Page 35 of Ace of Spades

"Sounds a lot like micro-managing."

"Sienna,” he says my name like a warning.

"Yes, Mr. Steele?" I'm pretty sure I don't mean to bat my lashes but a part of me can't help but push his buttons. It seems to bring me a lot of joy to watch such a big man squirm.

"Next ground rule...” he continues.

“Give it to me,” I say, my chin perking up at him.

“Just… call me, Levi."

Chapter9

Levi

"Iwas wondering when you were gonna show."

Carter slaps me on the back as I take the empty seat next to him.

"Yeah, well, you can thank King for giving me a new headache du jour," I say, popping open a can of soda.

"What's going on with King?" Carter asks, flicking his wrist and sending a red chip spinning across the table just for the hell of it.

"Oh, you haven’t heard? Brody King, Captain of the universe, is a daddy!"

Benji appears with a tray of shots like he’s hosting happy hour.

"No shit!" Carter laughs, already riffling the deck like a pro, fingers dancing across the cards. “Who’d he knock up?”

Bar music seeps in from the other side of the old stone wall, some old-school rock anthem no one’s listening to.

Kim steps into our private room, shrugging off her jacket. Joey trails behind, shutting the door with a click.

Last I saw them before leaving the garage, Sienna was making a list of all the skills they’ve all mastered to get an understanding of who to schedule for what.

"Your new assistant’s really something," Joey announces, sliding into one of the empty seats. “Very thorough.”

Kim drapes her jacket over the back of her chair. “She's alright.”

"Hey," Carter cuts in. "My brother was just telling us the tea on King's baby."

He sends cards whizzing across the table as he begins to deal.

"Uh... okay," Kim says confused.

Benji snorts.

“She ain’t a baby, I’ll tell you that much.”

"You’ve met her?" Carter pauses mid-deal, the card in his hand freezing.

"Of course, man. She’s basically running the shop,” Benji says.

Carter turns to me, raising an eyebrow.

“You’re letting a kid run the shop?”

“She’s almost twenty,” I say, knowing how thin that argument sounds. “And she’s not running the shop. I am. She’s just… assisting.”

---