Page 4 of The Murder Club

Dom nodded toward the woman, who appeared to be in her midthirties. “Pleased to meet you, Kari.”

Kari flashed a mysterious smile. “Trust me, the pleasure is all mine.”

“Are you in Pike visiting Kaden?” Bailey asked, giving him the excuse to return his attention to where he wanted it to be.

“Not this time. We swapped places.”

“Swapped places?”

“Kaden is filming a new special for Do or Die.”

Bailey looked surprised. “Really? I thought he’d retired from his reality show?”

“He doesn’t do stunts anymore. Lia would kill him. But he still works on motorcycles. And he has a top-secret client who asked him to restore an antique bike.” Dom shrugged. “The specials always bring in a nice flood of customers to Money Makers.”

“I sometimes forget how famous he is,” Bailey admitted.

“Trust me, Kaden hates to be treated like he’s different,” he assured her. “But since he’s going to be stuck in Vegas for a few weeks and Lia traveled with him to plot an ambitious expansion of Money Makers, they needed someone to house-sit the animals.”

She frowned, as if bothered by his words. “They could have asked me. I would have been happy to help.”

He didn’t doubt her words for a second. He’d watched Bailey during the wedding, constantly moving to assist Lia or the other guests. She was the sort of woman who put the needs of other people before her own.

“I volunteered,” he admitted. “I haven’t had a break in five years. I needed to spend some time away from Vegas.”

“Five years?” She blinked. “You’re definitely overdue for a vacation. But . . .” She glanced around the shabby bar. “Pike?”

“It’s peaceful.”

“Another word for ‘boring.’”

“I’m okay with that.” Dom pulled out the nearest chair to Bailey and took a seat. “Can I buy you a drink?”

It was Kari who answered. “She’ll have a Moss Brothers.”

Dom had partied enough to recognize the name of most cocktails, but that was a new one.

He glanced toward Bailey. “Moss Brothers?”

“It’s a beer from a local microbrewery,” she clarified.

Ah. That made sense. He lifted his arm and motioned toward a woman with hair that she’d bleached to a brittle white. She was darting from table to table with a frazzled expression. He assumed she was a waitress.

As she scurried in their direction, however, he wasn’t so certain. Despite the heavy layer of makeup and the low-cut shirt that revealed her lush curves, she didn’t look old enough to be out of high school. Of course, he’d just hit thirty-five, he wryly reminded himself. Lots of women looked painfully young to him.

Once the waitress reached the table, Dom glanced toward his companions. “Three Moss Brothers?”

“Naw, just two. I need to get home.” Kari abruptly shoved herself to her feet, blowing a kiss in Bailey’s direction. “Enjoy.”

The older woman disappeared through the crowd and Dom turned his attention back to the waitress. “Two Moss Brothers.”

The waitress nodded and hurried away, leaving him alone with Bailey. Or at least as alone as you could be in the middle of a crowded bar.

Angling his chair to the side, he studied Bailey with blatant appreciation.

“It’s good to see you again,” he said. “I was hoping I’d run into a friendly face while I was in Pike.”

She smiled, but her fingers tapped a rapid tattoo on the table. Was she nervous? Dom didn’t know if it was a good or a bad thing. He was going to roll with good.

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