Her heels slowly stopped clicking against the concrete when she turned and waited for me to catch up.
When I caught her, I jerked my chin at her to keep moving, and she fell back into step beside me. When we got to her car, she yanked open her car door and started to drop inside. I waited until she was closing the door to head to my bike. But it was her quiet question that had me turning around and looking at her.
“How are you out?” she asked quietly. “I… this is really weird, Trick. It’s not that I’m complaining that you’re out but… how?”
I decided to give that to her.
She deserved to know.
“Two months ago, a man came to me with an option,” I said, straddling my bike and crossing my arms over my chest. “Get out of prison early and help him with a few things that might or might not be illegal or stay where I was. You can guess the obvious choice that I took.”
“What will you be doing?” she wondered.
My lips twitched. “That’s something that you don’t really need to know.”
With that, I started my bike up, signaling the end of our conversation.
She slammed her car door closed and backed out of the parking lot, driving sedately home the two blocks that it took her to get there.
When I parked my bike, I made sure to angle it toward her alley so that her walk down the alley would be illuminated. She didn’t look back or wave. Didn’t do anything but walk inside, slam the door closed, and lock it so hard that I heard the solid thunk all the way across the street.
But it was only later, as I was lying in bed, that I realized my mistake.
I hadn’t actually answered any of her questions. I’d only added to them.
And it was more than obvious that she was up for a challenge.
Oh, shit.
CHAPTER 9
As long as you know that you’re still just a little bitch in my book.
-Swayze to Trick
SWAYZE
I made it my mission to find out what in the hell was going on with Trick.
It started with surveillance.
When Jayco wasn’t at the office, I parked my ass in front of the front windows and watched.
For instance, that was what I was doing right then.
I’d just locked the door after Jayco had left, and then for good measure I’d turned off all of the lights on the off chance that Trick actually looked over toward me and my office.
Also, as an added benefit, I’d parked myself on the floor, and I’d also changed my clothes into running gear.
Just in case he did look over and see me on the ground, I could appear as if I was stretching, getting ready to go for a run. Which, technically, I was.
I’d made this plan up on the fly yesterday when I’d seen him outside doing stuff after I’d locked the door behind Jayco—Jayco who I still hadn’t given a key because I didn’t trust anybody.
However, unlike yesterday when he’d seen me the moment that I was standing at my office windows, today, I wouldn’t be caught. And, if on the off chance I was, I had a contingency plan.
What that contingency plan didn’t take into account, however, was a woman pulling up outside Trick’s place and Trick jerking his chin at her in greeting.
Something sour and ugly took root in my belly, and I narrowed my eyes and completely forgot to look like I was stretching when I leaned forward in surprise.
Because I knew that girl.
That girl was the bane of my existence.
And when that woman got out of her car and walked toward Trick with a smile on her face, I prayed that what I was about to witness wasn’t what I thought.
Only, it was exactly like I thought.
Gritting my teeth when he flashed my grin at her and placed his hand on her hip like he’d once done to me, I stood up quickly, scrambling to my feet.
I didn’t bother yanking my shorts that’d ridden up way too far back into position, either.
I left them exactly where they were and watched as Trick caught Ignacia by the hip and guided her to start down the street. He fell into step beside her, and the idea took route.
There was only one place that they could be going if they were going by foot.
Dashing toward the bathroom, I quickly swiped on mascara, some foundation to cover a zit on my chin, and eyeshadow that then quickly caused glitter to fall down onto my cheeks and the tops of my breasts.
“Shit,” I grumbled, looking down at myself.
I grabbed a rag and then swiped it off as best as I could, then tossed it onto the counter and bailed out of the bathroom.
Quickly grabbing my headphones, I shoved them into my ears, prayed that they paired, and caught my phone before dashing outside.
After locking the back door, I started to run down the length of the alley the opposite way than I would usually go.
I had to dash through a couple of back alleys before I thought it was safe to make my way back out again.
I came out of the alley onto the front of the sidewalk that led down the front of all the downtown businesses and chanced a glance backward at Trick.
He was walking next to Ignacia, and she was talking to him.
I gritted my teeth and picked up the speed, already feeling my foot protest.
Today I’d woken up with it not only black and blue from having a keg dropped on my foot, but it was also aching like a son of a bitch.
I’d avoided my short run this morning because it hurt so bad and was now regretting even this small run toward the restaurant at the end of the road.
Honestly, it got to the point where I would have to stop, or I would fall down and cry, so I chose to stop and walk while I still could.
Unluckily, the affected foot was the opposite of my bad hip, so when I did stop, I looked like I was walking bow legged to avoid the pain.
Luckily, I was almost at the restaurant.
“You okay, girl?”
I looked up and smiled at Amber.
“Yeah.” I waved, hoping that it would hide the pain-filled grimace on my face. “I’m okay.”
“You don’t look okay,” she said when I got closer to her.
I walked inside the door she was holding open and smiled at her tiredly. “You mind if I take a seat for a minute?”
“Sure, go ahead.” Amber gestured toward a place in the corner of the room.
“You have any tables?” I asked, hoping beyond hope that she did.
I’d seen Trick getting closer to me since I’d slowed to a walk, and there was no doubt in my mind that he was taking Ignacia here.
“No.” Amber looked sad.
I groaned when she told me that there were no tables available.
“Dang it,” I grumbled.
“I’m sorry, Swayze.” The hostess, Amber, smiled at me apologetically. “If I could give you someone else’s table, I would.”
I knew she would. Amber was sweet like that.
The door behind me opened, and I knew that Trick had finally arrived.
I limped toward the spot where Amber had gestured, but stopped when I saw a familiar figure in the dining room.
Grinning like a fool when I saw the man sitting there by himself, I walked up toward him and plopped down at his table.
“Hey, Bruno.” I smiled.
Bruno’s eyes lifted from the menu he was perusing, and he grunted. “What’s up?”
“Do you mind if I sit with you for a minute?” I pleaded. “I think my foot is going to fall off.”