“If putting him six feet under is what it takes to keep Paisley safe, that’s where he’s going to end up,” Hack growled, his body tense beneath mine.
“This one’s your call, man. You have more at stake than anyone else,” Dax offered. I was surprised at how easily the guys seemed to accept the idea of Hack and me being together since we’d only met an hour ago, but I wasn’t going to question it. We had way more important stuff to figure out.
Hack didn’t take long to come to a decision. “We have a fuck ton of dirt on Clark. I’ll send everything that doesn’t tie back to Lucy or Paisley to IA, making sure they can’t trace it back to me. He’ll be too fucking busy trying to defend himself against all the charges they’ll be able to file that he won’t have time for anything else.”
“You sure this is the route you want to take?” Dax asked. “Helping out the cops isn’t our normal MO.”
Hack smiled, but it was more of an evil smirk to go along with the dark glint in his eyes. “First, we help get the motherfucker convicted, and then I’ll make sure he never leaves prison alive. It shouldn’t be too hard since the inmates will be lining up for the chance to kill a cop. I might even let him live for a couple of years so they can play with him first. Rotting in prison will be hell for a man like Clark, and I want that asshole to feel every minute of the pain that’s in store for him.”
6
Hack
I set a small, flowered bag on the sink in the bathroom, then strolled out and looked around my hotel room. Paisley’s shit was mixed up with mine, and the sight of it created a wave of possession. At the same time, I felt a sense of contentment that would have surprised me if I hadn’t had front row tickets to my brothers falling fast and hard for their women.
Paisley had fallen asleep in my lap while we were putting together our plans last night. I held her close and tried to move as little as possible so she didn’t wake up. I was concerned that she didn’t wake to eat, but after the past twenty-four hours, I imagined she was exhausted. I’d make sure she had plenty of breakfast.
Eventually, I carried her back to her room and tucked her into bed. My first instinct was to put her in mine, but I had a task to complete, and I was less likely to wake her if she was in her own room. And it was only one more night. Besides, if she was in my bed, I would’ve had no shot at staying out of it, and I knew she needed to rest.
Once she was settled, I’d gathered up the bags she hadn’t had a chance to unpack, making my job that much easier. My years in the military came in handy as I moved all of her things into my room with barely a sound. Although, I was pretty sure she was sleeping so hard that it would have taken a lot to disturb her.
After I moved everything over, I debated sleeping in my own room but knew I wouldn’t get a wink of sleep without her safe beside me. Dax had stationed himself outside of Paisley’s room, and he nodded to me as I swiped her card key and entered the room. I appreciated knowing they were keeping watch so I could get some shuteye.
Paisley was sprawled across the bed on her stomach and had thrown off the covers. She must have woken and removed her jeans at some point because she was now in nothing but her T-shirt and purple lace panties that left little to the imagination.
“Fuck.” I gave my body a stern lecture to be on its best behavior before climbing into bed with my girl and tugging her into my arms. She came willingly and snuggled into my embrace, her pert little ass up against my groin. Then she let out a small sigh that had my dick practically weeping at being kept from her pussy.
It was a good thing I could run on only a few hours of sleep because that was all I managed with Paisley shifting and wiggling every so often, making me rock hard. When the sun rose, I nearly flew out of bed so that I wouldn’t give in to my hunger for her. I wanted her to have all the rest she could get, so I calmed myself and gently released her and slid out of bed.
I’d brought a set of clean clothes with me, so I took a quick shower and dressed. Nova was leaning against the wall beside the door when I opened it, sipping from a foam cup that smelled like fresh coffee. My stomach rumbled, having spent the past forty-eight hours living on vending machine food and reheated coffee because I’d been too intent on my task to empty the pot and make a fresh one.