Sinful Protector (Roughshod Rollers MC 2)

I glance at Grant. He’s giving me a hard look, his eyebrow raised. I wince. There’s no escaping that look.

“Whose apartment is this?” Grant asks.

“Allison’s,” I mutter.

“What?” Grant asks.

I glare at him. He’s doing this just to torture me, I know it.

“Allison’s,” I say, louder this time.

“Huh, I should have guessed,” Grant says cheerfully, slapping me on the shoulder. “What the hell are you doing outside her apartment? Did she throw you out on your ass?”

“No,” I snap. “If you must know, I’m just keeping an eye out.”

Grant looks confused for a moment, and then his expression clears.

“Is this about that Jesse guy?” he asks. “Has he been around here?”

“Yeah, twice,” I grumble. “Once to do some graffiti, and then next time to leave Allison an envelope of fucking photos with her eyes poked out on each one.”

“Creepy,” Grant says, making a face. “This guy sounds like real bad news, Kyle. Maybe you shouldn’t get involved. Have you called the police?”

“Allison did, about the graffiti,” I say, gesturing at the building; the letters are still there until the landlord can afford to get them cleaned off. “She said she was going to tell them about the photos. But they fucking fobbed her off last time, so I don’t think it will do much good this time.”

Grant nods grimly. While I don’t like the police because I never see them doing anything useful, Grant has an entire other reason to hate them. I’ve never figured out what, exactly, happened, but I know it has something to do with a false arrest and butchered evidence that could have cleared everything up in a heartbeat.

“Sounds like you can’t really rely on them,” he says, his voice hard. “What’s Allison going to do?”

“She’s talking about looking for a new apartment,” I say. “On Saturday night, we looked through apartments that were nearer the college, which is at least busier, even at night, but they’re all so damn expensive. She can’t afford that alone, not while she’s working a job at a fucking grocer’s.”

“Why don’t you move in with her, and pay half?” Grant says, sounding amused.

I snarl at him.

“That won’t work,” I say tightly. “I’m still a stranger, and so is she. We can’t just move in together.”

I won’t say I haven’t already considered this possibility and come up with all the reasons why it’s a bad idea right now. Allison might be okay with me occasionally staying on her couch while she’s feeling vulnerable, but that’s a little different to moving in together.

“Sorry, sorry,” Grant says, holding his hands up in a peaceful gesture. “I guess I struck a nerve. You’re right, that was stupid.”

I settle, grumbling.

“I’ll help her move when she’s ready,” I say. “Hopefully we can keep it from Jesse for as long as we can. She doesn’t have a car, so as long as he never goes inside the apartment, he’ll never know she moved.”

“What if he is going into her apartment?” Grant asks.

“I would have noticed,” I say instantly.

“I hate to say it, but no, you wouldn’t have,” Grant says carefully. “You aren’t here all the time, you know. How do you know he hasn’t been here during the day, while you’re at work?”

I turn to glare at the front door of the apartment. It’s an old building that doesn’t even have a lock, because it’s rusted through and the damn landlord is too cheap to replace it. I know Allison was going to lobby for a camera at the door, but I doubt that will ever happen.

“I don’t,” I say finally, sighing. “And I can’t be in two places at once. I wish I knew what to do, Grant. I know Jesse is dangerous, and even Allison is starting to figure that out. Those pictures…”

I shake my head. Even if Jesse was just messing around, the threat in them had been truly horrifying. I would punch him for it even if it was all just a sick joke.

But I don’t think it’s a joke. I think the threat is very real. Which is why I spends my nights outside Allison’s apartment, making sure he doesn’t get anywhere near her until she’s ready to leave.