He finally seems to come back to the present. “I don’t want you to think things were all bad. We had a ball growing up. In case you couldn’t tell, both of our moms are pretty gutsy ladies and they found ways to get by. Most of the time anyway.”
“Most of the time?”
His fingers tighten on my ankle. “Zack got sick a lot. He always had a compromised immune system but we didn't know he was diabetic then. Doctors aren’t cheap and the bills were just piling up. We were fourteen when we were evicted and had to live in our car for a while. I think our moms were terrified that we’d get split up and sent to different foster homes.”
Suddenly it’s like a light bulb comes on.
“That’s when you started stealing cars, isn’t it?”
My heart breaks right down the center when he nods silently.
A second later, his thumb strokes up the ball of my foot again. We stay just like that until the timer goes off and I have to get up to take the food out of the oven. Over dinner it seems like we’ve made a silent pact not to discuss it any further but I can feel him watching me when he thinks I’m not looking.
When I lead him down the hall to my bedroom later that night, it feels so natural, so right to take turns using my small bathroom to brush our teeth and get ready for bed. As Gabe climbs in the bed and pulls me back against him, it occurs to me that this is the first time we’ve shared a bed without making love.
But as his arm tightens around my waist and his breathing turns even and slow, it feels like love to me.
Chapter thirteen
GABE
Over the next few weeks, Sasha and I settle into a comfortable rhythm. Between her temp jobs, her regular gig at the Piedmont and her work getting the club ready, staying over during the week is the only way I get to see her. If anyone had told me a few months ago that I’d basically be cohabitating with a woman and liking it, I would have thought they’d inhaled too much exhaust. But I do like it.
Almost as much as I like Sasha.
I’m pulling up to the shop after meeting with a vendor when my phone rings. It's Luke. When I see his name on the screen I immediately take the call. He and Tank have been working together to get information on Blade. He’s not the type for chitchat so if he's calling now, it means he has answers.
“Luke? What’s up?”
"Gabe, I have you on a conference call with Tank. His boss was able to use his contacts within the FBI to get access to Interpol."
"Hey Tank. What have you guys found?"
Tank’s deep voice rumbles across the line. “Eli was able to get some info on the names you guys sent. They’re aliases for members of the Irish Mafia. Every single one of them."
"Fucking hell. If Max is on their shit list, then we're all in for it. I knew he wasn't telling me the truth."
"You asked him about it? What did he say?"
It seems so long ago now, that day when I barged in on Max demanding answers. Afterward, I was so hell-bent on getting to Sasha and making sure she was safe that I hadn’t taken time to analyze our father’s strange behavior. But now looking back, I can see that I should have put the pieces together. Max had been deeply shocked when I described Blade. He’d looked terrified.
"The only thing Max told me was to keep my loved ones close. Because men like that don't care who they hurt to get what they want. At the time I didn’t pay much attention to his reaction but he was scared. Shitless.”
Luke speaks up again. “Which means he knows why they’re after him. He must have been in a lot of trouble back in the day for them to be coming after him now. I mean, dude is like a million years old and has a bad heart. He’s not exactly a threat to anybody now, right?”
His comment, ridiculous as it is, makes me wonder. Luke has a point. Max has been living a life not unlike most wealthy older Americans. He stays at his luxury hotels drinking high-caliber scotch surrounded by a bevy of pretty assistants. How the hell did he run afoul of the Irish Mafia?
“Maybe he’s got gambling debts or something. That’s the only thing I can think of. Unless this really is some old vendetta coming back to bite him in the ass years later.”
Tank snorts. “Whatever the case, his shit isn’t our problem. Or it shouldn’t be. I’m only concerned with making sure this doesn’t affect us or our families. We need to take action.”
“You mean go after him?” Luke sounds a little too excited by the idea.
“Hell no. I’m just saying we need to take precautions.” Tank pauses. “Gabe, have you told Sasha about any of this?”
“Are you going to warn me away from her, too? Because Finn and Eli have already threatened to cut off all my appendages. You’ll have to get in line.”
They both laugh.
“No, I’m just saying that we need to keep our women safe. I’m thinking they all need protection. Emma has resisted so far but she’s getting a bodyguard whether she wants one or not. I’m suggesting that you guys might want to do the same. Luke, I’m not sure if your mom will let you but if you need me to, I can recommend some older guys that could blend into the crowd at the bakery and she won’t suspect a thing.”
“Yeah, I appreciate it man.”
It feels like things are escalating faster than I can keep up. Bodyguards and mafia members aside, I’m not sure how I’m going to keep Sasha away from all this but I know I have to try. I think of all the times when she’s been working at her club. Alone.