“Where do we go from here?” Asher asks.
“Well, I’m going to give the information to Matthew and let him handle how he tells Letty.” Jude does me a solid. I’d like to get this out of the way, close an open door that shouldn’t be left swinging open.
“The guys her stepdad owed, where are they?” That’s what has me in a fucking mess. The group knows about her slashed tires, and soon, I’ll have to tell Letty about them. But not until we know who did the damage first.
“No sign of them. They aren’t looking for her. They got their pound of flesh in the form of taking out Joshua, took what was of value to pay off his debt, and went back into whatever hidey hole they came out of. I also have tabs on them, and they’ll remain until you tell me otherwise.”
“That’s a fucking relief. Safe to assume the goon squad, as Letty calls them, dabble in some not-so-friendly shit?” I ask.
“She really calls them the goon squad?” Tys asks with laughter in his voice.
“Yeah, she does.” I shake my head.
“Your woman’s a total goof. Macie and her together, that’s gonna spell nothing but trouble. When you add in the others, we’re gonna have our hands full,” Tysen surmises.
“Shit, adding another one will only add a little bit of spice to life.” That comes from Johnny, as if he isn’t as crazy as the women in our group. His nephew, well, more like his adopted son, has a drum set and electric guitar and willmore than likely own a full setup before too long. Sebastian has made noise about starting a band, and I can only imagine what Johnny does next.
“When are you bringing her around?” Jagger asks.
“The goon squad, as Letty calls them, are more along the lines of book sharks but tend to dabble in the drug trade as well. Which we all know can be a domino effect into darker shit,” Jude interrupts the conversation with an answer that sets my teeth on edge. The need to drive to whatever house she’s cleaning, demand she come home, and keep her locked in the penthouse for all of fucking time almost overwhelms me.
“Fuck, man,” Crew says what I’m thinking.
“That’s about the size of it. As far as bringing her around, that’ll happen as soon as I convince her to quit working and go back to school to get her teaching degree she was after. Though, Letty missed her calling, because she’d put Tys’ mom to shame, and that’s not me being a dick, either. She can cook a damn fine meal, plus bake.” I look at Tysen, and he has a grin on his face.
“Those are big shoes to fill,” Asher says with a smile.
“At least she can actually work in a kitchen. How many times did this guy almost burn the meat on the grill? I thought he’d live on takeout forever,” Jagger repeats similar words I said to Letty not long ago.
“Alright, well, here’s the plan. Matthew talks to Letty, they reach out to the private investigator, or bypass him altogether, because my last search just came back, and I found the attorney he’s working with. They get that squared away soon. Then, on the next available Sunday, we do things at myhouse. Pretty sure it’s been my turn for a while, and Rory likes having all the littles to hang out with.” Jude rolls his head from side to side, cracking his neck in doing so.
“Works for me. Hate to cut this short, but Lennie is at home with the girls. It’s my day off, and she needs time out of the house. Being a nursing facility isn’t easy, and while she loves being a mother, it’s not her only identity.” Asher stands up and makes his rounds of shaking our hands, clapping someone on the back, and the likes.
“I guess it’s that time. Macie is at home napping, and with us about to be grounded for the remainder of her pregnancy, it means Operation Get-the-Nursery in order.” Tysen stands up, and Jagger does the same.
“I’ve got to get to a jobsite to give an estimate. Let me know if you need anything. We’re all there for you and your woman, no matter what,” Jag says.
“Thanks, I appreciate it,” I tell him, shaking his hand.
“And with that, I’m off, too. Foxy is training a new bartender during the day, and there’s nothing better than watching her work behind the bar. Plus, I might stop by and get some more ink from Zane.” I’m pretty sure Jude doesn’t have much more room on his body for another tattoo, but maybe there are places I don’t know about. And I’m not willing to ask, think, or learn, either.
“Thanks for taking care of everything. Appreciate it a whole fuck of a lot.” I stand up to hug Jude, clapping him on the back.
“Anytime, you know that. We all have each other’s back, and that’s how it’ll always be,” he reciprocates my sentiments.
“What about you. You heading out?” I ask Crew.
“Fuck no. I’m not going back to work. Not now, maybe not ever at this rate. Jesus,” he says with a grumble.
“You two got two options: stay here and lock up or get the hell out. I’m heading home to my wife while Seb is still in school. We’ve got a matter of months before our alone time is limited.” Johnny grabs his phone, wallet, and keys from his desk.
“Come on, I’ll take you out to lunch,” I offer Crew, and he nods in acceptance.
“Sounds good to me. Have fun, Johnny. Give my love to Winnie and Seb,” Crew replies.
“Thanks for holding the meeting here. It would have looked bad to have my secretary clear my schedule only for a pile of vehicles to pile in and use my office.” Not to mention my secretary would have my ass with how loud it’d be while she answers phones and dodges clients.
“Bud, I’d give you the keys if you’d take them.” Johnny has offered it to all of us.
