“Jesus Christ,” Jord moaned and let his head drop back. “Tell me you didn’t.”
Kyle glanced at Jord and then me, seeming to take a second and then his eyes widened. “Fuck, Brody, what were you thinking?”
“He clearly wasn’t,” Ryan chimed in.
“Shut your fuckin' mouths,” I sneered, needing them to stop talking, I had enough going on with trying to take down Hut and plan to keep Lola safe, I didn’t need them to—
“What about—”
“Don’t,” I warned, pointing a finger at Jord to drive my point home. “I know what you’re going to say, so don’t waste your breath.”
“See, that just makes it even worse.” He stood, matching me in height. “You’re in this case too deep, and you goddamn know it.”
He was right, but there was nothing we could do about it. It didn’t end just because they thought it should. A conclusion wasn’t drawn until Hut was behind bars. “You know that don’t mean shit,” I sighed, already feeling like I was losing. “I couldn’t fuckin' stop myself.”
“She has a nice ass, but—”
I was over to Ryan in a second flat, my hand curling around his shirt as I yanked him forward. “Say one more fuckin' word about her. One. Just one.”
His Adam’s apple moved as he swallowed audibly. “Shit, Brody, I was just playin'.”
“Well, don’t.” I let him go, spun around, and paced along the threadbare carpet with my hands on my head. “I don’t know what the hell is happening.”
The words were true. I had no idea what was going on. The only thing I knew for sure was the way Lola’s smile had my heart racing. The anger that flowed through me at the thought of her getting hurt. And the sadness that enveloped me when I thought about this op being over. It wasn’t normal to feel like your world was crashing down around you when you thought about not being able to see someone, but that was what was happening.
“You need to get out, or tell her you’re done,” Jord said, his voice softer now.
“I know.” I let my arms drop at my sides as a breath rushed out of me. “I know.”
“Get her to turn on him. Use what you can. The sooner you do, the sooner we can all go fuckin’ home.”
He was right, I knew he was, but that didn’t mean I had to like it.
Chapter Fifteen
BRODY
The guys were right. I either had to turn Lola or get out. Getting out wasn’t an option, but I wasn’t sure what it would do to Lola and me if I confessed who I really was. I didn’t know the reaction I would get, and just the thought of her walking away from me had my chest burning with pain.
So here I was, pulling up outside Hut’s house at six in the morning to sneak Lola out. She had no idea what I had planned for today, but she needed one day just as bad as I did.
A day where the crew didn’t surround us.
A day where we weren’t wondering when the next shitstorm was about to hit.
A day where we could just be us.
I ambled over to the house and pushed through the door, silence greeting me. Hut hadn’t had many parties, not since he found out someone was skimming his product. He’d gone on lockdown, and that made way for me to achieve what I wanted to. To get closer to them without the buffer of partygoers between us.
The stairs creaked underfoot, and my stomach churned with nerves. If Hut caught me walking up these stairs, it wouldn’t mean anything good, but I couldn’t bring myself to care. I needed a day with Lola. Just Lola.
No noise came from Hut’s bedroom, so I continued past it and knocked lightly on Lola’s door. After several seconds and no answer, I knocked again, hearing a groan resound out.
“What?”
“Lola,” I whispered, my voice entirely too loud in the small space. “It’s me.”
A bang echoed from her room, followed by a click, and then her door was springing open. “What are you doing?” she whisper-shouted, her eyes wide and hair a wild mess.