Chapter 8

Carter

He’s early. The one fucking time in all the months I’ve known him, and this is the time he picks to be early?

I was literally three seconds away from telling Brooke I have to leave town, telling her why I moved to Rover’s Retreat, and Andy shows up.

My cock is still tingling as I try to pull myself together. I can’t say anything to Brooke right now, not with Andy at the door, and us both still carrying the remnants of sex.

Brooke looks so guilty as she walks towards the door I almost smile. It’s the cold hard realization I’m leaving that stops me and makes cold settle in my chest.

I should take a little consolation that she was so into it, she probably won’t even remember what she said when she was riding me.

Maybe I misheard her? Maybe she didn’t say she didn’t want me to go?

Whatever she said, whatever I said in return is less important right now than getting out of here without making things worse.

In my desire to appear casual, I’m not sure whether to sit or stand, but I figure being close to her isn’t going to help any.

I lean against the wall I still need to finish and wait to see if I can figure out by Andy’s expression whether he overheard.

With a cagey look at me, she opens the door to Andy’s grinning face. His cheeks are rosy as he smiles wide at Brooke. “Morning!”

Brooke’s voice seems strained as she steps back so Andy can enter. “Morning. I didn’t expect you so early.”

Andy nods in my direction. “Sarah was nagging me to go dig her sister out. I was up at the crack of dawn.”

He nods in my direction, expression cautious but not overly so. “Been behaving yourself? Not causing Ms. Madison any problems?”

I open my mouth to speak, but Brooke answers for me. “He’s been the perfect houseguest.”

My lips curl upward as every last dirty thing we did springs to mind. I struggle to hold in my laugh as her eyes meet mine for a split second.

Heat touches her cheeks before she smiles warmly in Andy’s direction. “Would you like a cup of coffee?”

Andy shakes his head and jerks his head at me. “Thank you, but no. I need to return the snowplow. Carter? You ready to leave?”

I hold Brooke’s gaze, heart crashing against my ribs. I want to tell Andy the truth.

I want to say. No. I’m fucking not.

Instead, I take the cowards way out like the chicken shit I am. “Yeah. Lemme just get my coat.”

I don’t have the guts to look at Brooke as I shrug my jacket back on and check my phone is in my pocket.

If Brooke wants to say more to me, she doesn’t get the chance as Andy thanks her for having me like I’m his kid after a sleepover.

Brooke blushes furiously as Andy takes a look at the wall I half fixed. “Surprised you didn’t get this done, all the spare time you had.”

I swallow hard, a lump growing along with the increasing tightness in my chest as I shrug. “She needs a sparky. I didn’t want to risk her insurance by taking a look at the wiring.”

Andy nods, face serious as he rubs his smooth chin. “True. You aren’t certified. Well, you’ll just have to finish the job later.”

He shoves his woolen hat over his bald head and makes to open the door. I don’t have time to say or do anything.

The constriction in my throat only gets worse as Brooke stands with her hand on the door as Andy steps back out into the snow.

Cold spills in through the door, matching the atmosphere as I slowly extend my hand to Brooke. “Thanks for putting me up.”

Her fingers curl into mine, warm, soft, and a perfect fit. “Thanks for fixing so many things around here.”

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. I want to kiss her. Just one last time. She’s not letting go of my hand, her eyes are on mine, and all it would take from me is one step.

One step and I’d be kissing those luscious lips again.

“Carter? I’m sure Ms. Madison has things to do?” Andy calls.

Whatever spell held us glued together breaks as Brooke’s shoulders stiffen and she jerks her hand from mine.

“Take care, Carter,” she says softly.

I step out into the frigid air, all warmth dissipating as I hear the door close with a click behind me.

My breath mists as I zip my jacket up tight, sinking into the ankle-deep snow that leads to Andy’s truck now fitted with a snowplow.

Andy jumps into his truck, not saying a word as he turns the engine over. With a last look at Brooke’s house, I haul my freezing ass inside and slam the door shut.

The truck is warm, and the radio is blaring the honky-tonk shit Andy likes as he steers the vehicle back on to the now cleared road.

I know Andy has something he wants to say when he leans over and turn the radio down. “You didn’t do anything stupid, did you? You do something stupid, as my employee, I also do something stupid.”

I give him a measured glare. “Define stupid?”

Andy’s jaw works furiously. “Brooke’s the daughter of an old friend of mine. Plus, I took a lot of shit hiring you when my dumb ass nephew wanted a job. You mess this up, and it gets back to my wife or to her Dad, I’ll never hear the end of it.”

My stomach twists into hard knots. “Got it.”

Andy sends me a quick glance sidelong. “But you did do something stupid, didn’t you? You slept with her. This gets out, she’ll look bad, you’ll look bad, and by default, I look bad.”

I huff out an angry breath, fists curling at my sides as irritation starts to build. “It’s not going to get out. I’m not telling anyone. And anyway, I won’t be here so it won’t be an issue.”

Andy’s eyebrows rise. “Excuse me? You won’t be here?”

He sounds about as pissed as I thought he would, which doesn’t make it any easier. “Some things have come up back home. I need time to deal with them.”

Ahead I can just make out the snow-covered truck I ditched Friday night. It’s parked at a slightly odd angle, but considering I couldn’t see shit when I parked, it’s a miracle I didn’t run it into the ditch a few feet away.

Andy pulls the truck over and lets the engine idle as he leans his arms on the steering wheel. “I put myself on the line for you. And I did it because you worked hard and kept your nose clean. I can respect you came here looking for a different lifestyle, what I can’t respect is you making me look like a fool.”

I exhale slowly. “I appreciate everything you’ve done. I do. And if there was any other way, I wouldn’t be leaving you hanging.”

His eyes narrow as he looks straight at me. “Do whatever you have to do with your family. But a little advice, treat Brooke right. She’s been through enough shit; she doesn’t need you adding to it.”

My nod is crisp as I pull the keys out of my pocket and hold out my hand. Despite his obvious disdain, he shakes his head. “Take it. Not much use to me without you here anyway.”

I nod my appreciation, guilt solidifying in my stomach as I move to get out of his truck. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Andy raises his hands in the air, a wry smile on his face. “Do what you gotta do. Your job will be waiting.”

If I thought I couldn’t feel worse, that did it. “I’ll be in touch,” I say.

Without another word or backward look, I slide out the door and stomp across the road to the truck.

I dust the snow off the windshield and jump behind the wheel. My hands are frozen as I turn the key.

The engine is sluggish but turns over after a couple chugs. Andy gives me a clipped wave as he rolls away.

I watch his brake lights, breath misting inside the truck as the heater kicks into gear.

I flick a look in the rearview mirror, hoping to catch sight of Brooke’s house, but all I see is the snow I forgot the clear off the back window.

With a shaking breath, more from nerves than cold, worse case scenarios running through my mind, I turn the wheel and slowly follow in Andy’s tire tracks.

***

3.36pm Tuesday

Brooke

Any hope I had that Carter would be the one to show up disappears when I open the door to Andy.

I shift to one side and let him enter, chewing my lip as foolish tears spring to life.

I don’t know why I thought Carter would magically appear. Andy said on the phone he’d be the one coming today to fix the boiler and the wall.

My disappointment is just another symptom of how deeply miserable and pathetic I am.

I have two weeks to come up with the money I need, and instead of being able to think about that, I’m thinking about how much I miss having Carter in the house with me.

Andy’s smile seems forced as he looks at the open wall cavity. “The electrician came yesterday?”

A lump forms in my throat as I nod. He had. He’d arrived at almost the same time of day that Carter had. But instead of magnificent muscles, tanned skin and piercing green eyes, the electrician was larger than Andy, complexion a pasty white and he smelled of rotten cabbage.

“I’ll leave you to work. I’ll have muffins ready for you to take home,” I say to Andy.

I turn away and try to shut out the images that keep invading my thoughts.

I keep busy making a cake I probably won’t eat, occasionally looking out the window, staring at the fruit trees at the back of the back yard.

My thoughts circle in the same tedious pattern they have been since Carter left. I need to find the money somehow; I miss him, I’m a pitiful wretch.

When all the ingredients are as mixed as my thoughts, I dump everything into a cake tin, pull the muffins out then put the cake inside the hot oven.

With little else to do, but face the inevitable, I pick up my cell, log into my bank account and grimace at the amount I’m in my overdraft.

After the last mortgage payment went out, and the costs of moving out here, I’m leaching money quicker than I can earn it. Even if I take on more work, and even if I can get some bookings for summer, I’ll have no way to pay for the renovations, let alone find furniture.

I slump in my seat, familiar despair curling in as I try to think of favors I haven’t called in, jobs I can take, or things I can sell to relieve some of the pressure.

When I’ve crossed almost everything off my mental list, bar my parents, and my car, I know I have no choice but to ask them once again to bail me out.

I hate having to involve them. It’s humiliating that I have to go running to my folks when I’m supposed to be a grown-up and independent.

But the day Nate Jessep drained our joint account, sold anything of value and left me high and dry, was the day I lost all semblance of independence.

I pick up my phone and dial. As usual, my mom answers on the first ring. “What’s wrong?”

I huff out a breath, wishing I could tell her that everything was okay, but I’m asking for their help again, so I have no choice to come clean.

“Um,” I start to say.

My mom inhales sharply. “Oh, Brooke! What’s he done now?”

I chew on my lip staring down at my flour-dusted jeans and can’t find the words to explain how even after he left me, I’m still liable for his debt.

At my silence, my mom launches into a diatribe of how much she wants to wring Nate’s neck until I’m almost relieved to hear Andy’s clomping footsteps coming towards me.

I cut my mom off. “Sorry, Mom. I have Andy here fixing the boiler. I’ll have to call you back.”

“Oh, okay, say hi to Andy from your Dad and me. We’ll have to come visit soon.”

I don’t want them visiting me just yet, but I can’t say that, so I end the call and force a smile. Andy leans his hands on the chair closest to him. “Wall’s all done. Just let the paint dry before you put any pictures on it. The boiler’s up and running.”

My eyebrows rise. “Oh, that was fast.”

He taps his fingers on the chair, looking increasingly uncomfortable as he looks around the kitchen. “Quinn did most of the work.”

I screw my face up at the unfamiliar name. “You mean Carter?”

Andy nods slowly. “That’s right. Carter Quinn.”

I stare at him, heart rate picking up a few beats as Andy reaches into his pocket and pulls out the invoice.

He lays it down flat on the table and looks almost sorry he’s charging me. “I’ll be on my way. Let me know if you need anything else. But with Carter gone—”

Surprise jolts me to my feet. “He’s gone? Gone where?”

Andy shrugs. “He went back home. Said he had some business to take care of.”

I frown at the reticence a usually open Andy is exhibiting. Instead of dwelling on the fact that Carter is gone, my mind is snagging on the name that seems vaguely familiar. “When did he leave?”

Andy’s awkwardness seems to amplify. “Sunday.”

My stomach plummets to my toes. He left town right away?

Andy jams his hands into his pockets and doesn’t seem to be able to look directly at me. “Anyway, it’ll be a few weeks before I can get back here to look at those window sashes. But now that the boiler is going things and the wall is fixed should be warmer for you anyway.”

I nod my gratitude, still confused and irritated I can’t place where I’d heard the name Quinn before.

By the time Andy leaves with a batch of muffins and some preserves for his family, I’m even more baffled at Andy’s cagey behavior and Carter’s unexplained trip back home.

It’s winter, it’s still snowing, the roads aren’t exactly easy to navigate, and travel isn’t recommended.

What kind of business was so important that Carter had to immediately leave and Andy isn’t being entirely truthful about?

Is it an emergency? His mother? His father? Then why didn’t Andy just say?

Or is it Ellie? Is Carter returning to see an old flame? Stupid and pointless jealousy I have no right to, sparks to life.

I place my face in my hands at how juvenile I’m behaving. Of course, Andy wouldn’t say anything to me.

It’s none of my business. And I have no right to information pertaining to Carter’s whereabouts.

We aren’t a couple. We aren’t anything. It’s perfectly logical that Carter left town without mentioning his plans to me.

I sit back down at the table and look at my cell phone thinking about my own home. I need to call my mom back, swallow my battered pride yet again and tell her Nate has landed me in even more hot water.

I run my finger over the bill Andy left, the due date reminding me of yet another debt hanging over my head.

But unlike the criminals Nate was dumb enough to deal with, Andy isn’t going to threaten me with bodily harm or worse if I can’t make the payments.

The timer for the cake goes off at precisely the moment my phone rings. I flinch, heart rate increasing as I see Nate’s number.

He doesn’t even wait for me to finish saying hello when his voice comes high with fear down the line.

“Check your email. It’s so much worse than I thought. I’m screwed. So screwed!”

My heart jumps to my throat. I switch the timer off and hurry to the living room where I’ve left my laptop. “What are you talking about?”

“The loan sharks. The ‘Enforcer’ is back again!”

I open my email and find what he’s sent me. My stomach twists as I stare at the screen, reading the article, bypassing the grizzly details until Nate’s voice fades away into a low buzz as I try to read.

…. With suspected ties to the underworld, prostitution, racketeering, tax evasion, Jonas Quinn has a long history of evading prosecution, and no proof has been found to substantiate the claims of…

“Are you even listening to me? The thug they use to beat the shit out of people is back. I swear to God I never would have taken the loan if I’d known ‘The Enforcer’ would come back. He’s built like a fucking brick shit house. He even has his nickname tattooed on his chest. I’m a dead man if you can’t find the money.”

I can’t speak in more than strangled sounds. “Are you sure? Could he just be visiting?”

Nate barks a panicked laugh down the line. “You aren’t getting it. The enforcer doesn’t come to the city to visit his family. He comes to break bones and bust kneecaps. You have to get me the money now, Brooke. If he’s here, he’ll be knocking on my door any day now…”

Nausea starts to swell in my stomach. How could I have been so blind? Was I that in lust with him I failed to see warning signs he was dangerous?

I never got a clear look at the tattoo Nate must be talking about. Carter was quick to hide it when I looked too close. And it’s no wonder.

He had reason to keep his past hidden from me. He tried to caution me when he said he wasn’t the man I thought he was.

Carter wasn’t being self-deprecating; he was trying to warn me off for my own good.

“Can we call the police? Say you’ve been threatened?” I say through choked breaths.

Nate curses harshly down the line. “Are you that stupid? The cops don’t bother Jonas Quinn. He’s got too many of them in his pocket. Just sell the house; it’s the only way they’ll leave me alone.”

He ends the call without a word of apology, and I start to tremble. I drop the phone and rock back on the sofa, gripping my stomach as shudders wrack my body.

Nate won’t risk his neck to spare mine; he’ll leave me to deal with it just like he always did.

My shoulders start to shake as sobs build, threatening to erupt. How did I get so bad at choosing men?

How did I go from a deadbeat and a coward to a violent criminal in the space of a few months?

Why on earth is Carter Quinn here in Rover’s Retreat and why has he been working for Andy legitimately for the last year? Does he take breaks from harassing and terrorizing people?

Nothing makes any sense. Nothing seems real. I thought Carter was hiding hidden depths, but I was wrong about that along with everything else.

I start to sob as the sheer enormity of the truth of Carter’s involvement curls like poisonous smoke inside me.

Carter knows I can’t afford to pay his family on time. I stupidly told him so.

And if he’s returned to enforcing loan payments like Nate says he has, then the man who shared my bed, is also the man that they’ll send to collect when I can’t pay.

***

Carter

Tuesday 6.38pm

I can feel hidden eyes on me as I walk the final stretch to the bar. I should have known I’d not be able to get back here unnoticed. My reputation has always preceded me.

The second I arrived back into the old neighborhood and stopped to grab a bite to eat, one of Jonas’ network of lackeys would’ve let him know.

Andy’s truck is safe inside a private garage, four blocks away from the bar I’m about to step inside.

The bouncer on the door is almost as big as I am and glaring at me, his arms crossed like he can stare me down.

I stifle a laugh that my clueless replacement is trying to intimidate me.

I don’t even bother to respond. I just drop my voice a couple octaves and jerk my thumb at the door. “Tell Jonas his enforcer is here to see him.”

The bouncer’s eyes widen as recognition makes his face pale. He swallows and nods.

He backs away, eyes flicking between me and the solid oak door leading to the bar.

Since he’s obviously my replacement, I cut him some slack and lean against the brick wall and scan the street.

Nothing has changed. It’s still the same place I learned to brawl. As far as the eye can see poorly constructed apartments are stacked on top of each other, streets are jammed with low-end cars; trash is in the gutters along with the kids skipping school, just like it was a year ago when I left.

My eyes travel to the second-floor apartment I shared with my mom. It looks even worse than I remember. Bars on the windows, façade crumbling, and the exterior in dire need of repair. I can only imagine how bad it is inside.

Memories crash into me as the door opens. The scent of cigars, cheap perfume, stale air, and booze waft out assaulting my nostrils.

The bouncer has been replaced by the one person I’d hoped wouldn’t be here. Eloise launches herself at me in a tangle of blonde curls, red lips and nails, fake boobs, white teeth and a lot of tanned skin on display.

I risk giving her a quick hug, looking over my shoulder, relieved she must have sent the thug for hire away.

I flinch at the bruising just visible around her jawline. Her blue eyes are rimmed by black kohl, and her smile falsely bright as she gestures inside. “Are you going to tell me where you’ve been all this time?”

I shake my head. The less information I give her, the more plausible deniability she has if Jonas asks.

Even standing this close to her is dangerous, so I shift before someone lets Jonas know I had my hands on his ‘property’ again.

The bar is thick with smoke as I cross the sticky floor with Eloise trying her best to pretend everything is fine.

She’s talking too fast, probably on something, another way for Jonas to ensure she stays.

Since I know she nervous, I merely grind my back teeth together and prepare for seeing Jonas again.

Eloise stops talking long enough for me to see the shake to her hands. Her false bravado disappears as we reach the door to the backroom.

I glance at her and find her twisting her hands into knots as she tries to hide her fear. “I wanted to talk to you. But he’s expecting you. And he’s got a girl in there.”

My stomach is in knots when I nod.

She turns on her heel, but not before she gives me a watery-eyed smile. “See you later then.”

I take a breath, knock before I push the door open. Jonas Quinn is sitting alone behind the desk appraising a redheaded teen wearing worn jeans, battered sneakers, and looking equal parts petrified and nauseous at being here.

His eyes narrow, gaze cold and hard. “To what do I owe the pleasure of the legendary enforcer returning?”

Jonas’ voice is dripping with sarcasm, which is even more worrying than the rages he flies into. “Get rid of her.”

The girl’s entire body goes rigid as Jonas sniffs in my direction. “Eva’s father owes me ten grand. She was just about to start working the debt off on her knees.”

The girl’s panic is evident when she swallows thickly, her eyes darting to Jonas then to me. “My father told me I’d just be waitressing.”

Bile rises to my throat as I hide my loathing. Jonas is still the despicable prick he always was.

I grab the girls’ arm and ignore the smirk I’m receiving for interfering. As I open the door and near push her out, I whisper in her ear. “Tell your father if he sends you to work off his debt, the enforcer will pay him a visit.”

All the color drains from her face, but she nods weakly looking ready to barf on my shoes as she scrambles away.

I close the door and hope her father finds another way to pay before sending his daughter into the lion’s den.

Jonas eyes me with a wry smile curling his lips. “She’ll be back. I own her father now. What’s his is mine.”

His attitude confirms I was right to come. Because if I hadn’t, Jonas would have sent someone out to Brooke to intimidate her into selling or worse.

Even if I’d been there, even if I’d been able to intercept whoever went, eventually Jonas would have got suspicious and he’d have come himself.

I hold his gaze unblinking, not showing an ounce of the revulsion I’m feeling. One wrong word, one misstep and I can’t help anyone. “I’m not here to discuss your need for jail-bait hookers. I’m here to help.”

He barks a laugh. Narrow shoulders jutting back. Angular face pinched in disbelief. “And why would I accept help from a man who said he’d rather die than do the job I trained him for.”

I shake off his disdain and shrug. “You don’t want my help; I’ll leave.”

My hand is on the door handle before he chuckles. “Alright. Don’t get your panties in a bunch. What do you want?”

I turn slowly, keeping my voice as hard and as cold as possible. “Nothing but recognition for what I did to help build your business.”

His eyebrows rise as he pushes away from the desk and slowly crosses the floor. “You think I owe you a slice for working for me? You ungrateful little fucker. I pulled you off the streets and gave you my name. And you repaid me by screwing one of my girls! Then you ran, tail between your legs where I couldn’t find you.”

I have to tread very, very carefully. “I didn’t screw her. I told you that the day I left, but you wouldn’t listen. She was upset about her little brother getting sick. I just drove her home to Iowa. Nothing happened.”

I keep my thoughts to myself as he shakes his head in dismissal. It’s incomprehensible to a bastard like Jonas that I don’t enjoy sex with underage girls.

I don’t say that on the way back I accidentally ran out of gas just outside of Rover’s Retreat, and decided to stay there.

His jaw works as he stares hard at me. It’s irrelevant now. The girl is long gone. At least I could get one of them out of this toxic mess before I left.

Jonas isn’t speaking. I carefully word what he knows is true. “You did take me off the streets, but you also built your reputation and bank balance off mine.”

That does it. Jonas’ face splotches red as he splutters. “Your reputation? You were a pathetic wannabe middleweight two minutes away from whoring yourself like your mother when I found you.”

He spits in my face. I don’t even flinch at the insult. He’s so predictable; I even anticipate his next move. His hand raises to slap my face like I’m still a scrawny teenager or one of the terrified girls he abuses for fun.

If I wanted, I could easily grab his arm and twist it around his back until his bone snaps. Instead, I step aside, ducking out of his reach.

He splutters obscenities as I aim a verbal jab at the one place I know will hit him hardest. “People aren’t paying as quickly now that I’m not around, are they? Your own people are getting sloppy. No one is giving you the respect you want now I’m not here to force them to.”

The tiniest flickering of fear shows on Jonas’ weathered face. “You expect me to believe you returned out of the goodness of your heart?”

I shake my head. He won’t believe anything I say, so I try for a half-truth. “I came because it’s my name being dragged through the mud now too.”

He keeps glaring at me, disbelief evident in his angry posture. I could keep trying to convince him, but if I push too hard, he’ll know I’m hiding something.

I keep my posture relaxed as I watch his anger shift into wariness. “You want to restore your reputation? You’re coming home for good then?”

I nearly snort a bitter laugh. Good? There’s nothing about coming home that’s for good. Not when Jonas Quinn is in charge.

I have no intention of returning for good. But something in the way he’s looking at me like I’m the prodigal son returned makes me uneasy.

He’s angry, but there’s something else lurking in the middle of the cold that surprises me.

Jonas needs me. He might be desperate enough to trust me again. And I can use that to my advantage.

“Show me who owes you money, and I’ll see what I can do while I’m here,” I say.