Page 16 of GOAT

“You sound… off,” she finally settled on. “You okay, Cameron?”

I sighed. “Just some fuck ass cops,” I told her. “Pulled me over in the pouring rain to pat me down and search my truck because it was suspicious.”

“They what?” she asked, sounding genuinely surprised.

“Mhm,” I hummed noncommittally. Wasn’t sure why she would be surprised. She was targeting us just as much as the rest of that fucking precinct was.

She sighed. “I’m sorry, Cameron,” she said softly. And if I didn’t know better, I would’ve thought she genuinely was sorry that I was being targeted more than likely due to my affiliation with the club and our meddling in the trafficking shit going on around here. But I did know better—knew that she was using me to try to climb the ranks as an officer, knew she wanted to take down my club and throw my brothers in prison, starting with Jax.

Playing her like a fiddle for the past month had been kind of fun. She still got irritated when I wouldn’t talk about my family, and she responded to that by not talking about her personal life.

Sometimes, she slipped up though. Like I knew she had no parents—they died in a car accident when she was eighteen. I found out she couldn’t afford to go to college without student loans, so she decided to become a police officer at twenty-one after working a bunch of dead-end waitressing jobs. She liked to spend her days off sleeping in, reading, watching movies, and eating junk food.

She knew next to nothing about me because I wouldn’t let her.

“It’s fine,” I told her.

“Do you want to grab lunch with me at the coffee shop?” she asked tentatively. “My partner is with me, but…”

I shrugged and closed the fridge. Wasn’t anything I wanted here anyway. I could get another coffee and maybe a cookie from the coffee shop. “Sure,” I told her. I looked at Ace as I walked out of the kitchen, who seemed to be working on a new tattoo design for Shaw. “I’m bringing my little brother with me.”

“Oh?” she asked, surprise tinging her voice. Hell, if I were her, I’d have been surprised, too. But I didn’t need to be alone, and Ace, despite him being a cocky little brat who liked to push my buttons more often than not, he’d also have my back. Always. “Okay. I’ll find us a table when I get there. See you in a bit, Cameron.”

I ended the call and looked at Ace, who was watching me. “Want to get something to eat? We’re meeting Abbie and her partner, Trent, at the coffee shop.”

He shrugged. “Lunch with a cop.” He snorted. “Sounds like some elementary school shit.” He locked his tablet and hopped down from his bar stool. “Sure. I’m in, so long as you’re paying.”

I sighed. “Bro, doesn’t Shaw pay you well for your art?”

He shrugged. “So? You invite me, you pay.”

I rolled my eyes. “Christ,” I muttered, pulling my truck keys from my pocket. “Let’s go.”

When I pulled up outside the coffee shop, Abbie was outside, standing under the awning. Trent was already inside, a coffee in front of him at a four-seater table. I got out, Ace following, and walked up to her, pressing a kiss to her lips. “Come on.”

Pressing my hand to her lower back, I led her inside, holding the door open for Ace before following her to the counter. Once we’d ordered our food, Ace went to sit down, introducing himself to Trent. Trent looked a little offended when Ace wouldn’t shake his hand, making me snicker.

“He doesn’t like being touched?” Abbie asked.

I shook my head. “Nope. He hates it.”

She frowned. “Can I ask why?”

I shook my head again. “Nope.” That wasn’t her business, and it wasn’t my business to tell anyway, even if I did want her to know—which I didn’t. Ace’s history was his, and no one needed to know unless he wanted them to know.

Besides… not even us—his own damn brothers—knew what had made him so afraid of being touched. He was close-lipped about it.

She eyed me for a moment. “You’re in a particularly bad mood, Cameron,” she noted.

“I’m always like this,” I said evasively, wishing she’d just drop whatever she was doing. She didn’t want to fuck with me today. I wasn’t in the damn mood.

She huffed, turning to face me. “You’re always so closed off, but today, you’re just being fucking rude about it. You were short on the phone and hung up without even giving me a proper goodbye, and now, you’re literally popping the P on your words like an obnoxious child.”

I scoffed, narrowing my eyes at her. “Like an obnoxious child? You’re the one picking a fight in the middle of a goddamn coffee shop, Abbie.”

“Well, maybe I’m tired of being treated like shit,” she sneered. “You sweet talk me enough to get in my pants, and then you’re a douchebag the rest of the time. You’re always hot and cold, and I can’t keep up. Seriously, Cameron, it’s been a month. You could thaw just a little.”

And I just… I fucking lost it. I was tired. I was aggravated. And I was just done.

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