“Always with the cheap shot, huh?”
I shrugged. “It puts you in your place when I need it to.”
He sighed. “Fine. Want to talk about why you’re being a dick to Benji?”
“He complaining to you now?”
“He says you aren’t giving him a fair shot at the crew. And bitching about how he hasn’t gotten paid yet.”
“Join the club.”
He chuckled. “That’s what Benji’s wanting to do.”
“And I won’t let him.”
I shot John a look before I set my mug onto the bedside table.
“I take it you won’t talk about that, either?”
I shook my head. “Nope.”
John sighed. “Fine. Then let’s talk about Dad.”
“Are you fucking kidding me with this shit right now?”
“He called me last night.”
“Yeah? Well, what did the asshole want? Because I don’t have any missed calls from him.”
He smiled playfully. “Because I’m the favorite.”
I snickered. “And you can have that title, as far as I'm concerned.”
“He wants me to keep an eye on you.”
My eyes found his. “What?”
He limped into my bedroom. “Max, this is getting serious. You need to watch yourself. If he thinks, for any reason, you’re straying from the crew, he’s going to test your loyalty in ways you can’t even imagine.”
“I’m not straying. He’s got no fucking business having you spy on me. For fuck’s sake, he’s the one not paying us for a job we took from him without a risk assessment!”
“You know how Dad is. You know his reasoning is always screwed up.”
“Do you think I’m straying from the family? From the crew?”
He furrowed his brow. “Of course not. I know you’re not that stupid. But Dad is a paranoid bastard. It’s how he got to where he is. It’s how he keeps his millions and his status in the underworld. Keep your head down, Max. Finish the next job right. No mess ups. No fuss. And no Benji, if you don’t want him around this shit. Show Dad he doesn’t have to worry about you.”
I didn’t like John’s tone of voice. It hadn’t been full of this much worry since he woke up in the hospital after the turf war.
The one that almost killed him when he was president of this club.
“You know you can count on that.”
He nodded. “Good. Because I am counting on it.”
Then he turned around and limped out of my room.
But not before peering at me from over his shoulder first.