Page 10 of Gunner

Witter sat by himself at a table in the mess hall, looking too relaxed for a cop in a den of vipers. All I needed was to say one word, and he was history. The other bikers didn’t pay him any mind as they poured liquor and continued their crass talk about sex. If he found the topic distasteful, he didn’t show it.

“What are you doing here?”

His body went rigid. Then he squared his shoulders as he turned to face me. Eyes the color of cobalt blue met mine, and the ground beneath my feet shifted. Was it those blue eyes that Mason had fallen for? I wanted to dig them out of his head.

“Is there somewhere we can talk privately?” Witter got to his feet but didn’t approach me.

The chatter in the mess hall had died down. Everyone was eyeing us as though expecting us to come to blows with each other.

“This way.”

I walked off without looking back. I didn’t need to. His presence was this heavy force behind me, and his eyes burnt a hole into my back. When we reached my office, I opened the door and closed it behind us.

“What’s so important that you couldn’t wait, Officer Witter?”

“It’s acting chief.”

I smirked. “Around here, your title doesn’t weigh much. You’re a cop. Are you going to waste my time talking about semantics or explain what you’re doing here?”

“You said you’d help with the investigation, but it seems you’ve been avoiding me.”

“I said I’d keep in touch if anything comes up. Nothing has.”

He raised his eyebrows, distrust steeped in those unsettling blues. “It’s been weeks and nothing. If you truly want to help, let me see a copy of your membership records.”

I walked around my desk and sat with my feet propped up. A folder with a stack of papers fell from the desk, which was littered with empty cans of beer, symbols of another failed attempt at sobriety. Hmm, were they all empty? I picked them up one by one until I found one filled to about a quarter.

Witter’s gaze flew to the can, following my movement as I cleaned the opening with a corner of my shirt, then tipped it to my lips. I swallowed down the lukewarm liquid. It tasted insipid, but the look of disgust on Witter’s face was worth it.

“Ah.” I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand and tossed the can toward the waste bin. It missed altogether and landed on the floor. “I'd hoped that wasn’t piss.”

“You’re disgusting.”

I grinned. “Not that kinky, are you?”

“Your register,” Witter grated out between clenched teeth. “Let me have it, and I’ll get out of here.”

“You can’t have it.”

Witter stormed over to the desk and braced both hands on the beaten wood. As he opened his mouth to talk, I belched, a burst of air hitting him in the face. He jerked back, wrinkling his nose as if I’d thrown up on him.

“Jesus. Fuck. What were you eating? Ass?”

Not in the least bit self-conscious, I crossed my arms and wiggled my eyebrows. “Is that you asking for a demonstration,Officer? Then drop your pants and bend over my desk. I’ll bet you it’s the best ass-licking you’ll ever have.”

Witter clenched his jaw tight and narrowed his eyes into icy slits. A flush of crimson crept up his neck and over his cheeks.

“It’s not going to work,” he said. “Trying to distract me from the reason I’m here. I wouldn’t let your mouth anywhere near my ass if you were the last man on earth.”

I smirked. “Then I’ll wait for the day you beg me to eat you out like a hot pocket. But until then, I can’t hand over the list of my club members to you.”

“Why the fuck not?”

“Because one, you have an attitude, even though you’re begging me for my help. And two, because I’m not hella stupid. If I give you that list, I'll be putting a target on the back of every member of this club.”

“And if I promise I’ll only use it for this investigation?”

“Your promises mean squat to me.”

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