Adler (The Henchmen MC 14)

"Why's that?" he asked, hand sliding across my belly. Except it wasn't even my belly. It was my pelvis, fingers just barely an inch from somewhere I definitely didn't want his hand.

"I have a lot more to show you. I mean... if you want," I added, fluttering my eyelids closed, hoping I hadn't been too bold. Bold women in casinos could easily be mistaken for whores. Not the kind who had too much to drink and not enough sex recently. The kind who made you pay for it.

"Well, I have a room just a block over."

"What are we still doing here, then?" I asked, grinding my ass back again, having to swallow back a bit of nausea when I felt his cock pressing into me.

I slid out from in front of him, feeling his hand sink into my hip as we walked out of the hotel.

I could feel the coatcheck girl's gaze on me, likely thinking that I had downgraded since coming in.

Let her think what she wanted.

But as we stepped outside, I was sorely in want of my coat.

Stifling a shiver, acting like my nipples weren't threatening to burst through my dress fabric, I let him push me down a block, looking for an alleyway, a parking lot, somewhere that wasn't crowded.

I didn't want to attract attention.

Bounty hunters without licenses weren't exactly a favorite of the cops.

I didn't need to get hauled in, to have the cops take the credit for my skip.

Seeing a space between buildings, I whirled, slamming my hands into his chest, pushing him into the alley, pressing him against the wall.

"Can't wait, can you, you little slut?"

The sleaze slipped into his voice then, making it easy to see how someone so seemingly normal could go wicked so quickly. "Oh, man. That was the wrong fuckin' thing to say," Adler's voice sounded from the mouth of the alley, making me aware that he hadn't disappeared to go grab the car, but had hung back to trail behind in case I ran into any kind of trouble.

"Who the fuck..."

I took the opportunity his distraction provided to land a scissor strike to his throat, knocking out his words, air, everything.

Which gave me all I needed.

Knee to groin.

Twice.

For good measure.

Uppercut to jaw.

Finally, fist to liver.

As much pain as I could possibly inflict in such a short amount of time.

"Hand me my wallet," I demanded, waving a hand backward at Adler impatiently. There was the barest of pauses before I felt it slam down in my hand. I flipped it open, keeping an eye on Thomas as he struggled to find breath, not even thinking of stupid things like trying to fight back.

"The fuck is that?" Adler asked as I produced a pill, slipping it into Thomas's mouth as he gasped, holding his mouth closed until I was sure it dissolved.

"Rufilin."

"Ya got to be shitetin' me," he said, but sounded more amused than anything.

"He's big and mean. It's a long drive."

"If ya were on yer own, how did ya expect to get him to the car and in it in the first place?"

"I would have left him here. Nothing new, people drunk or high losing their shit in an alley. It would take me five minutes to get my car. Ten more to drag him in. Easy enough to explain. My boyfriend or father or little brother can't handle his liquor after losing all his cash at the tables. I've even had people help me drag the guys into the car. Speaking of, can you go get it?"

"Aye. Here," he said, moving closer. I was too busy watching Thomas, never knowing how long it took the roofies to kick in, not wanting to be caught with my guard down. I didn't know what his intentions were until I felt something warm and heavy slide over my shoulders. "My jacket?" I asked, hearing the surprise in my own voice.

"Saw ya leaving. Figured I would grab it for ya in case ya were too busy to get it."

"That was..." Thoughtful. Sweet. Unexpected. "Nice," I decided on, feeling a warmth blooming across my chest, matching the cozy sensation enveloping me from the shield of my coat.

"I'll be right back. I'd tell ya to stay on yer toes, but I've seen how you handle insults. Don't want to offend ya."

Then he was off, coming back so fast that he must have ran. And schmoozed the valet.

He hauled Thomas into the backseat, securing him at the wrists and ankles with cuffs I kept for just that purpose.

"Ya wanna hang back? I'll run in and gather our shite."

So he did.

And so we went.

Back up the parkway.

All the way back to Navesink Bank.

Never saying so much as a word.

Until the awkwardness became too much to bear.

"I figured I would drop you here. Geoff needs a few to get back into the office to take him off my hands."