Total pages in book: 132
Estimated words: 128801 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 644(@200wpm)___ 515(@250wpm)___ 429(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128801 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 644(@200wpm)___ 515(@250wpm)___ 429(@300wpm)
If the purpose behind it was enough or if it was just another pathetic excuse.
I had one of the rolling garage doors opened to allow for fresh air to flood the space, and I stilled when I heard an engine wind around the side of the building. A truck pulled up next to where I’d parked my bike.
I did my best not to cringe. I should be excited to see the guy, but after what I’d walked in on this morning, I felt frayed at the edges, the turmoil from what had happened at Dakota’s house making it ten times worse.
Still, I found a grin as I looked at my oldest friend as he slipped out of his truck.
“What’s up, man?”
I’d talked to Cody on the phone yesterday after he’d found out about the break-in at Dakota’s. I was surprised he hadn’t come running, but I knew he had a big job he was working on in the next town over.
I’d promised him I had it handled, and he didn’t need to worry, but that sure as hell didn’t mean he wasn’t going to.
“Not much.” He pulled his cap from his head, squeezing the brim between his hands. It was his tell. Something that he always did when he was irritated. “I stopped by your place and talked to Dakota. She said you’d needed to go into work for a bit, so I thought I’d swing by.”
“Glad you did.” I tossed the pencil to the slanted table, and I shifted to lean against a regular height one that sat to the side of it. I crossed my arms over my chest, watching him as he weaved his way through my shop.
Dude was a giant in the middle of the orchestrated mayhem, which was the way I worked best.
There were projects in varying stages of progress littered about, metal propped on workbenches and tables, raw pieces set in the stands for when I needed them. Every kind of welder known to man were set up at different stations, and there were a bunch of industrial saws and an elaborate paint station at the back.
There were functional pieces and others that were only meant for art, a sculpture that was going to stand eight feet tall and a big wall piece that someone wanted to hang in their living room.
Pride thrummed as I took it in.
All except for the car that still sat like an omen in the far bay.
Cody rounded a workstation, running a shaky hand over the top of his head, and he blew out a sigh as he gave voice to what had really brought him here. “This is fucked, man.”
I swallowed. “Yeah. Don’t like it at all.”
“And Ezra doesn’t have any hunch of who this prick is?” He leaned against the table opposite me, crossing one ankle over the other, his beefy frame taking up the space.
My head shook. “He told me the only thing they got was a partial print out at one of the new builds. So far, they haven’t been able to pull it up against anyone in the system, but he’s confident it’s going to lead to something.”
Anger rippled from Cody, and he gnawed at his bottom lip. “And so what? That’s just it? We have to sit around and wait for that to happen?”
“Guess so.”
Only I was feeling the exact thing that was clearly rolling through Cody.
The need to hunt.
Track this fucker down.
End him before he had the chance to taint the beauty that was Dakota.
“That’s bullshit.” His words were shards.
I huffed out a raw sound. “If I had any idea which direction to look, you could bet your ass I’d be looking.”
His nod was tight. “Know you would. Always can trust you to have Dakota’s back. Her best interest at heart.”
He was back to looking at me the way he’d been in her office the other day. Like he might be speculating there was something that went deeper than that.
“Pretty cool of you to let her stay at your house until this blows over.” How he made it both come out as gratitude and a threat, I didn’t know.
“You know I’d do anything for her.”
He barely nodded, but there was something disbelieving behind it. “She looks at you like you’re a fucking saint walking on water.”
I tried to ignore the insinuation. Refusing to take it in as truth. But I’d be a liar if I denied it. The way she did look at me. The way she felt. The way she’d let me crawl all over her if I asked. The way she’d let me take.
But I wasn’t worthy of that, and Cody never hesitated to point that out.
He didn’t know the details.
But he knew I was dirty.
And I would never be fucking good enough for his baby sister. I was well aware of it myself without him needing to remind me.