Page 31

Chapter Thirty

Fitz

“Fitz! Come talk to me.” Sparky’s voice carried through the entire building as my phone buzzed with a text.

I love you. Just remember that. Sawyer

I was sitting at my desk, and I couldn’t keep the grin off my face. It had been a long fucking day after Sparky and I returned to the office from Mesquite to pick up my Glock 22. I was ready to go home but Digs and Leo were on a bail run to the Clark County Detention Center, and I wanted to wait until they returned in case something came in last minute.

Keats and Gree were keeping an eye out for a bailee we believed would skip town, based on past experiences with multiple offenders. The woman had a court date on Monday morning for shoplifting, her third offense. This one might send her to jail for a while.

Sheila Tucker gave every indication she might be a flight risk because she wasn’t answering calls or returning text messages when Greeley tried checking on her to see if she needed a ride to court. Keats and Gree had bailed her out, and they weren’t going to let her leave town and forfeit the bail Sparky had put up for her.

Jagger and I had volunteered to relieve them during their weekend shift of bail runs so they could keep up their vigil over Sheila. The woman had family in town where she was allegedly staying, but Sheila hadn’t shown up there. Sometimes people lied.

Sawyer and I hadn’t talked about any weekend plans, and sitting at home by myself staring at the walls sounded depressing as fuck, especially since the fight was Friday night, and we had no idea what the outcome might be.

Love you too. Call me when you can. I’m worried about you. Fitz

After shooting off the text to Sawyer, I scooted from the desk and headed to Sparky’s office. When I walked in, I wasn’t surprised to see Monty on the couch, scrolling through his phone. They were husbands and business partners. Neither did anything without the other.

“What can I do for you, Sparky? Hi, Monty.”

He put down his phone and stood from the couch, walking over to take the chair next to me. “Hey, Fitz. Jesse caught me up on some things, and I want to know what we can do to help you.”

For an instant, I was shocked, but my face had to be lit up like a Christmas tree. I wasn’t used to anyone giving a fuck about anything going on in my life except maybe my parents. For Monty and Sparky to ask if they could help was new for me.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. “I’m not sure what you can do. Hell, I’m not sure what I can do at this point. I haven’t heard from Sawyer, so I have no idea what’s going on.”

“You want us to go out to the compound with you to check on Sawyer?” Sparky’s sincerity was evident in his voice.

“I appreciate it more than I can say without embarrassing myself, guys, but no thanks. I’ve gotta trust that Sawyer will reach out if he needs me. I could, however, use a ride home if one of you don’t mind.” Sawyer had my truck because Keller had taken Sawyer’s.

“Ryan, I’ll take Fitz home and meet you at the house after we stop and have a beer at Sierra Slots. Have you heard from Hardy today? I moved some pork chops from the freezer to the fridge this morning. Think it’s too cold to grill out?”

If I could have anything close to the easy love the two men showed so freely, I’d be happy as a goddamn clam.

“We have a fresh propane tank in the garage. If you wanna grill pork chops, I’ll make it happen.” The smile on Monty’s face was sweet.

“Okay. I’ll see you at home.” Sparky stood from his chair and walked around the desk, kissing him before handing Monty his jacket.

Monty pulled on his coat and headed out. I turned to Sparky and chuckled. “You guys always get along like that?”

Sparky laughed. “Most of the time. Sometimes, I’m a cranky old pain in the ass. Ryan has the patience of a saint and a damn good sense of humor to deal with me. Let’s go.”

We said goodnight to Denise and went to Sparky’s truck. He drove us down the street to the slot bar, and we went inside.

The bartender smiled as we sat at the corner where there were no video poker machines. “Kayla, this is Fitz, one of my hunters. Fitz, this is the best bartender on South Jones.”

Kayla, a petite brunette with an infectious smile, laughed loudly. “Don’t fall for that, Fitz. This one’s a smooth talker.” She pointed at Sparky, who chuckled.

It was as carefree a laugh as I’d heard from the man since I’d started working for him. It reminded me there were people out there living happy lives and wanting to be friends, but I kept them at bay. That seemed to be a thing with me—not opening up enough with people to make lasting friendships. That was something I needed to work on.

Kayla brought each of us a pint of a local IPA and went to wait on other customers. I took a sip of the delicious brew, happy Sparky had suggested we stop for a beer.

“I’m glad you came to work for us. These younger guys get cocky and take chances we seasoned vets know are ridiculous. How’s Jagger to work with?”

Kayla dropped a rocks glass full of olives in front of us with two toothpicks stuck in one.

“Thanks.”

“Appreciate it.”

We both reached for a pick and took an olive, me trying to figure out how to answer him and wondering if he’d already had the same conversation with Jagger about me.

“Jagger’s a nice guy. He’s very professional, which is good in our line of work. The job that took us to Tahoe last week helped us get to know each other better. If we’re going to be partnered on jobs and have each other’s back, we need to learn how to work as a team. That trip helped. I wouldn’t say we’re besties like the others seem to be, but I have no problem with him.” That was the truth.

Sparky nodded. “Good. I wasn’t sure about him because I thought he might be too uptight and he wouldn’t fit in, but I’m glad to hear you think he’ll be okay.”

I took another olive and popped it into my mouth. There was blue cheese stuffed inside instead of pimento. It was damn good.

“You like working at Sparks? Is it challenging enough for you?”

I guessed this was part of my ninety-day evaluation. If it was, it was a damn fine way to do it.

“Yeah. I like it a lot. Since I started, I’ve had the chance to work with everyone at one time or another, and I think you’ve surrounded yourself with a group of great guys. Hardy’s exceptionally good at his job, and he comes through for me when I need anything. Denise is nice and does a great job, and she’s not afraid to try anything.” I meant every word. I’d owed Dallas St. Michael more than I could ever repay for putting me in touch with Sparky.

“Good to hear. I think the same thing, but I like to check in with you guys to be sure everything is going to plan. Now, are you going to the fight tomorrow night?”

“I am. Sawyer will be there, and I’ll be with him.” That was a certainty.

“Is it by invitation?”

“I don’t think so. I can check. You wanna go?” That was a surprise.

“Yeah. I thought Ryan and I might show up. After watching TJ working out at the house, I think the kid can win.”

“Me, too. I just don’t want him to get hurt. He mentioned that the guys he fought against last night didn’t stick to the rules. I’m guessing the referee has been hired by the promoters, so they might be sketchy. Personally, I wouldn’t hate it if the kid didn’t fight.” I hadn’t said as much to Sawyer, but I wanted the problem to go away.

Sparky patted my back, we finished our beers and olives, and he took me home. I was never so happy as when I saw my truck parked in the driveway.

Friday was the longest day of my life. Even with the pleasant soreness I felt when I walked because Sawyer and I had let off steam the night before, I was a ball of nerves.

Thankfully, Jagger and I had court in place of Keats and Greeley to get the bond refund documents when Jarvis Hunt showed up for his hearing. He was at the courthouse when we got there, so our work was quick. He got a fine for public drunkenness for swimming in the canal at the Venetian Hotel and Casino where the singing gondoliers were trying to give boat rides to tourists. Why young guys fell for dares from their buddies would baffle me until the end of my life.

We left the courthouse and went through the drive-thru at Dutch Bros for coffee. We took turns driving and paying for the coffee—the passenger paid—and it had worked out pretty well. Jagger pulled into a parking space so we could each doctor up our drinks.

“I heard there’s a fight tonight at the Ace of Spades Casino. MMA. One of the guys we bailed out a few months ago versus a ranked fighter. You wanna go? I heard Monty telling Leo and Digs there were still tickets available on a first-come, first-served basis so they should get there early.” Jagger put the lid on his coffee and turned toward me.

I glanced at him. “I’m surprised you’d be into something like that. It’s not a championship fight, is it? It sounded like an excuse for a bunch of fighters to get together and beat the piss out of each other to get themselves noticed by the MMA Federation. I’m not sure it’s not against the law. What do you think?”

Jagger sighed. “Maybe. Ignore me. I’m just bored and have a hard time meeting people.”

Look at me, giving out dating advice when I barely had my shit together. Speaking of dating… “Thanks for the invite, but I’m going with my partner, Sawyer Abbott. We’ll see you there, though.”

“Oh. I didn’t know you—never mind. I’m so damn sick and tired of watching what I do, where I go, and who my friends are. It’s from my cop days, and it’s a hard habit to break. I hope I didn’t make you uncomfortable. I wasn’t actually asking you out on a date. I just wondered if you’d go with me so I didn’t have to go by myself.” His expression reminded me of one I’d seen in the mirror not too long ago.

“Look, give me a ride home and go to your place. We’ll pick you up there, and I’ll be the designated driver tonight. Sawyer is the president of the Pahrump Steel Cowboys, and the fighter we bailed out works for him. His friends from the club will probably be there, and I don’t know them well, but the few I’ve met are nice. Come with us.” Lord knows what came over me, but when he grinned, I figured I’d just made a friend. It could be worse.