Cold Burn by Olivia Rigal Read Free Book Online

I want to help her pack her things, and—"
    "Don't bullshit me." She drives an accusing finger into my chest. "I can pack for her. Tell me you want to spend more time with her. Tell me you want to check me out before you leave her in my care for a few days. Tell me you want to look at her leather jacket to figure out why someone tried to steal it from her, but do not bullshit me."
    I laugh and plead guilty. "All of the above," I admit. "Plus, I heard that your food is spectacular, and I skipped dinner yesterday. I'm famished, and I'm also hoping to get a good meal. If you feed me, you'll make me a happy man."
    She smiles, and she's even prettier. Not spectacularly good looking but warm and caring. Really lovely.
    "As long as you make Lisa happy, you'll get all your wishes granted from me." She gets back behind the wheel, and I wonder why Xander Wild let her go. She's obviously a keeper. Just like Lisa, she's got the whole package. Curvy looks, smarts, and a positive attitude.
    She gives me the address of a red-brick building on the corner of 57th and Third and tells me to park my bike in her underground garage, where the attendant will direct me to her parking spaces. She drives away, and I stay behind to check on my crew. I go knock on Brains’s door. He's sharing the room with the prospect. He opens the door, and I can see they're all packed up and ready to go ride with Xander and Andy to the next venue later today.
    "How did it go, bro?" Brains asks.
    "Perfect," I say. "We should always have a cop witness our shootings. It really lightens up the questioning. Plus, Andy let them know that Lisa's brother had been a fellow officer who died on the job. It was smooth as silk."
    "How badly was Crazy Eddy hit?" the prospect asks.
    "He got one in the arm. It looked close range, so I think it's Lisa's handiwork. He got another one in the thigh," I tell him. "He'll probably limp, but he'll live."
    "That's good," Brains says. "From what I gathered, he's not a bad guy. Just a misguided dick. An idiot, crazy in love with his Prez’ daughter.”
    Crazy Eddy's lucky Brains is getting soft with age. If I had been in his shoes, there would have been no question about my aim. When a man puts a gun to one of my brothers’ heads, he signs his own death warrant. Maybe Brains’s show of mercy will have earned us a favor with the Lady Liberty Bastards that we'll be able to cash in someday.
    "Did you hear from Waxer and Lobster?"
    Brains and the prospect laugh.
    "Yeah, we heard them alright. Lucky I had Earplugs here with me," Brains says, pointing to the prospect. "Otherwise, we would never have slept."
    The kid shrugs and explains. "I had to share a room with Lobster before…" He leaves us to fill in the rest.
    I wink at Brains. "Looks like you may have picked a name for him."
    "Earplugs?" The incredulous look in the kid's eyes is priceless. "You're gonna call me Earplugs?"
    Brains tells him, "Sounds good to me. You can build a legend around it. Work on it, and it will help you score points with the chicks. Something like, 'I make them scream so loud that neighbors complained they had to get earplugs.'"
    A smile starts to grow on Daniel’s face. Sure, now that we've found a nickname for him, his real name comes to mind. The kid shakes his head and looks ready to embrace his new name.
    "We'll give them a wake-up call around ten and meet with Xander and Andy at noon by Jones Beach," Brains tells me. "You're riding with us?"
    "No, I've got something to finish up in Manhattan, and then I'll join you.”
    "Finishing up something?" Brains sneers. "That's what you kids are calling it now?"
    The prospect snickers, and I glare at him. I give him my worst stare, the one that puts the subs in a catatonic state, and he lowers his gaze. I smirk. Who would have thought? He's built like a regular quarterback, and he's a sub. Whether the prospect gets his patch or not, I'm bringing him to The Styx when we get home. He's gonna be a perfect playmate for