Bait & Switch (Alphas Undone #1)(44)
The longer I thought about it, the more this entire situation stank. When these guys snatched Lacey, Barton had instantly found out about it; he wouldn’t have kept such a close eye on them if he hadn’t expected trouble. He must have had some personal experience with this gang in the past.
Barton probably had his reasons for playing it cool, but why hadn’t I heard any of this from Lacey? She’d never mentioned that she was in deep shit with organized crime. Or the fact that her dad happened to be my boss.
She’d hidden this information from me. I didn’t know why. But I knew she had lied to me. Enough to start a shadow of doubt creeping over our whole relationship.
If there was one thing I couldn’t stomach, it was a liar. My entire life was devoted to control, exposing corruption and bringing order to the world. She’d brought all this to my doorstep with an innocent smile and those come-hither eyes.
Anger burned like molten lead in my veins. But I beat it back again; I still had business to take care of here.
“Looks like your lucky day,” I announced to the two men with a bravado I didn’t feel. “I’m not going to blow your f*cking brains out. And if you want things to stay that way, you’ll leave this girl alone for good. She’s not involved with whatever sick shit you’re up to.”
Part of me wondered whether that was true. After what had just come to light, how could I be sure of anything? For all I knew, maybe Lacey had played a part in Troy’s business.
I shook my head, forcing myself to stop spinning in her secrets. We needed to get the hell out of here. There would be time for answers later.
Without taking my eyes off the two men, I said, “Cover me, Grey.”
Greyson kept his pistol pointed at them while I adjusted my hold on the limp body over my shoulder. I backed out of the kitchen and toward the front door . . . until I felt a light tap on my back.
“I have to, um, pee,” she whispered, her voice hoarse.
My eyes locked with Grey’s. “She has to pee,” I repeated like a dipshit.
Grey’s eyes widened and he shot me a look that said, Seriously? And if she had to take her tampon out, would you help with that too?
The sad thing was, yeah, I probably would. I carried her straight into the crappy little bathroom and tugged down her leggings and panties. A bit unsteady, she sat down and relieved herself, her posture slumped in defeat. I averted my gaze, keeping it locked on the doorway, both to give her some privacy and to make sure we were still alone.
When she was done, I scooped her up in my arms and walked out of that foul, run-down house, secure in the knowledge that Greyson was covering me all the way to my truck.
He started the engine as I laid her gently across the backseat and got in, scooting so my lap supported her head. She couldn’t sit up by herself, and to be honest, as mad as I was, I needed to hold her.
As Greyson sped toward the highway, I pulled out my phone and dialed the Dallas PD’s narcotics division. The bored-sounding officer who answered perked right up when I delivered my tip about a certain drug operation. Those bastards would be going to jail for a long, long time.
When I hung up, Greyson’s gaze flicked to the backseat. “Is that really Lacey?”
I grunted an affirmative, in no mood to discuss this with him. I couldn’t even wrap my brain around this f*cked-up situation yet, let alone put words to it. Trying to make sense of things, I turned and stared out the window.
He blew out a loud breath, nonplussed. “So you’ve been dating the boss’s daughter this whole time? Damn. I don’t want to be around when that hits the fan.”
He probably couldn’t see it, but I grimaced at him anyway. “Is that really what you’re focused on right now? Jeez, dude, unf*ck your priorities.”
Although there might have been a tiny part of me that agreed with him. It wasn’t enough that she was a drug lord’s ex—she had to be the boss’s daughter too? That was just icing on the goddamn cake. I’d gotten us away from Troy’s old buddies, but would I be so lucky with Barton?
“Drop us off at my place,” I instructed Grey.
Barton had said no hospitals unless his daughter was in need of immediate medical care. He said he didn’t know how big this thing was, or who he could trust yet. Still in DC when he got the news about the kidnapping, he couldn’t have been here quickly enough, so he was counting on me alone to keep her safe. I was only thirty minutes from her, and he trusted me implicitly.
Too bad he had no clue that I’d been eating his daughter’s * and lusting after her so badly I ached. God damn it.
“No . . . Lan . . .”
I startled when a slim hand brushed mine. I looked down to see Lacey gripping my fingers weakly. Her blue eyes were still heavy-lidded, but much brighter than before.
“You really came . . . for me?”
“Of course I did.”
She trailed off into a blurry mumble. It might have been my imagination, but I thought she said I’m sorry.
“Shhh.” I stroked her tangled hair. “It’s okay. Just rest.”
It wasn’t f*cking okay, not at all. My doubt was still growing, and with it, my angry sense of betrayal. But for now, I let Lacey sleep—and I let myself enjoy her warm weight, knowing how soon I might have to push it away.
Chapter Twenty-One