Page 18 of Renegade

He pulled me into his chest and interrupted, “I couldn’t care less about this stuff—that’s not why I’m so upset.”

I looked up at him. “What else did she take, Josué?”

He frowned and his lower lip trembled as if he were about to cry. “She took the dress…and your necklace,Mija.”

Just like every time before,Mom of the Yearwas gone and theAddictwas back. Knowing Monica, all our things had already been sold to whoever would get her the next fix.

There was no way we’d ever be able to track her down.

Chapter Three

2009, Age 26

I cranked the speed up on the treadmill as I asked into the phone, “Are you working late again?”

David laughed, “What do you think? I gotta get this business off the ground or my old man’s gonna be busting down my door to get his money back.”

A shapely ass on the elliptical in front of me caught my eye and I momentarily forgot about David and his money problems. Jesus, I loved working midnights because by the time I got off and made it to the gym, I had all the hotties to myself.

Yeah, I became a cop.Surprising, right?After what happened with Patrick, I was hellbent on staying on the right side of the law. David wanted to get the fuck out of Dodge—Patrick’s face had been plastered on damn near every billboard along the gulf coast. We compromised and ended up in west Texas, renting a shitty little house in the college district. I went to college and got my sociology degree while David followed in his old man’s footsteps by starting his own construction company. John had loaned him the money to get it off the ground and David had jumped headfirst into being a business owner.

Even more surprising than my decision to become a cop was the fact that my father seemed to want the very same thing for me. Gone were the plans of me joining up with the Silent Phoenix MC. He’d shown up not long after the incident with Patrick, offering me a kutte and a chance to prospect for the club.

When I told him that I’d planned on looking into a career in criminal justice, he’d gone quiet. He scratched at his beard as he thought it over before a grin spread across his face.“My boy—a cop. At least one Sullivan will make something of himself.”

He was just full of surprises. Gone was the man who’d beaten my mom within an inch of her life for cooking chicken incorrectly. In his place was a man who rarely raised his voice and showed a genuine interest in his wife and son.

“Hello? Mike, you still there?”

I looked away from the blonde and her ass. “Yep, still here. Still thinking of a way to get your ass to unwind for a night. I worked all night and here I am at the gym, fresh as a fucking daisy. Surely, if I can pull a midnight and still go out, you can too.”

The blonde slowed her pace and tried to discreetly look back at me over her shoulder. I winked at her and her cheeks immediately flushed pink before she spun back around, giving me a nice view of that ass again.

“Fine,” David conceded and I grinned.

“Nick’sat eight, dick. Don’t flake out on me again.”

He laughed. “10-4, asshole.”

My shift had begun at eight the night before. I’d pulled over a car with a broken taillight, broken up a bar brawl between two drunken frat bros, responded to a burglary, and then dealt with a fuck ton of paperwork to top it off.

I went into the academy right after getting my degree. My father had supported me throughout school, but made it clear that if I didn’t get into the academy, I’d be on my own. Like I said, he was nothing like I remembered.

After FTO, I drafted to midnights, where I’d been residing a bit impatiently for the last four years. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed midnights—it was a hell of a lot better than working days where paperwork was the highlight of your shift.

I just wanted to be a detective—to be able to track my cases from start to finish. As it was, I’d bust someone only to turn around and hand it over to the investigating detective. I wanted the ability to control my cases until they were solved.

There’d been rumors for months that CAP (Crimes Against Persons) had an opening they were looking to fill. I’d applied to pick up extra shifts, knowing that it made me look better to the higher-ups. I just needed official word that they were looking and I’d make damn sure that I was first in line for an interview. Until that day, I’d be pulling midnights.

“So, you’re a cop?”

I looked away from the television screen mounted on a metal crossbar in front of me and down at the perky blonde with the great ass.

It was too easy.

Seriously, the badge was a pussy magnet.

I could say anything and they’d fall hook, line, and sinker for it. I paused the treadmill and grinned like there were a hundred paparazzi cameras in my face. “Why? You in need of some assistance?”

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