Page 121 of Guitars and Cages

“You tell me about Catfish, all of it, what you owe him and why, and we’ll put our heads together and figure out a solution.”

“The only solution is to pay him.”

“We’ll talk about that once you tell me all the details.”

“Okay,” I said. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “When I wanted to save Ghost, I went to Catfish to get a fight. He sent me where I needed to go, but he made me promise that after that I would borrow whatever money I needed, instead of fighting for it. I knew if I did that, he’d never let me pay it back in cash, so I wasn’t going to fight again. Once Travis hired me, it was easy to not have to think about fighting, until Morgan told me he was in danger of not making the taxes and potentially losing the bar. The last thing Rory needs in his life right now is more change. That poor kid has been through enough, and if I did have the ranch I’d take him back to Nebraska and raise him there, because the city isn’t where he belongs, either.”

I sighed before continuing. “I went to Catfish and asked for a fight, hoping he’d let me have it despite our deal. He didn’t. He got mad, said he didn’t like when people didn’t keep their word. So he gave me the money and told me if I still wanted to fight I could, but I’d still owe him his cut for the fight, too. I took the fight because I’d promised you that you could come and get your photos, and I’ve been trying really hard to keep the promises I make.”

“Fuck,” he said. “Dammit, I wish you’d have told me the full cost of it. Those pictures weren’t worth it.”

“They were to me, because at least I could help you with something instead of you always helping me.”

“So how much exactly do you owe Catfish?”

“Originally, twenty-seven hundred. Now it’s fifty-four, and he won’t take a dime of it in cash.”

“Jesus, and how much does he take off when you go see him?”

I looked away.

“Asher, dammit, stop trying to hide and tell me.”

“A hundred. He’d wipe it all if I said I’d work for him.”

“That isn’t going to happen; you’re not going back to him. Does he know how to find you?”

I thought hard, but I couldn’t remember ever telling him where I worked, or where I lived. I hadn’t wanted him to be able to find me.

“No, he doesn’t have a clue how to find me.”

“Good. Just steer clear of that place for now, and maybe you should think about sticking close to someone when you’re not at work. You could always come over here and we could hang out and watch movies.”

I smiled. “I’d like that.”

“So would I. Just, I think I can pass on the action movies for a while.”

I couldn’t resist laughing at that. “So can I. How about some good comedies? I’ll bring the pizza and Chinese.”

“Okay, but not every night. I can cook; you’ll have to let me make us something.”

“Sounds good, maybe—uhh, I can’t cook worth a damn, maybe you can teach me to make something easy.”

He grinned, his eyes lighting up. “Sure, and I’ll even make sure to thaw the meat before you get here.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at that, even though it was painful, and soon he was laughing, too.

Chapter Forty

Conner had insisted on breaking out the first-aid kit, but we had an awkward conversation about me not letting him take care of the cuts and gashes, even with gloves on.

“It’s the same precautions they take at the hospital,” he insisted.

“Yeah, well, they get paid to take risks at the hospital. I know where I’ve been, and you’re not touching me. I’ll clean them.”

“Fine, just make sure you do a good job.”

I took the peroxide and cotton balls from him, grinning at the way he was scowling at me; he was really hot when he was scowling. “Yeah, yeah.”