Right Kind of Wrong

  “What?” I say. “Why?”

  Drew bites his lip. “Because Samson might not be here in time. He says he’s going to hurry, but he’s not sure if he’ll make it before everything goes down.”

  I bite back a string of curse words and curl my hands into fists.

  “I guess I’m tagging along after all,” Jenna quips.

  I look at her and my heart hurts. Physically aches. This—this crazy overwhelming sensation I have every time I look at her is exactly why I don’t want her to come along. But I also can’t stay here, by her side, and risk missing an opportunity to clear Drew’s name.

  “Fine,” I bark. “But you have to do exactly what I say.”

  She lifts a smug eyebrow and I want to growl.

  Doesn’t she know I’m only trying to protect her? Doesn’t she understand that if anything were to happen to her I would never—ever—recover?

  “This isn’t about me trying to control you,” I say.

  She looks annoyed. “Right.”

  “Jenna.” I say her name quietly and her whole demeanor changes. “This is me caring about you. Protecting you. Worrying about you.”

  She meets my eyes and seems to understand the importance of what I’m saying.

  “I know.” She nods. She swallows. “I really do.”

  I start to reach for her, then drop my hand. Now’s not the time to get into it with her.

  I turn to Drew and say, “I’m going to need your contact with the Northmen.”

  Drew’s eyes grow wide. “Garrett? No way.” He starts shaking his head. “That guy doesn’t mess around. And if he finds out where I am—”

  “He won’t.”

  “He’ll kill me!”

  “He won’t,” I say sternly. “You have to trust me, Drew. I know what I’m doing.”

  He looks at me like I’m crazy, and maybe I am, but he hands me the number for Garrett anyway.

  I call and explain to Garrett that Drew is innocent and my father is the real culprit, and ask the bounty on Drew to be recalled. Of course Garrett is skeptical, but when I let him in on my plan with Alec—and remind him that the Northmen have nothing to lose by trusting me—he eventually agrees to it and promises to spare Drew from the Northmen.

  Next, I call Clancy and have a similar conversation. He also agrees to call off the price on Drew’s head—as long as my plan works—and save Drew from the Royals.

  It’s a tricky business, negotiating with scoundrels, but it’s a business I have a talent for.

  When my phone calls are complete, I turn back to Drew and Jenna with a deep breath, my palms sweaty and my heart pounding. “Okay, the plan is in motion.”

  My stomach drops to the floor for a moment. People might get hurt. Things could turn sour. My plan is risky.

  But then I remember what’s at stake—Drew’s life—and I pick my guts up and stuff them back inside.

  This is life and death. This is love.

  I look at Jenna first, then Drew, and take a deep breath. “Here goes nothing.”

  23

  Jenna

  “Don’t do this,” I say, watching Jack pack up the remainder of Drew’s things.

  Drew’s outside on the phone with their mom, assuring Lilly that he’s safe, so Jack and I are alone for the first time since Jack went all Mobster Boss and started making shady phone calls and deals with the devil.

  “Don’t do what?” he says, not looking at me.

  I bite my lip. “Don’t use yourself as bait. Just… don’t.”

  Had I known what his full plan was, I certainly wouldn’t have pushed so hard to stay. But he let me in on his scheme a few minutes ago and my pulse has been racing ever since. Not because I don’t want to come along—I do, and there’s nothing Jack can do to change my mind—but I don’t want Jack to go through with it at all.

  He stares at me for a long moment. “Why?”

  I open my mouth. Close it. “What do you mean?”

  He scratches the back of his neck. “Why don’t you want me to do this?”

  “Because it’s dangerous.”

  He waits. “And?”

  “And there are no guarantees.” I know that’s not the answer he wants, but it’s just as valid.

  “And?” He arches an eyebrow.

  “And—and—and it could backfire and Drew could die.” I’m desperate now. Reaching for answers that don’t involve me caring about him. Loving him.

  He deserves to hear the truth, but my mouth is a coward, and my heart is even worse. So I stay in silence and watch the hopefulness in his eyes drain away.

  Stepping up to me, he slides his hands over my shoulders and down my back and around my waist. Not really going anywhere, just caressing me all over with slow, liquid movements. He bows his head and warms my neck with his hot breath as he places a single kiss against my pulse.

  Pulling back just far enough to see my face, a pained expression pulls his features together and he quietly says, “What you’re feeling right now? That fear, that driving sense of urgency and protectiveness? That’s love, Jenna.” I look down and he tilts my chin back up to see into my eyes. “You know how I know?” He scans my face. “Because that’s exactly how I feel about Drew. Fear. Urgency. Protectiveness.” A small smile tugs up his lips and he kisses the tip of my nose. “So I’m going to do this—this dangerous thing—because I love my little brother. And I don’t expect you to understand or approve. Hell, I’m glad you don’t. But I do expect you to admit to yourself that what you feel right now, in here”—he touches a finger to my chest—“is very, very real.”

  Then he presses his lips to mine in a kiss so soft and gentle I’m not sure it’s even there. Like a whisper against my mouth, his lips softly touch mine before walking away. Headed to danger. To possible death.

  Because of love.

  24

  Jack

  Shortly after the sun sets, I sit in Jenna’s car with her and Drew outside an abandoned industrial complex. Handoffs don’t always go down the way you see in the movies, but they do always occur in shady-ass places such as this.

  The surrounding buildings are old and vandalized. Cracked mortar and peeling paint mar every wall and door, and scattered bits of trash litter the concrete of the parking lot.

  The three of us sit in anxious silence. Drew keeps checking over his shoulder, while Jenna keeps fidgeting and biting her lip.

  I’ve assured her that everything will be fine but she’s still antsy. Drew’s just as worried, but his worries stem from fear that someone will find him and turn him in to either the Royals or the Northmen. I’ve assured him that won’t happen either.

  All the key players are in place and everyone crucial to the evening’s events has been clued in. If everything goes according to plan, all of my assurances will be justified.

  A dark car rolls up to a nearby deserted warehouse and kills its headlights. A lone figure emerges from the driver’s door carrying a duffle bag most likely filled with cocaine.

  My father.

  Tommy Oliver is dressed in a suit and tie like he’s some legit businessman, and I have to refrain myself from sneering at the sight. He can’t see our car from where we’re parked, so he stands beside his, waiting.

  His posture is confident. His expression sure. The ease with which he stands and breathes makes me sick to my stomach. He practically signed Drew’s death certificate, yet here he is, unfazed. Eager to go about his selfish business without remorse.

  I’m ashamed to call him blood. And worse, looking at him is like looking at an older version of who I would have been, had I not bowed out of the drug game. The smugness, the ratlike desperation, the constant underbelly dealings. I was almost everything he is. Everything I hate.

  My stomach churns even more and I scrub a hand down my face.

  I look back at Drew. “Remember, make the call when I give you the signal.” Then I look at Jenna. “Don’t worry. Everything’s going to be fine.”

  She shakes her head. “Jack—?
??

  I lean in and kiss her, pulling her face into my hands as I press my mouth against hers and coax her lips open with mine until my tongue can slide against hers. She quietly whimpers, shoving her hands in my hair and pulling me closer, like she can’t get enough of me. I break the kiss, but keep her face in my hands as I look into her eyes.

  She’s been a rock through all of this. Steady. Non-flinching. It’s crazy that I had to go all the way across the country to meet the girl of my dreams, when my entire life that girl lived just a few hours away.

  “I love you, Jenna,” I confess without hesitation or debate. I don’t care that Drew’s here or that we’re at a drug meet. I need her to know, without a doubt, that I love her.

  Her mouth falls open in shock, but I get out of the car before she can respond. She’s not ready to say she loves me yet—I know that—but one of us needed to say it out loud.

  Closing the car door, I walk around the corner and approach my dad casually. His dark hair is cut short and graying at the temples, but it’s still thick and wavy. His eyes are an unsettling shade of gray. My mother used to say they were captivating. I always found them icy and unfriendly, but then again, my encounters with that particular set of gray eyes have been more negative than not. He’s shorter than me, by just an inch or two, but far slimmer.

  His build is the only thing that we don’t have in common, as far as looks go. Everything else—his eyes, his hair, his smile… there’s no denying I’m his son. I used to be proud of that fact.

  I’m not anymore.

  When he sees me, a deep wrinkle creases his brow.

  “Jack?” he says, looking shocked, nervous, and angry. “What are you doing here? Alec called and said he was meeting me here.”

  “To buy your coke?” I nod. “I know. He sent me instead. I’m working for him again,” I say, trying my best to act pleasant.

  He looks me over. “Alec didn’t mention that.”

  I scoff. “Of course he didn’t. The guy hates you, remember? But that doesn’t really matter anymore, because I’m sick of working for him, anyway.” I pause, letting my words sink in, then add, “I want to make a deal. With you.”

  He eyes me suspiciously “What kind of deal?”

  “The kind where you and I screw Alec over and work together,” I bluff, knowing full well that my father’s greatest wish was that he and I would work hand in hand. Even after I screwed him over, he begged and pleaded with me to bail with him and start our own business. He said he understood why I did what I did—why I betrayed him—and he would forgive me if I followed him to a new life of crime.

  He cocks his head, a grin pulling up the sides of his mouth. “I like the sound of that.”

  I smile. “Drew told me you were back in the game and let me know what happened—”

  “Now that was a misunderstanding,” he quickly says, holding up a hand. “I was just trying to protect your brother.”

  “I don’t care. All I want is the money.” I lift my brows. “Did you really get away with it? Because I’m not giving up my gig with Alec unless I know you can support the start-up of you and I working together.”

  “Of course.” He scoffs and nods at his car. “It’s in the trunk right now. I’m headed out of state after this.” He studies me. “You finally ready to uproot?”

  I nod proudly. “Absolutely,” I lie, then nod at a large work truck pulling up to the industrial park. Right on time. “But first I have a few associates I’d like you to meet.”

  The truck comes to a slow stop and Garrett, Drew’s Northmen contact, exits the vehicle. I’ve only met Garrett one other time, under friendlier circumstances, and even then I thought he was scary as hell. He’s tall and bald, with muscles that look out of place on his narrow frame, and eyes so dark they look like black holes. He’s known for torturing his enemies by plucking out their fingernails—a fate I wouldn’t wish on anyone, even my father. Hopefully, tonight’s transaction won’t come to that.

  Garrett walks around the corner to meet us along with five Northmen guys. All armed and ready to shoot.

  My dad’s face falls in horror. “Jack. What is this?”

  I step back so Garrett and his men can close in on him and say, “This is me clearing Drew’s name since, thanks to you, there’s currently a price on his head.”

  “Hello, Tommy,” Garrett says, an evil smile curling up his lips. “It seems you have something that belongs to me.”

  My father takes a step back and visibly begins to shake. “I—what? No. No—I—there’s been a misunderstanding.”

  As Garrett’s men grab my father, I give Drew the signal to call the cops.

  Garrett holds a gun under my dad’s chin and reaches for the duffle bag. “I’ll be taking this back.”

  He tosses the duffle bag to another one of his goons, who quickly verifies its contents. Bricks of cocaine fill the bag and the goon nods in affirmation.

  I head to my dad’s car and pop the trunk. Inside, just like he said, is the money. Grabbing it, I nod to Garrett and he quickly has his guys tie my dad to the nearest parking-lot lamppost.

  “You know, Tommy,” Garrett says, jabbing the gun roughly against my dad’s jawbone as the goons secure his bindings, “I would enjoy killing you. Slowly. And painfully.” He lowers his voice. “You deserve that much.”

  Tommy whimpers. “P—please, don’t.”

  Garrett growls and lowers his gun. “I won’t. But only because your son requested I not kill you. It seems he has a different plan for you.”

  “Time to get moving, Garrett,” I say.

  He nods at me. “Good doing business with you, Jack. Best of luck with that one.” He gestures at my father before loading his guys back into their truck.

  I look at Tommy Oliver in disgust. “You’re pathetic.”

  “Jack, don’t do this—whatever you’re planning to do with me,” he begs. “I can make things right.”

  I stare at him. “You almost had Drew killed.” I shake my head. “There’s no making that right.”

  Garrett and his Northmen pull away from the parking lot and drive off with their reclaimed drugs as I run back to Jenna’s car and hop inside.

  “Are we good?” Drew asks nervously. “Did that go well?”

  “Is everyone in the clear?” Jenna adds, as I start the car and drive us to a darker spot where we can park and be completely hidden in shadows.

  “Almost.” I stare out the windshield, where I still have a view of my father tied to the lamppost. “Did you tip off the cops?” I ask Drew.

  “Yep. I told them that a known felon would be unarmed and waiting for them at this address right about…” He looks at the time. “Now.”

  Police vehicles suddenly pour into the area and officers jump from their patrol cars and surround my father. With numerous warrants out in his name, they arrest Tommy Oliver and drag him into the back of one of the patrol cars and peel away from the scene, their sirens blaring.

  “So what now?” Drew asks.

  I exhale. “Alec agreed to let me meet Dad in place of him, as long Dad got arrested, which we did. So our business with Alec and the Vipers is finished. The only person left to deal with now is Clancy.” I start the car. “Just one more stop, then we’re done.”

  We drive to the French Quarter and I park us outside of Crowns. While Jenna and Drew wait in the car, I slip inside the bar with the briefcase of money from my dad’s trunk and find Clancy. Throwing the briefcase down in front of him I say, “Here it is. Every last penny.”

  He laughs as he counts it and shakes his head. “You sure know how to close a deal, Jack. I’ll give you that.”

  “Are we good then?” I say, crossing my arms.

  “Oh, we’re good.” Clancy nods with a grin. “We’re all good.”

  I nod once then hurry back outside and into the car. Once inside, I turn in my seat to look at Drew and smile. “You’re free and clear, bro.”

  “Really?” Drew’s eyes light up.

  I n
od. “The Northmen got their drugs back and Clancy got his money back, so there’s no longer a price on your head.” I lower my voice. “But promise me, Drew—promise me—that you will never get involved with any of this shit again.”

  He swallows and nods. “I promise.”

  “Good.” I nod. “But hey.”

  He looks up at me.

  “You did good tonight, Drew,” I say. “This couldn’t have happened without your help.”

  He presses his lips together and nods once. “Want me to call Samson? He’s probably still on the road, but I can tell him to meet us in the French Quarter if you want.”

  “Yeah,” I say. “Good idea.”

  Drew slouches back in his seat and makes the call.

  I stare out the windshield at the parking lot of Crowns, thinking about the evening’s events, specifically my father being hauled away by the police, and a great weight lifts from my shoulders. Jenna must sense this because she squeezes my hand.

  “You did good too, Jack,” she says.

  I turn to her and smile sadly. “I just facilitated a drug deal and had my father arrested. Good is relative.”

  She lifts my hand in hers. “You saved your brother’s life,” she says, kissing the inside of my palm. “You did good.”

  We stare at each other in the dark car, our gazes locked and filled with emotion.

  “Sam’s on his way,” Drew says, and Jenna releases my hand.

  We drive through the French Quarter and I park beside a familiar green car on one of the neighborhood streets. Two figures clamber out of the green car: my mom and Samson. They rush over as the three of us get out of Jenna’s car and my mother throws her arms around Drew.

  “Oh, baby! I was so scared,” she says. “I’m so glad you’re safe.”

  Drew sighs into her hair. “I’m so sorry, Mom. I totally messed up. I’m so sor—”

  “Shh. I don’t care. You’re safe. That’s all that matters.” She hugs him again and a tear falls down her cheek.

  Samson hugs him next, pounding him on the back with a fist. “You scared the shit out of me, man.” Pulling back, he claps him on the shoulder. “I love you, Drew. But don’t ever do that again. Or I’ll kill you myself.”