Page 31 of Turmoil's Target

“Yo, you ready for this?” he asks, an eager glint in his eye.

Jolt’s always down for a little trouble.

I nod. “Yeah, but we should probably grab some grub first. It’s gonna be a long night—we’ll need the fuel.”

"Good call. I’m fucking starved.” Jolt hefts himself off the couch. “What’re you thinking? Pizza? Wings?”

I consider it for a moment. “Nah, I could go for some Mexican actually. Something hearty, you know? There’s that place a few blocks over, Casa de Lupe. Heard good things.”

“Hell yeah, I’m down. Let’s roll.”

We head out to the parking lot, the sun just starting to sink below the horizon, casting everything in a fiery orange glow.

We get into the Mustang and head down to the restaurant.

Casa de Lupe turns out to be a hole-in-the-wall joint, but the delicious aromas wafting from inside more than makeup for the shabby exterior.

Colorful papel picado banners flutter in the warm evening breeze and mariachi music spills out onto the street.

We grab a booth near the back, the cracked vinyl seats held together with duct tape.

A bored-looking waitress takes our order—a mountain of nachos, chicken enchiladas, and cold cervezas.

As we wait for the food, I lean back and fix Jolt with a look.

I keep my voice low, even though the restaurant is mostly empty. “So, you think this is gonna work? With Rita and Seraphina?”

Jolt takes a swig of his beer and shrugs. “Don’t see why not. Rita seems into me, and Seraphina was practically eye-fucking you that first night we met her. As long as we play it smooth, we should be golden.”

I nod slowly.

The plan is solid—get close to Seraphina, gain her trust, and hopefully get the dirt we need to bring her mother’s plan down.

“Just remember, we can’t come on too strong,” I caution. “Gotta make it seem natural, like we’re actually into them.”

Jolt smirks. “Speak for yourself, brother. Iamactually into Rita. Have you seen that body? Goddamn.”

I snort out a laugh and shake my head.

Classic Jolt.

Always thinking with the wrong head.

“Yeah well, keep it in your pants, all right? At least until I’ve sorted things out with Seraphina tonight.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know.” He waves a dismissive hand. “It’s just been a minute since I had me some high-class pussy, ya know?”

I arch a brow, teasing him. “You mean you’ve never had high-class pussy.”

I’m saved from responding by the arrival of our food, the waitress unceremoniously dropping the overflowing plates in front of us.

We dig in, the conversation turning to lighter topics—club gossip, the latest drama, who’s hooking up with who.

Apparently, Jolt’s getting lots of updates from Shiver while we’ve been away.

But even as we joke and laugh, my mind keeps circling back to the task at hand.

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t looking forward to seeing Seraphina again, to feeling her soft curves under my hands, tasting her sweet lips.

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