Chasing Down Changes (Moroad Motorcycle Club) (27 page)

Jeremy's gaze heated her back as she walked the hallway. Thank God the women were either resting after working or taking showers. Too many people already knew what happened, and soon Jeremy would bring the building down when he finds out what Deputy Williams was doing here.

Her sole purpose, until she could think of what she needed to do, was to keep Jeremy from doing something stupid to jeopardize his freedom. Her business wasn't important. She could quit and stop running Red Light. Nothing mattered except keeping Jeremy in her life.

The quietness of the suite unnerved her. Imagining the talk downstairs between Jeremy and his club, the anger in Cam for having his evening interrupted with no explanation, gave her the shakes. She sat on the couch, letting Marci cover her with a blanket.

"I'm going to be late to opening Silver Girls. There's a motorcycle club filling the downstairs and no parking along the street because their bikes take up half the block. Customers are going to wonder what is going on." She stared at her clasped hands. "I'm not even dressed for the night and the dancers will be arriving any minute."

"Sh." Marci sat beside her, rubbing Tiff's back. "I'll help. Remember, I started working here serving drinks. I'll have Shari man the door—"

"No, she has to organize the dancers." She pushed back her hair wanting to cry. "I can't believe this is happening. Why now?"

There was only one person qualified to help with the customers and welcome them to Silver Girls, and Tiff swore she'd never hire that woman again.

"Ask Lola to take my place." She inhaled a shaky breath, knowing she had to be smart for Jeremy's sake. "Tell her I'll owe her."

"Okay." Marci straightened when the door opened. "Jeremy's here. I'll go downstairs and let the others know you're not coming down tonight and make the phone call."

Tiff reached out and grabbed Marci's hand. "No, I'll be there. I need a few minutes to talk to Jeremy, get ready, and then I'll be ready. Give me an hour."

"Sure." Marci's brows lowered, and she stepped away.

"Hey, Marci." Tiff pulled the blanket higher. "Don't tell anyone what happened."

Marci nodded. "I won't say a word."

Jeremy shut the door behind her, walked across the room, and sat on the coffee table in front of Tiff. She watched his eyes flick back and forth within her gaze and the brave front she'd tried desperately to hold onto slipped. The truth was floating between them. Jeremy directed his anger at the situation he hadn't controlled and not her.

She'd scared him.

Jeremy placed his firm hands on her thighs and scooted closer. "The alarm was cut above the front doors, from the inside."

She nodded.

"Baby, I'm one step away from going after everyone within a mile radius of you." He gathered her hands and held them in one of his. With his free hand, he cupped the back of her neck and brought her forward. "Tell me what's going on and if you're okay."

"Promise you won't do anything."

"Can't do that." His grip on her tightened. "I will kill anyone that has hurt, threatened, or fucking looked at you twice. That has never changed, baby. Someone broke into the building. I found you shaken, pale, and Marci practically falling apart. You can either give me a name or I'll go out and start shooting."

She closed her eyes, knowing she had no choice. If it weren't Jeremy going after the threat, Moroad Motorcycle Club would.

"Deputy Williams," she whispered. "He broke in and came upstairs."

Jeremy's entire body hardened. "Did he hurt you?"

She shook her head. "I'm mostly scared. He found out what I'm doing with Red Light and wants a percentage of the money I bring in and use of the women."

Jeremy stood. She threw off the blanket covering her legs and grabbed his arm. "You can't go after him. They'll put you back in prison, and I'll lose everything. Who will be here to protect me if you're gone?"

"Moroad, and it's about time you learned that." Jeremy grabbed her, captured her lips, and kissed her deeply. "Fuck, this reeks like Los Li."

"What do you mean?"

"Just a feeling." He held her tight. "It doesn't take much for Los Li to pick up dirty law enforcement officers and have them work for them. If Williams interested in girls, I'd bet Los Li is behind him seeking you out."

"Oh, God." She shook her head.

"What?"

"He said you and him had mutual friends and they admired my business," she whispered. "Please tell me Federal's law enforcement officers would not work with Los Li."

Jeremy gazed down at her. "How is it any different than Sheriff Colby helping you and willingly protecting an illegal prostitution ring? Everyone has a price, and it isn't always for the cash."

Shaking to the core, she held on to him, willing him to stay in the room where nobody could take him away and knowing deep in her heart he wasn't the kind of man who would let anyone threaten his club, his woman, his freedom.

He pulled away. "Get dressed and call me when you're ready to come downstairs. I need to talk to my brothers before everyone gets here. You will be protected tonight and Deputy Williams will no longer touch you."

"What are you going to do?" she asked.

He walked to the door, turned, and lowered his voice. "What I do will never touch you, your girls, your business."

Then he walked out the door, and she was left alone to absorb the changes on her own, and she found herself stronger because he was here. She walked to the bedroom, changed into the black dress Deputy Williams requested and put Jeremy first in her life. She would do whatever he needed her to do to stop the threat against them and the ladies who worked for her.

T
iff walked down the steps to the first floor to the beat of Saving Abel by Addicted. She shivered, overcome with fear at the thought of being in the same room as Deputy Williams. Even Jeremy's hand at the base of her back failed to take the chill away.

The feeling of being led to slaughter weighed heavy on her. Jeremy refused to let her know what he planned, only that there were ten members of Moroad strategically positioned all over the Sterling Building and not to worry about tonight.

At the entrance of the room, Tiff scanned the crowd. Familiar faces blurred in her vision. So focused on finding the deputy first, she couldn't focus.

She sucked in air realizing she held her breath. "I hate this."

Jeremy's beard brushed her cheek, and he whispered in her ear. "He's not here yet, so relax."

"No, he has to be here." She grabbed the back of his vest and held on. "Someone from the department is always here. He's supposed to be here. Where is he?"

"Calm down." Jeremy motioned Cam over to him. "I want you to stay with Tiff. I'm going to go out back and talk to Bear."

Cam nodded and guided Tiff over to the corner of the room and pressed her back against the wall. On the other side of her, Merk stood watching the crowd. She fiddled with the front of her dress, hating herself for thinking if she played along with Deputy William's request and he'd mess up and approach her inside Silver Girls where she could act like he was attacking her and get him arrested.

She could call the sheriff, deny Deputy Williams accusations, and have all her problems go away. Jeremy and the Moroad members would never kill a man in front of witnesses. That was the only idea she came up with to save Jeremy and Red Light. Though the plan wasn't without its drawbacks.

Deputy Williams could still tell others about Red Light. She could only hope that the women upstairs told officers the story they were told when they were hired if ever a raid happened.

"When Jeremy was sixteen years old, I went off to prison for eighteen months." Cam's low voice rolled over her. "I barely knew the kid, and he'd made a mistake. I covered for him, so he could stay with Christina and have a chance to grow up."

Attuned to Cam's story, she lowered her hand to her side and looked at him. "You covered for him?"

Cam glanced at her. "I've watched him go from a smartass kid to a man people fear."

She looked away, ashamed that she was like everyone else, and she remained cautious around Jeremy after he returned from prison. Her fear came from being scared to death he'd leave her, not hurt her.

"Stop acting that way." Cam paused as the music changed and the new routine for the dancers started. "You're standing here shaking, frozen with fear, and it's aimed at the wrong person. You want to cower? Do it in front of someone besides Jeremy. You are the only one who never let Jeremy get away with shit. He depends on your strength, and became the man you needed while in prison because he understood what he had waiting for him at home. Don't disappoint him now."

"You hate me," she said.

"I hate that Jeremy has one weakness." Cam turned his gaze down on her. "You."

"I would never do anything to him. I'm trying to protect him, so he doesn't do something that will put him back in prison. I love him."

"He would do anything for you. The same way I would kill to keep Christina in my life, regardless if I spent time away from her. She's mine." Cam cocked his brow. "Don't let the gift of a building, the natural drive to succeed, and the bitterness of pain distract you from all that you can get,
if
you stay focused and trust Jeremy."

She sank against the wall. The gift? Bitterness?

Cam gave her too much credit and faith. She'd worked hard for everything she achieved. The ins and outs of club life were never a mystery she had to solve. She understood where she came in Jeremy's life. The club came first. She came second. A lot of the times, Lola pushed her out of position.

But, she pushed back and refused to give up on him. Was Cam telling her he supported her all these years? Had his hatred driven her to the point where she was valuable to Jeremy?

She lifted her gaze to Cam. "What am I supposed to do? I don't want to lose my business, and I don't want to lose Jeremy. I also don't want to end up in prison."

"Support him and the club and trust that he won't let you end up arrested. When he comes back with blood on his hands, you help him wash the stains away." Cam hooked her neck and gazed at her intently. "When everything is over, you look at him like he can do no wrong, and you forgive him. If you can't do that without judging his choices, sweetheart, then you need to let him go before you get him killed."

Cam let her go.

She leaned against the wall, concentrating on breathing. In and out.

There was no option for her to pick. She loved Jeremy. Trouble surrounding her drove him into protecting her, and she was grateful. Next week, next month, next year, more trouble could find her or him, and she'd need to accept his responsibilities.

The risks of running an illegal prostitution establishment always seemed less than what came along with belonging to a motorcycle club. Other women before her ran a bordello in Federal. The town thrived with the extra business, the donations, the trade. She'd taken something that had died out in the past and brought it up to date and prostitution thrived.

The music ended. Tiff looked up, surprised to find the night over. She'd spent too much time upstairs talking with Jeremy and missed most of the routines, not that she could remember watching any of them. Her mind on more important things, she barely paid attention to the crowd.

Shari led the dancers off the stage, escorting them into the hallway out of sight. Lola turned the lights on and opened the doors, smiling, flirting, and making the customers want to come back another time.

As much as she hated to admit it, Lola fit the position of Madam tonight. The admittance only made her want Jeremy back at her side.

The Moroad members remained inside, never moving from their spots in the room. Cam and Merk stayed right beside her as the room emptied. The servers set out to clear the glasses from the table, in which they loaded up in crates and would deliver to the professional dishwasher who she'd hired. Her thoughts continued to pollute her concentration.

Finally, Lola closed and locked the door. Tiff kneaded the back of her neck, needing to escape to her suite.

Lola approached her, and softly said, "Everything went smoothly. It was a wonderful performance. Shari did a great job keeping the women occupied and the customers happy."

"Thank you." The words scratched her throat.

Lola hesitantly reached out and caressed Tiff's arms. "If there's anything I can—"

"
We'll
be fine." Her jaw tightened, putting the truth out in front of everyone. Her and Jeremy were together. She belonged to him. "Listen, I appreciate you stepping up when
we
needed help tonight, but I can handle
our
business now."

Tiff turned to Cam. "I'd like to go up to
our
suite and wait for Jeremy."

Cam motioned his chin. She walked in front of him with her shoulders back and her gaze straight ahead.

When she reached the bottom of the steps, Cam grabbed her arm. She looked up into his face and followed his gaze to the back door. Jeremy escorted Sheriff Colby inside the building.

She reached out, grabbed Cam's forearm, and whispered, "What is he doing?"

"That's what I'd like to know, " mumbled Cam.

Sheriff Colby stopped in front of her, nodded to Cam, and said, "I need to talk with you."

Cam waited for Jeremy to give his okay and then walked away to join Merk. Jeremy led her over to a table close to the stage and sat her down while remaining behind her chair. His hands warmed her bare shoulders, and she put her hand over his, wanting him close.

Sheriff Colby took off his hat, sat across from her, and she watched him age. The wrinkles around his mouth more pronounced than usual, he softened his worried gaze. "I returned to the station after being at a call tonight and found out Deputy Williams never showed up for his shift or called in to get a replacement to work Silver Girls. I need to apologize for not having the establishment properly outfitted with security."

The information wasn't news to her. She worked her hands in agitation. For years, Sheriff Colby was the one person who watched over the comings and goings at Silver Girls, protected the women upstairs, the customers visiting Red Light. In return, he benefitted from the profits. Much like Deputy Williams wanted in on, except the sheriff's intent was honorable.