Lethal Temptations (Tempted #5)(12)

He pulled the door open and glared at me.

“Now’s not a good time,” he hissed.

“Too f*cking bad, gave you twenty-four hours to wallow in your shit,” I said, pushing past him and making my way into the house. The quicker I got a handle on him the quicker I could drag my ass to his ex-wife’s house and apologize to Lacey.

My eyes fell on Reina as she tugged her shirt down and looked away.

“See you found your man. Thanks for keeping my car in one piece,” I said, noticing the tears that streaked her face and turned to Jack. Looks like I wasn’t the only one f*cking up women these days. “What the f*ck did you do?”

“Mind your f*cking business,” he barked.

“Oh, for f*ck’s sake, we don’t have time for a lovers f*cking quarrel, brother,” I seethed. Fucking hearts, they were breaking everywhere.

“Take Reina home,” he ordered, ignoring me as he stared at Reina.

“I don’t need anyone to take me anywhere,” she replied.

For f*ck’s sake.

“Either he drives you home or I do,” he demanded.

“Fine,” she hissed, turning toward me. “Give me a minute to grab my things.”

I blew out a breath, glancing back and forth between the two of them before nodding curtly.

“Five minutes,” I warned as I crossed my arms against my chest.

I watched on as she moved towards the stairs only for him to grab her arm and whisper some shit into her ear. She finally tugged her arm free and disappeared up the stairs leaving me alone with Jack. He stalked through the living room where the walls were long ago marked with holes from his fists punching through the Sheetrock in search of bugs he believed his brother planted when he became a Fed. He never plastered the walls, keeping the reminder of the menace his mind was and what drove him to insanity the day his son passed away.

He grabbed a pack of Marlboros off the dining room table and walked back into the living room.

“Got a light?” he asked, pushing the cigarette between his lips as he walked passed me to the front door.

Fresh air.

Good idea.

I took a seat next to him on the stoop and handed him a lighter in exchange for a cigarette. I studied his profile as he took a pull, searching for all the telltale signs of a breakdown but came up short. He appeared to be battling the war in his heart and not his head. Maybe * did shake crazy.

“You want to talk about that?” I questioned, looking over my shoulder.

“What’s the point? You probably know more about my actions than I do,” he muttered.

There was truth to that and the reason I was his vice president. I knew Jack and I knew his maker and for a long time I’ve been the one who merges them into one.

“Not talking about your breakdown, talking about your woman,” I commented, taking a drag. “I was wrong about her, you know,” I offered. I’ve never worked Jack down from old lady bullshit and was riding blind. Give me the manic shit. I’m all aces with that.

“How’s that?”

“Guess you didn’t listen to your messages yet,” I grunted, remembering the calls I placed to him before the mayhem and after the needle. Funny how his daughter was my mayhem and not the gangster who shot me up. “Gold came by the clubhouse unannounced,” I said, shaking my head, dismissing Lacey from my mind before turning and looking him in the eye.

Fucked up.

So f*cked up.

“Gotta tell you man, you should probably wife that one,” I said seriously, as I blew out a ring of smoke. I actually meant what I was saying to him. I think it would do him some good to have a genuine person in his corner, someone that accepted him as he was and didn’t try to change him. Someone who loved him despite his mind. Someone who could learn to love even that part of him.

“She was there when Gold came by?” he asked, sounding irate. “Why the hell was she still there?”

Oh, that’s right. This * wanted me to take his girlfriend car shopping while he took a trip to crazyville. And me? I f*cking agreed to it. I also agreed to make things right with Lacey if she came by.

Fucking idiot.

“What part of unannounced didn’t you comprehend?” I hissed. “It's fine, Jimmy thinks she’s just a club whore.”

It was probably best not to tell him I forced her on her knees and made her appear to be giving me head. Wow. Each memory was worse than the last.

“She didn’t ask questions, just did as I told her—but she saw some shit,” I added, looking out into the street and for the first time I tried to put myself in Jack’s shoes. I wondered what ran through his head when he stared at the same street where his son laid as he took his last breath. It made me wonder why the f*ck he didn’t sell this house and move the f*ck away.

But then the answer came to me.

He kept the house for the same reason he left the holes in the walls, to remind him of who he was before he got help and when he’s tempted not to take his meds all he has to do is come here…it’s all the push he needs to do the right thing.

“What kind of shit?” He asked, pulling me away from his thoughts.

“Gold didn’t like I was the man delivering the product, said he didn’t trust me. As an act of good faith he forced me to sample the H,” I admitted, running my fingers through my hair. “Wifey saw me with a needle in my arm and didn’t run away, she just ran right to you.”