“What?”
“I don’t think it anymore. Now that I’ve seen you with Country, I realize just how wrong I was about that.”
“Yeah, Braylon and I are just friends. Good friends, but nothing more.”
“So, you’re really okay about all this?”
“I’m more than okay. I promise.”
“Thank you, Kiersten.” Mia reached over and hugged me. “I’m so glad I came and talked to you. I feel a lot better about everything.”
“Well, I’m here any time you want to talk.”
“And I’m here for you anytime you wanna talk about your oh-so-sexy biker guy.”
I giggled. “I’ll be sure and keep that in mind.”
“Great.” Mia stood up and said, “I’ll let you get back to your wine, and I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Sounds good.”
Once she’d left, I locked my door and carried my wine into the bedroom, then changed into my pajamas and crawled into bed. The second I curled up with my pillow, I thought about Grayson—his handsome face, his laugh, and the tender touch of his hand. While I missed not having him in bed with me, I found comfort in knowing that I had a man in my life worth missing—and he was someone worth waiting for.
Thirteen
Country
“I went to check in on Jagger yesterday.”
Menace had been oddly quiet as we got things loaded up for the run. The second he mentioned Jagger’s name, I figured out why. “How’s he doing?”
“He’s making it.” Menace stopped, then looked over his shoulder, ensuring that no one was within earshot before continuing, “He said something that’s been bugging me.”
“Okay, what exactly did Jagger say?”
“Well, we were talking about Rossi and all the bullshit he put Parker through. I was going on a rant over how he should’ve never gotten off, and he shouldn’t have. The motherfucker killed her entire fucking family and Lynch’s grandparents. He should’ve gotten the fucking chair.”
“I can’t disagree with you there.”
Parker was Menace’s ol’ lady. They met when she came to the strip club looking for a job. One thing led to another, and Menace discovered she was on the run from Rossi—the Italian mafia asshole who’d killed her folks. In hopes of derailing Rossi, Menace took Parker to Billy’s, and Billy gave them both the help they needed. But Rossi was still an issue. The club wasn’t in the position to go toe to toe with the mafia, so we left it up to the court system. Unfortunately, that didn’t turn out as we’d hoped. Rossi got off, but just as he was making his way down the courthouse steps, he was killed. Everyone, including Viper, thought Menace had a hand in his death, but we were wrong. We still weren’t 100 percent sure who was behind it, and we might never know—or so I thought.
I was curious to hear what Jagger had told him, so I pushed, “So, what did he say that’s bugging you?”
“Something like, ‘I’m glad it all worked out, and the guy got what was coming to him.’”
“Sorry, brother, but I’m not gettin’ why that would bug ya. We’re all glad the guy got what was coming to him.”
“No, brother. It’s not what he said. It’s the way he said it. It’s hard to explain, but I got the feeling he had something to do with it.”
“Did you ask him about it?”
“Yeah, of course, I asked him, but he blew me off. Made it sound like the whole idea was crazy, but I just don’t know.” Menace’s brows were furrowed as he asked, “Do you think it’s even remotely possible that he could’ve had a hand in taking down Rossi?”
Menace wasn’t one to confide in me or anyone for that matter. He typically sorted shit out on his own, so even though I usually joked around about anything and everything, I didn’t want to make light of my brother’s concerns, especially over something like this. I closed the SUV’s door, then turned to face him. “Honestly, I wouldn’t put it past him. There’s no telling the kind of connections he’s made. He could’ve struck some kind of deal with another inmate, and the rest is history.”
“Yeah, but to go and do something like that without running it by Viper ... or even me. I mean, damn, he’s still a Sinner. You don’t do that kind of shit without talking to somebody.”
“I get what you’re saying, but you gotta remember, he’s living in a completely different world. They have their own rules inside, their own code, and he’s doing what he’s gotta do to survive. No matter how many times you go and see him, you’ve got no idea the hell he goes through in that place. So, if he happened to have something to do with Rossi’s death, you can bet your life he did it for you.”
“So, what should I do?”
“Not a damn thing. You let this dog lie, brother. It’s the only thing you can do.”