Page 7 of Lane (East Dremest Mafia #5)

RAIDEN

“With me, Lane,” Jordan growled the moment the door closed behind us and we were outside. “You too, Raiden. You’ll keep me from killing him.”

“I’ll just…” Oleander thumbed over his shoulder toward the Navigator. Lane handed him a case, so Oleander had them both to store in the SUV.

“Mr. Everhart, so good of you to join us on our drive home,” Albert said. How that man maintained his cheery attitude driving Jordan around was anyone’s guess. Although, I enjoyed it when he riled Jordan up.

I slid into the front passenger seat as usual, my blood pumping in a mix of anger and jealousy.

I couldn’t let it show. Lane wasn’t mine to yell at or stake a claim on.

The scene with him on Jack’s lap solidified how much I wanted Lane though.

And how much I didn’t want him sleeping with Jack or anyone else. Fuck, I was so messed up.

Once the doors were shut and Albert pulled out onto the street, I clenched my fists in my lap and waited for Jordan to unleash on Lane.

At the end of the meeting, Jordan got what he wanted, but it wasn’t done under his control.

The man was power-hungry. Having Lane help, I wasn’t sure what to expect from Jordan.

“What in the holy fuck was that?” Jordan growled. “You not only landed on my buyer’s lap, but you called him Daddy. Jesus Christ, Lane! I don’t know what the fuck to do with you now. No one gave you the go-ahead to take over and handle the goddamn deal for me.”

“I went with my gut.” His voice shook slightly.

“That’s what you’re going with here? Not, I’m sorry, Jordan, for steamrolling into your negotiation and letting Jack eye fuck me for the rest of the room to see? Not, I wanted you to get the most from him?”

“I did though. That’s why I helped.”

“I want to hit you so fucking badly right now, but I’m going to refrain. I’m afraid if I do, Raiden will climb between the seats and come for my throat. I shouldn’t worry about what he thinks, but here I am, a reminder of how much Vail and Hartley have affected me. Fuck’s sake!”

Albert chuckled. “One day, sir, you’re going to see what a blessing it is that they broke down a few of your walls.”

“I’m going to slice you open when you least expect it, Albert.”

“You won’t, but I appreciate the threat.”

“I’m becoming fucking useless,” Jordan muttered. “Everyone walks all over me. I might as well put a goddamn welcome sign on my back, invite those who work for me to take turns.”

“That’s not what happened in there,” Lane stated, his voice firm now. “I get that you’re mad at me, but I didn’t want you to lose out on the money. Not only that, but I’m so fucking bored. I need to be useful. I’m not sure what that looks like, but this was a lot of fun today.”

“Fun?” Jordan barked. “You call rubbing your ass on my buyer’s cock fun?”

“It wasn’t like I was about to fuck him or anything. I was just trying to get him to give in.”

“I’d hate to see what you’d do if he threatened to walk away altogether.”

I barely held it together. I was on the verge of punching the dashboard. Not only didn’t I want to deal with Jordan’s wrath, but I had zero desire to pay for what would be an expensive repair if I hit it.

“Will you take me along with you again?” Lane asked.

“I’m not sure what to say to that. I’m almost afraid of what you’ll do the next time.”

“I can handle myself,” he said in a defensive tone.

“Do you honestly think I’m questioning that after what I saw? Fuck, I should just stay home from now on and let you handle the negotiations.”

“Okay!” Lane exclaimed happily.

“That wasn’t a real suggestion,” Jordan growled. “Jesus.”

“I could do something though.”

Rolling my lips inward, I tried my best not to speak.

How could Lane go from being the son of Edison Everhart to wanting to work for Jordan Altair Sr.?

I understood what Lane said, how they were different.

But this world hadn’t been kind to him. He’d been verbally abused by his father and brothers.

He’d lived in a nightmare just so he could stay with his mom.

Now he was in the thick of it again with a different man over him.

“I’ll think about it,” Jordan grumbled.

Lane was obviously an asset if he could be reined in some.

I couldn’t go with him though. I’d end up reaching my breaking point if he behaved that way again.

I’d forcibly remove him from close proximity to any one of Jordan’s buyers.

That couldn’t happen. I enjoyed my job and had to remain employed in it.

“I’m deadly,” Lane said a few minutes later. “I know I don’t look like Raiden, but I can handle myself. I can shoot and fight well in hand-to-hand. I’ve been training. Plus, I’m good at putting on an innocent face and making people underestimate me.”

“No shit,” Jordan replied. “If I had known you were going to do what you did, I would have left your ass at home.”

“At least I was able to assist you.”

“Shut up, Lane,” he growled.

The remainder of the drive to Jordan’s building was spent in silence. Albert didn’t even feel the need to talk about anything. The man always had something to say.

I was so lost in my thoughts, remembering what happened right in front of me while I watched like I was out of my own damn body, I didn’t realize we were back at the building.

Lane’s hand touching my shoulder startled me. I jumped and turned to face him.

“We’re home,” he said softly. We were the only two left in the car. The doors were closed, and I didn’t see Jordan anywhere.

“Sorry,” I mumbled.

“Don’t be. Are you okay?”

“If you’re going to work for Jordan and do what you did today again, I can’t be there.” I decided to tell him the truth. Lying and saying I was fine wouldn’t do me any good.

“You were jealous. I don’t mean it as a bad thing. I wasn’t interested in him in the least. But, Ray, you have to figure your own shit out. You can’t make me feel guilty for being with anyone else when it’s clear you won’t allow yourself to have more than a friendship with me.”

“It’s not that easy.”

“It is. You’re just making it more difficult than it needs to be.

At any point did I say I wasn’t attracted to you?

No. I refuse to be jerked around though.

I’m not interested in fucking you and moving on with my life.

Since we’re being honest, I’m tired of endless first dates and emotionless fucks.

I want to find someone who desires me for more.

Who doesn’t go on a date and can’t wait for it to end or decides to hit on other people in front of me. I deserve better.”

“Someone actually hit on other people in front of you?”

“Doesn’t sound believable, but it’s true. There are really shitty men in this city.”

“I’m sorry that happened.”

“I’m not. The men I’ve been out with showed their true colors on the first date. Whether flirting with others or having no interest in me once we met, at least I knew where I stood at the end of the night.”

“I’ve never met anyone like you.”

“And you never will. I’ll see you later, Ray.” He winked and opened his door, exiting the car the closing the door, while I sat with my eyes on him as he walked to the elevator.

Facing forward, I dropped my head back on the seat and groaned.

What the fuck was I doing? How did I get so torn up over two men?

Lane told me he was attracted to me, yet I didn’t say shit about going out with him.

Then there was Alton, who was on a whole other planet than me.

I couldn’t help desiring them both to the point of obsessively thinking about them.

A knock on the window had my eyes opening. Oleander stood on the other side with a grin. “You getting out?”

I sighed and unbuckled. I couldn’t stay in here all day, even if it was quiet. When I stood in front of Oleander, he grinned and handed me a case of guns. “Come on. We have to take these upstairs.”

The elevator was quiet; he didn’t say a word until we were in the storage room that was behind a false wall, where Jordan hid everything he brought with him to broker deals. There were samples of the drugs, a variety of guns, and a few stacks of cash he’d gotten as deposits.

“Are you okay?” Oleander asked as he closed the door, which automatically locked, leaving the expensive stuff behind us. He then hit a button that made a wall slide into place. The cops had searched this place repeatedly, but this hidden room was never found.

“I don’t know. What the fuck am I doing?”

“Driving yourself crazy by the look of it.”

“How would I make it work between us?”

“You and Lane or you an Alton?”

“Either. Both.”

He shrugged. “You’re asking the wrong person.

I’m with no one, but I can give you a bit of advice.

Every day, I see people who are happy in love.

Jordan, Vail, and Hartley. Now Reghan and Barrett.

JJ and his partners when they come by. Romeo and his if we visit them.

The list goes on. What I see is, no matter the obstacles they’ve encountered, they’ve all found a way to make it work.

It doesn’t matter how you get there, just as long as you do.

If Lane and Alton are who you’re meant to be with, you’ll figure it out. ”

“Lane I could see in a way,” I told him.

“He’s always around, living here, trying to work, apparently.

He’s from this kind of life. Granted, Jordan’s nothing like Edison, but the foundation is the same.

Illegal dealings with a chance of being shot or arrested.

Alton is nothing like that though. He has a medical practice.

He’s one of the top family physicians in the city.

Why would he want to stoop so low with me? He has the world at his fingertips.”

“He also comes here every month and is on every one of our contact lists,” Oleander said.

“He’ll be here in a flash if we need him.

Alton cares about us. He cares about you .

He’s been single since I’ve met him, and not once have I heard him talk about anyone else.

When your name comes up, he gives the conversation his full attention.

He may not be the same as us, but we’re still human, Ray.

We laugh and cry. We love with our whole damn hearts.

He may have a more public-facing job, but he’s like us in a lot of ways.

You just have to stop focusing on the differences and look at the commonalities. ”