Never Doubt Me: Judge Me Not #2(56)

The girl slows to a stop halfway across the front lawn when she notices she has visitors.

“Can I help you with something?” she asks, hand on her hip.

A look off disdain crosses her face as her eyes scan over Chase’s work truck. But when her gaze moves to Chase, her expression morphs into something best described as lustful.

With an entirely new attitude, she saunters down to where we’re standing.

Speaking solely to my man, she says in a flirtatious voice, “Hey, I know who you are. You’re Will’s brother.” She adjusts her tube top to reveal more cleavage. “I’m Jared’s sister, Cheri.” She licks her full lips. “What can I do for you?”

I roll my eyes. No doubt this young girl has heard all the stories about bad boy Chase Gartner and would like nothing more than to have the town’s most infamous resident do unspeakable things to her.

Not gonna happen, Cheri, I hope my eyes convey as I glare at her.

She ignores me completely. She’s too busy shooting lustful eyes at Chase.

Bitch.

I clear my throat and get to the point of why we’re here. “We’re looking for Will, and we’re pretty sure he’s with your brother. Have you seen either of them today? Do you know where they went?”

Cheri eyes me warily for a beat and then focuses back on Chase. To his credit, he keeps his eyes solely above her neck when she responds.

“Sorry, I haven’t seen your brother. Jared left awhile ago, alone. He didn’t say where he was going.”

“Well, she was no help,” I say to Chase when he and I are back in the truck.

Chase is trying not to smile, and I shoot him a curious look.

“What?”

He reaches over and places his hand on my thigh, right below the hem of the peach-colored sundress I’m wearing today. “You’re adorable when you’re jealous.”

“Shut up,” I huff while I pretend to push his hand away.

He just grasps tighter and moves up an inch. “You’re the only one I want. You know that, right?”

I nod, because I do know that Chase has eyes for only me. But he’s right, nonetheless. I am jealous.

I lean over and kiss along his strong jaw, then trail my lips down his neck.

He mock-shoos me away. “I’m trying to drive here, babe.”

I laugh, and he chuckles. I kiss him another minute, but then settle back into the passenger seat. We’re both still smiling big, but our happy grins falter when the heaviness of the fact that we have no idea where Will is starts to sink back in.

“Where to now?” I breathe out.

Chase sighs heavily. “I think you know.”

I do, but it pains me to say it out loud. “Kyle’s?”

Chase doesn’t answer, and his lips thin to a tight line. When we reach Market Street, the main road that cuts through town, Chase rolls to a stop. He glances left and right, and then turns left, a turn that will lead us straight to the seedy part of town.

That’s all the answer I need. We are indeed on our way to Kyle Tanner’s.





Chapter Thirteen


Chase


When we start down the long dirt driveway that leads to Kyle’s ramshackle house, I’m rethinking whether I should have brought Kay with me. Perhaps a detour back to the house to drop her off would have been wise, since I don’t want my girl anywhere near the kind of debaucheries that occur in this drug den.

But it’s too late now, so I content myself with just saying, “Hey, I think it’s best if you wait in the car. Are you okay with that?”

“Sure,” Kay replies, “yeah.”

She doesn’t sound put off in any way. Hell, I know she has no real desire to meet Kyle Tanner. I don’t blame her, either. I wish I too could avoid an up close and personal with that prick today. But I need to know if my brother’s been a-calling.

When we roll up to the dilapidated frame structure, there are no cars out front.

Kay remarks, “Huh, it doesn’t look like anyone’s here.”

I point to a beat-up old Dodge truck, circa early nineties, parked around the far side of the house. “That’s Kyle’s piece of shit.” I jam the gearshift in park. “He’s home.”

Kay nods. “Oh, okay.”

I lean back in my seat and scrub both hands down my face, then turn to Kay. “Listen, I’m leaving the keys here. Just let the truck idle. If there’s any trouble, any at all, take off.”

Kay unclasps her seat belt and twists toward me. “What kind of trouble are you expecting, Chase?”

“Well,” I begin, “Will is clearly not here, but he probably was around earlier. And if that motherf*cker admits he sold my kid brother anything even remotely illegal, I’m laying his ass out. I don’t want you witnessing shit like that, all right?”

Kay presses her lips together tightly, says, “Okay, but I’m not leaving you here with no way home. If something like that does, uh, occur, then I’ll go, but I’ll wait for you at the end of the driveway.”

I give this woman who’s so unconditionally supportive of me a sad smile. “I’m sorry I’m even putting you in a position like this.”

“Chase”—she places her hand on mine—“don’t.”