"Was it just me," Ten murmured to Noel, Quinn, and I. "Or was that meeting totally fucked up?"
I kept watching Mercer as he slid alongside the girl, whispering intimately, and dread coiled hard in my belly. Great, here was yet another reason I couldn't leave Forbidden. I didn't want any of the waitresses to get tangled in his web.
"Tansy!" I yelled, lifting my chin and beckoning her to me when she glanced over. All the waitresses knew I was their protector. They trusted me. So, when I called her away from that prick bastard, she sent me a relieved smile and deserted him, hurrying to me without question.
Glaring Mercer down, I curled my arm around Tansy's waist and lowered my mouth to her ear. "Do not trust that snake. He's a fucking rapist. Do you hear me?" She shivered and looked up at me with wide, brown eyes. When she nodded, I nodded too. "Don't ever let yourself get caught alone with him. And warn all the other girls too. I don't care what he says to any of you, no one talks to him alone. Got it?"
"Okay, Pick." She leaned up and kissed my cheek. "And thank you. I thought I felt a strange vibe from him, but I tried to ignore it."
"Don't ignore those vibes, honey. They keep you safe."
"No, you keep us safe, Pick. Ever since you saved me from that customer who followed me out to my car and Mandy from the guy who cornered her alone by the bathrooms, there's no one in this building I trust more than you. And if you say he's bad news, consider all of us waitresses forewarned."
I nodded, glad she'd spread the word. Now I just had to figure out how to keep Tinker Bell and my children safe.
Chapter 29
EVA
Mason text bombed me before Pick even made it home from his meeting. It was still strange to get an incoming message on my new phone. I wasn't at all the social butterfly I'd been back in Florida. But what my soon-to-be cousin-in-law wrote was even more bizarre.
"Your father is evil incarnate."
I snorted. That was the understatement of the century. "What has he done now?" Dread seized me. "Is Reese okay?"
"NO ONE is okay with that asshole still alive. He bought Forbidden."
I frowned, not sure what he meant. "What?"
"The bar where your boyfriend and I both work. He BOUGHT IT. HE OWNS IT. HE FUCKING OWNS US!"
Shaking my head, I stamped out a quick reply. "That makes no sense."
"You seriously didn't know? What is he planning to do to us? I don't like this."
"Of course I didn't know, you idiot. But I'll find out what he wants." Though I already knew.
"Good. Oh hey. Don't tell Reese about this yet. I don't want her to freak."
Oh, but he had no qualms about freaking me out. Thanks, buddy.
Pick walked in the front door, then. His eyes were hooded, but he sent me a warm smile. "There's my reason for getting up every morning." He swept toward me and kissed me sweetly.
If I hadn't just talked to Mason, I wouldn't have known anything was bothering him. He didn't let me in on any of his troubles, so I assumed he didn't want to worry me any more than Mason wanted to worry Reese.
Stupid boys. Sweet, caring, amazing but definitely stupid boys.
"How was your meeting?" I asked directly.
His eyebrows shot up. "Unexpected. Our boss sold the bar to some rich guy from out of town." Well, at least he didn't lie. But he certainly wasn't telling me the entire truth, either.
"Oh, yeah?" Hey, if he refused to tell me what he knew, I wasn't going to tell him what I knew. That way, we didn't have to worry each other.
Pick nodded, not meeting my gaze. "He's already hired someone else to run the place for him too."
My phone dinged, telling me I had another text. Pick let me check the message while he greeted the babies who were both chewing on toys together on the floor.
"Oh yeah," Mason added. "And he put Garrison in charge. She said if I quit, she'll fire Pick and all the other guys too."
My gut tightened and cold coated my skin. Hands shaking, I typed back, "Pick just got home." Maybe that would shut Mason up for a while, because I couldn't take any more distressing news. I needed some time to think about this.
"Okay, good," he wrote back. "He can tell you the rest."
But Pick told me nothing, which let me know he was just as terrified as I was.
***
We took the kids to the park for the rest of the day. Like Pick, I pretended nothing was wrong or that our happy little bubble wasn't about to pop in the loudest way possible. When we returned to the apartment, I told him I had to run an errand to the grocery story because I had a surprise for supper. Which was about as true as what he'd told me about his meeting.