Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 76780 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76780 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
“Hello?”
“One day, when he’s all alone,” a deep, muffled voice utters, “we’ll finish the job Hank Townsend started. Then what will you do, Officer Larson? Will you take your meddling ass back to whatever hole the military spit you into after they used you up?”
“Who the fuck is this?” I demand.
“You can’t watch him forever.”
Click.
I leave Jarrett’s to head next door to the police station. Shoving inside, I find Jax and Dante, both wearing matching scowls. It’s then I see my dad wearing a smug grin.
“Son,” he greets. “Perfect timing.”
I swipe out, grabbing his tie and yanking him to me. “You’re threatening me?”
“Atlas!” Jax barks out. “Goddammit, let him go.”
Dad’s features morph into pure rage. “Get the fuck out of my face.”
Jax’s hands grip my arms from behind, tugging me back. I let go of my father’s tie. He straightens it and gives me a satisfied grin before stalking out of the building.
“I’m going to fucking kill him,” I snarl.
“No,” Jax bites back. “You’re not going to do shit. Now calm down before you get your ass fired.”
“You’d side with them?” I hiss, whirling around to face him.
“No, dipshit, but they’re just waiting for you to fuck up. Don’t give them ammunition. He’s a powerful attorney representing the goddamn mayor, for fuck’s sake. Now calm down and tell us what’s going on.”
Dante’s cool glare sears into me. That look—of pure contempt—is from a person who just learned who’s been secretly fucking his little brother. I know it looks bad with our age difference and my position as a cop, but it’s none of his business. If it were, we’d have told him a month ago when we started seeing each other.
“Terry had some interesting things to say,” Jax says, eyes narrowing. “That you’re gay, for one.”
“Never hid that fact,” I say with a shrug. “Not that it’s any of your business.”
“It’s my business,” Dante clips out, “because it’s my brother you’re fucking. Seriously, man? I thought you were his friend.”
I scrub a palm over my face. The last thing I want to do is hash this out, but clearly, it’s the only way to get from point A to point B. “Callan is my boyfriend.”
Dante scoffs. “Unbelievable.”
“Why is that so hard to believe?” I demand.
“He’s eighteen, Atlas. A child.”
I take a step forward, shaking my head at him. “He is not a child. And if you didn’t treat him like one in the first place, he wouldn’t be warming my bed at night!”
Dante pulls back a fist like he’s actually going to land a punch on me, but Jax grabs him, jerking him back.
“Enough!” Jax bellows. “Cut the shit. Both of you.” To me, he spits out. “Talk. Don’t goad him either. Just tell us what’s going on.”
“Callan is my boyfriend,” I growl. “With everything that’s been happening in his life and mine, we just didn’t feel like blabbing it to the whole damn world. Some people know we’re together, like Brie and Cato. And some people know I’m gay…like Dean and my parents. It’s not the best-kept secret.”
“You’re taking advantage of a damaged kid,” Dante gripes. “He’s fucking broken, and you’re—”
“He is not broken,” I snap. “He’s fucking perfect.”
Dante’s eyes widen at my words and the fire burning behind them.
“Now,” I say, my tone calmer, “if we can deal with this shit another time, I’d like to discuss the fact that someone just called me threatening Callan.”
Dante’s anger flips to concern almost immediately. “What? Who?”
“I don’t know. Unknown number. I didn’t recognize the voice.”
“Where is he?” Jax asks.
“Next door. With Jarrett. He’s fine. My concern is that my parents are involved somehow. It’s awfully suspect timing that I run into my mother with Callan while Dad is here tattling about our relationship, and then this caller threatens Callan.” I close my eyes and pinch the bridge of my nose. “I will kill anyone who hurts him. So fucking help me. But…I can’t freak him out over this phone call.”
“So you’re not going to tell him?” Dante scoffs. “I’m going next door. He needs us to keep an eye on him. To protect him from this motherfucker.”
I give him a sharp shake of my head. “Callan is doing great. He feels freer than he ever has and doesn’t deserve this. All he wants is to have a normal life. The constant watch over him was what was making him insane before he came to live with me. I’ve been careful not to smother him. I can’t do that to him. He’ll resent the hell out of me for it.”
“So you’ll just let this monster get away with it?” Dante demands.
“No,” Jax says, taking Dante’s hand. “We’ll investigate. Let us handle it. And Atlas is right. If you start trying to protect Callan again, it’ll only piss him off more when you two have finally got things right.” He sighs heavily. “I hate to say this, but it’s too close to the wedding to upset your best man.”