Page 48 of Boss Me Around

“I’m sorry, Chris,” he adds. “We never meant for things to get so out of hand.”

“He needs money to hire a lawyer to fight for custody of his granddaughter,” Norman pipes up. “And I’m in trouble with my loan shark.” He motions to Unger behind me. “This guy got me gambling again. I wasn’t even thinking about it until he came in with his bookie. I thought I was on the wagon for life.”

“Cry me a fucking river,” Unger says. “You weren’t complaining when you were making money. Everybody loses sometimes.” Motioning my way, he adds, “And I don’t know why you’re kissing this jerk’s ass. If he was the great guy you think he is, he would have loaned you money when you asked for it, Gage.”

“I told you I’d work something out after the shop sold,” I remind Gage, leveraging myself into a seated position as the world rocks around me. I pull in a breath, fighting a wave of nausea as I add, “But if you’d said it was urgent, for Sierra, I would have found a way to make it happen.”

“He shouldn’t have had to tell ya,” Unger says. “He’s Gage. He never asks nobody for nothing. The fact that he asked at all should have clued you in that it was a big deal.”

“No, you’re right,” Gage says, still looking miserable. “I should have been honest about it. I was just…ashamed. Ashamed of myself and of Mandy. I thought I raised my daughter better than to treat her baby girl the way she does. I know the drinking is part of it, but Sierra deserves so much better than what she’s getting at home right now.” He shakes his head, his throat working as he swallows. “But stealing from my boss and friend… Well, clearly, I’m not a great role model, either. I just thought, since the shop’s insured and all, you’d get the money back for the bikes and it would all work out in the end.”

“And we had nothing to do with that tape,” Norman says. “I’m so sorry about that, Chris.”

Gage cuts a hard glance his way, “What tape?”

“Wah wah wah. Get over it. It was a fucking prank,” Unger says, circling around to stand by the shelf where the nanny cam still sits, the tiny camera clamped onto the edge of an old oil can. He jabs a thumb toward it. “He’s the one who was spying on his own people. If you ask me, he got what he deserves.”

“I was spying because I got a tip that someone was running a chop shop out of here after hours,” I say, glaring at Unger. “And it’s my place of business. If I want to install extra security measures, that’s my right.”

“It’s not actually,” Unger shoots back. “It’s against the law in Minnesota to record your employees without their knowledge or to leave a device in a room to record conversations you’re not a part of. You’re lucky we ain’t suing you for everything you own.”

“It’s also illegal to upload stolen footage of other people having sex,” I counter, my head still spinning a little.

But I’m feeling better with every passing moment. I just need to stall for a few minutes more and I’ll be strong enough to tackle Unger and tie him up until the police arrive. Gage and Norman won’t stand against me. Now that they’ve been reminded of the human being behind the shop, they clearly feel terrible about what they’ve done.

“You’re going to do time for it,” I continue. “And that’s just for leaking the tape. Who knows what you’ll get for everything else you’ve been doing around here, including grand larceny. Those bikes are worth way more than the amount needed to qualify.”

Unger laughs as he lifts his hands at his sides and does a little shimmy up and down. “Oh no, I’m so scared. You’re so scary, Mr. McGuire. What with your big muscles and giant yellow dick.” He laughs again. “Yeah, I’ve seen those pictures, too. Of you prancing around in your stripper outfit. I have no fucking clue why people around here seem to respect you so much. You’re a fucking embarrassment. If I were your girlfriend, I would have tossed you out of bed for having a hairy ass and moved on to something better.”

“But then what would I braid when we’re done banging and I get bored?” a sultry voice teases from the entrance to the shop.

My heart races as I turn to see Starling leaning against the doorframe. “Get out of here,” I order her. “It’s not safe.”

“Oh, you mean these guys?” Starling wanders in, her gym bag slung over her arm for some reason. She flutters her fingers in the general direction of my wayward employees. “They don’t scare me.” She comes to a stop just a few feet from Unger’s position by the shelf, crossing her arms as she nods toward Gage and Norman. “Those two look like Keanu when he gets caught peeing in my shoes. You guys feel terrible about all this…whatever you’ve been doing. Right?”

Norman nods hard enough to make me dizzy as Gage says, “Yes, ma’am, we do. And we’re going to do whatever it takes to make this right. Pay Chris back plus interest, turn ourselves in to the police, whatever he feels is best.”

“But I really don’t want to go to prison,” Norman squeaks. “Tammy and I are finally making it work.” He motions toward his head. “And I’ve got a baby face and these long eyelashes. Every girl I’ve ever dated said something about them. How pretty they are, how thick and luscious and all that. I really don’t want to hear that from a hardened con who wants to be my boyfriend, you know? I really, really don’t.”

“I’m not going back behind bars,” Unger says, his slimy gaze raking up and down Starling’s body. “No pretty girls in prison. You look even better in person, by the way, Foxy. I like a tall girl with legs long enough to wrap around you twice.”

“I like nothing about you,” Starling says pleasantly, meeting his leer with a cool smile. “You’re a slimy thief, and you have a rat mouth.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Unger asks, his tone shifting from smarmy to threatening.

“It means—Your mouth. Looks. Like a rat’s mouth,” Starling says slowly, patronizingly.

A part of me is proud of her for giving this asshole shit, but the fact remains that he knocked me unconscious. Unger is dangerous, and I don’t like her standing that close to him.

Before I can tell her to head into the office to call 911, she adds, “The yellow teeth are part of it, sure, but it’s the shape of the mouth itself that’s the problem.” She cocks her head to one side, her brow furrowing as she seems to consider something. “Or maybe it’s the giant nose that’s really taking it out of ‘needs dental intervention’ into full on rat mouth territory.”

“If I were you, I’d shut your mouth. Before I shut it for you,” Unger says softly, puffing up his chest as he takes a threatening step toward Starling. He’s a couple inches shorter than her five eight, but he’s a strong man and to my knowledge Starling isn’t an expert in self-defense.

“No thanks,” Starling says, looking utterly unfazed. “I don’t think I will. I’m not scared of you, either. You’re a mean little shit, for sure, but there’s only one of you and four of us. Try something and see how fast we make you eat concrete.”

Unger reaches into his jacket pocket, pulling out a butterfly knife that he opens with an expert flick of his hand. He points it toward Starling, making my heart lurch into my throat as he says, “I’d rather see you eat my cock.”

“Run, Starling!” I shout, attempting to stand only for a wave of renewed dizziness to send me to my knees before I get two steps from the bed.

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