Page 28 of Link (Dragon Riders MC 1)
I wanted to press him further on what he was talking about. But I’d always been able to trust Ash. So, I left it in his hands.
“All right. That’s the only thing I wanted to speak with you about. I want the guys focusing on helping Hope while the two of us look at it from a big picture point of view.”
He nodded. “Good thinking. But a word of advice?”
“You know I’m always open to it.”
“Be careful with mixing business and pleasure, Boss. It rarely ever ends well.”
I watched Ash open the stockroom door and head back out into the bar. But his words rooted me to my place. While I wanted to shrug them off, wariness blossomed in my gut. That man had always been able to read people like a fucking book. And he read me as if I had sprawled myself out on the floor and verbally dumped my life into his lap.
He was right. And I needed to make sure I kept my head in the game.
Unless I want someone to get hurt.
I drew in a deep breath before making my way out of the stockroom. I saw Ash sitting down at the table with Bowser and the gang, and they were already jotting things down onto napkins and such. I closed the door behind me and made my way to the front door, not wanting to interrupt my guys. They had this under control. They knew what needed to happen.
So, I took the liberty of telling Joanna the good news.
It didn’t take much to figure out where she worked. After straddling my motorcycle and putting my helmet on, I pulled out my phone. After searching “Joanna, lawyer, new york,” only three names popped up. A divorce attorney, an environmental law specialist, and her. The woman who had wrapped herself around my soul and refused to let go. Like a boa constricting the life from my veins.
I pressed the “directions” button on my screen to get a feel for where her office was established.
Then, I sped off into town.
After parking my bike, I walked in through the front door. And the lack of furnishings or even a secretary caught me off-guard. The front room looked abandoned more than anything else. And the lack of pictures on the walls—or any decorations for that matter—was unnerving. How in the hell did she do business in a place like this? If I was searching for a criminal law lawyer to help me with shit, I sure as hell wouldn't attempt anything with someone located in a building like this.
“Hello?” Joanna called out.
Her voice pulled me from my trance, and I followed it down the hallway.
“Hello? Is anyone there?”
I wanted to surprise her. Until I heard the cock of a gun.
“Joanna? It’s just me,” I said.
She paused. “Link?”
I saw her shadow moving before she stepped out of her office. The pencil skirt she wore today clung to her curves, making my mouth water as her blouse fluttered with the air conditioning. I saw the pistol at her side. Cocked and ready to blow. But after laying her eyes on me, she quickly uncocked it and holstered it behind her.
“Guess I’m a bit jumpy,” she said.
I nodded. “Understandable.”
She furrowed her brow. “What are you doing here? Is everything okay?”
“Can we speak in your office?”
Something flashed behind her eyes, but I wasn’t sure what it was. She wasn’t scared. Or upset. Or annoyed. But she wasn’t happy, either. Still, she ushered me into her office and closed the door behind me.
Then, she held out her hand. “Please. Have a seat.”
I shook my head. “I’ll stand, if that’s okay.”
She placed her gun on her desk. “Whatever makes you comfortable.”
“I wanted to come by and tell you that I met with the guys.”
She shuffled some papers around. “Oh?”
“And they’ve agreed to help. All of them.”
She refused to look at me. “That’s good. Thank you. Just let me know your rate and I’ll find a way to pay you guys.”
“It’s fine. I’ll take care of that for them.”
“I’m not going to let you do this without me paying you.”
“And I’m not going to speak with you another second until you look at me.”
Her entire body froze as I stood there, waiting for her to simply grace me with her eyes. I narrowed my own as she shuffled on her feet, raising her gaze to the wall. She looked over my shoulder, almost as if she were steeling herself against something.
But when her eyes met mine, I figured out why.
“Yes, Link?” she asked.
Her nipples puckered through her bra in my purview. She licked her lips as her eyes fell to my own, before quickly darting back up to my stare. Her pupils blew wide, gobbling up the beautiful brown of her irises and betraying what she really wanted.
