“Shit,” Eden muttered. “This isn’t good.”
“It doesn’t sound like Gray’s planning on hurting us,” Abby said. Although she wasn’t entirely certain.
“Not worried about Gray. Although I wouldn’t trust him as far as I could throw him, which obviously isn’t that far. I’m worried about Clint.”
“Clint? Your brother?”
“Only Clint I know.”
She pushed Eden through the back door and into the room she always met Mr. Markovich in. Thankfully, he was gone. If Gray was a bad guy, then Mr. Markovich was a...well...shark. Handsome in a really terrifying way. And the worse things were, the more he smiled. It was the weirdest freaking thing. She’d never thought that she would be petrified of a smile.
“Clint will hurt you?” She was shocked. She didn’t know him well, but he was always polite, if a bit brusque. Except when he was with his girlfriend. Charlie softened him. When he looked at her, his eyes filled with warmth. It was obvious they adored each other.
It was sweet.
She wanted that. She wanted adoration. She wanted sweet.
She didn’t have a chance in hell of finding it.
Eden stared up at her. Abby winced as she saw the other woman’s right eye was mostly swollen shut.
“Oh hell, Eden. Your eye.”
“Yeah, that’s not going to be good. I could really use a bag of frozen peas.”
She strode over to the small fridge, opening the door. “He’s got crème de cacao, and crème de menthe. That’s weird. That’s weird, right?”
Eden shrugged then winced. “So, he likes grasshoppers.”
“It’s Mr. Markovich.” And she could not imagine him drinking grasshoppers. Not that Abby wouldn’t mind a grasshopper right now.
“I’m not really sure who Mr. Markovich is,” Eden told her.
Right. Because Eden didn’t live in the underbelly. She lived in the light. She had two brothers who loved and protected her. Well, Abby thought she did. Now she wasn’t so sure about Clint.
“He won’t hurt you, will he? Clint?” She closed the fridge and slowly stood. Now that the adrenaline was draining away, she could feel every one of her aches and pains. Her knees, her hands, and now her side.
“Clint? Clint would never hurt a hair on my head. But the man can lecture. You do not want to be on the receiving end of one of those.” Eden sighed tiredly.
That’s what she was worried about? A lecture? At least it meant that her brother cared.
“I lost my cell, do you have yours on you?” Eden asked. “Since Gray the goon won’t let us leave, I need to call Kent.”
“Sure.” She searched through her bag. “Um, Eden, why are you here? At this bar?”
“I was meeting someone,” Eden muttered. “They didn’t turn up. They chose the place, not me. Won’t make that mistake again.”
Someone knocked on the door and Ed stepped inside. The sheriff was a big, intimidating man with dark hair and smoky gray eyes.
His gaze took in everything, running over first Eden then Abby. “Well, shit. Have you called your brother yet?”
“Just about to,” Eden said, taking Abby’s phone from her hand. She stared down at it. “What the hell is this?”
“A phone.” Abby blushed at Eden’s disbelieving look.
“I didn’t think they still made phones like this. I’ve never held one.”
Yeah, well, Eden wasn’t hurting for money. Her whole outfit probably cost more than Abby made in a month.