He held her for five seconds. Then, as if realizing what she was doing, she jerked away from him. The moment was over.
“Sorry, I… uhh… we... Right, the note. I was asking what the note means?” She handed the now crumpled piece of paper back to Jaxon.
Forcing himself to think past the “moment” they’d just had, he took the note back.
“Could be a prank,” he said, knowing full well it wasn’t.
He scanned the alley, and that is when he saw the man standing at the far end. Only a small amount of light reached down there, but it was enough to highlight the crisp, button down shirt, the well pressed slacks, and the smiling face of the General.
How the fuck was the General standing there instead of being on house arrest at Graceview Estates? Jaxon’s stomach twisted hard. He instinctively stepped between the General and Tazzy, holding her behind him. “What are you doing? Let go of me,” Tazzy shouted.
The General smirked and disappeared around the corner, calm as you please. As much as Jaxon wanted his hand on the General, chasing after him wasn’t an option. Not if it meant leaving Tazzy unprotected. For all he knew, the General could be luring him away so someone else could get to her. No, he was staying right here with his Little girl, where he belonged.
Tazzy had taken to wiggling her hips back and forth against his ass, doing her best to get free. Turning around, he took her hips in his hands.
“Careful with those,” he said, squeezing them just to watch her reaction. “You might get more than you bargain for.” He proved his point by pulling her closer, knowing she would catch his meaning by the bulge behind his zipper.
Her face turned the most adorable shade of rose as she shoved his hands off her, crossing her arms across her chest.
“What was that all about?”
“Nothing, just thought I was something for a moment.”
She didn’t look convinced. It was time to change the subject.
He frowned back down at the note, turning it over, and his fingers stilled.
“What?” Tazzy asked.
“This paper…”
“What about it?”
“I saw paper like this at Sabre Security.”
Her brow scrunched. “What?”
“Never mind. I need to keep this note to check something out. It’s nothing.” No way was he going to scare her.
But it wasn’t nothing, even if he wasn’t sure exactly what it meant. There was a watermark on the back of the paper. One he’d seen before on the legal pad Dax had brought with him the day before.
That meant he had things to do. Reid needed to know about the General. Jaxon needed to talk to Gage about Dax. Then he needed to talk to Dax and find out who had access to the paper with that watermark.
Jaxon might not know exactly what was going on, but one thing was certain. That damage and message might have been to Tazzy’s car, but the General meant the warning for Jaxon.
That would not stand.
But first things first. “Tazzy, give me your keys,” he said, holding out his hand.
She looked at him with suspicion. “Why?”
He let out a frustrated sigh, something he seemed to be doing a lot of recently. “I want to check your car and make sure it’s locked. Then I need to take you home. If I have the keys, I can get Reid to haul your car to Winnie’s garage so she can fix the tires.”
“I don’t have the money to?—”
“Yes, you do.” He said in a tone that brooked no argument. “We’ll go home on my bike. I’ll call Winnie on the way, and we can drop off the keys. That way, she can take care of it.”
He knew by the snap in her eyes that she was going to argue. “If we’re both on your bike, I can keep my keys and hand them to her myself.”