Chapter 42

WALKER

I quickly wiped the blood from my lip and pressed my knee into Hayden’s back, causing him to growl in response.

He was sprawled on his stomach on the floor beneath me, struggling to rise.

“Give!” I demanded.

“Fucker!” he spat back.

“Give,” I repeated, my voice a low growl.

“I give!”

I released him and wiped my lip again on the back of my hand.

Hayden had managed to land a solid punch before I had him pinned down.

I helped him to his feet and we shook hands, then hugged.

“You only pinned me because the floor is slippery,” Hayden grumbled.

“Sure I did,” I replied, chuckling.

Hayden moved to the fridge, pulled out two beers, and popped them open. He took a long swig from one before handing me the other. That’s when I noticed Tayla was no longer in the kitchen.

Where had she gone?

I set my beer on the island and looked around.

I slid open the deck door and found her standing there, gazing out at the sea.

The wind tugged at loose strands of her hair from her plait and she seemed lost in thought.

“Come on in, little one. You’re catching a cold,” I reminded her.

“Have you boys finished establishing who has the biggest cock?” she asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

“I told you he has a condition and the answer to that is mine.”

I watched her walk over to me and dropped my arm over her shoulder as she came back into the kitchen.

“Your lip is bleeding,” she pointed out.

I used my free hand to wipe away the blood before I leaned down and kissed her quickly on the lips.

“All better,” I laughed.

I grabbed my beer from the island and guided Tayla back into the living room, settling down on the sofa. I slipped my arm around her and pulled her against me as she turned on the television.

“I’m going in the shower!” Hayden announced, appearing out of nowhere and startling us both.

“He needs a fucking bell around his neck,” Tayla muttered under her breath.

The corners of my mouth lifted and we both burst out laughing.

Hours later, Tayla fell asleep on me. Despite my own exhaustion, I managed to lift her and carry her to my room, tucking her into my bed.

I watched her sleep for a while, feeling a strange ache in my chest.

I had never felt so many emotions for a woman before. Looking down at the sleeping figure in my bed, I knew I was completely in love with her.

My phone buzzed and I pulled it out of my pocket, opening the text.

I swore softly and got up, quietly shutting the door behind me.

I marched to Hayden’s room, knocked, and entered to find him doing push-ups on his floor.

He jumped to his feet when he saw me and I handed him my phone.

“Fuck sake! Do they know who started the fire?”

“We have cameras there so we’ll check.”

Hayden ran his hand through his hair and swore again.

“We can’t leave it, we have to go now!” he said, panic creeping into his voice.

“What about Tayla?” I asked.

“Call that prick over but if we don’t hurry then the police will be there to check things out and they’ll discover our whole stockpile.”

Hayden pulled on his clothes as I called Dominic and explained the situation.

By the time we were ready to leave, Dominic arrived through the front door.

“I’m going to start charging double for babysitting duties,” he grumbled.

“Fine. I’ll give you a pay rise but for now, watch her and make sure that prick of a cousin doesn’t come near here,” I told him, grabbing my keys.

He shrugged and went to the fridge, helping himself to my beer.

He froze as Hayden rushed past us but Hayden didn’t even notice him, he was in such a hurry.

“She’s in my room asleep. Lock up after we leave,” I instructed.

He sipped his beer and then nodded to me.

I followed Hayden out and he was already revving the jeep up as I climbed into the passenger side.

I took a gun out of my compartment and tucked it behind me.

Hayden sped down the driveway, making the tires skid as he pulled out onto the main road.

He drove fast, nearly causing two cars to crash as he ran a red light.

Twenty minutes later, we pulled up outside our dockside warehouse and made our way to the entrance.

Two of our men were coughing and catching their breath near the door and stood to attention when they spotted me approaching.

“Fire’s out, Boss,” one of them reported.

I didn’t respond and followed Hayden into the smoky building.

I coughed a few times and then heard one of the men open the shutter, letting fresh air in and the smoke out.

As my vision cleared, we walked over to the area where the fire damage was obvious.

Hayden examined it for a minute and then turned to me.

“I’d say about three grand’s worth of product is damaged but it’s not a huge loss, thank fuck,” he told me.

I nodded.

The men from outside joined us and I turned on them.

“Any of you fuckers see anything?” I snapped.

They flinched at my harsh tone and then both shook their heads.

“I was taking a piss when I suddenly smelt smoke. We came in and found a fire right here.”

Hayden poked around in the mess for a bit, pulling aside some of the damaged goods.

He held up a cheap-looking lighter and showed it to the men.

“Who does this belong to?” I barked, my anger flaring.

“We don’t smoke, Boss!” one of the men protested, clearly nervous.

Hayden bent down and examined the damage closely.

“I can smell petrol!” he declared.

Someone had started this fire deliberately.

But who?

I saw the flash of red and blue lights and growled.

The fucking police were here.

“Go in the office and check the security cameras while I talk to the police,” I hissed at Hayden.

I walked quickly and met the policemen as they approached the building.

I heard the two men shut the shutter to the warehouse with a loud slam.

I recognized one of the officers and smiled.

This was going to be easy.

“Walker?” the officer greeted me.

“Ryan? How’s your mom?” I asked.

He frowned.

“Good thanks.”

I smiled.

“Your sister and the twins?” I asked, hinting at his family.

He caught on and nodded.

“We got a call about a fire!” His partner, a rookie fresh out of training, interrupted. I glanced at his name badge and couldn’t help but smile. I knew his family too.

“How’s your...?”

“My mom? She’s good. Now, about the fire?”

“I accidentally lit some paperwork with my cigarette, but it’s all under control now,” I explained, shooting Ryan a warning glance.

“Do you mind if we take a look?”

I clenched my jaw.

“Actually, I do mind,” I said, my voice dropping a notch.

Ryan gave his partner a look, trying to signal him to back off. But the rookie didn’t catch on.

“You hiding something?” he challenged.

“No. But I know you are. How’s your drug-addict dad? Still using? It’s a shame, he used to be such a good cop.”

Ryan looked at his partner, shocked. The rookie’s face twisted into a scowl before he retreated to the patrol car.

“How do you know about his dad?” Ryan asked.

I just raised an eyebrow at him. He nodded, understanding, and returned to his car.

I knew about his dad because it was my own father who supplied him with the drugs.

Once the police were gone, I went back into the warehouse and approached the two men.

“Clean this up!” I ordered.

They nodded and got to work immediately. I headed for the office.

Hayden was sitting in the office chair, gently rocking it back and forth as he watched the monitor, chewing on pink bubble gum.

“Anything yet?” I asked him.

“Not yet,” he replied, blowing a bubble and popping it with a loud smack.

I sank into a stiff chair and closed my eyes for a moment, feeling the beginnings of a headache. I wished I was back home in bed with my girl.

“I’ve got something!”

I opened my eyes and stood up.

Hayden rewound the tape as I moved behind him, peering down at the monitor.

We both watched as a figure on the screen slipped out the back of the warehouse, clutching a gas can.

“Zoom in on his face,” I instructed Hayden.