Page 102 of Filthy Liar

“What happens if there’s a drive-by?”

“People get shot,” Ander deadpanned, and Zavier gave him a look of warning. “Sorry, bad joke. I don’t think anyone is stupid enough to hit a place like this with five local crews mingling. Pissing off one crew is bad enough, but five? It’s suicide.”

“No one said criminals were smart,” I grumbled under my breath, letting Zavier drop his arm around my shoulders as he led me towards the Shed.

We were half an hour early, and Slash seemed happy by that as we approached.

“I knew I made a smart choice with you,” he said gruffly to Zavier, a small smile on his face. “Good to see the rest of you came too.”

His eyes flicked to me, and I forced a smile. “Thanks for inviting us.”

“You’re family now,” he said with a wave of his hand. “Lopez needs to work, but the rest of you can kick back and mingle. Just remember to stay out of the office, and don’t try unlocking locked doors.”

Zavier dropped a kiss on my lips and murmured that he’d see me later, and I studied him as he walked towards the bar. He was grinning at whatever the Psycho behind the bar said, laughing as the guy clapped him on the shoulder before leaving him to it.

“Beckett and Riley are over there,” Slash said, his eyes still on me.

I glanced over to the far corner to see a bunch of people hanging out, Beckett and Riley among them. It seemed to just be the Thieves and kids of the crews, so I thanked him and motioned for the guys to follow.

“I’m a little surprised you showed up,” Beckett grinned as we joined them, swigging her beer.

“Me too,” I scoffed, dropping into a chair by the wall. “What’s the deal with these get-togethers? Do you just hang out?”

“Basically. It’s a way for everyone to spend time together without business getting in the way. It’s been a while since we’ve had one, so my parents figured it was a good idea. Things have been tense.”

“That’s one word for it,” Stone snorted, eyeing me. “You guys have us run off our feet.”

“It’s not really our fault,” I said defensively, and Cruz rolled his eyes.

“Ignore him. It’s actually been kind of good for challenging my skills, I won’t lie. I’ve had to really push myself and upgrade some of my tech. If their tech guy doesn’t get killed in all of this, I want to talk to him and find out how his brain ticks. If he can hack my shit and fry my system, he’s impressive.”

“Do you have a crush on the enemy?” Riley demanded, pulling Luna against her and resting her chin on her shoulder.

“Major hard-on,” Cruz confirmed, making Penn giggle.

It was strange seeing everyone here at once, and part of me felt a little like an outsider as they talked amongst themselves so easily. Especially when Ander fell into conversation with Stone and Knox, while Logan and Reid started talking to Drake and Jett. Beckett was in a serious looking conversation with Maddox and Zane, leaving me sitting alone.

I almost considered walking home, but then Riley dropped down beside me and leaned back in her chair.

“Blake wanted you to know she’s sorry,” she said randomly, making me frown.

“Why?”

“She honestly had no idea about you and Ander, or she never would’ve gone near him. Blake’s a girls’ girl. She has zero interest in chasing someone’s man or causing problems.”

“He was her man.”

“Keyword. Was,” she shrugged. “She left on Wednesday. Between the fire and people getting shot at, I think Ander’s warning about Stefano freaked her out a little.”

“Why are you telling me this? We’re not exactly friends,” I asked slowly, and she raised an eyebrow.

“We were getting there before the street racing stuff came out. Do you still hate me for that?”

I’d never hated Riley, I’d just been severely mad at her. I felt like she’d been lying to me alongside the guys too, and part of me was hurt by the fact that everyone except me knew about the races.

I hated looking stupid.

“I don’t hate you,” I mumbled, holding her gaze. “I just needed to blame people, and you were easy to blame. If I can forgive Ander, I think I can forgive you.”

---