Page 57 of Gunner

“What the fuck do you mean, he was gruff?”

“What other body?”

King and I asked our questions at the same time.

“That’s why I’m here. We’ll talk about it when they’re done,” Dec informed King. Turning to me he added, “Apparently he asked Haizley to leave, and wasn’t as compassionate with the situation as he should have been.”

“That fucker is shady.”

“Nav did the background check. If there was something to find, he would have found it.”

“Just because he hasn’t been caught doesn’t mean shit and you know it.”

“My hands are tied, Gunner.”

“Bullshit.”

“Calm down, brother,” King said. “Go get a drink.”

Walking over to the bar, I dropped on a stool, and the prospect set a glass of whiskey in front of me. He was a good kid, though I couldn’t have told you his name. I wasn’t sure any of us could remember it.

He was unremarkable. Average height, average weight. Dusty blond hair and brown eyes. He did what he was toldwithout complaint, but there was nothing about him that stood out.

He would need a road name. We couldn’t continue to call him the prospect if we patched him in. Though, he had only joined a few months back, we had time.

King and Declan walked back to King’s office while we waited. Finally, after a little over an hour, Haizley returned, followed by Blackwater.

Nodding toward the church doors, I asked Haizley, “She ok?”

“She is. Corbin is going to bring a sketch artist out. She’s ready to describe him.”

Corbin?

She knew his first fucking name?

“No need. I can sit with her and sketch him out.”

“You can?”

I cocked my head and looked at her. “Baby, I’m a tattoo artist. Gotta know how to draw.”

“Oh, right.” Her cheeks turned pink, and I remembered that first night, when I saw her talking to Grace, and desperately wanted to see all her skin turn pink. I kissed the top of her head and added, “I’ll grab my book.”

I jogged up to my room to get my supplies. I should have thought about doing this with Sam. Maybe we would have caught this fucker by now.

Returning to the main room, I found Haizley and Blackwater talking. Watching her smile at him as they talked had something firing up inside of me. It was more than jealousy. It was fucking rage.

She never smiled at me like that. It wasn’t the smile itself. It was the look on her face.

Peace.

Comfort.

Familiarity.

I wanted people to see that when she was with me. Wanted men to look at her and see her so fucking happy and content they wouldn’t even bother. Knowing they didn’t have a shot in hell of tearing her away from me.

I wanted to give her time to come to terms with us. But I wasn’t leaving her with fucking Blackwater.

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