew but she must use
a disposable to talk to clients. She’s not leadin’ us anywhere.
Merry interrogated Jeremy before we let him go and he doesn’t know
shit about her operation outside his part in it. She
compartmentalizes. Everyone has their job and only their job. Even
if we picked one of them up and they rolled, they couldn’t give us
anything. The location of the photo shoot was a day rental. Jeremy
has been unable to find what she’s got on Rutledge. Merry’s
chompin’ at the bit to put pressure on Rutledge and he’s stepped
out. Confronted Rutledge about the missing person call for Giselle
he didn’t report he took on his own and then didn’t follow
procedure. Colt and Sully backed him up on that. All their asses
are swinging out there now. Rutledge had a bullshit excuse and he’s
full of bravado. Merry and Colt thought he’d run scared but he’s
keepin’ his shit together. We’re not getting anything. We need time
and we need Jeremy to dig, get her talking in the apartment and to
do that, he’s gonna need a coach. That coach is you.”

“I’ll pick him up.”

“You gotta play that smart, Dev. We want him
scared but we don’t want him to fuck up.”

“Don’t have to tell me that, boy.”

Layne nodded. “I wanna know who her clients
are, who she has lined up for the party. We pull one of them in,
they’ll probably roll over.”

“You think she’ll give that up to Jeremy?”
Devin asked, his eyebrows up.

“No, but we gotta try.”

“Desperate times,” Devin muttered. “But even
if we get one, the event hasn’t taken place nor is it goin’
to.”

“Nope, but we could use them for a set up.
They could act impatient enough to want
something
, even if
it isn’t fresh, and she’s got a stable of girls, she could give it
to them. They could at least lead us to that.”

Devin nodded. Then he put his hands together
in front of him in prayer position and pressed them against his
lips as his eyes grew intense.

Layne knew what that meant.

“You’ve got a bad feeling,” Layne noted.

Dev dropped his hands. “You don’t?”

“I do.”

“In my gut, boy. This is gonna go south and
not them slippin’ through our fingers. I can’t shake the thought
that we’re missin’ somethin’.”

“Vigilance.”

“Yeah.”

They held each other’s eyes then Devin stood
as the beep came and both men looked at the monitors to see Vera
walking up the stairs.

Devin’s eyes came to Layne. “Like her a lot
more, she’s not bein’ a bitch to Rocky.”

“Someone made me the man I am.”

Devin nodded his head but whispered, “True
enough, to a point. Men like you aren’t made, though, Tanner. Men
like you just are.” His eyes turned to the monitor as Vera nearly
made the landing and he remarked, “But, gotta say, boy, your mother
can fuckin’ cook.”

With that, he walked out of Layne’s office
as the outside door opened and Vera walked in.

“Devin!” Layne heard her cry. “I’m glad I
ran into you. Flo and Helen are coming over tonight. I’m making my
beef and noodles. You’ll love it.”

Oh shit. Vera was matchmaking.

His Aunt Flo and Vera’s friend Helen were
both single. And, unlike his mother, who got burned bad enough she
never went there again, they were both on the market. His Aunt Flo
had been married but Layne’s Uncle Gene died seven years ago. His
mother’s friend Helen had been married as many times as Devin. Flo
turned Dev’s eye, he’d think he’d died and gone to heaven, good
food, lots of attention, a listening ear and no questions asked
about his activities. Helen turned Dev’s eye, he’d be in a world of
hurt because she was seriously high maintenance. Flo looked, acted
and dressed like his mother, she was far from hard on the eyes,
made an effort, had style, knew herself and was comfortable with
who she was. Helen looked, acted and dressed like a woman who
wanted attention and a lot of it. That said, she was a beautiful
woman, even at the age of sixty-three.

If Layne had to place a bet on which one Dev
would pick, it would be Helen.

“Don’t know when I’ll be home, woman,” Devin
said to Vera.

“Oh, even if you’re late, we’ll keep it warm
for you,” Vera replied.

“Right,” Devin muttered and Layne knew he
was leaving because he heard Vera call, “See you later!”

Devin made no reply.

Vera came into the office.

“Hi honey,” she greeted and Layne stood as
she rounded his desk and he bent so she could kiss his cheek.

“Hey, Ma,” Layne murmured.

She squeezed his arm, turned and bustled
away and Layne resumed his seat as she sat opposite him.

“I just got off the phone with Rocky.
Tomorrow after she gets off work, we’re going furniture shopping,”
she announced, plonking her purse on her lap.

“What?” Layne asked.

“You need a dining room table. You also need
something for that front space. I’m thinking a reading area. Chaise
lounge. An elegant table. A floor lamp.”

Fucking hell.

“Ma –”

She cut him off. “I’ll be in the office
tomorrow during the day. I talked to Dave. He said you need
listeners and I’m a good listener. I can do some office work while
I’m at it.”

He wasn’t going to turn that down.