I think about that for a moment and smile. She’s right. Priest has become my rock. My safe place. He’s given me things I never thought possible. Finding pleasure in life. Safety. Dare I say a family? One that won’t use and abuse me?
“I know that smile,” Grace says. “Seen it on every woman sitting here at this table. Have you told him how you feel?”
“It seems too soon.”
“Nothing is too soon with these guys. Once they set their sights on you, they become cavemen and lay claim to you. Trust me, sugar, he knows, but he’s waiting for you to tell him yourself.”
Is it possible to fall this fast? To fall in love with a man who's seen my dark past firsthand and can look past it? My heart says yes, but my mind throws roadblocks at every turn. Tiny hesitations that leave me second-guessing. Once all of this is done with the Screwballs, would he still want me around? Would he still want me if I decide to join Liam back in Atlantic City?
There are too many questions and too few answers. The answers will have to wait, though. First, I need him to come back to me safe and sound.
If he comes back at all…
If he doesn’t, I’ll be shattered, because I think I love him.
I think I love Priest.
PRIEST
As much asI’d tried to convince Bria that I was well enough to drive, I’d clearly been lying to both of us. The drive to the Screwballs clubhouse had taken hours, and even though Judge refused to let me take my bike, just sitting in the van for so long has been torture.
We pull up together, parking along a side street void of any streetlights, and in full view of the Screwballs pathetic looking compound. The walk to the gates takes longer than I’d anticipated, and my broken ribs are screaming.
Two men stand on either side of the tall metal gate. Even though I can’t see their guns, I know damn well they’re packing. The Screwballs are expecting us, and they won’t leave any room for surprises.
Liam kneels down low between Judge and me. “Now what?”
Judge’s brow is pulled low over his eyes as he assesses the scene before us. “We need to create a distraction. Pull their attention away while the others slip inside.”
“Fuck that,” StoneFace growls, his rifle raised and pointed at the gate.
“StoneFace,” Judge barks quietly, careful not tip off the Screwball’s guards. “StoneFace, get back here.”
StoneFace ignores Judge’s orders and tells me, “I’ll have these gates cleared in just a minute. You fuckers be ready to move in.”
Judge curses, throwing his hands in the air before turning to signal to the others to get ready.
I watch in silence as StoneFace strolls into the circle of light in front of the gate. “Hey, assholes!” he shouts.
The two men whip around, one of them with a cigarette dangling from between his lips. They don’t even get a chance to say a word before StoneFace puts a bullet between their eyes, one at a time. The men drop to the pavement with two heavy thuds. Stepping over them, StoneFace grabs the edge of the gate, pulls it open, and waves for the rest of us to follow him.
“Who the fuck is this guy?” Liam breathes out, his gun drawn, his eyes wide with admiration.
I laugh, because StoneFace is our own personal commando. “A bad guy’s worst fucking nightmare.”
We file through the gate in a swarm of guns and leather, not wasting any time, because there’s no way in hell those fuckers didn’t hear those shots.
There isn’t a soul outside, but a few of Liam’s men spread out, rounding the building, guns drawn.
StoneFace approaches the door, looks back at Judge, and waits for the rest of us catch up. A couple seconds later, Judge gives him a nod. StoneFace lifts his massive booted foot and kicks the metal door open, ripping the latch right from the jamb and bending the metal frame.
The Screwballs are ready for us this time, their guns at the ready, all pointing at the door. GP had gotten grazed from this exact same move the other day, so this time, we stand aside as bullets fly at us, pinging off the doorframe and chipping the pavement on this side of the door.
As soon as the bastards stop to reload, StoneFace barrels inside like Goliath on a mission. Liam and I are right behind him, not willing to let anyone else get to Alan before we do.
StoneFace takes out the two men closest to the door, ignoring the screams of the two naked women by the stripper pole. I don’t stop to look, my eyes scanning the room in search of Alan and Big Dick.
Big Dick is nearly to the back door when StoneFace shoots him in the leg. He screams, his body arching as he drops to the ground, his hands covering the wound in his calf.