Page 24 of Property of Indiana

“Does Indiana know that tidbit?” he inquires, and when I twist my head and look in the other direction, he blows out a breath. “Is there a reason you haven’t told him that?”

“Because he can’t save me from everything,” I explain. “Now that I’ve been offered this position and am earning my own money, I don’t have to let them interfere in my life in any way whatsoever. I no longer have to tolerate their ‘monthly check ins’ where they give me a bundle of cash. My survival is no longer dependent on them.”

“Are your folks aware of that yet, Zoey?”

“No, they aren’t, but they will be in another four days,” I fess up.

“You won’t be having that meeting with them alone. Do they call first or show up on those set days?” Riptide asks.

“Depends on their mood,” I drone. “They called last time so I doubt they will this time.”

“Is there a certain time of day they make an appearance?” This is starting to feel like an interrogation, but since his heart is in the right place, I don’t give him any attitude when I shake my head no. “You’ve got an attached garage, correct?”

“Yeah. I don’t use it often though because the door jams and only opens half the time,” I convey. “Why?”

“We’ll get that fixed, Zoey, but plan on taking the day off on Monday, and count on having a few houseguests.”

“You don’t have to do that,” I quickly apprise him, not wanting him, or any of the Kings, to spend their day with me when they have businesses to run. It’d be a waste of their time. “I’m not scared of them. They’re more of an annoyance than a threat.”

“That headache they give you will go away when they realize who’s at your back, Zoey. No one fucks with the Kings,” he expresses, giving me a stern look, one I’m sure he uses on his men more often than not. “There’s not a soul who resides in this town that isn’t aware of what we’re capable of.”

“Even the Onyx Dragons?” I sass.

“Not even them. We’re not scared of them, Zoey. We’re cautious and biding our time, there’s a difference. I get that this may seem like I’m stomping on your independence, but I swear to you that’s not my intention. But if this situation with your folks bothers you, it’ll trickle down to Icer and Indiana. I’m not somuch worried about your old man’s reaction, but the people of Canton would evacuate en masse and it’d become a ghost town if I were to let Icer off his leash.”

I snort and expect him to be laughing, or at the very least smiling about what he just claimed, but when I glance over at him, his face is drawn and one-hundred percent serious. “You’re not joking? He’d clear the entire town out?”

“Without a doubt,” he says, lifting and lowering his shoulders with indifference. “You haven’t seen it yet, but since you’re sticking around, you will. He’s not a man to be messed with when his temper flies off the handle. There’s no containing him when he’s broken that lead and goes nomad. If he thinks there’s any kind of threat to you or your daughter, all bets will be off as to how he’ll react except to say he’ll go nuclear.”

“What does that mean? I feel like I’m asking that question a lot,” I complain.

“You may want to get used to that,” he mentions with all the seriousness he can muster. “I’ve been around these guys for years and I’m still asking what things mean and why they do the stupid shit they do.”

“Are we ever going to have a simple life with these bozos, Riptide?”

“I’ve asked myself that same question for what seems like a lifetime, Zoey.”

“So that’s a no?” I ask, tossing my arm over my eyes trying to mentally block out the core image of my future.

“Time to pull your big girl panties up, Zoey. You’re in for one helluva ride,” Riptide suggests.

“Lovely. I’m already raising one child, and now, it sounds like I’m going to have to play Mama to a clubhouse full of rugrats.”

“I wish you luck with that,” Riptide commiserates, patting my knee. “And if you figure out how to get them to listen, would you mind sharing that with me?”

Letting my arm fall down on my lap, I tell him, “If you’re a good boy.”

“Well, shit. Looks like I’ll never learn your secret to success then,” he counters. I don’t know why we both find this amusing, but we do, and when Harrison walks in to help me lock up the building and follow me home like he does every day I have a shift, he finds us leaning on each other, both of us laughing so damn hard our stomachs are cramping.

CHAPTER

THIRTEEN

INDIANA

“You makinga move on my girl, brother?” I ask my president as I shut the door behind me.

“You snooze, you lose,” Rip hackles me. “You did good, Indiana. She’s one of the good ones.”

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