Six Months (28 page)

Reno appeared, looking dangerously handsome. I loved it when he wore all black. Today he had on black cargo pants with a tight shirt that fit his body so perfectly, and the way it outlined his sculpted arms was downright sinful. Long sleeves, of course. His jaw was covered with stubble and he had on his mirrored aviators. He kicked a small rock with his boot as he stalked forward and then stopped short, looking me over from head to toe. I could feel his hot gaze behind those glasses and my knees weakened.

“Is this how you take care of my girl?”

All eyes fell on me and then swung back to him, confused.

Reno peeled off his shirt.

“Oh, Jesus. I think I’ve had enough of family hour.” Jericho slid off the truck and swaggered off.

Reno slipped his shirt over my head, pulling my arms through the sleeves, which were still warm from his body heat. I dropped the horseshoe on the ground so he could roll up the sleeves, which went past my fingertips.

I could have objected. But that would have meant him covering up, and I loved staring at his bare chest. He was fit and strong—slender ropes of muscle along his arms and a broad torso with just a light dusting of hair. The chilly air hardened his nipples and I smiled at him.

He smiled back.

“You guys are a bag of nuts.” Denver tossed his horseshoe to the ground. “Eight o’clock, everyone. No excuses this time,” he said, his voice fading in the distance.

The pack dispersed and headed inside.

“What’s he going on about?” Reno asked.

“Laser tag.”

“Again?”

“He went with Jericho and Austin last week and they wouldn’t shut up about it. I think Lexi is itching to kick his butt
Platoon
style.”

“I could kick all their butts,” Reno said with a wry smile. “How’s your foot, princess?”

“Better. I tested my weight on it, and I don’t feel any pain.”

“Keep using the crutches,” he ordered, straightening my shirt and pulling the tips of my hair away from the collar. “Damn, I love the new color growing out. Are you keeping it?”

I shrugged lightly. “It’s looking that way.”

“Has someone been showing you how to play horseshoes?” he asked, brow slightly arched.

“I’m doing pretty good.”

He glanced over my shoulder at the horseshoe by the house and the other three feet away. Then he gripped my shoulders and turned me around. I hopped in a circle and he bent down and put the horseshoe in my hand.

Every inch of Reno was pressed behind me. His fingers curled around my wrist as he gently swung my right arm forward and back, left arm tight around my midriff and his mouth lightly grazing the back of my right ear.

“Like that,” he said in a caged voice. “It’s all in the release.” His words heated my body, and as if sensing it, he seductively ran his nose along my neck and inhaled deeply.

Tingles spread across the lower half of my body and when I shifted my hips, he moaned, tightening against my back.

Reno swung my throwing arm forward and I opened my hand. The horseshoe tumbled and hit the side of the house.

“You really suck at this,” I said, deciding I needed more lessons.

Then his mouth was on my neck, and the short bristles of whiskers on his jaw scratched my skin. “Do I?”

I leaned against him and threw my head back. “Yeah. You’re terrible.”

His right arm journeyed south and his fingers slipped inside my sweatpants. My breath caught.

Three hard claps sounded to our right and I jumped, straightening my shirt like a busted teenager when I saw Lynn on the porch with an oven mitt tucked beneath her arm.

Reno didn’t let go and I wriggled against him.

“Supper is almost ready,” she announced with a hard glare. “This isn’t a brothel, so let’s keep that behind closed doors.”

I snorted and turned around. “You are not going to get me on that woman’s good side if you keep this up. She used to like me until you started spending the night in my bed.”

“Good point,” he said, kissing my mouth. “Next time, you come to my bed.”

I placed a delicate peck on the tiny scar on his lip, something he hadn’t caught on to, but that was my special little place I’d claimed as mine.

“I’ll sweeten the pot with an extra hundred,” Ben offered.

Denver stood up and curled in his lips. His sharp whistle cut through the air and caught the attention of Reno, who was strutting through the automatic doors of the bowling alley.

“Shit, I’d do it for free.” Jericho flipped his hair back, revealing a charismatic smile.

“Don’t,” Denver warned, pointing his finger. “You’re going to get us kicked out of here.”

“Chicken.” Ben sneered as he leaned back in his plastic chair and laced his fingers behind his head.

“Shut it,” Denver snapped.

Jericho stood up, peeled off his shirt, and climbed on top of the table. Denver yanked him so hard by the arm that they both went crashing to the floor.

Three girls at a nearby table stood up and applauded.

Denver sat up with a cocksure grin and jumped to his feet, winking at them.

Jericho slowly rolled over and towered over Denver with his lean body and a lone tattoo of a guitar on his left arm. He didn’t have to wink. The girls were practically losing their virginity all over again watching a sex-laced smile spread across his face.

“Same old drama.” Reno kissed me on the neck. I smiled at him because I loved how a tough guy like Reno wasn’t afraid to show his affection for me in public. “How many rounds have they had?” he asked, taking a seat on my right.

“I lost count at three.”

“Where’s everyone else?”

“Austin and Lexi are checking if the room is ready. Lynn’s in there with Maizy,” I said, thumbing toward the arcade.

“Well, if these boys get too rowdy, Lynn should head home.”

“She walked by a minute ago and I have a feeling she’s all for that plan. This doesn’t seem like the kind of thing Lynn does for fun, so she’s probably bored. You don’t think this atmosphere is bad for Maizy with all your cussing and wild behavior?”

“Shifter life.” He shrugged it off, taking a sip of my orange soda. “Swearing doesn’t make a child grow up to be dysfunctional—an uncaring family does. Maizy has more love and protection within this pack than she’ll ever know in the human world.”

“But they’re not Shifters.”

He sighed and set down the cup. “Lynn’s brought up the idea a few times about sending her off to a boarding school when she gets older, and Austin said over his dead body. I don’t know that Austin is going to win that battle because she’s Lynn’s daughter, and since she’s unmated, he has no say. Lynn and Ivy homeschool her, but I don’t think that’s working out. She needs to be around kids her age, and most Shifters don’t like their kids playing with humans. Did you eat?”

“I ordered some fries.”

His eyes narrowed. “Why didn’t you order a meal?”

“Because she’s afraid someone’s going to hock a loogie in her food,” Trevor said from behind me. He sat in the bucket seat to my left and took a bite of his hot dog. “Isn’t that right, babe?”

My cheeks heated and Reno’s lips twitched.

“Don’t laugh at me,” I said, feeling a tad embarrassed. “I saw it on a show once. They had hidden cameras.”

His lips pressed tighter, fighting the urge to laugh.

Jericho pulled his concert shirt over his head and I caught Trevor peering up at him. I’d decided bringing Trevor along would be a good way for him to get to know the guys who had been looking out for me. A weird vibe was going on with all the men that no one addressed, but I noticed the sideways glances at one another.

“Well, you just robbed those lovely ladies of a fucktastic show,” Jericho said, pulling his hair away from his collar. “Never dare a musician to dance naked on a table for fifty dollars, Ben. You’ll lose every time.”

“Show-off,” Ben murmured, taking a swig of beer.

“It’s ready!” Lexi’s bright voice called out from the entranceway that led to the laser-tag room. “We’ve got the room to ourselves for the full hour. So are we all good on teams?”

“I say every man for himself,” Wheeler suggested, walking past her with Denver close behind him.

“Go on, Trevor,” I said in a low voice. “You’ll have fun and you can get out all your aggression in there. Admit it. You want to go Rambo on their ass.”

He shoved the rest of the hot dog in his mouth. “Fuck it. I’m in,” he said with a mouthful before taking a sip of my drink and walking off. I’d spent the better part of an hour talking him into it, and no matter how much he resisted the idea, Trevor couldn’t say no to me.

“Come on, Reno. We need one more,” Lexi yelled out, tying her long hair in a ponytail. “Ivy’s playing too, so that makes an odd number.”

“Go have some fun. It’ll only be an hour and I’d rather you go than sit around being bored. It’s not like we’re attached at the hip,” I said with a short laugh. “Lynn stuffed one of my paperbacks in her purse, so I’m going to catch up on my reading.”

He kissed my neck, working his way to my mouth, giving me second thoughts.

“I know what you’re up to, Reno. Cut it out and go play.”

“You sure?”

I smiled at him with closed lips, feeling melancholy. “Yeah. I’m sure. Maybe next time I’ll be able to join you guys.”

“What’s going on in that head of yours?” he wondered more than asked.

My heart sank. Reno kissed me and walked off, giving me another glance before rounding the corner. I could still smell his cologne on me and already missed the rough feel of his hand against my skin.

I’d been considering Maddox’s offer. It seemed like a crazy bargain, but he came from a different world. Maddox was giving me an opportunity to get my feet on the ground, and it had nothing to do with a physical relationship. I still had a substantial amount of debt to clear with him and that weighed heavily on my conscience. Lexi wanted to hand Sweet Treats over to me, but she still had to get the new store up and running, so the transition wouldn’t be immediate. Even still, I didn’t want to take over a business with all the debt I had incurred. We hadn’t discussed details, like what percentage of the business I would own, if any. Maddox had said that each day that I delayed giving him my decision would cost me.

As for Sanchez, Reno had questioned two of Delgado’s men for information. He hadn’t talked about it with me and I’d learned the details from Lexi, who’d heard it through Austin. I was afraid for Reno’s safety and I’d do anything to keep him from getting hurt. He would probably lose interest in me if I went with Maddox, and maybe then he’d stop searching for Sanchez. It didn’t feel right to expect a man who had already done so much for me to continue risking his life.

“Miss April?”

“I glanced to my left and Maizy was sticking her tongue through the tiny gap where one of her bottom baby teeth used to be.

“Where’s your mom?”

“In the bathroom. She told me to stand here with you.”

“Sit down, sweetie,” I said, patting the chair beside me. “Are you having fun?”

“Uh-huh. But I can’t get enough tickets to get the ring I want. I spent all my money, and that means we’re going home. Mr. Reno sometimes gives me extra, but he’s not here.”

She was upset, holding about ten tickets in her hand. I suspected Lynn wasn’t letting her spend too much in there, and I knew how to work those machines from a misspent youth at the Nickel Arcade.

I had a few bills in my back pocket, so I grabbed my crutches and swung my feet toward the game room. “Come on, Maizy. Let’s get you that ring.”

I found one of the games notorious for spitting out obscene amounts of tickets if you hit the right spot. A light would flash around in a circle and you had to stop it between certain slots to earn rewards. I worked my magic and within minutes, Maizy had a wad of tickets and a priceless smile.

“Is that enough?” she asked excitedly.

“Go take it to the counter and have the man count it.”

She ran off before I could ask her about Lynn. I looked around at the tables and didn’t see her anywhere.

The bathroom was within sight, so I went in.

“Lynn? Are you okay? I’ll watch over Maizy if you aren’t feeling well,” I called out. “Lynn?”

I peered down to look beneath the stall doors on the right. “Oh my God, Lynn!”

I threw down the crutches and hopped to the far stall. The door was semi-closed, so I pushed it open and found Lynn slumped against the wall. Bright blood trickled down her face from a cut on her head.

“Lynn, can you hear me? Did you fall?” I shook her a little and when her eyelids fluttered, I breathed a sigh of relief.

Until I heard a click behind my head.

I turned my head and saw an unfamiliar man aiming a gun at me.

“Sanchez sent us to keep an eye on you.”

Holy smokes, this isn’t happening
.

“Where is he?”

The man tugged on his black goatee and I couldn’t read his expression because of the black baseball hat pulled over his eyebrows. I hadn’t realized how important eyebrows were when it came to facial expressions. “He’s killing your boyfriend.”

I opened my mouth to scream and he bent over. “My friend is watching over that sweet little girl, so keep your mouth shut or we’ll drive her out to the lake and throw her in.”

Adrenaline poured through my body, mixing with fear and anger.

“If you want to sit and think about it, I’ll put a hole in her head,” he said, waving the gun at Lynn. “Now get up before someone comes in here. Just remember that my friend has the girl, so do exactly as I say.”

He put the safety back on and tucked the gun in his pants. I picked up my crutches and walked toward the door, glancing over my shoulder at Lynn. He laughed to himself, no doubt thrilled that I wasn’t going to be running away with this boot on my foot.

Denver stalked in my direction from the laser room and the man fell back a little. He gave me a menacing glare, and I turned to Denver, struggling to appear calm.

“Where’s Peanut?”

“Huh?”

“Maizy,” he said. He was sweating and had an anxious look on his face. “Something isn’t right.”

“Everything’s fine, Denver. Lynn took her home. She… she had a stomachache. That’s all.”

His brows pushed together, forming a vertical crease between them. “That it? Are you sure? It just feels like…”

“Go back to your game before you run out of time. Your hour will be up soon and we came all this way,” I said, trying to relax. The guy behind me had a gun, and I didn’t want to test how willing he was to use it on Denver.

“When did they leave?”

I tapped my crutch on his leg. “About five minutes ago. You know Lynn won’t answer her cell while she’s driving. They’re fine.”

Denver reluctantly walked back to the game room where the door had been left open. He searched the massive building with his eyes as if Maizy might appear out of the rafters. I wondered how he could have known something was wrong, but even more terrifying was that Maizy was nowhere in sight.

“Where is she?” I hissed, turning to look at the man.

“I want you to head out those doors,” he said, pointing toward the exit.

I wondered if I could knock him out with my crutches, but they didn’t weigh much and it would be too much of a risk if it meant Maizy getting hurt.

Enough people had been hurt already.

“Bring Sanchez out,” I demanded.

He tapped his fingers on the outside of his shirt, over the gun. I turned around, swinging on my crutches toward the door in a slow pace as I glanced over at the laser-tag entrance. I started to get visions of what could be going on in there and my heart sped up. Three of the guys had brought ski masks, fatigue pants, and combat boots to get into character. They were all armed with toy guns.

Except Sanchez.

“Everyone’s going to hear it if he goes on a rampage in there,” I said to Goatee, who shadowed behind me.

“Silencer,” was all he replied.

My heart palpitated and my knees got weak. Because I wasn’t watching where I was going, I tripped and fell on my stomach.