“Let’s pretend I am and make my night.” He stepped over the threshold, and Max took his suitcase.
He disappeared around the corner to the guestroom and then walked out and offered Darek a seat. “So, are you going to tell me how she swindled you out of your house? I thought you kept her name out of it.”
Darek sat on the couch because he knew the recliner was Max’s favorite chair. “I did, but we borrowed money from her father, and I trusted her not to default on the loan, which she did about the same time she met Rick the Dick.”
Max plopped down in his recliner and threw his feet up. “That’s brutal. What a bitch. She’s had that planned for some time, I’d bet. Probably when she and daddy laid out the terms of that loan. Why would you need to borrow money from that sack of shit anyway?”
“Remember when I told you she wanted to open up that day spa? She borrowed from him then, and when it didn’t go through, I thought she gave it right back, but it seems she’s been carrying a note to bide time for a default. I’ll get her in the end.”
Max shook his head. The guy had warned Darek, and now, he wished he’d listened. “I hope you do. You better get an attorney. Someone brutal.”
“I have just the man in mind, but I’m not sure he’ll take my case.” He figured Bay would, just so he’d owe him, but he might think it’s too big of a risk with the ongoing investigations getting too close to home.
“You better grab him before Daddy Warbucks does. You don’t want her mopping the floor with you.” He grabbed the TV remote. “Want to watch Die Hard? I know it’s a favorite.”
“Whatever, man. I might just go to bed.”
“Suit yourself. I’m going to watch it for the hundredth time.” He chuckled and turned the TV on. “I laid out some fresh sheets, and there’s a quilt you can use on the back of the thing. Let me know if that pillow is good enough. I have five more on my bed.”
“It’s good, and thanks again, friend.”
“Hey, what’s the best man for, anyway?” He gave Darek a wink and then turned his attention to his movie.
Darek headed into his room, and after making his bed, he decided to message Lizzy and see if she was up. It was too late to call, but a text could come at any time, and she could ignore him if she wanted. He figured that was what she probably did anyway. He tapped his phone to life and paused his thumbs. He had no idea what he wanted to say.
He sighed, and with a what the hell attitude, he typed: Can’t sleep, thinking about this case.
What’s on your mind? popped up on his screen.
For starters, Max’s futon is lumpy.
She sent an emote for confused. Are you sleeping with Max? lol
Haha. Wife took the house, kicked me out.
That’s the saddest thing I’ve heard. It almost makes me want to give you that kiss.
His heart raced as he read the message, and the blood swelled his dick. His phone pinged again, and he glanced down to see one word: Almost.
“Fuck.” He worked his thumbs along the keypad. Is that a maybe?
Go to sleep, Darek.
He turned off his phone and turned off the lamp. She was going to be a challenge, but he was up for it.
23
Darek
The next morning, Darek knew he’d screwed up again with Lizzy. She’d been giving him the cold shoulder and then had taken off on her own for a meeting with Reed that apparently, he wasn’t invited to. He was just about to see if Max wanted to hang for lunch when he got a text from the unknown number. It read one word: Bakes.
He gathered his coat and coffee and headed out to see if it was Tad alone or with one of the other guys. With Alan Lowe in town, and his meeting inevitable, it could sure save him some time if it were him.
When he got to the place, he realized they were just opening, and the lunch crowd hadn’t quite arrived.
Tad stood at the front desk and motioned to the back section. “Table in the corner. I’ll be with you in just a moment.” He handed Darek a menu as he passed, and before he got to the table, he glanced behind him to see that Tad was already on his way.
“Is there a reason you called me down here?” Darek took a seat, and Tad slid into the chair across from him.
“Yeah. I was thinking about last night.”
“And?”
“Bay’s a real asshole when he wants to be,” Tad said. “I’m not admitting anything out loud, but you’re not a dummy, and he knows it.”
“The guy doesn’t like me much.”
“He doesn’t like anyone. But it seems as though we’re stuck with him, right?” He raked his hand through his hair and tucked his chin. “He saved my ass, not just this time, but before. I was into some pretty terrible and humiliating shit that I’m not proud of or prepared to discuss out loud, but Bay came and pulled me out of it. Him giving me this job was my last big favor, or so he says.”
“Yeah, I might need a favor from Bay,” Darek said. “I need a divorce lawyer. A brutal one.”
“Oh man. You won’t get better than him, but it’s going to cost you, and I’m not talking about money.” He glanced around as if he were afraid of them being caught together, like Bay Collins had eyes everywhere. And at his own restaurant, perhaps he did.
“I’m not even sure he’d take my case,” Darek said.
Tad laughed. “Trust me; he would. You know, I caught what he was saying about your old man. That’s what he had on your before? How your dad treated you?”
Darek nodded and gave a shrug. He didn’t care who knew that shit anymore.
“The old threats don’t work anymore for him,” Tad said. “That’s why he threw it out there. He used to call me Pretty Boy, and yeah, he still does, and it’s exactly why he put me out front here, but he’s had to find new secrets to hold over us. That’s why he’s willing to help. The old threats are outdated. Now that we’re older, that old shit just doesn’t matter anymore. You know what I mean?”
Darek knew if he called Bay, there would be a new reason to be in debt to him. He had to decide what was more important to him, his home, or his soul.
Tad leaned closer. “Is it true that you take meds and blackout?”
“I get lost in my head at times, but I don’t black out like he says. It’s more like I have trouble focusing, or I get caught up in a daydream. This case is triggering it. Bringing a lot of shit back. But don’t worry, I know what’s real and what happened. Enough to know I didn’t act alone. Is this why you wanted me to come down here, Tad? To ask me if I’m crazy?”
“No, I think you’re the sanest one of us. That’s why Bay hates you. You went back and tried to help that girl, and you didn’t even think about the consequences. Bay’s hated you since. He thinks that you messed up the mojo of the sacrifice. He wanted her to die. He thought it would give us power. He really believed that shit.”
“Didn’t you?”