Out Bad by Janice M. Whiteaker

Author:Janice M. Whiteaker [Whiteaker, Janice M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2016-07-14T21:00:00+00:00

Fourteen

"I didn't do anything."

"You know damn well they don't care." Heath rubbed his face. "What you did or didn't do is irrelevant at this point."

"What in the hell am I supposed to do then?" Joe paced across the kitchen trying not to think of everything this meant. "What about you?"

"Nothing's been said. I think they were too focused on you." Heath yanked a stool out from under the island and flopped down. "We've got to figure out what's going on."

"I can call some guys, see what they've heard." Joe pulled out the stool beside Heath and sat.

"No. Don't talk to anybody. It just doesn't make sense after all this time." He shook his head and furrowed his brow. "Why now?"

Joe scratched at his blackened thumbnail. The same one Gwen handled so gently. "If they can't set me up, there's not much left they can do to me."

Both men sat silently. “The Sixes only have one way to get at me. Have they put out an order?"

He held his breath, not sure he was ready for the answer. He'd worked so hard and it was all finally paying off. His business. His house. Gwen. What if he only had two options? Leave it all behind or--

"What in the hell are you two talking about?"

Gabbi stood in the doorway, a shopping bag looped over one arm.

Heath jumped up and started toward Gabbi. He made it two steps.

"No." She pointed at him as she walked further into the kitchen, her face hard. "You need to tell us what's going on."

Us.

Joe jumped up almost as fast as his friend, but he didn't freeze under Gabbi's icy glare. He had more important things to worry about than whether or not Gabbi was pissed.

Gwen stood staring at him from the living room doorway. "What's happening?" Her eyes were wide, her fair skin a pale he'd never seen before. She looked absolutely terrified which meant two things. She'd heard everything and she'd put more of the pieces of his past together than he realized.

"Everything's going to be fine. There's just been a misunderstanding." He cupped his hands over her arms, stroking her bare skin gently with his thumbs as he eased her back into the living room. The kitchen was getting louder and louder and he didn't want Gwen to get any more upset.

"Who are the Sixes and what's an order?" Gwen's voice was quiet.

He held his breath. He couldn't lie to her, but the truth...

"Are they going to try to hurt you?" Her body went stiff.

"No." He took a deep breath. "Maybe."

Gwen looked down, her eyelashes fluttering as she blinked repeatedly. When she looked back up at him her eyes were rimmed in tears. "I have to go." She pulled out of his hands and turned, quickly disappearing out the front door.

The sound of Gabbi yelling behind him registered as he watched Gwen's car pull away.

"Where is Gwen?" Gabbi grabbed his arm. "Where's Gwen?"

"She left." He stared out the front window at the empty road.

"Nobody fucking ever listens to me.

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