High-Sided: An Armed & Dangerous Novel (11 page)

His eyes went wide and he smiled. “You actually did it?”

There weren’t many people I’d told about my dream to become an FBI agent; he was one of them. I had family members who laughed in my face when I told them because they thought I would never make it. Being an FBI agent was hard work and took a lot of discipline, but I’d done it. It felt good to prove everyone wrong.

“I did,” I responded. “And that’s why I’m back. Whoever these people are, they don’t need to win. Having you back will stir them up. I can’t say it won’t be dangerous, but I have plans to keep everyone safe. Bennett Racing needs you.”

Ethan lifted his brows and stared at Richard. “Is that true? Do you need me?”

Richard nodded. “Not only as an asset to the company, but as a friend—someone I can trust. Please say you’ll forgive me. I was being a jackass.”

Ethan stared at us both and blew out a heavy breath. “All right, I’m in. I’ll start back tomorrow.”

F
or the past two hours, I sat on my back porch and did nothing but stare at the mountains. If I went back to the shop, I’d no doubt see Logan again. I couldn’t risk being cornered by him. The only problem was, I couldn’t evade him forever. Sooner or later, he’d come after me. He was relentless when he wanted something.

My phone rang and I groaned, thinking it would be Logan. It wasn’t. “Hey, girl,” I answered.

“Hey, how are you?” Janie said.

“Tired,” I replied. “It’s been a bad week.”

Her voice grew softer. “I know. I just wanted to give you an update about Hendrix.”

“Go for it,” I said, sitting up straighter in my chair. Any news was better than nothing.

“As you know, I’ve been hanging around Mark a little more. And let me tell ya, you owe me. Big time. He can’t seem to talk about anything but himself and racing.”

Mark was an arrogant douche, so that didn’t surprise me. “I’m so sorry, Janie.”

“No worries, I’m happy to help. I don’t think Hendrix wants Ethan though. I know you had a theory that Hendrix wanted him gone from your team, so he could snag him up.”

“Yeah.” It was one of my thoughts, but there was no telling what was going on.

“I heard through Mark that Hendrix has no plans of hiring another mechanic or anyone on their pit crew.”

Sighing, I leaned back against my seat. “I’m stumped then.”

“But,” Janie blurted, “they
are
going to hire another rider. Apparently, word got ‘round that some new riders came into town. Hendrix is looking for new blood.”

“Great,” I grumbled. “More asshats to add to their ranks. Why does your brother even hang out with them?”

She huffed. “Good question. He seems to think they’re good guys.”

“I beg to differ.”

“I totally agree with you.” The line grew quiet, then she cleared her throat. “If you don’t mind, I want to ask you a question.”

“Go for it.”

“Is Sean single?”

I couldn’t help but giggle. “You like him, don’t you?”

“I don’t really know him, but he’s definitely easy on the eyes, and he seems like a good guy. You always had a way with the nice ones back in school.”

“Sean
is
a great guy. I don’t like to waste my time with douches. To answer your question though, yes, he’s single. Maybe we can all go out to dinner soon.”

She gasped. “That would be great. I’d love to get to know him better. He doesn’t seem to be interested in me though.”

I didn’t know what to say to that. I definitely wasn’t going to tell her it was because he was still in love with me. By getting them together, I hoped it’d get his mind off me.

My phone beeped and I looked down to see Sean’s name come up. “Janie, do you mind if I call you back later? I have another call coming in.”

“Sure. Keep me updated about dinner.”

“Will do. I owe you one anyway.”

“No problem. I’ll talk to you soon.”

We hung up and I clicked over to Sean. “Hey.”

“You okay? You left pretty pissed off.”

“I’m fine. My father finally told me the truth about what was going on. Did you know he had a gambling problem?” When he didn’t comment, I knew his answer. “Dammit! Was I seriously the only one who didn’t know?”

He sighed. “No. Your sister doesn’t know.”

“How did you find out?” I felt betrayed, especially since Sean was one of my closest friends.

“I overheard my mom talking to Donnie about it a few years ago. She thought she could help him get it under control. Obviously, something helped for a while, but is he doing it again? It almost seems like someone’s trying to send a message.”

“He said he’s not. So whatever’s going on, it isn’t because of his gambling. And if it were, they’d go after my father directly, as they’d done in the past. There was a time they beat him up bad. I remember how awful he looked. My mother had told me he was in an accident.”

“Damn, I didn’t know all of that.”

“That’s why I left all pissed off today. I couldn’t handle anymore. Not to mention, I just got off the phone with Janie. She said Hendrix isn’t interested in a new mechanic, it’s a new rider they’re looking for. They want new blood.”

Sean huffed. “Great, just what we need.” Knowing them, they’d pick the dirtiest rider they could find. Hopefully, the guy on the red and black bike left town before they got their hooks in him.

“Tell me about it,” I grumbled. I had no clue how I was going to mention Janie to him, but I figured it’d be best to just say it. “Janie wants to go out with us for dinner.”

“She does? Why?”

“Do you have to ask? Surely you’ve noticed the way she is around you.”

He blew out a heavy sigh. “I’ve noticed.”

“So what do you think about maybe going on a date with her? She’s gorgeous, and extremely nice. Plus, she loves motorcycles. What more could a guy want?”

“Another chance with you.”

“That’s not going to happen, Sean.”

“I know,” he murmured. “If you want me to go out with this girl, I will. But it’s only going to be one date.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s all I ask.” Janie might think I had a way with men, but so did she. I had no doubt her charms would rub off on him.

“Does that mean you’re going to start dating again too?” he asked.

“Not planning on it. I have too much on my mind right now.”

“Like Logan? He’s gonna creep his way back to you. I know it. Promise me you’ll stay away from him. That bastard doesn’t deserve you.”

“You have nothing to worry about. I’ve already blown him off once today. That’s why I’m going to do the bookkeeping from home for a while; at least until his return loses its luster.”

“That might take a while. Everyone’s pumped he’s back.”

I had no doubt. “Did you talk to him?”

“Nope, and he probably doesn’t want to. It’s pretty clear I’m on your side. Besides, he left with your dad. They still weren’t back by the time I left.”

“Really? I wonder where they went.” What concerned me was the way my father didn’t look so surprised to see Logan at the funeral. It was like he knew he was going to be there.

“Don’t know,” Sean said, drawing me back to his attention. “But I wouldn’t worry about it.”

“I’m not,” I lied. I wanted to know what was going on between my father and Logan. Maybe I should’ve stayed and listened to what he had to say.

After an early dinner, consisting of leftover salmon and salad, I sat down on my couch and flipped through the TV channels until I stopped at
Arrow.
Ever since I started watching the show I’d been hooked. Levi and I binge watched the whole first season a couple of weeks ago and were about to start the second. Tears burned my eyes as I looked over at the other end of the empty couch. It was where Levi sat and oftentimes slept when he’d come over. I didn’t know if I’d be able to continue watching the show without him.

My phone rang and I looked down at the screen; it was my dad. I turned off the TV and answered the phone. “Hey.”

“Hey, peanut. I know you’re upset with me, but I need you to listen before you hang up.”

“I’m not going to hang up,” I replied with a sigh. “But I am going to go ahead and tell you I want to work from home the next couple of days. Being around Logan will only cause a distraction to everyone around.” I had no doubt everyone was curious to see how Logan and I would work together after our eight-year separation. The last thing I wanted was to be put on display for everyone’s amusement.

“Whatever makes you comfortable, Kassidy.” His voice sounded troubled and distraught. I hated hearing him like that.

“I’m sorry for running out the way I did today. You of all people know I don’t like being lied to.”

“I know, honey. I’d give anything to take it all back. Keeping my secrets from you made me feel like you were protected. All I can ask for now is your forgiveness.”

It was hard to stay mad at him. All he’d ever done in life was try to make me happy. “I forgive you, Dad. Just as long as you don’t lie to me again.”

He released a heavy breath. “I won’t, I promise. Which is why I want to tell you about Ethan. He’s coming back to work tomorrow.”

I gasped. “Seriously? What happened? Did the police confirm he was innocent?”

“No, but I should’ve listened to you and Levi. Ethan would never steal from me. I let my anger cloud my judgment.”

“Is that where you and Logan went today? Sean said he saw you two leave together.”

“Yes, he went with me. Ethan was happy to see him.”

I had my answer to that question. Before I could even attempt to ask another, I heard a motorcycle charge down the driveway. “Dad, I think Sean’s here. Can I call you right back?”

My father cleared his throat. “Sure. Talk to you soon.” He hung up quickly, without saying goodbye, which was odd.

I set my phone on the kitchen counter and went to the front door, only to stop cold. The silhouette on the other side was definitely not Sean, not unless he colored his hair blond in the last couple of hours. I backed against the wall, my breaths coming out in rapid pants as I hid from view. What the hell was Logan doing at my house?

He knocked on the glass and I jumped. “Kassidy, I know you’re in there. Please open the door.” There was a sheer curtain over the glass panes, and if I moved across the room, he’d see me. All I could hear was the thumping of my heart. “Kassidy, please. I need to talk to you. I’m not leaving until I do. You know I won’t.”