Treachery

Storming forward, I force Clayton away from my door without having to touch him. He’s a pussy who can’t handle aggression, his feet stumbling backward to keep out of my reach.

“Who let you into this neighborhood, and what the fuck are you doing at my house?”

Gabriel throws an arm out to keep me from lunging forward again. I hate that he’s as strong as me, but at the same time, I’m grateful. In the mood I’m in, Clayton would be lucky to walk away from my house with his face intact.

What would have happened if Luca answered the door? It only drives me that much crazier to think of it.

Shaking like the scared little bitch he is, Clayton attempts to round his shoulders and square up to me, the effort to appear badass completely lost when his voice cracks as he talks.

“You haven’t been in the office and haven’t returned my calls.”

Gri

“Did you think that, maybe, I don’t give a damn about your situation right now? That it might be a seriously bad idea to come to my house and demand anything from me?”

Clayton looks like he’s about to piss his pants, his hand tugging at his collar, sweet beading down his temple.

“I need the divorce to move along faster.”

“I don’t give a fuck what you need.”

His face turns a concerning shade of red, rage filtering behind his eyes that he’s not brave enough to act on. Fidgeting in place, Clayton crosses his arms over his chest.

“My father wants-“

“I don’t give a fuck about your father either. Get the hell away from my house, Hughes. And if you so much as step a toe beyond the gates to my neighborhood again, I’ll make your life and your father’s a living hell. Don’t forget I still have several recordings you will not want leaked to the public.”

“I paid the price for those!”

“And I just changed the rules on you because you pissed me off. My suggestion is that you stumble back to your car and drive away. If I see your face again, or if you call my office before I’m ready to deal with you, I’ll make good on my threat.”

“But-“

“It’s either that or the gauntlet,” I offer. “What do you say, Hughes?”

I cock my head to the side.

“Are you man enough to take us on for a run through the woods? We stopped doing that shit a few years ago, but I’ll happily come out of retirement for you. I just happen to be in the perfect mood to do it.”

Swallowing hard, he shakes his head. “It’s fine. I’ll just leave and wait for you to call me.”

My smile is feral as I nod my head. “Good idea.”

Gabriel and I both watch silently as Clayton trips over his feet walking to his car. Every few seconds, he glances back at us, terror in his expression, his door slamming a little too hard, and his tires squealing as he finally drives away.

“That was close,” Gabriel breathes out. “You really need to deal with that problem before this blows up in your face.”

I’ve been meaning to deal with it, but I’ve been too angry the past week over our problem with the missing servers. Not only am I irate we still don’t know what’s on them, but it pisses me off more that Jerry Thornton thought he could steal something from my girl.

Thanks to Clayton, I have this problem in my face again. It’s not until now that I remember all the messages Melody left me when we were in Georgia. She hasn’t reached out to me since, but I completely forgot to return her call.

“Melody tried calling me a week ago,” I tell him. “She left me a few messages, but I’ve been too pissed off about the servers to check them or call her back.”

His eyes meet mine, and he tucks his hands in his pockets.

“I don’t know, Ta

“Would you?”

“I might,” he says matter of fact.

“I couldn’t call her back from Georgia. Not with Luca right there. She was so damn happy to be home that I didn’t want to ruin it by reminding her of this problem.”

He’s quiet for a second, scuffs the toe of his shoe over the ground before looking at me again.

“Then it’s probably a good thing Luca’s going to lunch with Ava. Gives you plenty of time to yourself to make that call.”

I growl at that, and he laughs.

“You’re only saying that to manipulate me into giving her what she wants.”

Gabriel shrugs. “It’s either that or you can explain to her that she’ll do what you say when you tell her to.”

We pause.

Stare at each other.

“I think we both know that won’t work,” I answer. “Although it would be seriously convenient if it did.”

“You wouldn’t want her if it did.”

Sometimes I hate it when he’s right.

“Fine.”

Returning inside, I sit on the couch, tapping my fingers over my leg while Luca waits for Ava.

She arrives fifteen minutes later, the two women laughing and doing whatever women do as they walk out to Ava’s car and drive away. I watch them the entire time from the front door, not liking the fact that Luca is out of reach.

But it does give me time to deal with Melody.

Dialing her number without bothering to check the messages, I run upstairs to grab my laptop to finish the documents I’ll need for court.

Melody answers on the third ring, the usual office sounds of clicking keyboards, gurgling water coolers and office gossip behind her.

“It’s about damn time you call me. Did you listen to any of the messages I left?”

Pi

“No. I thought it would be easier to call and find out what you want.”

Melody blows out a breath, clearly frustrated.

We met Melody at the same strip club as our receptionist, Roxa

Thankfully, she spared me the details of that and did what was necessary to get the recordings I need. I find it both fu

You’d think after enough of this, the guy would learn to avoid cameras.

“Listen,” Melody says, her voice hurried as she moves into a room where the background noise fades. “You need to finish this divorce up. Like now.”

I’m not shocked by what she wants. “Is fucking Clayton really that bad?”

She groans. “I only did it the first few times, then I told him I’m saving myself for marriage so it’ll be special. He bought it.”

“That’s smart.”

“But that’s not the reason you need to hurry. I overheard a conversation the other night that I shouldn’t have heard. Clayton’s dad is seriously pissed off about the interest in the divorce and how it’s affecting his campaign.”

She pauses and my fingers clamp down on my laptop. “And?”

Another breath, her voice even quieter. “Clayton is losing his mind because he’s not getting what he wants when he wants it. The pressure of his dad alone is too much for him to handle.”