Page 20 of Dark Horse

I take my pen and turn it over on the desk. I don’t even know how to explain it. I already know the face he’ll make when I tell him. He clears his throat and raises his brow in expectation.

“I told her there were other ways besides money she could pay me back.”

Levi curses under his breath and shakes his head as he looks out the window. “I could have seen this one coming from a mile away.”

“There’s nothing to see,” I snap, and his eyes return to me.

“You said yourself it’s a problem.”

“It’s a problem because if I back out of it, she won’t take it seriously. She’ll go back to doing all this risky shit. Putting herlife in danger. Talking to strangers like that online. Selling photos for their entertainment. No. Jesse would hate it. Not to mention, the wrong guy gets too attached to her? She’ll end up some sick fuck’s plaything.”

“As opposed to what you’re planning to do with her,” he mutters sardonically.

“It’s just to teach her a lesson. Make her send a couple of pictures. Force her into a corner or two. She’ll break easily, and I’ll let her off with the warning.”

“What if she doesn’t?”

I laugh at the thought of it. “She could barely speak after I suggested it. I don’t think it’s a question of if; it’s just a question of how fast. She hates me, and it’s torture to her that I’m sitting on all the leverage.”

“I think it’s a bad fucking idea. With everything going on right now? It’s a huge distraction. At some point, she needs to make her own mistakes.”

“I don’t get distracted.”

He gives me a silent skeptical look in response.

“You have another solution that doesn’t make me look like I can’t handle holding a line with her once I draw it?”

He sighs and shakes his head. “No. You’ve well and truly fucked yourself on this one.”

He wasn’t wrong there. It had been a tactical error, one I’d let a rare surge of emotions drive me into. That wouldn’t be happening again.

“This stays between us.”

“You think she’ll keep quiet that she has the head of the Horsemen wrapped around her finger?” he muses, his eyes dancing with the thought.

“Funny.” I level him with a stern look. “She wants to keep her business private, and I’m keen to let her do that.”

He nods and then reluctantly eases back out of his chair. “You ready to go find out what our little brother needs?”

“One more discussion of wedding details, and I’m going to take off on a month-long vacation and come back when it’s all over,” I grumble as we make our way to the door.

A half hour later,we’re at the bar with Ramsey, sipping our drinks, when he springs some surprise news on us. I’m not a fan of surprises on a good day, but this one I couldn’t have imagined in a million years.

“Went in to finish out all the paperwork to wrap up my parole, and I overheard some of them talking about the newly appointed sheriff.” Ramsey swirls the whisky around the stones.

“They finally find someone to replace old man Sheppard? I still can’t fucking believe he went out that way.” I raise my brow as I think back to the scandal that rocked the police department last year when he was indicted on drug and weapons charges.

“You’re not gonna believe the name that floated down the hall from their conversation.” Ramsey’s eyes lift over the rim of his glass as he takes a sip.

“Fuck. Longmeyer didn’t get promoted, did he? I don’t need his brand of squeaky-clean bullshit,” I grouch. He was one of the lieutenants who was always giving me shit, implying that someday he’d have my head for all the crimes I committed. Despite the fact he couldn’t prove a damn thing.

“Jay Stockton.” Ramsey drops it like the rock it is.

“Our Jay Stockton?” Levi’s face drops as fast as my stomach.

“The very one.”

“How the fuck is that possible?” Levi’s brow furrows as he sits straighter in his chair.

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