Steel Temptation (Back Down Devil MC #6)(5)

Law school.

Mia knew plenty about the law, but it was not the kind most wanted to know.

She stood in jeans with holes in the knees. A t-shirt with a low cut neck. She was tired from a crappy night of sleep thanks to a long shift at the strip club.

Mia didn’t take her clothes off, well, most of them. She worked behind the bar, making some money, but nothing like the women who were on stage. Her boss told her straight up to put a new set of tits on a credit card and then come talk to him. She told her boss to f*ck himself. Then cracked her across the face.

That was all water under the bridge. Well over two years ago.

The comment and thought still lingered with Mia though.

She knocked on the back door and thought about it.

Maybe her uncle would pay for her tits.

If she could really do it… she could make some serious money. Save it up. Get a new place. Find somewhere to move and find peace. Instead of this mixed up life.

Sighing, Mia stretched her neck and groaned.

“Come on,” she whispered.

She really had to pee.

When she opened the bathroom door this morning, her roommate had fallen asleep with her head resting on the toilet. A night of puking, some guy in the bathroom, naked, was the usual for her roommate.

On top of the usual morning pee, Mia held a cup of coffee in her hand. It was mostly empty and had gone straight to her bladder. And since she was still so tired, it made her wonder if the caffeine didn’t just bypass her system at all.

Another minute passed and Mia lifted her hand again. If the gaslight on her car hadn’t been on for the better part of the ride here she would have left. But honestly, she needed money. At least twenty bucks to get ten for gas and then a crappy lunch.

The door opened and Mia looked down.

“Jakey,” she said. “What up, cousin?”

Jake looked up at her. His left eye had a yellow-purple ring around it from a bruise.

Mia dropped down and grabbed Jake by the shoulders. “Hey, what happened to you?”

“Mia?” Jake asked. “What are you doing here?”

“Your father needs me for something.”

“One of his dinners?”

“Yeah, exactly.”

It hurt Mia to lie to her ten year old stepcousin. Lies were okay though. Everyone told them and most people lived in them.

“I’ve missed you,” Jake said. “I wish you could just live here.”

“You only say that because you saw me in the bathroom that one time…”

Mia smiled and Jake’s cheeks burned red. “Ew. Gross.”

Mia ruffled Jake’s hair. “Tell me about your eye.”

“Bullies,” he whispered.

“They’re everywhere,” a third voice said.

Mia stood and stared at her uncle.

“Uncle Jake,” she said.

Her uncle was a judge. A crooked judge at that. He took bribes, called favors for murders, and arranged illegal underground gambling rings. And that was just the tip of the iceberg her uncle sat upon.

He was tall, thick, wore glasses, and had the dark, stoney eyes of a killer. His jaw was defined and his lip always seemed to be curled.

When he put a hand to Jake’s left shoulder, the young man flinched a little. It made Mia wonder exactly how Jake got the black eye. It was a long time ago that Uncle Jake’s wife - Aunt Theresa - left. Uncle Jake made it clear that his ex-wife was a dirty whore who preferred a dick in her ass than to be a good mother and wife. Something told Mia it was all a lie. Not to mention nobody ever heard from Aunt Theresa again.

There wasn’t much family anymore; everyone scattered, hating each other, or dead. The newest form of the true American family.

Hell, Mia hated Uncle Jake. But when he called, there was money to be made.

“Jake, disappear,” Uncle Jake said.

“Okay, sir,” Jake whispered.

“Hey, Jake. Do me a favor?” Mia asked.

“What?”

“Grab my bag?”

“Sure,” Jake said. “How long are you staying, Mia?”

“As long as I need her,” Uncle Jake bellowed. “Enough talk, Jacob.”

Jacob?

Mia watched her younger step cousin stiffen. He took her bag and disappeared up the stairs in the kitchen.

“Hello,” Mia said.

“Are you high?”

“I don’t do drugs.”

“Can I search you?”

“Have at it.”

Uncle Jake didn’t move. “I just want to remind you how connected I am. With one phone call you can be gone forever. And nobody would know or care.”

“Like Aunt Theresa?”

Mia regretted saying it. She regretted it even more when the back of Uncle Jake’s hand connected with her mouth. She spun right the hell around, facing the backyard of the house. There were black and white stars and spots flashing for a few seconds, followed by a hand clamping on her shoulder.

“I’m not some * pimp at a stripclub,” Uncle Jake said. “Let’s get that straight.”

Mia flexed her jaw. “Okay. I’m sorry.”

“Good. How much money do you need right now?”

“Gaslight’s on in my car.”

“That it?”

“That’s never it,” Mia said. “What do you need from me?”