Deliverance (The Maverick Defense #1) (25 page)

“You’re the one who’ll regret this if you go against us,” I warned. His eyes registered surprise before I gave him a sharp shove and let go of my hold on his jacket. Because he wasn’t expecting it, he stumbled backward and landed in his chair.

“See you around, Donnie.” I turned and felt the dangerous glare on the back of my neck as I walked out of his office.

The giant from earlier was the only one waiting outside, standing motionless in his usual stance. He looked up as the door closed behind me and a brief scowl replaced his blank expression.

“Be careful, Dawson,” he muttered and pointed at a fire exit at the end of the hallway. I nodded, warning noted, and strode quickly toward the exit before I ran into anyone else. I pushed open the door, which led to the alleyway at the back of Shakers, the one where we had collected Joy hours earlier.

Fuck.

I really wanted to do him some serious damage, and I kicked the now closed steel door and leaned against it, bracing myself, palms rested on the cool metal. My lungs drew in deep breaths to calm my racing heart. It was time to face the music. I walked around to the front of the club and climbed into the truck. The drive home was much slower because I was in no rush to get my ear chewed off by Lex, and when I finally pulled up in front of the house, the lights were still on in the house. Most likely they were all still up, waiting for me to come home. After I’d killed the engine, I sat in the truck a bit longer. I had quite possibly made the whole situation worse, but I refused to let Donnie threaten us. At the sound of knocking on the passenger window, I looked up. Lex. And he didn’t look happy.

“Out,” he commanded. With a sigh, I climbed out of the truck and walked around to him. It was better if I didn’t speak because I would only make things worse. “What are you playing at, Dawson? You agreed we needed to be smarter. How many times have I told you to rein it in? This is not how we do things.”

“I know, I –”

“You went off tonight, half-cocked, on your own. What were you thinking? All because of a girl.”

“Lex …” I sighed. “Don’t start.”

“No, I am fucking starting.” He shoved me in the chest and I was not in the mood. I rounded on him.

“The rules have changed. It involves Joy now.” My index finger sunk into his chest and he looked from it up to me. Knowing he was treading a fine line, he threw up his hands in surrender.

“I hope you know what you’re doing.”

“I do,” I assured him, which was a blatant lie.

Lex rolled his eyes. “What happened to our golden rule of not making it personal? I can’t believe it’s all changing for a girl.”

“She’s not just any girl, Lex.” I pushed a hand through my hair. To my surprise, he smiled and shook his head.

“Yeah, I’m beginning to get that.” I gave him a confused look and he threw his arm around my shoulder to lead me inside. I knew he’d forgiven me, but also knew I had better not pull a stunt like that again. “You had better get in there. She’s talking about going back to work.”

My mouth dropped. “You’re shitting me?” I asked through clenched teeth. Joy was too stubborn for her own good.

Lex threw back his head and laughed. “Nope. You’re just in time.”

“A
bsolutely not,” Dawson said as he paced back and forth, refusing to look at me.

“Come on, Dawson, be reasonable,” I argued throwing Mikey and Lex a ‘help me’ look. “You can’t expect me to stay locked in here forever. I have a life, a job.”

Dawson opened his mouth to say something, but Lex slapped a hand in front of him “She has a point, man. We can’t keep her prisoner here.”

Anger rolled off him at his friend’s words, and Dawson threw up his hands “Yes, yes, we can. That’s exactly what we’ll do.”

I glanced over at Mikey. He shook his head a little—we both knew just how stubborn his brother could be. He considered his words carefully, no doubt weighing up Dawson’s response. “Come on, bro, let’s be real. Joy can’t stay here all of the time. She’d be-”

“That’s exactly what she’ll do. It’s the only way to keep her safe.”

I glared in his direction willing him to look at me, frustrated that he was treating me like a child. Dawson had been back only seconds before he stomped into the house and asked me what in the hell I thought I was doing even suggesting going back to work.

His alpha macho bullshit was getting old real quick, and when he didn’t turn his head to acknowledge me, I slammed my hand on the table. “Enough! This is
my
life and
my
decision. My job at Hank’s is the only thing I have that’s real. I won’t let you take it away from me.” My resolve wavered slightly, and I added, “Please, you can’t take it.”

Dawson raked a hand through his short hair and cursed under his breath before coming to kneel in front of me. He placed his hands on my thighs and sighed. “Do you know what you’re asking me to do? I can’t keep you safe out there, Joy. What if something happens and I’m not there?”

I tried to swallow down the tears, the thick lump in my throat, but the pain in Dawson’s eyes broke something inside me.

“Don’t ask this of me, Joy. I made a promise to myself, to you, and I intend to keep it.”

With Dawson staring up at me as if I was his world, I looped my hands around his neck and whispered, “So don’t. I trust you, Dawson. I trust you to keep me safe.”

It was unfair of me to ask it of Dawson, I knew that, but I couldn’t lose my job. It was all I had left—the last piece of me that had meaning. Reason. Donnie had taken everything else, and I refused to let him have it. He couldn’t. That job was mine.

And I was keeping it.

“Tell me again.” Dawson focused on the road ahead as he drove me to Hank’s.

I groaned, rolling my eyes. After sleeping on things and spending Sunday going over the ‘plan,’ all of his insistent precautions seemed a little over-the-top. Yes, Donnie was gunning for the both of us, but I didn’t want to believe that he would do something in broad daylight at the diner. I would be safe there. I’d go to work, do my shift, and then Dawson would pick me up and we’d go back into lockdown at the house. But Dawson made me say it again anyway.

“Fine, fine. Lex will come by after you’ve dropped me off. If he doesn’t come, it’ll be Mikey. One of you will be in or around the diner at all times. Under no circumstances am I to leave the establishment.”

“There’s still time to back out.” His voice dropped to a whisper.

“Dawson.” I reached across the cab of his truck and placed a hand on his leg enjoying the familiarity of touching him. “Nothing is going to happen to me. Donnie would be crazy to risk doing anything at the diner. Hank will be there, Betty and Reed, too. It’s a busy shift. I. Will. Be. Fine.” My voice came out strong, the total opposite to the bees swarming in my stomach.

“You have to be. I can’t let anything happen to you.” Dawson’s eyes closed for just a second and my gut twisted. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea, maybe Dawson knew more than he was admitting. But … no, he wouldn’t let me anywhere near the diner if he thought the risk was too great. He was just worrying about what-ifs, not certainties.

We rode the rest of the short distance in silence. When Hank’s came into view, Dawson slowed down and found somewhere to park. After cutting the engine, he turned to me and buried his hand in my hair, drawing me to him. His forehead touched to mine, and he said, “Do not leave the diner. For anything. Promise me.”

“I promise.”

Dawson’s lips lingered over mine, and I wanted nothing more than for him to kiss me, but since our fight, he’d stayed true to his word and had cooled off in that department. But I didn’t accept that, couldn’t accept the distance between us.

“Kiss me, please,” I whispered hoping to appeal to the hot-blooded male I knew was in there.

Dawson inched closer, our lips almost touching. Warmth spread through me and I sucked in a small breath, my heart hammering in my chest. I wanted to feel his mouth moving against mine, his strong hands threaded through my hair. I wanted him to hold onto me like he would never let go.

“We should go inside,” Dawson said, and my body sagged away from him, dejected. He smiled, and his eyes softened. I could almost see the emotion written on them because I was certain I had the exact same look on my face. Filled with everything we hadn’t said yet and three years’ worth of regrets.

Dawson held the door open for me and I slipped inside. All heads turned in our direction and I was sure I heard Old Lady Mae gasp. Uncertainty knocked at my conscience, and for a split second, I considered turning back and making a run for it. But what did I expect? Of course, they knew; everyone would know at least some sliver of the truth. News traveled fast in Chancing. People didn’t want the truth, they wanted gossip—something to keep their dull lives interesting.

“Hey, doll, good to see you looking better,” Betty called across the diner with a huge smile painted on her face. “Grab your apron and get started, we could use all the help we can get.”

I looked up at Dawson, who stood at my side, scowling at all of the attention we were garnering. “I’ll be fine,” I mouthed, smiling in an attempt to reassure him. He narrowed his eyes at me and looked about ready to say something when Hank burst through the swinging door, his eyes widening at the sight of us.

“Joy? Dawson.” He approached us, beads of sweat rolling down his balding head. “What are you doing here?” The old man ushered us to the service counter away from the stares of the customers.

“It’s Monday, my shift.”

Hank blew out a flustered breath. He was a funny sight standing there with flushed cheeks unsure of how to handle Dawson. “I thought, what with everything, and you know how he gets, I thought, I mean, not that we don’t want you here, but this is my business and wel-”

Dawson folded his arms over his chest and said, “Calm down, old man. We’re not here to cause any trouble. Joy is here to work, and I’ll be around to make sure nothing happens.”

Hank frowned and then his eyes almost bugged out as Dawson’s words sunk in. “You mean … wait, what exactly are you saying, young man? I don’t want no trouble.”

“No trouble. You have my word.” Dawson held up his hands. “I’m here to make sure trouble doesn’t find its way into your place. If I’m not here, my associate, Lex, will be. You don’t need to worry, we can handle ourselves, and we can handle Donnie DeLuca.”

Hank looked at me, and I half-smiled. He wasn’t the only one adjusting to Dawson—he was a lot to digest at times. But I guess that came from his job with Lex—the things he’d seen … done. I still didn’t understand exactly what it was he did and why, but it sounded dangerous and scary, and I wasn’t sure I really wanted to know the whole story.

“Okay, okay. I just don’t want any trouble.” Hank’s eyes remained set on me. “You do your shift and go home, right?”

I nodded and said, “Well, if you’ll excuse me, gentlemen, I have a job to do.”