Ambrose (The Theriot Family 5)

I frowned at him. “You fucked me over today. You think I’ll just forget that.”

I was sure he would argue. Instead, he held my gaze. “I’ll give you one favor as repayment. Call me when you need it.”

He rose to his feet and walked off through the trees.

A shout drew my attention back toward the shed where the Theriots’ men had already done a fantastic job cleansing the area of all evidence of the day’s events.

When I glanced back toward Ambrose, he was gone. If he’d run, surely I would have heard him, but he hadn’t made a sound. He’d been walking away, moving through the trees as if following a path only visible to him. I’d only looked away for a second, but he’d disappeared.

I walked in the direction he’d been going, looking more carefully. There was no one there. He’d dissipated as if he were no more than a ghost.

“He’s the scariest one of us all,” Dax said.

I jumped at the sound of his voice. How the hell had he snuck up on me?

Because you were too busy hoping you’d get another glimpse of Ambrose’s hot ass.

“How does he do that?” I asked, gesturing toward the woods.

“I wish I knew. He makes no sound when he moves, and he can melt into whatever is around him.”

“It’s fucking impressive.”

Dax grinned. “Yeah, it is. Good of you to notice.”

“I may not like your methods, but you and your brother are excellent at what you do. I’ve never said otherwise.”

“No, but I get the impression you think Ambrose is especially good at his job… and possibly other things.”

Oh shit. I did not need Dax picking up on the tension between me and Ambrose, especially not if Ambrose hadn’t revealed he wasn’t straight to his brother.

“I think you’re mistaken about that.”

He laughed. “You’re not a very good liar. That must be a hindrance in your line of work.”

“I’m not the one who’s a criminal.”

“Aren’t you, though? You were certainly an accessory to what we planned.”

“That’s…”

“For the good of the community?”

I let out a long breath.

“So is a lot of what we do,” Dax said.

“Stealing cars helps the community how?”

“I didn’t say we were angels, but really, who are we hurting? Some other assholes who can afford a Ferrari?”

“That’s not the point.”

Dax tilted his head, studying me. “Isn’t it, though?”

“Crime is fine when the people getting hurt aren’t someone you can sympathize with? So you’re like Robin Hood?”

He snorted. “Hardly. But we’re not like Carlotti.”

Eric sighed. “Fine. I’ll give you that. You’re not the monster that man is.”

For the first time since I’d met him, Dax looked uncertain. “Let’s just say I don’t treat my friends or family the way he does.”

“Your enemies, though?”

He ran a hand through his hair. “My enemies get what they deserve.”

“But aren’t I your enemy since it’s my job to enforce the law?”

“If you come for me or my family, then you will be, but for now, you’re…”

“A friend?”

Dax wrinkled his nose. “Jesus, don’t get too excited.”

2

Ambrose

I navigated through the woods until I came to the spot where I’d left my motorcycle. I hopped on and rode full out until I reached my home in the bayou. I didn’t tell our family boss, Remington, that I was leaving. I didn’t call Dax. I just disappeared.

My family wouldn’t question it, not from me. Eric would have a lot of questions, but I had no intention of answering them. Hopefully, he’d never call in the favor I’d promised. I should’ve told him I didn’t owe him a damn thing, but he had a point, and I always paid my debts. He’d agreed to help us, and I’d lied to him.

That shouldn’t matter to me. He was fucking law enforcement, which made him my enemy, but there was something about the bastard I liked, something I liked too much.

And he was… hot. That was just an observation, though. I didn’t… I was way too old to be having a crisis about my sexuality. I’d watched my brother and my cousins come to terms with the fact that they liked men over the years, but I’d never felt anything but friendship for the men I’d spent time with. Of course I’d noticed some guys were hot. Who wouldn’t? Anybody could objectively assess attractiveness like that, couldn’t they?

I’d admired men for their strength, for their character, but I never wanted to grab a guy, shake him, then kiss the fuck out of him. That was exactly what I wanted to do with Eric.

When I’d secured my bike, I yanked open the screen door of my cabin and let it slam behind me. I needed to get drunk, really goddamn drunk. Between my disturbing feelings about Eric and the way his questions had dragged me back into the past…

I gripped the counter. No. No. No. Why did just the suggestion of those memories threaten me after so much time?