“Actually, I came by to see if you were free Saturday night. I’d love to take you to dinner.”
“Oh. Well . . .” Micah’s command to stay away from this guy came back to me all of a sudden. I’d initially thought he was marking his territory in some alpha caveman sort of way, but I remembered the look on his face when he’d issued the order, and I could have sworn I’d seen something other than jealousy there.
My gut instinct was screaming that something was majorly off here. I just didn’t know what it was.
Before I had to make up a lie or turn him down in front of an audience, Sylvia spoke up. “How sweet. Unfortunately, she already has plans on Saturday.” She looked at me with that arched brow. “Remember, sweets? We have you and Ivy’s welcome cookout. Practically the whole town’s coming.”
“Of course!” I said loudly as relief washed over me. “Things have been so crazy, that totally slipped my mind.”
“I bet they have,” Sage murmured under her breath with a mischievous grin.
I chose to ignore her and looked back to Greg, who was staring unhappily in Sylvia’s direction. The expression on his face sent an unpleasant chill down my spine. “I’m sorry. But I really appreciate the invitation,” I told him, trying to lighten the sudden tension crackling in the air, while hoping to move him out the door faster.
He turned back to me, the displeasure gone from his features in an instant and replaced with the charming smile he’d walked in wearing. “That’s all right, beautiful. There’ll be other weekends.” He took a step back, rapping his knuckles on the counter. “I’ll see you soon. Enjoy the rest of your day.”
“Yeah, you too.”
He turned and headed out of the shop without acknowledging anyone else.
Ivy went back to acting like her normal self almost as soon as the door closed behind him, and Sylvia didn’t say anything about her odd behavior, so I chose to brush off the uncomfortable feeling clinging to my skin and pretend everything was perfectly normal.
Ivy pulled Sage across the shop to show her the fairy garden she and Sylvia were making, leaving me and Dani alone at the counter. I twisted my head, prepared to speak, when she started before I could.
Leaning in close, she lowered her voice to a whisper and said, “Be careful, Hayden. That’s the kind of man you don’t want attention from.”
A chill burrowed its way beneath my skin. “What do you mean?” I asked, keeping my voice as quiet as hers.
“I’m sorry but I can’t say. Please, just stay away from that guy, all right? He’s dangerous.”
I felt the tiny hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. I wanted to probe further. I wanted to demand answers, but I could see worry etched into her pretty face. She wanted to say more, but for whatever reason, she couldn’t.
Instead of pushing, I nodded, promising, “Okay, sweetie. I’ll stay away.” I reached across the counter to give her hand a reassuring squeeze, causing her shoulders to sink in relief.
“All right, good.” The concern quickly melted away, just like that, replaced by feminine curiosity. “Now tell me about you and Micah.”
Chapter Fifteen
Micah
The crime scene was lit up by the time I put my truck in park and killed the engine a little after one in the morning.
The area had been taped off and there were uniformed officers and crime scene techs canvasing the area.
I climbed out of the truck and slammed the driver side door. Leo was already heading for me by the time I ducked under the tape. “They got an ID yet?” I asked as soon as he was within hearing distance.
My partner’s jaw clenched, the muscle in it ticking violently. “Victim’s name is Evan Webb. Meth dealer out of Grapevine.”
Goddamn it.
Evan Webb was one of the names Charlie had given us, the dealer who was working in Cormack’s operation. If Leo and I had pulled him in without cause, it would have sent up red flags, so we had Linc send in a few of his guys. The lead hadn’t given much in the way of names, but we found out the operation was much larger than we’d originally anticipated, spanning across three towns, with cops from Hope Valley, Hidalgo, and Grapevine involved, as well as your run-of-the-mill, low-life dealers.
Linc’s team cut the kid loose with a warning they’d be back for more, so he needed to do a little digging unless he wanted them to rain holy hell down on his life. Evidently, Evan Webb hadn’t been very good at covert.
“How was it done?” I asked as we moved toward the body.
“Single shot to the head, execution style. He was dead before he hit the ground. We have to wait for ballistics, but looks like he was done with a .45.”
Same caliber as the gun that had killed Darrin Callo. Someone was tying up loose ends.
I let out a curse under my breath and raked a hand through my hair as I scanned the faces around the crime scene. Greg Cormack wasn’t anywhere to be seen. “All right. Let’s work the scene.” I lowered my voice and added, “Put in a call to Linc. Know it’s late, but we meet in an hour.”
“And her?” he asked, referring to Charlie in a hushed voice. “You think she’s safe?”
I didn’t have a fucking clue at that point, and it was twisting me into knots. “If she’s not, she will be. As of this moment, she’s done. Even if that means we gotta have Linc lock her ass down somewhere until it’s over.”
As it turned out, Charlie had been safe. She’d been asleep in her bed when Dalton let himself into her house and all but threw her ass in his truck and drove her to Alpha Omega where the rest of us were waiting.
You wouldn’t have known it by looking at her—what with her petite frame, long dark blonde hair, button nose, and pixie features—but this girl could be hard as stone when she was in the mood to be, and judging from the way she burst into the conference room in Lincoln’s offices, she was in the mood.
“What the hell?” she snapped the minute her eyes landed on Leo and me. “You know, cops or not, having your boy break into my place in the middle of the night and take me against my will is still illegal. And a felony!”
“Sit down,” I grated, curling my fingers into the arms of the chair I was sitting in.
“Screw that! Are you trying to blow my cover? Cormack could’ve had one of his goons watching my house!”
“And they wouldn’t have seen a thing,” Dalton gritted out.
She shot him a scathing look. “Yeah? You and Harry Potter tight? He let you borrow his invisibility cloak or something?”
One of the most annoying things about Charlie Belmont was her ability to be funny while still pissing you off. I wanted to laugh at the same time I wanted to cuff her to the table so she couldn’t get away.
“Lose the attitude, Thumbelina,” Dalton clipped.
“Eat me, man bun,” she fired back.
I finally snapped when the two of them started going at each other. “Enough!” I bellowed, shooting up and slamming my hands down on the table. She clamped her mouth shut instantly, giving me wide eyes. “Sit the fuck down and listen, Charlie.”