“Well, look who made it,” Jason said, a smug grin on his face. “Where’s your girl?”
“Who’s my girl is more like it,” Tanner muttered, running a hand through his hair.
Just who was the beautiful woman with the amazing laugh who could play video games like a champ, inhale pizza and cake pops, and make him hard at just the thought of her? He still hadn’t plumbed the depths of her and he wanted to know more. But could he take the risk of being hurt when she discovered his past?
Jason narrowed his gaze, but before he could question Tanner, Landon spoke. “Am I the only one out of the loop?” Landon asked.
Jason grinned. “Tanner met a woman last night. Took her upstairs. Spent the day with her today. Apparently something happened since to throw you off your game?”
Both men looked to him.
Tanner rolled his shoulders, the movement not easing the tension a damn bit. “She’s a fucking assistant district attorney. Not just a lawyer but a prosecutor.”
He let the words settle, and each man took the time to put the pieces of Tanner’s obvious feelings together.
“So? You’re a club owner. Big fucking deal.” It didn’t shock Tanner that Jason, the happily settled one of the bunch, could see past the issues inherent in Scarlett’s career.
“Your past is your past, Tanner. Let it go,” Landon said.
Tanner frowned. He didn’t need them both ganging up on him, even if what they said jived with what was in his heart and what he really wanted. Since childhood, he’d been told he wasn’t good enough. He’d never make something of himself. He’d nearly proven his father right. It was thanks to these men that he’d pulled himself up from the depths of his despair after Levi’s death and the anger that had consumed him. Could he listen to them now?
“What if she won’t—or can’t—live with who I am?” Because in his experience, good girls didn’t go for bad guys, and with his record, expunged or not, she deserved better than a guy like him.
“Who you were. And for understandable reasons.” Landon, who’d lost his twin, strode over and put hand on Tanner’s shoulder. “You’re not that guy anymore.”
“And you’ll only know what she can handle if you’re honest.” Jason eyed him with understanding. “It’s not easy to lay it all out there. I know. But it’s worth it if she comes around.”
“And if she doesn’t, she isn’t worth it,” Landon said.
Jason nodded in agreement.
“I’ll think about it.”
“Don’t think, do,” Jason said.
“In other words, don’t be a pussy.” Landon chuckled and Tanner shot him an annoyed glare.
But the guys had a point. A look at the monitors downstairs showed him what they’d accomplished. How far he’d come. If Scarlett couldn’t see him for the man he was… Well, he wouldn’t go there. He also had to overcome her resistance to making time for him in her life.
He was up to the challenge. Because he didn’t think he could let her go without trying his damndest to see what could be between them. But she’d asked for time and he felt they both needed it.
“Now on to other subjects, any news from the security company or is it time to hire someone else?” Tanner asked.
At the question, Landon strode back to his desk, picked up a sheet of paper, and returned, placing it in front of Tanner. “Bastard was wearing a hoodie and kept his face turned away from the cameras.”
“Fuck.” Tanner slammed a hand on the desk.
“We’re careful. We’ll get him,” Jason said. “Gabe’s pulling his PI in on things. Jack Renault is the best.”
“Good,” Tanner said with a definitive nod. If Gabriel Dare recommended him, Tanner trusted the man’s judgment.
Back when Tanner had gotten himself thrown in jail for assault, Gabe, Jason’s cousin, had pulled in favors with some very important people and gotten him an executive pardon and Tanner’s convictions went away. It’d been legal, if one counted pulling strings legal. But that was the way of the world. It was all in who one knew.
Tanner had promised everyone they’d never have an issue with him again. And they wouldn’t. He’d always hold his temper in check. Therapy and learning about himself assured him of that. Not that he didn’t get angry at times, but the fury over Vic, who’d caused Levi’s death, was under control because the man was behind bars. And Tanner no longer had a record that would have kept them from opening the club together because he wouldn’t have been able to legally get a liquor license. He’d always owe Gabe for what he’d done for him back in the day.
He glanced up at the guys. “We remain vigilant. And meanwhile, we go about business as usual.”
* * *
Being a lawyer wasn’t all courtroom dramatics like it was on television. It was more about paperwork, research, and more paperwork, interviewing witnesses, and very little sleep. And yet, with as busy as Scarlett had been, she couldn’t stop thinking about Tanner. One week had passed since she’d seen him, and though he’d said he’d back off, his qualifier had stayed with her.