Dare To Run (The Sons of Steel Row #1)(61)

Things got quiet again, but I refused to go peek. With my luck, Lucas would be passed out from the pain and I wouldn’t be able to stay away. Instead, I got up and opened the small window. It was freezing outside, but the cold air was a refreshing wake-up call. Maybe I didn’t know all the details of Lucas’s life, maybe we’d only scratched the surface of our personal lives, but the fact remained that this was a man I wanted to be with, even if it was only for a short period of time. He was the man I loved.

Gunshots and all.





CHAPTER 19





LUCAS




An hour or so later, I was all stitched up and Chris was ready to leave. I sat down on my bed, rubbed my forehead, and let out a long sigh. Heidi walked Chris to the door, talking to him quietly as she went. After he’d patched me up, he’d questioned me on what my next move would be. Would I tell Tate? Go after those Bitter Hill guys unauthorized? What was I going to do about Scotty? And I didn’t know.

Truth was, I had no idea what to do.

That pissed me the hell off, too.

I tucked the spare gun Chris had given me under my pillow. The mag wasn’t fully loaded, but it would do in a pinch. One gun in the house wasn’t enough anymore. Not when Scotty seemed bound and determined to put me six feet under.

Slumping down against the pillows, I ran through everything I knew again. We had a big company dinner Friday night, and I was supposed to be there. According to Chris, it was also the night I’d find out about my promotion.

Scotty would probably be there, too.

Unless he decided to avoid it, because of me.

By now, he had to know that his assassination attempt had failed. He had to know that I wasn’t dead. And that meant he’d be biding his time, waiting to see what I’d do next. Time to show him. Picking up my phone, I texted him. They missed.

It took a while for him to reply. I don’t know what you’re talking about. Who missed what? What happened?

I gritted my teeth. If he thought he could play innocent after that, then he was more of a fool than I’d ever given him credit for. Don’t f*ck with me, kid.

This time, he replied right away. I’m not. What happened?

You know what happened. My finger hovered over the send button before deleting the message. If he wanted to pretend that I didn’t know, then maybe it would be to my advantage to let him think I was still clueless. I thought you heard by now. Bitter Hill attacked me outside my place. You know anything about it?

A few moments, then: No. Why would I? What are you going to do about it?

You’ll see. Friday night.

He didn’t answer, so I called to let Tate know I wouldn’t be able to stop by today. He was pissed until I explained the cops were nosing around the neighborhood after my little shootout and he agreed I should lie low. I promised to be there for the party, so he was good when we hung up. I didn’t mention what had prompted the fight in the first place.

Scotty was mine to take care of, no one else’s.

I made quick work of my pants and boxers before sliding beneath the sheet. Heidi wasn’t the only one who liked to sleep naked, and right now, I needed my bed.

Not my couch.

The bedroom door opened, and Heidi came in. Her pale cheeks had a bit more color, but there were still shadows in those blue eyes of hers. “Hey.”

“Hey.” I forced a smile and patted the spot next to me on the bed. I’d had more than a few drinks during and after the stitch-up, so I might have been sliding down the slope to smashed. Hypothetically. “Come here, darlin’.”

She bit down on her lip as she crossed the room. Crawling onto the bed from the opposite side, she settled in next to my hip. “Does it hurt a lot?”

Fuck, yeah. “Nope.”

“Good.” She touched the white gauze Chris had wrapped around it. “Do you have any of the good stuff to numb the pain?”

I chuckled. “I sell guns, not drugs.”

“Shit.”

“It’s fine. I’m fine.” It was true. I didn’t need any damn pills dulling my brain. Between the fact that I’d been shot in my dominant arm and had already had plenty of booze, I didn’t need anything else messing me up. Chris was watching my perimeter and would give me a heads-up if it looked like a threat was approaching. Or he’d just handle it himself. I’d told him to do whatever the f*ck he wanted, so long as he stayed away from Scotty.

I focused back on the woman in front of me. “You’re pretty, you know.”

She’d been staring at my arm with a green tinge to her skin, but my words jerked her attention north. Yeah, my arm had just been shot, but I wouldn’t want to be anyplace else right now. “Uh, thanks?”

“No, like, seriously. You’re really pretty. Like an angel come to earth.” Reaching out, I tugged on a piece of her light blond hair. It was as silky soft as always. “My own personal angel, trying to bring me to the good side . . .”

She blinked. “I’m no angel, I assure you.”

“I don’t agree.” I yanked her down till she sprawled across my chest. She landed with an oof, taking care to avoid my bad arm. “Not at all, darlin’. Just look at you.”

Her brow furrowed. “Oh my God, are you drunk?”

“No,” I whispered back, as dramatically as her. “Certainly not.”