“I’ll be seeing you around, Mr. Tucker.”
“Sure you will, darlin’.”
She’d turned to disappear when she heard me call her darlin’, and it didn’t take long for her to pop her head back around the door and deliver a warning. “Little tip. This isn’t 1984 anymore. You may live in small-town Texas, but the world has moved on while you guys have been lost in Babylon, singing along to Tim McGraw and polishing your biker boots and cowboy hats.” She glanced at Sutton, narrowing her eyes in obvious distaste. “Ladies don’t like to be called sweetheart or darlin’ anymore.”
“Well, I can’t see no ladies around here, but I’ll be sure to bear that in mind in the future, Miss Winnie.” I beamed, raising my eyebrows along with my chin. “It’s been real nice seeing you.”
Sutton tried to hide the way he choked a little bit on his food, covering it up with a cough while Winnie shook her head, tensed her features and walked away. The clip of her heels marching down the corridor sounded like little explosives going off in my ears.
“What the fuck is wrong with Tim McGraw?” Sutton asked with incredulity.
“Who?” I frowned.
“Never mind, you uncultured idiot.”
“She seemed nice,” I joked, thumbing over my shoulder again.
“You’ll have to excuse my ungentlemanly vocab, Drew, but that woman right there is a real fucking bitch with a stick up her ass that she ain’t getting off on.”
“No kidding.” I laughed without humor. “Not a fan of Babylon, either.”
“Not a fan of anything or anyone, especially not Babylon. In fact, the only person I’ve ever seen her being slightly friendly towards is our goddamn mayor.”
My face fell immediately. “I’ve still not seen him since…”
Howard’s eyes met mine. “Since that night. I know.”
Visions of Harry saying goodbye to me in the back of Sutton’s cruiser assaulted my mind, and just as quickly as it took a person to blink, I felt the darkness creeping up around me, starting from my toes like a black cloud of smog rising, pulling me in, making me blind with sadness and rage.
Sutton must have seen the instant switch in me.
“You know, you can’t hide out here every time you can’t face your men or your woman. It’s getting a little obvious we’re friends, Tucker. That’s as dangerous to you as it is to me, my family, my—”
“I know.” I nodded, blinking quickly to try and clear my vision. I focused on the desk between us and studied the grains of wood. “I don’t even know why the fuck I come here,” I told him honestly.
“Yeah, you do. You want to show everyone on this side of the law that you aren’t afraid and y’all have nothing to hide.It’s typical you, getting in the face of the people who hate you the most. But... you also want everyone on your side of the law to keep looking for you, knowing they’ll never think to find you here.”
“What are you? My fucking psychologist now?”
“I don’t need to be qualified to see your shit. You’re as transparent as clear water these days.”
“Fuck you.”
“You’re not my type but thanks for the burrito.” He flashed me a wink and shoved the last handful of food into his mouth, and I watched as he struggled to chew it with his too-full cheeks.
I shook my head and stood up to leave, needing to get away because, deep down, I knew he was right. With a slap on the desk, I told him of my plans to escape and pointed a finger in his face. “The minute that woman says Clint is awake…”
“I’ll let you know,” he finished for me.
“Hate you, asshole.”
“Kiss, kiss, my love.”
I walked away from Sutton’s office, and I swaggered through the police department with a weird ass smile on my face. It was bizarre to think of my former archenemy as a friend without frowning, but I couldn’t deny it anymore. Sutton was a friend. One I was glad to have on my side.
Wasn’t that a thought I never expected to have?
Once outside, I strode over to my bike, pulling my sunglasses out of the inside of my cut. I’d only just pushed them onto my face when I saw a car pulling into the parking space beside me. I didn’t recognize it immediately, but the second that vehicle came to a stop, and I saw the door begin to open, I felt myself stiffen completely.